Self image is so important in human psychology, sometimes it becomes negative and unhealthy. If you don’t do anything to make it positive you’ll become jealous, stressed and an unpleasant person eventually. Simple way to find if you have a good self image is how you react to the rubbish you hear about other people, especially people who are having luxurious or successful lives.  

How many times a day do you hear rubbish about other people? Do you enjoy those talks? Or do you enjoy making or spreading such talks? If so, you don’t have a strong image of yourself. Why am I saying this because, people who find the wrong in other people’s lives are not satisfied with themselves. They feel jealous of those people who they think have perfect lives, and they want to make themselves feel better by  finding rubbish! If you want to be a person with good standards you should give up finding rubbish and should build a strong self image.  A person with a healthy self image does not spread rubbish about other people and also not get affected by such rubbish other people say about them.

Self-image refers to how we see ourselves, both internally and externally. It is the mental picture that we have about ourselves. It’s how we think and feel about ourselves based on the appearance, performance, and relationships that affect the outlook on life as well as the level of happiness and fulfillment.

When a person has an unhealthy self image he/she focuses more on their flaws, and criticizes themselves. This happens because they are  heavily influenced by other people’s or society's expectations. These expectations change with time, if a person builds their self-image upon external factors, there will always be drawbacks. When they fail to live up to those expectations it leads to  doubt, pessimism, insecurity and discouragement. That’s why they are jealous of other people. 

When you have a positive self image you value yourself & other people, you act assertively without guilt, you can handle constructive criticism.  

Self image issues lead to emotional and psychological problems as well. 

When someone views themselves that is not based on reality, it can be called Distorted self image.  Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is one example of a psychological problem that arises from distorted self image. A slight imperfection or nonexistent defect (perceived defect) of any part of the body like hair, skin, shape of the body, nose, lips,legs etc  are causing the person to be in a negative state of mind.  To get rid of that negativity a person engage in coping behaviours as follows,

• Excessive grooming
• Excessive exercise
• Changing clothes excessively
• Checking in a mirror
• Avoiding mirrors
• Seeking surgery
• Camouflaging with clothing, makeup, hair, hats, etc.

Depression can be arised from a negative self image or due to depression our self image can be distorted. Building a positive and strong self image may  help to overcome depression.  

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is another psychological problem that relates with self image. People with BPD have an unstable self image. They feel like they don’t know who they are which leads to vary their perception of themselves widely with time. These result in problems in a person's mental, social and physical wellbeing. Some examples are,

• Engage in self-destructive and dangerous behaviors, including reckless driving, drug or alcohol abuse, and having unsafe sex
• Unstable career plans, goals, and aspirations
• Intense, highly changeable moods
• History of unstable relationships 
• Feelings of isolation and emptiness
• Having a cold personality 

What you can do to improve your self image 

1. Make a list of your positive qualities and what you love about yourself to realize your own self worth. List 5 achievements of which you are proud. List 10 skills you possess. You can remind yourself of those qualities, skills or achievements before going to bed if you are struggling to build a strong self image. 

2. Stop self criticism. Criticizing yourself  does not help anybody. Learn to forgive yourself for the mistakes you have committed. Accept your good and bad traits. Don’t criticize other people to bring them down. 

3. Smile with your own image when you look at the mirror. Be happy with what you are. If you don’t accept yourself as you, how are you going to love yourself? When you smile even when you are not happy, your brain thinks you are really  smiling and generates the nerve pulse that actually happens when you feel happy. Happiness is the key to a strong self image. Happy people are loved and welcome by most people. 

4. Wear clothing that makes you look attractive and put a little makeup on, get your hair styled. It helps to make you feel better about yourself.  The clothing does not have to be fashionable and expensive, even simple clothes can make you look attractive if it suits your body type. 

5. Stay away from negative people who try to pull you down. When you are with such people your self image gets distorted because they always criticize everything about you. Actually these are the people who do not have a good self image. That’s why they try to make you feel bad about yourself.  When you spend a long period of time with them eventually you will forget all the good qualities within you and you will start to hate yourself. 

Here is a little game to play to discover your self worth  and improve your self image. All you have to do is roll a dice and keep on moving towards the goal and do what the boxes ask you to do.  You can give answers  more than you are asked.   There are three questions asked by the box guardians, so you have to answer honestly to proceed.  If you can’t give the answer to proceed you have to start over.