Take it easy on yourself and be healthier.
We often engage in self-criticism as a way to motivate ourselves and to correct whatever flaws we believe ourselves to have. But so much of the time the end result is not that we become the better person we hoped to be, but that we grind ourselves down and end up feeling worthless and unmotivated. Next time you notice yourself engaging in self-criticism in order to make yourself better, try a short experiment: re-label the impulse to criticize as an impulse to help. Mentally thank your brain for trying to help make you a better person, and then see if you can detach yourself from that impulse. Instead, try noticing how you actually are (worried? afraid? insecure?), and then allow yourself to feel compassion for that part that feels it needs to bully you into being better. With time you will come to recognize that the self-critical part is actually the part of you that is most in need of compassion and acceptance. In therapy, we practice labeling these impulses and sending gratitude - and even love - to those places that most feel unworthy, in order to free ourselves from the self-criticism treadmill.
