Self-awareness is a quality that is in short supply in deeply damaged people because they tend to behave unconsciously, based on their inner pain. When someone is hurt at a core level and lashes out based on those inner wounds, it’s a visceral reaction rather than one based on careful deliberation. Here are some characteristics of a deeply damaged person:
- Thinking, feeling and behaving negatively based on past hurts.
- Lack of empathy toward others.
- Rigid thinking and inability to consider other points of view.
- Inability to heal.
- Reluctance to change, stuck in current way of doing things.
- Lashing out at others based on unresolved issues inside himself.
- Unwilling to examine what causes his inner turmoil.
- Lack of understanding of what will really make him happy.
- Seeks approval from people who don’t really value him.
- Pattern of negative relationships.
- Harsh, hard, commanding personality on the outside, fragile on the inside.
- Lies to self and others to justify incongruous, inconsistent thoughts and beliefs.
- Treats other people poorly, a reflection of his inner feelings about himself.
If you’ve ever met a person like this, you’ve probably gotten a creepy feeling about them, unless you fall into this category, in which case the behavior seems normal. Thankfully, even deeply troubled people can change the course of their lives by replacing their old thoughts and behaviors with more positive ones. It’s a long and arduous process, but anyone with the will to let go of the damage and love themselves is capable of doing it.
The key to being genuinely happy in life is to think and behave positively to make the world a better place for yourself and others. Self-awareness allows you to take a careful, meaningful look at yourself and heal the hurts that keep you from being your true, shiny self. What will you do to move beyond the damage?
Cheers,
Guy