 Hey Psych2go fam, welcome to another video. Are you your own worst critic? Are you wrestling with a lot of insecurity and self-doubt right now, but don't know why? When you internalize the idea of not being good enough, you don't appreciate yourself enough. When you're too harsh and demanding with yourself, it leads you to believe that you don't deserve anything in life. It's only human nature to doubt yourself, and want to be a better person, but it's important to know when it goes from self-improvement to self-destruction. Here are 7 of the most likely reasons why you don't feel good enough. 1. You're overly self-critical. Do you find it hard to forgive yourself for your mistakes? Do you immediately blame yourself when something goes wrong in your life? Research has shown that our day-to-day thoughts can have a powerful impact on our feelings, behaviors, and attitudes. So if you often talk down to yourself a lot and criticize yourself too harshly, it would certainly result in low self-esteem, pessimistic thinking, and feelings of inadequacy. These negative beliefs inform the way you feel about yourself, and if you keep listening to your own negativity, you'll never feel like you're good enough. 2. You always compare yourself to others. As the saying goes, comparison is the thief of joy. Being comparisons does not only hurt your self-esteem, but also causes misery. A lot of us are guilty of doing this, especially when you're feeling insecure or doubting yourself. But social comparisons only make you feel worse, because the reality is, there will always be someone who you consider better than yourself. And focusing too much on competing with everyone else and seeing how you measure up to them will just leave you feeling bitter, envious, and resentful of both others and yourself. 3. You're surrounded by toxic people. Do your so-called friends like to prey on your insecurities and make fun of you for it? Does your partner tear you down with backhanded compliments and thinly veiled judgment? Is your family unsupportive of everything you do? Sometimes, the problem might not lie so much in yourself, but in the people you choose to surround yourself with. The people you love are supposed to boost your self-confidence and help you see the good in yourself, but all unhealthy relationships do is constantly make you question your own self-worth. No matter how hard you try, you'll never feel good enough as long as you're surrounded by toxic people like this. 4. Your parents are too demanding. Growing up, did your parents set unrealistically high goals for you? Did they expect you to become the next child prodigy, the best in the class, the most obedient, the star athlete, and so on? All children grow up wanting to please their parents and craving their unconditional love and acceptance, but most parents don't give their love freely. This leads you to grow up thinking that your worth is conditional and that you're only ever as good as the things you're able to accomplish. 5. You struggle with abandonment issues. Do you have trouble maintaining close, meaningful relationships with others? If you struggle with low self-esteem or poor self-image, it might be a sign that you're struggling with abandonment issues. Divorce, death, and other painful ends to important relationships can leave you with a strong and oftentimes subconscious fear of being abandoned. And the worst part is, this causes you to believe that it's your fault your loved ones walked out on you and that it was because you weren't good enough in some way, which isn't true. 6. You have unhealed emotional trauma. Were you ever in an abusive relationship, be it physically or emotionally? Were you ever the victim of any violent crime? Were you ever bullied or neglected as a child? Studies show that over 70% of adults experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, and of these people up to 20% go on to develop PTSD or other serious mental illnesses. When we don't heal from our emotional trauma, it can lead to a lot of anger, guilt, regret, frustration, and hate that's often directed towards your own self. Your unhealed trauma leads you to believe you don't deserve anything good in your life. And 7. You're suffering from depression. Last, but certainly not least. If you've been struggling to feel good enough for a long time, it could be because you're actually suffering from clinical depression. Among one of the most recognizable symptoms of depression are strong feelings of worthlessness and self-loathing. Others include a depressed mood, over-fatigue, lack of energy, loss of interest and motivation, suicidal ideation, and a disturbance in sleep or appetite. If you suspect you might be suffering from clinical depression, we recommend you seek help and get diagnosed by a professional. Have you been struggling to feel good enough for a long time? Do you know anyone around battling these feelings? It's only natural to feel like you're not good enough sometimes. And for many of us, it's a lifelong struggle to love and accept ourselves for who we really are. Sadness, insecurity, and self-doubt are all a part of the spectrum of healthy human emotions that we all feel from time to time. But with enough patience, support, and dedication, it gets easier over time. So don't hesitate to reach out to a mental health care professional today and talk to them about how you feel. Like and share this video with those you think might benefit from it. Don't forget to subscribe to Psych2Go for more helpful videos. And thanks for watching. We'll see you next time.