Silence, not saying what we want or need. >Hiding our true identity/self from others so we are liked. >Not sharing parts of you, or keeping deep dark secrets from those closest to you. >Not being vulnerable. >Giving up your needs for the needs of others. >Not saying what’s on your mind if it doesn’t fit in with what others believe. >Thinking something is wrong with you if you do something wrong. >Feeling defective. >Finding worth in what you do, or accomplish, not who you are. >Taking great pains to not experience more shame. >Comparing yourself and finding yourself lacking more often than not. >Pleasing others to your detriment. >Feel selfish asking for things, help, or needs. >Feel an event, such as abuse, sexual abuse, upbringing, family problems, health diagnosis, made your defective and or un-loveable. >You engage in self-sabotage. >Engaging in addictive tendencies to numb shame. >Negative self-talk to yourself. >Use shame to motivate yourself. >Use anger and defensiveness as a coping mechanism. >Perfectionism. >Never feeling good enough. >Low self-esteem. >Negative feelings about yourself. And more . . . .
The truth is, we are all affected by shame unless we have done work to heal our shame. Take the shame quiz and find out how shame affects you.
Go deeper, read The Symptoms of Shame and the 4 Ways It Makes You Feel, post 5 and hop over and take the Shame Quiz.