How To Develop Our Self Confidence?

How do I develop self-esteem and confidence within myself?

• Like many teenage girls I have quite low self-esteem and confidence within myself. The only real time I feel pretty is with make up on- and quite a bit. I'm 18 years old and have been with my boyfriend almost 3 years now, he's turning 18 in May and all I can think about is him ending our relationship to be single or to find a new girl in town- as there are some really pretty girls out there. When I compare myself to others I feel so rubbish about myself and the thought of not wearing make up around people terrifies me, it's like a safety mat. This is the amount of make up I wear on a daily basis: http://www.flickr.com/photos/shanniecole/6982798074/in/photostream http://www.flickr.com/photos/shanniecole/7128860049/in/photostream/ and would like to cut down, I just need some tips on how to be more confident in my own skin, and to stop worrying about my relationship and my boyfriend ending it. I suffer with OCD also which puts a strain on our relationship as I'm always obsessing over the same things. Anyone have any advice or links? Thank you!

• Answer:

  you've got to begin to retrain your thinking. having a boyfriend might seem important, but if you spend your whole time thinking he's going to leave you then you naturally won't feel great about yourself. Start to think about you and your strengths. Focus on those strengths, things that you are good at doing and use those to build confidence. Don't let others put you down, Much is written about self esteem, it's worth looking at the sources given here to learn more about why you feel as you do.