Low Self-Esteem and Counselling

Self-esteem may be defined as the way a person feels and thinks about himself or herself, which can be positive or negative, or even a combination of both. It plays an important role in deciding the way one lives their life, the choices they make and the perspective with which they view others. In today’s world, people have become used to comparing themselves with others. This gives rise to insecurities, feelings of negativity about oneself, dissatisfaction and depression.

There are a number of symptoms which can indicate low self-esteem in an individual. Some of the most common ones are as follows:

• feeling unworthy
• not being able to recognise one’s own abilities and competency
• feeling deprived of love
• contemplating over negative thoughts and fear
• feeling impractical about goals
• getting pulled into devastating relations
• fearing change
• holding distorted views about oneself as well as others

The esteem in every individual initiates right from birth and develops slowly over time. Strong bonds and positive experiences nourish it, whereas troubled relations and bad experiences obstruct its development. When children feel that they are understood and valued and their worries can be chased away, they start to realise their own value and regard the world as a safe place. In time, they become capable enough to recognise stressful situations and negative relations and use their instincts for protecting themselves. They learn to handle tough times without getting damaged and be careful so as to avoid encountering too many problems in life. Negative experiences, on the other hand, can significantly decrease self-esteem in those people who are not strong enough to hold themselves up against difficulties. They may even become fearful or unrealistic about risks and goals, which may further hamper their self-image. However, providing them with some external source of strength such as counselling can help them greatly to change for the better.

Consulting a counsellor who is supportive can help a person with low self-esteem to take a tough look at himself or herself, and feel strong enough to alter things that give rise to negative thoughts and feelings. There are several ways by which counselling can improve low self-esteem. Transactional analysis and cognitive behavioural therapy can help to check negative self-beliefs, pessimistic assumptions and faulty thoughts, especially those things that can make the patient feel trapped all the time.

Jade Couquaux is a renowned French psychologist practising in Bondi. Book an appointment with her today to get rid of problems associated with low self-esteem.

Counseling What is it and What are its Various Therapy Formats

Counseling What is it and What are its Various Therapy Formats from counsellingbondi

Counselling Bondi offers women & couple counseling in Bondi. Here the psychologist in Bondi does relationship counseling, counselling for depressed women & more.

Causes of Work-Related Depression in Women

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Women offer suffer from work-related depression. It has become a growing problem all over the world. It affects not only the health & well-being of the working women but even the productivity of the organisations. It is after all the second most common compensated injury/illness in Bondi Junction, NSW after musculoskeletal disorders. 

A woman may experience work-related depression die to many reasons. It is said that work-related depression in woman generally arises when there is too much of workload and pressure with deadlines as well as overtime, unsupportive work environment, bullying & harassment, lack of job security or job satisfaction, redundancies, problems with office colleagues, personal problems or too much of responsibility beyond the job level. 

Many people think that it is actually the heap of unfinished work that causes depression in women at work. But that's not the main reason. A lot of studies have been conducted on this and it has been found out that heavy workload has no such effect on employees who get depressed. It is basically the work environment & feeling of being ill-treated by the boss or management, which has the greatest impact on the mood of the employees. 

However, one thing needs to be kept in mind that what one woman may consider as stressful and depressive, another may view that same thing as challenging. So, whether a woman actually suffers from work-related depression depends on the nature of the job, the psychological make-up of the woman and such other factors. 

Given below are  some internal as well as external causes of work-related depression in a woman. Have a look at them: 

Internal causes :

• wrong-fit role 
• mismatch between personal values and company values 
• working parent guilt 
• interpersonal discomfort 
• work/life imbalance 
• extrovert/introvert stress 
• financial struggles 
• feeling trapped 

External causes :

• unreasonable demands from the management 
• unclear guidance at workplace 
• bullying behaviours faced at work-related
• poor project practices
• low engagement or low morale at work 
• poor working conditions 

Are you a woman who is facing work-related depression? Try talking to your boss or human resources manager at your workplace. If you want, you can also take the help of your doctor or a psychologist in Bondi to deal with your depression. 

When to Seek Psychological Counselling?

