Lacking Confidence Courses & Self-Esteem Therapy Essex

Confidence and self-esteem determine how positively you feel about yourself, your capabilities and your attitude to certain life experiences.

When you feel confident, you tend to be more comfortable in your own skin and around others. You feel motivated to take on new challenges and experiences, and are better equipped to handle life’s ups and downs.

Similarly, if you have good self-esteem or self-worth, you will typically feel positive about who you are. You are kinder to yourself, recognise your strengths, and take mistakes in your stride.

However, when your confidence drops, or you struggle with low self-esteem, it can significantly change your outlook. You become more negative and critical of yourself, feel the weight of others’ expectations, and often feel inadequate. In turn, this can hurt your personal growth and stop you engaging in social situations.

Confidence and self-esteem are closely linked and they often influence each other. But they are not the same – it is possible for someone to feel anxious in certain situations but have generally high self-esteem (and vice versa).

Confidence relates to your interactions with the world around you. If you made a mistake at work, failed a test at school, or did something you felt was embarrassing at a party, you may lose confidence.

Meanwhile self-esteem is more internal. It is about the opinions and beliefs you have about yourself, and what you consider your worth. If you have a negative self-perception, it can cause you to shy away from social situations or disrupt your life, work, relationships and more.

There is no definitive cause for lack of confidence or low self-esteem, but some of the most common sources include:

Childhood experiences

Low self-esteem often forms in childhood. Experiences such as bullying, struggles at school or high expectations set by your parents can form long-term negative beliefs about your capabilities and body image.

Negative life events

A painful life experience, such as losing your job, a relationship break-up or bereavement, may cause your confidence to drop and make you believe that you’ve failed or let someone down.

Insufficient praise or encouragement

A lack of praise, support or encouragement at any age may cause you to actively seek approval, and if it doesn’t come, it can make you feel like you’re not good enough.

Not fitting in with social groups

If you find yourself uncomfortable in certain social situations, this can damage your confidence and make it more difficult to form relationships.

Comparing yourself to others

Particularly in the social media age, it can be easy to look at other people’s happiness or achievements and feel that your life is inadequate in comparison.

If you struggle with low confidence or self-limiting beliefs, you are not alone. Many people feel the same way, with suggestions that the UK is experiencing a “confidence crisis”:

While each person’s experience is unique, people with low self-esteem or those lacking in confidence often share one or more of the following traits:

• You feel unsuccessful or that you are not living up to expectations
• You lack self-compassion, and believe negative thoughts such as “I’m hopeless”, “I’m worthless” or “I don’t deserve to be happy”
• You joke about yourself in a negative way or put yourself down
• You focus on your flaws and failures more than your strengths and achievements
• You lack direction or motivation
• You typically feel shy around others
• You feel inferior to others
• You blame yourself when things go wrong
• You find it hard to accept compliments from others
• You don’t feel like you deserve it when good things happen to you
• You feel bitter about your work or personal relationships
• You avoid challenges and certain situations
• You often feel depressed, anxious, ashamed or angry

Low confidence or self-esteem can make it harder to start or maintain healthy relationships with a partner, friend or family member:

• You may question your worthiness to your friends or partner, making it hard to fully commit to relationships
• You may feel jealous or insecure about others’ looks or accomplishments, leading to resentment
• You may find it hard to ask for help or support when you need it, meaning your needs are unfulfilled
• You may take feedback or requests from others personally, causing you to feel rejected or hurt
• You find it hard to be authentic around others and put too much effort into trying to look your best or be entertaining

If you struggle with your confidence at work, it can make it harder to progress your career in a meaningful way:

• A fear of failure could mean you avoid taking on projects or opportunities that could benefit your future
• You may lack assertiveness or be quiet during meetings, meaning you are overlooked by your employer
• Your desire for approval could causes you to overwork and burn out
• Feeling inferior to your colleagues may mean you constantly seek their guidance
• You may react poorly to feedback or constructive criticism, causing people to see you in a negative light

It can take time to improve your self-esteem, particularly if you have felt this way for a long time. Here are a number of steps that you can take right now to help boost your self-belief:

You may find that these tips make a positive difference to your self-esteem and confidence. However, for some these may not have a noticeable impact, or only paper over the cracks of your mental health problems.

