Being a perfectionist can affect your health
How to Overcome Perfectionism
We all have that one person that we know that has to make sure everything is perfect. You know the person that doesn’t want anyone to help them with it because they won’t get it “right,” or the one who works constantly to please people because they don’t want to disappoint them. Or perhaps you’re the perfectionist, and these traits sound all too familiar for you. Whether it’s you or someone you know, being a perfectionist can have a negative impact on your health. Now I know you’re probably wondering how in the world can wanting everything to be right and being a perfectionist can affect your health? Well, according to some research we have reasoning for that.
An analysis from the Review of General Psychology, suggest that being a perfectionist can literally ruin your life. According the study, being a perfectionist can lead to depressions, anxiety, sadly enough some times suicide. Perfectionists have an all or nothing mindset, they can’t fail at anything. Because perfectionism is so time consuming it can also lead to stress and other health issues like heart disease to irritable bowl syndrome. So how do we help those who we know fall in the “perfect” category or even help yourself? There are three suggestions that experts provide that could help out.
First, DON’T say “it doesn’t have to be perfect.” Saying this statement is like a reverse reaction. Instead, you want to focus on acknowledging the positive of what one has done, like saying “great job at your project.
Secondly, Get rid of the word “should.” Word play has a major part in a perfectionist life. So saying things like “you should be the best,” say more things like “you are the best” or again acknowledging something positive out of a situation rather than looking at what could have, should have been done.
Lastly, Reminder it’s not failure, its data. You can help a perfectionist overcome the fear of failure by helping them pinpoint problems. Instead of a person beating themselves up about what they can’t or couldn’t do, help them come up with ideas of how to get it done. Always offer alternatives.
Life is all about living it to the fullest and being a perfectionist can take so much positive energy away from that. So if you fall into any of these categories or know someone that does, use these tips to push through and become a better you.
The Kimmy Nicole
