Am I My Own Bully? Understanding Self-Criticism & How to Cultivate Self-Kindness

When we think about bullying, we often think of someone else: a harsh classmate, an online troll, a toxic peer group. But for many people—especially those navigating eating disorders, anxiety, or trauma—the harshest voice they hear isn’t external.

It’s internal.
And it sounds like their own.

Self-criticism is one of the most common yet overlooked forms of emotional self-harm. It often hides behind the guise of “motivation” or “self-discipline,” but over time, it chips away at self-esteem, mental health, and the capacity to heal.

In this post, we explore what self-criticism really is, why it develops, and how to begin replacing it with something far more healing: self-kindness.