Alicia Wahington-Rhodes • You Define You
People from all around the world struggle with theiridentity, and who they want to be. They are downplayed, and looked down upon based on where they come from, or what they look like. Other people could be following the same dream as them, and have the best support in the world. But the other would be on the sidelines, looking up at someone who did what they were told they could not. People with lowself-esteem tend to depend on others for cues that they are OK. They are more likely to beinfluenced by others. If someone rejects them in some way or criticizes them, they react more strongly, and tend to take things more personally and are hurt more deeply. When people discover a difference between the way they are and the way they want or ought to be, they suffer a variety of unpleasant emotions. Self-esteemplaysanimportantroleindefendingtheindividualagainstanxiety,andsothreatstoself-esteem may trigger acutely aversive emotional states.Identity crisis appear to be the symptom of the modern emphasis on requiring each person to create and define his or her own identity.