Week 7
1054 words by jameipie
Self-esteem issues affect everyone at least once in their life. Even I can remember not feeling good enough or smart enough. A survey was conducted by the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth on nine and ten year olds. Self esteem was measured using a self-perception profile for children. Additional data including a questionnaire at 13 to 14 years old on emotional well being was administered as well. Among the nine and ten year olds self esteem results were not significantly different. When compared over a four year period, Hispanic, white, and black females, who were obese, showed decreased levels of self esteem compared to their non-obese Hispanic, white, and black females.
• Low self esteem is actually a thinking disorder in which an individual looks at their inadequately. Once formed, it creates an ongoing self-defeating behavior.
• Low self esteem always forms in early childhood where the adolescent brain is just starting to develop its views about self.
• A person can not just simply raise its self esteem. They must simply learn to alter his or hers overall basic view and transform it into positive thinking.
Another survey called Into the Abyss: A Personal Journey into the World of Street Gangs provided me with some other information about how and why low-self esteem in children forms. He believes that it may be related to poor academics and the social institution of school that may influence children negatively. Common symptoms include:
• A high degree of negativity
• Fear of change
• Lack of trust in self and others
• Lies of success to cover up the feeling of inadequacy
• Neglects physical appearance
• Strong need for material possessions.
• Lack of energy; the feeling of hopelessness
• Overly sensitive to criticism but enjoys putting others down to make themselves feel or appear better.
• Lots of negative self talk and self blame. In extreme cases, self hate.
But when I recall being 11 or 12 years old it was different. It wasn’t my home environment or my weight that had me looking and feeling bad about myself. It was my skin color. In the south especially, racism is strong among blacks. What I mean by this is that being a dark or fair skinned can have a major effect on how African Americans perceive themselves. A lot of times, girls who are dark will get overlooked for lighter girls. There’s even a whole stigma about something called “good hair”. 75% of the world has never even heard this term. But here in the South, especially in New Orleans, this term is used daily when describing a characteristic of a person. Usually the term “good hair” is referred to lighter skinned African Americans. And if you happen to be dark with “good hair” you are considered a treasure because it is not common. I remember a boy about 13 or 14 when I was 12 telling me that I would be pretty, the only thing holding me back was my darkness. It took me two years to properly deal with it and overcome it.
A lot of health factors contribute to low self esteem too. A study done by Vanderbilt’s psychology’s department said that low self esteem can result in eating disorders and binge eating in adolescent girls.
That’s why my project is so important to me. The damages of peer pressure and teasing can last a lifetime. Another reason is that if you think so low of yourself, you will settle for anything. You’ll never know your full potential because you don’t care enough to push yourself. That’s why a lot of blacks drop out of high school and resort to a life of crime or government aid and housing to help support them. Some even turn to drug use a way to make themselves feel better. They think that by getting high, they escape their self esteem issues and harsh realities of the world, when in fact, their just sinking deeper.
God’s house tells us that he is a very sacred, the most high. The Ark of the Covenant is said to be in its possession. It was set in a courtyard facing to the east. The holy of the holies was facing the west. God also had a footstool in there that was made known by smoke. It is said to be closely related to Ramses II’s battle tent. He was an Egyptian pharaoh. But he had a winged lion protecting his and God has a winged cherubim. It was carried everywhere by the Israelites. I once read an online yahoo article stated that an Ethiopian nation claims to have the actual Ark of the Covenant. I don’t know how true that is but anything’s possible. It was also a place to worship and praise God and to confess sins. When I think of God’s house, it’s kind of strange. I don’t think of it as the tent it is. I think of it as being surrounded by clouds, an almost deafening silence that’s peaceful, and just a place of total comfort and uninhibited happiness. I believe the tabernacle was very extraordinary and lavish as well. It was composed of gold and silver and the best of everything. With those decorations, surely it is fit for God.
The Promised Land didn’t start off very smoothly. God promised to rescue the Hebrews out of Egypt. He had made a promise previously to Abraham’s descendants. He said that he would deliver them to the land overflowing with milk and honey. When the Israelites arrived there, to their dismay, the area was already inhabited by others. The Canaanites were the ones in control of the land. The Israelites are not to be social with them at all. He says that if they do that, the land will become theirs. They also had to obey the Ten Commandments. He also wants them to destroy the Canaanites and show them not an ounce of mercy. Many Canaanites were driven away and many who weren’t were killed. The name Canaan was then changed to Israel after Abraham’s grandson.