www.teenagerstoday.com - Read expert advice and articles on preteens, tweens and teens. Share your experiences in our community. Parenting teenagers can be easy!
If you'd like to do something about your lack of self-esteem, you have to get to work fast. Some of the most important steps you can take are:
Admit to yourself that you have a problem. Don't be embarrassed or feel guilty because you have an issue with your self-esteem. We all go through bouts of low self-confidence. Admitting to yourself that yours isn't just periodic, but instead something serious, is the first step toward establishing healthy self-esteem.
Don't try to hide it from your teen. After you realize your lackluster self-esteem could be potentially hurting your child, you may try to hide it. Don't! Instead, just like you admitted to yourself that there's a problem, you should do the same with your teen. Let her know that you haven't been feeling too good about some things, but because you love her and want to have a happy family, you're going to get help.
Get help. If this trail of low self-esteem is something new to you or just a very brief cloud of dislike, you may be able to remedy the problem with the support of family and friends. But if it's something you've dealt with long-term or your self-esteem has hit rock-bottom, you may need to seek professional help. Whether it be a psychologist, psychotherapist, religious leader or even a counseling group, get help! If you don't do it for yourself, then do it for your teen's sake, because as Jain points out, "Children are resilient and can overcome much, [but] why not allow them to start with as clean a slate as possible?"
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families. 
