Often, we end up being harmful towards ourselves without understanding the repercussions of our own behavioural patterns. Being a constant harsh critic and being mean to ourselves can only bring our own morale down and decrease our self-worth. “Recognising these toxic behaviours and patterns is the first step towards addressing and changing them. It’s essential to cultivate self-compassion, set healthy boundaries, and prioritise your well-being,” wrote therapist Israa Nasir as she shared how our behaviours can be toxic for ourselves.
ALSO READ: What toxic behavior in family may look like
Being mean to motivate ourselves:
When we constantly put ourselves down, negate our own achievements, with the intention of pushing ourselves to do better, it can have negative implications.
Perfectionism:
When we strive to achieve perfectionism, we set unrealistically high standards for ourselves, and criticise ourselves for even the smallest of mistakes. This can further bring our motivation down and make us overwork.
Instant gratification:
To avoid feeling discomfort in the moment, we often delay tasks and responsibilities. This can lead to procrastination.
Self-neglect:
While we work on ourselves getting better, it is equally important to focus on our needs and boundaries. We cannot make everyone happy – we don’t even need to.
Always being available:
The constant urge to be available for everyone and everything can make us feel emotionally and physically drained. This, when continued for a prolonged period of time, can lead to burnout and frustration.
Having the hero complex:
When we believe that we should handle everything by ourselves and reject help from others, we end up being toxic to ourselves. It is okay to seek help.
Emotional avoidance:
We should focus on expressing our emotions instead of suppressing them. When we suppress our emotions for a long time, they tend to show up in uncontrollable ways.
Staying stuck in the past:
We need to learn to accept the mistakes that we made in the past – we should forgive ourselves and move on.
Hustle culture:
Constant productivity and overworking should not be glorified. We need to find a healthy balance between work and life.
Being ultra-connected:
When we spend excessive time on social media, we can fall victim to negative comparisons and cyberbullying and develop a distorted view of reality.