Why do I always think everything I do is wrong?
211 Answers
Last Updated: 05/05/2022 at 11:37pm
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Polly Letsch, LCSW
Clinical Social Work/Therapist
I provide non-judgmental, person-centered, objective therapeutic treatment for individuals of all ages to improve social, emotional, mental and other areas of functioning.
Top Rated Answers
There are a variety of possible answers to this question; and it is difficult to answer this about you and your situation without context. Off the top of my head though, your cognitive and emotional processes may be distorted, and it sounds like there could also be some anxiety or guilt in the equation. But please do not mistake this answer for an absolute truth or a medical diagnosis. Talking to a therapist about this might help you.
Anonymous
April 26th, 2018 6:59am
It can be that you are not confident with your own abilities. Love yourself, don’t doubts your abilities and do things with confidence. Everyone does mistakes.
This may be down to a lack of self confidence. Perhaps you should try to take a few deep breaths and with a bit of paper and pen, write down both the pros and cons of what you do.
Maybe you're lacking self-confidence, or you've experienced many failures in your life that made you believe that you do everything is wrong.
Just remember that failure doesn't mean you're wrong, it means that you're gaining experiences.
Anonymous
May 19th, 2018 7:22am
Thinking positive thoughts everytime you feel this way could help you to remember that you’re doing a great job.
Anonymous
May 30th, 2018 6:24am
You have trouble completing the task at hand and /or that the other persons work is different then yours you feel like you messed up,
Because you are quite unsure of what you do .Maybe,you are not confident about your work and hence keep fretting over it at length.
These feelings are common of anxiety and depression, both of which can affect self-esteem. Although it can be a daunting task, seeking the help of a professional therapist or counselor can be a great step to overcoming these feelings of failure.
if you feel like everything is wrong that you do then it may be time to reach out for help. it is ok to feel that way but it is unhealthy and you may not be giving yourself enough credit. people sometimes make you feel like you are living your life wrongly but don't let them
Anonymous
June 22nd, 2018 9:10am
It’s a natural human feeling to doubt your doings and deem them as wrong . And by doing that doesn’t mean your wrong.
The reason you do this is because you lack self confidence. Keep a positive mind frame, tell yourself you can do something and you will achieve it. Learn to love yourself
It might be beacause of a number of reasons. Nobody can do eveything right all the time, so chances are you're going to do some things that are wrong. However, If you feel everything you do is wrong, it might be because you have a low perception of yourself. Interpretations of facts are subjective, and it might as well be that you THINK you do everything wrong but you're actually not.
Step back and remember what you do right. We always remember the bad over the good. Make a list of right and wrongs and compare them. The wrongs that you see, maybe think of what you could have done differently and remember that when you face that problem again. Ask friends and family for criticism to be able to grow from past mistakes. Also- we're our worst critics. Don't beat yourself up when you feel like you made the right choices with what you had.
Anonymous
July 1st, 2018 4:29pm
I only feel this way when in a relationship or starting one. Maybe feeling insecure could mean the other person will leave if even one word or phrase comes out that would even resemble insecurity.
Anonymous
July 1st, 2018 5:21pm
Your mind can twist what you think into something negative because you constantly tell yourself you are wrong. You continuously tell yourself this and it becomes set in your mind that what you're doing is wrong.
Ask yourself this. Am I the one who is wrong, or is someone telling me that I am. Am I causing myself to make these decisions or is someone/thing making me?
Maybe that goes back to a bad childhood memory or emotional abuse done to you by someone (usually one of the parents who wanted you to be perfect or a school bully). We all have those times when we think everything we do is wrong, but sometimes it becomes a part of our identity (a destructive part) and we need to sit down and figure out the factors (people or events) that destroyed our confidence this way. If you're unable to figure it our on your own, you can always sit down with a therapist and let them figure it our for you :)
Anonymous
July 26th, 2018 8:06pm
This is easy to answer and it by the response I normally get. Then the vicious circle starts. The question is where the truth starts or finishes. Is it better to ignore the fact people don't gravitate towards me and get on with the lonely existence. Or stay in bed........
