Being unable to help someone close to you, achieve something of significance, or perform well in any area of life can make you feel worthless. This feeling often makes you doubt your abilities and leads to a negative outlook. You end up losing the ability or will to push forward and are crushed under the weight of your guilt. So, what to do when you feel worthless?
Before we begin answering that question, let us look at the facts. According to a survey of 2513 young Americans by Harvard Youth Poll, more than 51% of adults aged 18 to 29 are likely to feel down, depressed, or hopeless. One of the most damaging causes and symptoms of depression is a feeling of worthlessness. However, the solution to this serious problem might be a straightforward one.
What To Do When You Feel Worthless In Life?
Validate Your Emotions – Self-Validation is one of the core skills taught by Dialectical Behavioral Therapy(DBT). To validate your emotions, you need to observe them without bias while being mindful of everything you feel. Practicing this skill can help you build distress tolerance and avoid being overwhelmed by your emotions.
Embrace & Accept Yourself As You Are – Judging yourself by external standards might make you feel worthless. While it is essential to be productive and positive in society, doing so at the cost of your mental health is not wise. Accepting yourself means acknowledging your strengths and weaknesses and living according to this self-awareness.
Focus On What You Can Control – By focusing on events beyond your control, you can start feeling helpless. However, many times the outcomes or results of a particular event cannot be controlled by you. Hence, it is better to focus on what you can control. One part of accepting yourself is acknowledging your limitations and knowing when to relax, rehabilitate and rejuvenate.
Develop A Positive Attitude – A negative bias hinders your ability to see things as they are. For instance, you focus on your faults or shortcomings while completely ignoring your achievements and strengths. A positive attitude and emotions like compassion or gratefulness can help you keep your spirits high and overcome feelings like worthlessness.
Be Kind To Yourself – After accepting yourself and developing a positive attitude, you can become happier by practicing self-kindness. Doing things you like, identifying your values, aligning your behavior with your values, and practicing self-love are ways to start being kind toward yourself.
Give Back To Community – Compassion is the glue that holds communities together. Helping others(loved ones, friends, or even strangers) through little acts of service and quality time can make you feel better about yourself. Engaging in a community can also provide happiness, activity, and purpose that helps you develop higher self-worth and self-esteem.
Read more: Six pillars of self-esteem book review
When To Seek Help?
Prolonged feelings of worthlessness or guilt might be symptoms of depression. It is best to consult a licensed professional if you are having difficulty functioning normally or are overwhelmed by these emotions.
Read more: Top five affordable online therapy platforms
Conclusion
Feelings of guilt or worthlessness are common among young adults, with more than 51% suffering from depression or hopelessness. These emotions can obstruct your mental wellness and make it difficult to cope with daily life. So, what to do when you feel worthless in life?
You can start by self-validation, acceptance, focusing on what you can control, developing a positive attitude, self-kindness, giving back to the community, or opting for therapy. On that note, here is a blog post explaining how to develop a positive mental attitude.
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