By East Norriton Bulldog Bulletin reporters | Struggling with self-esteem? Be kind to yourself.

Like many middle school students, you may have struggled with your self-esteem or body image. That’s the way you think about yourself or the way you see and think about your body, according to the website KidsHealth.org.

East Norriton teachers have some tips for students to help us all think positively about ourselves.

“Self-esteem comes from within ourselves, but I think that if we treat each other well, like complimenting each other and building someone up from the outside, that would help them work inside of themselves,” said Mr. Crim, a seventh-grade math teacher.

Mrs. Hoag, a seventh-grade English teacher, said we should treat ourselves like we do our friends. “We are always positive to our friends,” she said, “so we should treat ourselves positively as well.”

Mrs. Garvey, an eighth-grade science teacher, agrees with the message about positivity. “Surround yourself with positive people and positive messages,” she said. She also stressed the importance of positive self-talk. “Make sure you say good things to yourself. “

Many teachers also try to help students boost their self-esteem in the classroom.

“I make sure the students know they can take risks and they can participate in the classroom and aren’t afraid to speak up because everyone struggles at one point,” said Mr. Ross, a sixth-grade English Language Arts teacher.

Mr. Toner, a sixth-grade science teacher, said it is important to help students recognize and celebrate accomplishments. He said he works hard to make sure students don’t feel like they can’t do an assignment.

Vice Principal Dr. Harper agrees that celebrating your accomplishments is important. “Showcase what you’re good at,” she said.

Many teachers warn that social media can interfere with a person’s self-esteem.

“I would stop comparing yourself to what you see on TikTok or Instagram. Filters and AI [artificial intelligence] are giving everyone a false perception of everything,” said physical education teacher Mr. Stem.

Mrs. Casselli, a fifth-grade English language arts teacher, agrees. ”People need to stop making negative comments on people and realize not all of what they see is real because of all the filters,” she said. “That is not reality.”

Instead of looking online for self-esteem, she suggests looking in the mirror and finding just one special thing you like about yourself.

“Looking in the mirror and saying positive things will improve the way you see yourself,” said Ms. Buffardi, a seventh-grade English Language Arts teacher.

Seventh-grade math teacher Mrs. Maffei said you should not look to social media to rate your flaws, but instead embrace any flaws. “Your flaws are perfect,” she said.

So what can you do if you’re feeling down? “One thing is not to compare your body or how you see yourself,” Dr. Harper said. “Every time you compare yourself against someone else, you’ll find something that isn’t the same. I also think you have to find something about yourself you like.”

Mrs. Maffei said we all really need to be more accepting. “Know that we should accept all bodies, no matter what size or how you look,” she said.

Illustration by Amber, James Logan E.S.