Performing poorly at school or being bullied can also cause low self-esteem. Stressful life events, such as an unhappy relationship, a bereavement or serious illness, may also cause low self-esteem.
As you become older, it's common to lose some confidence as your body changes and you face life-altering events, like retirement, health issues, and loss of loved ones.
It's easy to feel confident when things are going your way. But setbacks, failures, and criticism from yourself and others can start to wear away at your confidence. If you find yourself avoiding challenges, giving up easily, or feeling more sensitive to criticism, it's possible that you're losing your confidence.
Low self-esteem isn't a mental health problem in itself. But mental health and self-esteem can be closely linked. Some of the signs of low self-esteem can be signs of a mental health problem.
Positive thinking, practice, training, knowledge and talking to other people are all useful ways to help improve or boost your confidence levels. Confidence comes from feelings of well-being, acceptance of your body and mind (your self-esteem) and belief in your own ability, skills and experience.
Some of the many causes of low self-esteem may include: Unhappy childhood where parents (or other significant people such as teachers) were extremely critical. Poor academic performance in school resulting in a lack of confidence. Ongoing stressful life event such as relationship breakdown or financial trouble.
Studies have shown that self-esteem reaches a peak in one's 50s or 60s, and then sharply drops in old age (4–7). This is a characteristic change, so it is important to reveal about when self-esteem peaks across the life span.
Self-esteem appears to increase quickly in young adulthood (up to age 30), and more gradually until middle adulthood (up to age 60). After peaking somewhere between 60 and 70 years, begins dropping—quite quickly after age 90.
What does a person with low self-esteem look like?
Low self-esteem causes people to focus on their flaws rather than their strengths. Rather than build themselves up with positive self-talk, they always seem to have something negative to say about themselves, engaging in negative self-talk instead.
A big red flag is the partner attempting to drive a wedge in between the victim and their support network. Low self-esteem. If your friend has low self esteem – especially when their partner is the one often at the root of their insecurity, that's a huge red flag. Abusers will often try to put down their victims.
Insecurities are brought on when we recognize differences between ourselves and others, either on our own or through someone else pointing it out. For example, a child who is teased on the playground at school for being in a larger body than their peers may come to feel insecure about their weight and body.
A major cause for a person to gradually become insecure is his/her share of bad experiences. They could be around broken trust, cheating, disturbed childhood, traumatising episodes in school, feeling of not being loved enough, ignorance, etc. A sort of a fear sets in no matter how strong you try to project yourself.
