Self-Righteousness: Can Someone Become Self-Righteous If They Feel Worthless?

Just as there are many ways in which someone can respond when they get to another country, there are also a number of ways in which someone can respond when they feel worthless. In the same way that going to a new country can have a big effect on someone, feeling worthless can have an even bigger effect on them.

It would be more accurate to say that it not just a feeling, as it will most likely be something that has permeated their whole being. To see it as just a feeling would create the impression that it is something that can simply be ignored and have no effect whosever.

Two Options

Due to how powerful their inner experience of being worthless will be, they can respond in one of two ways. What they can do is embrace how they feel and allow this experience to directly affect their life.

On the other hand, they can end up disconnecting from what is taking place within them, allowing it to affect them in a more indirect way. Therefore, regardless of whether they opt for the first or the second option, what is taking place within them will still impact their life.

Down

If someone goes for the first option and generally embraces this feeling, they can end up spending a lot of time feeling low. Being depressed can be a normal part of their life, making it hard for them to motivate themselves to do anything.

What they are also likely to have is a strong inner critic that lays into them throughout the day. But, while this will be taking place within them, one could believe that just about everyone else is also putting them down.

Two Types

Thus, even if one is in the company of someone who is not critical, they could still believe that this person is judging their every move. Furthermore, one could also have people in their life who do put them down on a regular basis.

As a result of what is taking place within them, they can believe that they deserve to be treated in this way. An outside observer could wonder why they put up with this, yet what is taking place externally will simply mirror back what is taking place within them.

Up

If someone goes for the second option and is generally out of touch with this feeling, they can spend a lot of time feeling as though they are better than others. This can allow them to experience a fair amount of good feelings.

Unlike the person above, their inner critic will typically end up being directed outwards, causing them to come across as highly judgemental. When this happens, it will stop them from having to be on the receiving end of its abuse .

A Sense of Superiority

So, regardless of how they live their life or what they have achieved, they will be above most people. This inflated sense of their own worth and importance will help them to keep their true view of themselves at bay.

There will be people who are repelled by them, whilst there will be others who are drawn to them. If one surrounds themselves with people who have a similar character, their feedback will make it easier for them to continue to behave in this way.

A Way of Life

Through being this way, one may be drawn to a number of different causes, with this being another way for them to tell the world how good they are. Thanks to these causes, one can make out that they are far more virtuous than anyone else.

They might not be religious and believe in original sin, but they can still see the world as a place that is made up of saints and sinners. The phrases that they use may be different, yet they will still serve the same function – to elevate their value and to lower other people’s value.

Another Form of Abuse

Not only will this be a way for them look good, it will also be a way for them to release some of their aggression. If they didn’t do this, it would end up being directed towards them via their inner critic, with this having a negative effect on mental and emotional wellbeing.

But, as they will be criticising people who are not living in the ‘right’ way, they will most likely be able to abuse people without getting into trouble. It is then not that they are acting in an abusive manner; it is that they are criticising behaviour that is ‘wrong’.​
A Few Areas

This kind of behaviour can be seen in the political realm, with their being people on both sides of the spectrum who are on their high horse, so to speak. There are the people who don’t eat meat who are also self-righteous, using just about every opportunity to tell everyone how this makes them better than meat eaters.

All the time that someone like this can maintain the view that they are better than others, it will allow them to keep their true view of themselves at bay. In today’s world, there are plenty of causes out there for someone to identify with, and social media will provide them a platform to tell the world how virtuous they are.

Awareness

In addition to feeling worthless, someone like this is likely to be carrying a lot of shame. What they do externally will then be a way of them to keep this part of themselves at bay and, if they were to stop behaving in this way, this shame would probably come up to the surface.

If someone can relate to this, and they want to change their life, they may need to reach out for external support. This can be provided by the assistance of a therapist or a healer.