Maintaining a proper and sound mental health is as important as caring for physical fitness of the body. For having a healthy mind, a person must be free from anxiety, depression, excessive stress, addictions and various other psychological issues. But it is not always easy to keep oneself away from these problems, especially in the modern times when our lives are filled with busy schedules and hecticness. Therefore, it is important to understand when to seek psychological counselling. 

Some of the conditions that require mental health counselling are as follows:

Suicidal Thoughts and Tendencies :

Individuals contemplating on suicide or harming themselves must be administered with professional psychological counselling. Their safety should be secured properly and steps should be taken to determine if they are a potential danger to the safety of others. After a suicidal individual receives the first evaluation, appointment must be set for a session in future.

Signs of Depression :

Talking therapy can help to curb down the symptoms of acute depression such as feelings of despair and hopelessness, loss of interest in favourite activities, anxiety, weight loss or gain, and changed sleeping habits. Physicians can administer screening for the signs of depression and also refer the patient to some reputed psychologist or therapist.

Dramatic Mood Fluctuations :

Irregular mood fluctuations during puberty, menopause, pregnancy, etc. can also be an indication that the person requires counselling. Sometimes the cause can be due to hormonal imbalances, which must be confirmed with a physician. Duration, times and frequency of the mood swings must be noted down carefully so as to report the counsellor about them later on.

Substance Abuse :

People with addiction problems also require psychological counselling. In most cases, it plays an important role throughout the rehabilitation process. After doctors detect medical stabilisation, therapeutic counselling for improving mental health can be essential to overcome the addiction.

Post-Traumatic Stress :
Individuals recovering from the after-effects of traumatic events can significantly benefit from talking therapy sessions. Many people often find it difficult to manage post-traumatic stress without the help of a mental health therapist after incidents like car accidents, abuse, loss of someone dear, sexual assault, etc. Talking to a counsellor about the emotional difficulties can make it easier for them to cope up with the situation more effectively.

If you are experiencing any of the above mentioned psychological problems, you can book an appointment with the French psychologist Jade Couquaux. She is a renowned counsellor who works with individuals as well as couples in Bondi Junction.

Body Image Issues in Women

Body image may be defined as the way how a person actually feels about his or her body. Due to increased focus on looks in our society, body image issues are becoming very common particularly in women. In Australia, dissatisfaction with body has grown considerably during the last few decades and is currently considered as a major concern among teenage girls and women alike. The way a woman feels about the shape of her figure can be influenced by that which they hear and see in media and also how their family, friends and acquaintances treat them.

Feelings of discomfort with one’s shape of figure can also lead to eating disorders and severely affect self-esteem as well as relationships, self-medication, unhealthy patterns of exercise and self-harm. According to extensive research, almost half of the women among Kiwis are under the impression that they are overweight. Most of them obsess themselves over perceived imperfections, desperate ways of losing weight, spending hours grooming themselves and hating almost every part of their own frame. The discomforts can even cause a certain mental sickness known as body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), which may cause a woman to believe objectively false things about her body.

People who do not suffer from such issues often tend to dismiss the victims. Body image is not a superficial problem. Issues with self-confidence can cause a myriad of other medical conditions, commonly eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia. Unfortunately, almost 10 per cent of the people struggling with such afflictions ultimately die. Depression is another associated problem.

There are several factors which can collectively cause one to develop negative feeling about one’s own shape of figure.

• Excessive exposure to media such as fashion mags, commercials, billboards, etc.
• Health problems
• History of trauma, abuse or eating disorder
• Sudden alterations in appearance, such as women gaining weight right after pregnancy
• Domestic violence
• Past mental illness
• Addiction

Counselling and therapy can significantly help in uncovering the primary causes of body image problems. In most scenarios, multiple factors can combine for destroying a woman’s self-esteem. Pessimistic thoughts about one’s figure can have disastrously unhealthy influences, but proper counselling can successfully determine those thoughts and replace them with strategies for alleviating the issues. Breaking away from the negative behaviours and thoughts is one of the main factors to achieve a healthy image. No matter what, it is essential to consult a reputed psychologist in Bondi immediately if one is experiencing such issues.

Causes of Anxiety in Women and How to Alleviate Them?

