self esteem & self-centeredness

self-esteem, pride in self, shame

character

• "excessive" pride is considered a sin, a lack of shame

health

• self-esteem is healthy

self-centeredness

character

• selfishness is a sin
• people are innately selfish
• selfishness must be overcome by forcing yourself to focus on others

health

• the result of uncompleted childhood processes
• can be gotten beyond only by indulging it, following where it leads
• many people who are considered self-centered are, in reality, stuck
  • they need professional help
• people who are self-centered are unhappy
  • they don't know how to meet their own needs
  • their ineffective attempts to meet their own needs appear to others often as vanity
• "the only way out is through"
  • we can become less self-centered, more altruistic, only by doing the work of self-discovery
  • The only way out of self-centeredness is more self-centeredness.
• self-centeredness is a manifestation of the organism's attempts to heal itself, to do what it was not allowed to do in childhood.

taking care of yourself

character

• considered selfish

health

• considered essential