What are the different types of insecurities, and what are the causes?

 

Most people feel insecure at certain points in their life. You have probably felt it once if not more than once. Most of the time, feelings of insecurity originate from childhood. If you experienced an embarrassing moment or moments during your childhood, there is a high likelihood that you may carry those feelings even in your adulthood.

Besides developing low self-esteem, you may end up feeling as if you are exposed to the whole world and that you do not deserve anything good in life, be it good partners, a good job, or just a great social life.

 

Types of insecurities

The following are the four types of insecurities that are
most common.

If you have ever felt nervous around new people because you do not know what to say or how to say it, you are socially insecure. This type of insecurity manifests itself when one is around people, mostly a large group of people.

 When you are socially insecure, it becomes difficult for you to make new friends because of the heightened anxiety you feel when around new people. Social insecurity also manifests itself when you feel like
people are always looking at you and judging you or gossiping about you. For instance, becoming self-conscious when walking down the streets because you feel all eyes are on you.

Type 2: Professional insecurity

Professional insecurity consists of the fear of losing your job, being denied tenure or any restrictions that you may face at your place of work for failing to comply with the established guidelines.  This insecurity is heightened by the great demands of life in terms of finance. Losing a job means loss of income, which makes this insecurity one of the most common forms of insecurity. Professional insecurity also involves panic at the thought that you may never find another job when you lose the one you currently have.

Type 3: Economic insecurity

Also known as, financial insecurity, economic insecurity revolves around your financial capability or incapability for that matter. It is the fear that you may be wasting your money instead of saving. Also, it involves the fear of making a bad investment.
Also, you are economically or financially insecure when you are afraid that you may not have enough resources to support your standard of living, either now or in the future.

Type 4: Personal insecurity

When you are personally insecure, you become afraid of others opinion about you. Personal insecurity involves many fears. These fears include the fear of not finding a good partner. Being insecure about the relationship you are in whether friendship, marriage, or your relation with
your relatives.

Causes of insecurity

Having looked at the different
types of insecurities, let us now delve into the causes of insecurities.

 

1. Traumatic Events

Any event that causes serious physical, emotional, or psychological damage is considered a traumatic event. Examples of traumatic events include being involved in a serious road accident, rape, or even losing a loved one. If proper measures are not taken on time, these events may leave the victims with long-term consequences like rapid feelings of fear, which manifest in the form of social insecurity.

2. Divorce

Even though divorce may be the better option, most of the time, it results in many negative effects. These negative outcomes may include the loss of a family you once loved, loss of a house, or even the loss of a source of income. Therefore, this puts the victim at risk of developing insecurities like personal and social insecurity.

3. Low Self-Esteem

Characterized by a negative feeling about oneself as well as the lack of confidence, low self-esteem can make you feel like people hate you and do not want to associate with you (social and personal insecurity). Low self-esteem can also affect your work since it makes you feel incompetent hence makes you afraid of losing your job or business (professional insecurity).

4. Body Image

The way you perceive your body affects how you feel about yourself. If you think your body is not attractive, you will feel bad about yourself. For instance, you may regard your body as overweight or underweight and hence not attractive enough. This also relates to the way you compare your body to those of other people, especially celebrities. This is greatly related to social and personal insecurities.

5. Violence

If you are a victim of any form of violence, you are likely to develop a form of insecurity. For example, if you are a victim of attempted molestation or rape, you may end up feeling uncomfortable around strangers of the opposite sex. Also, your trust in people diminishes, making it difficult for you to form new relationships.

6. Abuse

Being abused involves being treated with cruelty either physically, emotionally financially, sexually, or culturally. For instance, being a victim of domestic abuse (physical abuse). Financial abuse happens when a partner controls all the household budgeting or when one opens a credit account sing the other person’s details without their knowledge.

7. Comparing Yourself to Others

You can perceive yourself as not too good enough when you compare yourself to others. For instance, you may compare yourself with others in terms of looks, education level, or the kind of job they have, among other factors. Comparing yourself to others can make you feel awkward hence unable to interact properly with others.

8. Fear and failure

You may be afraid of something, or someone greatly affects your life. Even though fear is normal, fear becomes a problem when it takes over your life. It may even affect how you do your job as well as how you interact with others. Fear may result from failing at something.

 

 

Key Takeaways from This Episode

• To cope with the different types of insecurities, the first thing is to identify them.

• Keep reminding yourself about your positive attributes whenever you have those negative thoughts.

• By reflecting on your successes and achievements, you will be able to cope with your insecurities.

• Also, avoiding the perfectionist attitude helps a great deal.

   

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