When Does Being Yourself Become An Obsession?

Did you know that being yourself can become an obsession? Doctor of Philosophy and Medicine David R. Hawkins described the context of self-knowledge with a very illustrative phrase: “When you have discomfort, you go to the doctor or the psychiatrist, the psychologist or the astrologer. You become a religion, you study philosophy, you give yourself a little push with emotional release techniques (EFT). You balance the chakras or tests with reflexology, acupuncture… ”.

Dr. Hawkins’s sentence is much longer, illustrating the enormous number of options on offer. On the other hand, it is true that some have scientific validity and others do not, but it is no less true that there are supporters of all of them and, of course, also detractors.

However, its meaning is evident. Being yourself immersed in a world of self-knowledge has become a powerful industry. Therefore, dedicating yourself to you is not only interesting for you but for many other people who are going to profit from it in some way.

Spiritual materialism

In reference to the industry of self-knowledge, a unique term has been coined, spiritual materialism. In other words, the human being is evolving towards new forms of commodification and consumerism.

However, the new forms of consumption do not refer to obtaining material goods, but to spiritual and personal development. In other words, we live in an era in which self-knowledge can become a powerful business tool.

But we must remember that spiritual materialism, as Dr. Hawkins commented, can be surrounded by an undeniable business that reverts in huge profits for a growing sector and that in many cases is far from really offering what its advertising promises.

Again recalling Dr. Hawkins, be it tinged with self-help, personal development, tarot, chakras, psychology, psychiatry, yoga, Gestalt therapy, acupuncture, or any other method, being yourself can become a kind of dangerous “religion” that surrounds you. the obsessive.

The era of being yourself

At this moment, a process of change is being experienced that we could call the era of being oneself. Self-knowledge, personal development and self-help processes have become fashionable, creating a space in the “transpersonal world”.

However, not everything is valid or useful in the world of self-knowledge. The fact that countless ways to be oneself appear through aids that have a price, is causing a new model of dissatisfaction, the obsession with being oneself.

what happens in this case? That the human being who tries all kinds of techniques to know himself is not capable of being happy. That is to say, the individual focuses so much on his interior that he borders on the obsessive, forgetting that there is a whole world ahead to enjoy.

Symptoms caused by excess in self-knowledge

Finally, after falling into the hands of unprepared “professionals” and seeking the paths of self-knowledge to the limit, a series of mental and emotional difficulties of all kinds are created. We must remember that it is not good to spend all day analyzing each of the thoughts and feelings that go through our mind :

• : As the title of this article says, allowing being oneself to become an obsession will only allow us to spend day after day analyzing every detail of what goes through our mind. A perennial state of alertness that could lead to hypochondria.

• : a person who spends a large part of his life analyzing himself ends up not being able to differentiate between real and suggested feelings.

• : Coexistence is also affected by those obsessed with being themselves. The needs end up being so high that the very sense of relationship ends up being distorted.

• the introspection of a person who obsessively wants to be himself ends up being so elevated that reality is dissociated. It causes a distancing from everything that surrounds it.
• The entire cognitive system can end up paralyzed, causing the individual to block. Being excessively aware of oneself ends up immobilizing us psychologically.

• Possession: Finally, a person who is constantly preoccupied with himself ends up being  possessed by his own ghosts and fantasies.

Being yourself is a great philosophy of life. Self-knowledge is very important for a happy and balanced human being. However, taken to the limit of excess, it only causes obsessive disorders that are truly dangerous for the mental stability of the individual.

* Edition note: not all the options that are exposed in this article have the same validity for us. However, we cannot hide the reality and it is no less true that a person without knowledge, who goes to the market of self-knowledge, finds a lot of alternatives that are offered and that we cannot ignore. Thus, our spirit is not to ignore reality, but to present it and in some cases give our opinion, just as we love to hear yours.