Your self-esteem means what you think of yourself, how you see yourself. If you have low self-esteem, you might be feeling as though you're not good enough, that you always fail, that you're not clever enough or good-looking enough, funny enough, thin enough, popular enough etc etc etc - The list is endless! Everyone feels a bit unsure of themselves sometimes, but having low self-esteem can really get you down and if it gets really out of hand it could lead to other problems.
The way we are treated by other people, what they say to us, what we see around us and how we actually feel ourselves all helps to develop our self-esteem. So it's not surprising that people also develop an unrealistic idea about what is 'normal' - with our TV and film screens flooded with 'perfect' celebrities it's easy to become a bit disheartened!
Positive self-esteem is a result of feeling secure and having self-respect, feeling confident enough to deal with life's challenges.
If our self-esteem is low, we don't believe in ourselves or we may feel unable to achieve any goals and therefore have no motivation to set goals for ourselves.
But!!
Levels of self-esteem are not fixed and it is possible to change. Thinking negative thoughts about ourselves can become a bit of a habit - but it is a habit that can be broken. Whether we're conscious of it or not we are constantly telling ourselves how we think and feel. (Remember that next time you catch yourself thinking that your bum looks big!)
So, one way to raise your self-esteem is to change the way you talk to yourself.