Low Self-EsteemTherapy in Arlington, VA
Are you missing out on life because of your low self-esteem?
Maybe you can’t sleep at night because of thoughts of how horrible you are, or perhaps you are tired of seeing others living their best life while you hide in the shadows.
You might struggle to look in the mirror because you hate what you see or simply feel very lonely, but you are sure others would judge you if they got to know you.
Perhaps you can’t quiet that voice nitpicking everything you say, do, and think. The voice even nitpicks the fact that you nitpick. You can never get anything right.
You want a break from feeling terrible about yourself.
You want to live life freely and vibrantly.
You want to ask for promotions and take pride in your work. To go make that new friend. To go on that date. But you can’t figure out how.
Your low self-esteem has taken control of your life and you:
Constantly have self-critical thoughts and blame yourself when things go wrong.
Only focus on your negative qualities and quickly ignore your achievements.
Notice that peers are making more money and getting promotions while you don’t feel good enough to progress in your career.
Put yourself down in front of others and negatively joke about yourself.
Often compare yourself to others and believe you are worse than others.
Have very little confidence in yourself..
Reject positive feedback and compliments.
Do not trust yourself and can’t make simple decisions.
Are sensitive to disapproval or criticism and often take things personally.
Hold yourself back and avoid engaging in challenges out of fear of failure.
Believe you don’t deserve to be happy or have fun.
Feel needy and unworthy.
Often struggle with the way your body looks.
Avoid expressing yourself to others.
Have a bleak outlook for your future.
Feel helpless and don’t believe you are strong enough to change.
Feel depressed, anxious, ashamed, and frustrated.
Hi, I’m Dr. Ann Krajewski
I am a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and specialize in working with adults in their 20s and 30s who deal with low Self-Esteem in Arlington, VA.
Through in-depth therapy, I will help you feel heal that voice that never shuts up about how awful you are so that you can finally pursue the life you always wanted. Your life doesn’t have to be consumed by the depression that results from low self-esteem. Healing your inner critic will help you feel content and happy with yourself again.
Low self-esteem can rob you of a life of contentment and joy.
It causes you to be afraid to say the things you want, do the things you want, and wear the things you want. This part of you is convinced that your faults make up the totality of who you are, and what people see often comes from some type of trauma - big or small.
Maybe you had parents who were never proud but always had negative feedback.
Or you were bullied by siblings or peers.
Maybe you never received the support you needed to succeed, so you ended up struggling every step of the way (i.e., undiagnosed ADHD).
Whatever it was - you were left feeling worthless, and that something was wrong with who you were deep down. Your life became all about avoiding future criticism and shame. You internalized the judgment and learned to treat yourself the same way they treated you.
It may feel impossible now, but your life doesn’t have to be controlled by the shame and guilt inherent in low self-esteem.
You can feel secure and confident enough to put yourself out there - to go for what you want even if it means others might judge you. You can love yourself.
Through in-depth therapy, I can help you experience healing from the wounds that led you to where you are today. We will look at past and present experiences that reinforce the narrative that you are worthless. You can grieve the love you never received but desperately needed. You can work through the barriers that keep you stuck in your low self-esteem.
Taking the time to process the past unconscious dynamics that allow your inner critic to have so much power will release you from its grip. That faint voice that believes in yourself can grow stronger and louder.
Your heart can melt with pride when someone compliments your hard work or gives you some others kind of compliment.
You can reach out to that person you want to get to know.
You can go on those dating apps or say yes to that date.
You can ask for that bonus or look for a new job confidently.
You can wear that outfit that you have always wanted.
You can go on that trip.
You can take up space in that conference room and actually share your ideas.
You can do all these things without being consumed by fear of judgment/criticism from yourself or others. I want to help you build a life free from the constraints of low self-esteem.
You don’t have to live a life controlled by shame and criticism.
I want to help you break free from the chains of low self-esteem so you can learn to love yourself again.
So your life doesn’t have to be about playing small.
Learn more about the therapy process here.
“you can’t heal your wounded parts while living in the shadow of other people’s opinions.”
— Dr. Mariel Buqué