Lack of confidence and self esteem, bothering what others think, fear of embarrassment and Bothering about Physique. All these combine and feel you are wrong and not worth of
Anonymous
August 1st, 2018 2:21pm
Because we are our biggest critics. I have had to learn that it is ok to set goals and to push but I also have to speak life and encouragement.
Because you are not trust and believe yourself you are think that if you do it that become wrong for yourself
Maybe because you fear that you're doing the wrong thing, you have to believe in yourself and be confident!
You are your own worst critic! Stop being so hard on yourself. Do or write down the things you are good at. Focus on your strengths and not your weakness of what you can't do... just yet anyway. Because you can do anything!
Anonymous
August 15th, 2018 10:20am
It sounds like you have some anxiety. I can't tell you why you do the things you do, but maybe you can try to write things down when you think you are being "wrong" and then write a list justifying the things you do vs explaining why they are wrong. It may help you get some perspective.
Sometimes when things happen to our lives and how people treat us, we think something we are doing is wrong. Which isn't the case, I use to think in all my relationships I was some how doing something wrong, but I wasn't. You have to be confident with who you are and how you act and just everything you do. Whatever people respond and act from that will determine if you have. If you did something wrong, you always want to own up to them and apologize if needed and make sure you don't do it again. But if you didn't do anything, you should be fine.
Anonymous
September 9th, 2018 4:50pm
I’ve learned that the most important thing in life is to learn how to sooth myself with a supportive open heart. Holding myself up to impossible standards takes the joy out of life. Even though I’ve been very hard on myself in the past, I am excited by the possibility that each day brings the opportunity to meet life with open arms. I may not have all the answers I need but I’m willing to ask for help and support. I love how when I share my needs with others it allows them to be the supportive person they long to be.
Anonymous
October 20th, 2018 5:07pm
I was emotionally abused as a child by a mother who is an extreme perfectionist. She would yell at me for simple mistakes like dropping clean silverware on the floor or tripping over her feet. She was also extremely inconsistent with punishment because when she was angry she would take her anger out on me over something small that may not have bothered her if she was not already upset. As a result, I have also become a perfectionist and I am constantly worried about upsetting other people by the things I do and say. It is not my fault that I think that everything I do is wrong because I learned this behavior from someone who was hypersensitive to my flaws and could not distinguish accidents from intentional mistakes.
We tend to be our worst critics! Having these thoughts is normal, but it's important to address them. These kinds of thoughts are called thinking traps and tend to be caused by stress or feeling anxious about something. Try and address these traps. It can be hard to flat out avoid them, but be mindful when you start thinking in this all or nothing mindset. When you think "everything" is wrong, you are thinking all-or-nothing. Try to write down your thoughts, and then list out rational responses and refocus how you look at such "wrongdoings." If you are having trouble reworking your thoughts, work through it with a friend or a listener, a third party can help you rationalize.
It's because our ego forces us to over identify with negatives. It's simply a negativity bias. I can guarantee you do lots of things right (if you think about it) however you will often overlook those things. It's a human survival instinct to focus on negatives. After all that is how we tend to learn. We learn from our mistakes. But in today's world most people don't need that primal instinct as much. We live in an age that is far better than any time before and yet our instinct still drives us to dwell on or find negatives to focus on. Don't let that get you down though. You can retrain your thinking, thanks to the human brain having amazing plasticity. First help yourself be more aware of the positives and second, reframe the negatives as positives.
Anonymous
November 11th, 2018 3:06pm
it is because you're too hard on yourself, you are truly amazing when you see through your low self esteem, you are better then you think you are and I know that, I bet EVERYONE knows that. Please love yourself and stop thinking yourself lowly, because I know that you deserve the best. You've worked hard on life and you are strong. Sure sometimes you make bad decisions but don't we all do that? And everything you do has meaning in it, I think the only thing you did wrong is thinking lowly of yourself, we all love and care for you.
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