In these circumstances, speaking to a qualified therapist or signing up to a dedicated ‘lacking confidence’ course can help you gain techniques and skills that help you manage your negative thoughts and feelings in the long term.

We understand how difficult it can be to move past your self-limiting beliefs, especially if they have been with you since childhood. But you don’t need to face these problems alone.

At Therapy For You, you can access a range of free treatments that help you understand the reasons for your lack of confidence and teach you skills to manage your negative thoughts.

Our treatment pathways for lack of confidence and low self-esteem include:

Online Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) course

Our free online CBT course is a great entry into therapy, as there is no wait time and you can complete it at your own pace, at a time and place that suits you. Conducted over five video-led sessions, you will gain effective techniques to improve your assertiveness and challenge your negative beliefs.

Direct Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

If you would prefer a more personalised, conversational approach, our mental health professionals are happy to guide you through your concerns. This can help you to understand the root cause of your low confidence, and develop a treatment plan tailored to your circumstances.

Depending on your needs, you can access our CBT services in Essex in a variety of ways:

• One-to-one NHS therapy sessions
• Group therapy sessions
• Video therapy services
• Over the phone counselling
• ieso mental health therapy

Counselling

Counselling can give your practical advice and support to better manage your problems and tackle the impact that low self-esteem has on your life.

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is considered one of the most effective approaches to improving self-esteem. This is because it addresses the negative cycles that form between thoughts, feelings and behaviours, and introduces practical techniques that break these.

Our lack of confidence online course is grounded in CBT, and overcomes some of the concerns you may have about conventional, face-to-face therapy:

• You can start an online course immediately (as long as you’re registered with a GP in the North East or South East Essex districts)
• All video sessions are accessible from any device or location with an internet connection, so you can watch them where you feel most comfortable
• You don’t need to travel for a specific place and time, allowing you to fit therapy around your schedule
• You can download and use self-help resources attached to each session
• You can rewatch completed videos and sessions at any time to refresh your skills

We know that the prospect of therapy can feel daunting for some. You may feel unsure about sharing your thoughts and feelings with a stranger, or opening up about the problems you are facing.

From the very first session, our friendly, qualified therapists aim to create a comfortable, safe environment for you. We work with you to quickly form a trusting, professional relationship, so you will always feel confident discussing your thoughts and feelings.

We are 100% discrete and confidential, and can provide as much support as you need to overcome your struggles with self-esteem.

There is no set time limit for our lack of confidence therapy courses. You may experience significant improvements in your mood after only 3 or 4 therapy sessions, or it may take a longer course of therapy.

On some occasions people may tackle this over a few courses of therapy, learn skills to help in one area and take a therapeutic break, before returning for further sessions with a different goal. We will work with you to figure out how many sessions will likely be needed to see improvements.

Our online CBT course can be completed in just over 2 weeks. However, we encourage you to complete our video modules at a pace that suits you. You can also return and revisit these materials at any time once you have finished the course.

If you are based in Colchester, Tendring, Southend, Castle Point or Rochford (or their surrounding areas), Therapy For You is your dedicated NHS Talking Therapy service. Get in touch if you would like to know more about where our in-person therapy sessions take place.

Our free CBT course Understanding Self-Esteem is fully online, and can be completed at the pace you’re comfortable with.

Alternatively, we also offer both video calls and online typed therapy if you are uncomfortable with or unable to travel to in-person therapy sessions.

Low confidence or self-esteem can have a huge, lasting impact on your ability to form relationships and achieve your goals. If negative, critical thoughts are holding you back and preventing your happiness, we are here to help.

At Therapy For You, our CBT and online psychoeducational courses have helped many people with low self-esteem in Essex take meaningful steps to feeling better. Let us help you understand the causes and triggers behind your lack of confidence, and develop skills and strategies to build your self-worth and enjoy a more positive outlook.

• Benefit from 1-1 therapy with a qualified professional
• Surround yourself with people who share your feelings with our types of group therapy
• Text your therapist from the comfort of your home with ieso typed therapy
• Access support remotely, either through video calls or over the phone

Get in touch with our team today to find out more, or start your journey to a more confident future today with our online CBT course, Understanding Self-Esteem.