Living with vitiligo can be tough, so it’s no wonder that we spend a lot of time searching for a cure or a method to cover the white patches. However, neither one of these truly permanently deals with the deeper issue…our self-worth.
The terms self-worth and self-esteem are often used interchangeably, but I believe there is a significant difference between them.
Self-worth is having a proper sense of your true value as a person regardless of any external considerations or performance markers. Self-worth involves introspection and honest self-evaluation, as well as an understanding of the basic value of all life, and especially human life. Self-worth is always derived internally and is most concerned with the profundity of life and quality of character.
Self-esteem, on the other hand, is what we think of ourselves regardless of whether its true or not. More often than not, self-esteem does not involve any real introspection. It is largely driven by external and subconscious influences. Its more often based on performance or appearance rather than character.
Self-worth is a much sturdier foundation to build our life upon than self-esteem. Self-worth is self-sustaining, while self-esteem can be easily damaged if we have little or no underlying sense of self-worth. Self-esteem is more vulnerable to false pride and vanity. It is less resilient to self-doubts and external attack because it shifts with both external influences and internal emotions and thoughts patterns.
Unfortunately, feeding our self-esteem is easier than developing our self-worth, and you know we humans like to take the path of least resistance. We usually opt for the quick fix instead of the long-term investment.
This is not to say that self-esteem is a bad thing. Positive self-esteem allows us to feel good about ourselves on a superficial level, and we live much of our day at that level. After all, we can’t walk around in deep thought and introspection all day long. But self-worth is ever present in our character, while self-esteem is dependent on many variables.
So how do we develop our self-worth? Self-worth is largely developed through honest introspection and an understanding of our spiritual nature, but there are several things we can become proactive at to boost both our self-worth and self-esteem. You’ve probably already tried a few: trying to think good thoughts, reading motivational materials, helping others…etc.
If you have found that these techniques didn’t have a deep, staying power on building your self-worth then you will want to try NLP, Neuro-linguistic Programming.
I will explain NLP in my blog tomorrow. The reason that I am so excited to share this method with you is two-fold: First, it will help build your self-worth so you will be able to live a full life by worrying less about how others view your vitiligo. And, since some doctors and scientists have theorized that vitiligo is stress related, using NLP to de-stress your life may be just the cure we are looking for…a way to reverse vitiligo from the inside out.
Originally posted on Feb.25 2012