<p>Low self-esteem can be the result of severeal things, implying depression and other mental disorders, past experiences (harassement for example). We <strong>can</strong> "fix" low self-esteem through non-drug therapy, but sometimes we <strong>can't</strong>. There is no fixed answer, it varies from person to person.</p>

<hr>

<p><strong>My personnal experience :</strong> 
I am a schizoaffective and asperger person, for me, self-esteem is something really instable because of depressive/hypomaniac phases and schizophrenic symptoms. It is not something that I can control, except with high medication.</p>

<p><strong>Sources and readings :</strong> </p>

<ul>
<li><a href="https://annals-general-psychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2832-2-2" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Low self-esteem and psychiatric patients: Part I – The relationship between low self-esteem and psychiatric diagnosis</a></li>
<li><a href="http://healthyselfesteem.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/low-self-esteem-aggression.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Low Self-Esteem Is Related to Aggression, Antisocial Behavior, and Delinquency</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2095720?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Self-Esteem and Adolescent Problems: Modeling Reciprocal Effects</a></li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-19T16:21:28.007Z
Welcome to the site! This is more of a comment than an answer (something you can do once you have contributed a bit more to this site), since we expect answers to include references/citations to back up claims. Therefore, this might be turned into a comment.
Steven Jeuris
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-19T14:36:20.943Z
2018-07-19T17:29:33.267Z
2018-07-19T17:29:33.267Z
m68k
<p>I am asking this question because I recently observed something within myself:-</p>

<p>I think I used to be a Borderliner plus Bipolar. I was very sensitive, and slightest of events will either induce mania in me or will just thrash me into severe depression and low self-esteem.</p>

<p>But since I am taking a certain medication, I have observed that I am now not experiencing above mentioned behavior within me. I am much more resilient to criticism.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-18T09:04:53.717Z
It depends on the reason for the low self-esteem.  If the feelings are a result of depression for example, brain chemical/hormonal imbalances can play a part, but it can be nothing to do with chemicals/hormones.  Another aspect to this is that medications which affect the chemicals/hormones can assist in the efficacy of therapy.
Chris Rogers
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-19T16:24:49.943Z
It sounds to me like this is a different (complicated) way of asking whether low self-esteem can be caused by anything else than chemical imbalances in the brain. In the remaining parts of your question you are already presuming an answer.
Steven Jeuris
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-20T08:21:01.960Z
This is a good question which sparked a separate one linked to this at https://psychology.stackexchange.com/q/20253
Chris Rogers
<psychiatry><psychology><brain><therapy><medication>
Is low self-esteem, a brain chemical imbalance problem, rather than a personality defect, and can't be fixed by any amount of counselling/self-help?
amsquareb
# Is low self-esteem, a brain chemical imbalance problem, rather than a personality defect, and can't be fixed by any amount of counselling/self-help?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2018-07-17)

I am asking this question because I recently observed something within myself:-

I think I used to be a Borderliner plus Bipolar. I was very sensitive, and slightest of events will either induce mania in me or will just thrash me into severe depression and low self-esteem.

But since I am taking a certain medication, I have observed that I am now not experiencing above mentioned behavior within me. I am much more resilient to criticism.

**Tags:** psychiatry, psychology, brain, therapy, medication

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: It depends on the reason for the low self-esteem.  If the feelings are a result of depression for example, brain chemical/hormonal imbalances can play a part, but it can be nothing to do with chemicals/hormones.  Another aspect to this is that medications which affect the chemicals/hormones can assist in the efficacy of therapy.  
> **username_2**: It sounds to me like this is a different (complicated) way of asking whether low self-esteem can be caused by anything else than chemical imbalances in the brain. In the remaining parts of your question you are already presuming an answer.  
> **username_1**: This is a good question which sparked a separate one linked to this at https://psychology.stackexchange.com/q/20253  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2018-07-19. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

Low self-esteem can be the result of severeal things, implying depression and other mental disorders, past experiences (harassement for example). We **can** "fix" low self-esteem through non-drug therapy, but sometimes we **can't**. There is no fixed answer, it varies from person to person.

---

**My personnal experience :**
I am a schizoaffective and asperger person, for me, self-esteem is something really instable because of depressive/hypomaniac phases and schizophrenic symptoms. It is not something that I can control, except with high medication.

**Sources and readings :**

* [Low self-esteem and psychiatric patients: Part I – The relationship between low self-esteem and psychiatric diagnosis](https://annals-general-psychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2832-2-2)
* [Low Self-Esteem Is Related to Aggression, Antisocial Behavior, and Delinquency](http://healthyselfesteem.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/low-self-esteem-aggression.pdf)
* [Self-Esteem and Adolescent Problems: Modeling Reciprocal Effects](https://www.jstor.org/stable/2095720?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents)

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Welcome to the site! This is more of a comment than an answer (something you can do once you have contributed a bit more to this site), since we expect answers to include references/citations to back up claims. Therefore, this might be turned into a comment.  

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