In the modern times, anxiety has become more common among women than men in Bondi Junction, NSW. While some anxiety issues rise from societal and cultural expectations, others may also be triggered by hormonal imbalances occurring in the body, the former being the primary cause.

Stress At Workplace :

While this can be the cause of stress for most people, the workplace of a woman is more likely of including discrimination and harassment, as well as work pressure. All of these can be quite difficult to combat with, because it is often subtle and easy for miscreants to deny or disguise their wrongful deeds. Besides that, work pressure can also take tolls on a woman trying to maintain balance between office and home.

Overload of Domestic Responsibility :

Women are usually expected to perform the duties of two or more members within a household. Most men are culturally brought up or trained to regard that women bear the primary responsibility of conducting domestic tasks like cleaning, cooking, and attending children. Such a situation can be extremely stressful for a woman who also has to work outside home.

Sexist Demeanors from Family :

Besides being assigned with additional domestic responsibilities, women are often pressured by their family members to pursue specific goals like getting married, bearing children, or doing jobs with low pay so that it does not overawe a spouse. Such pressure can be very stressful for a woman because it becomes very difficult to maintain a positive connection with those family members.

Hormonal Changes :

During the course of her life, a woman will often find her hormones thrown off from balance quite often. Most of the times, it can adversely affect her physically as well as emotionally. Hormonal imbalances can have many symptoms that trigger anxiety, like cramps, irregular growth of hair, hot flashes and sleep disorders. Some of the common natural causes for hormonal imbalances include -

• Menstrual cycle
• Pregnancy
• Lactation
• Menopause
• Thyroid dysfunction

Besides these natural factors, hormonal imbalances may also be caused by some unnatural causes, such as -

• Obesity
• Contraceptive pills
• Consumption of animal products that are non-organic
• Overuse of cosmetics

Ways to Alleviate Anxiety :

No matter what the cause maybe, anxiety can be successfully coped up with and also alleviated by following certain measures. Domestic responsibilities can be shared equally with other members in the family. If one or more family members are pressurising to do something, a respectful explanation should be provided about the resulting discomfort. To maintain an equilibrium between home and work, your daily tasks and responsibilities should be analysed or help from a reputed counsellor in Bondi Junction must be taken. Adequate amount of sleep and a properly balanced diet are necessary as well. Oriental and holistic treatments or therapies can also help to combat stress. 

Why and When Should You Seek Couple Counselling?

While most statistical records show that around 50 per cent of first wedlocks in Bondi end in separation, the matter of major concern is that this figure has been constant for the last three decades. All these prove that the rates of marriage are supposedly on the slump. 

Divorce rates vary with couples’ level of education and several other influencing factors. But the consequences of divorce are harsh on couples and their children. Children involved in the divorce may also experience adverse effects like denial, aggression, guilt, blame, and feelings of abdication. 

Divorce is not always the best solution and can turn things upside down for many people. A couple encountering marriage problems should thus seek always counselling for many reasons before taking the decision of divorce. 

Negative Communication :

If communication between couples starts deteriorating, it can often be very difficult to put things back in order. Negative communication may make partners feel depressed, disregarded and insecure, and keep them from having amiable conversations with their spouse. Sometimes, it may even lead to physical and mental abuse.

Extra-marital Affairs :

If one of the partners has had an extra-marital affair, it can be very difficult for the other one to recover from the shock. It takes a great deal of will power to forgive as well as move forward. Couple counselling can help a lot in salvaging such marriages and determining ways for both partners to take things in the right direction.

Inability to Resolve Differences :

Sometimes couples who are experiencing problems in their married life might be trying to sort out the differences, but are just not being able to find the right ways to do it. They are aware of the discord, and struggling to put an end to it. In such cases, involving a third party can be a wise decision. A skilled counsellor may be able to help them resolve their differences.

When Children are The Only Reason for a Couple To Stay Together :

It may so happen that couples emotionally distant from each other are staying together only for the sake of their children. But sometimes this can have a negative impact on the kids. Usually they can detect the fake happiness exhibited by their parents. Seeking couple counselling in Bondi can help to find ways for bridging the emotional gap between such partners, which in turn is definitely beneficial for the children involved as well.