Survivor's Guilt and Self-Worth: Am I Worth Fighting For?

This question was a serious gut check this past weekend.  After my last blog post where I explained my struggle to stay motivated to get healthy, I talked with my mom about it.  She said that one of the things she has always loved about me is my gentleness.  I only become a fighter when absolutely necessary.  While I don't entirely agree with her assessment, it did turn a different light on:

I can fight for a cause.  I can fight for my loved ones.  I will fight for ideals worth fighting for.  But me?  Am I worth fighting for?


Yeah...as is said, gut check.  I realized immediately that survivor's guilt had a big role to play in this story.  The guilt eroded my self-confidence and self-esteem.  I have a very low opinion of my self-worth.  On top of that, I have stumbled and fallen down a lot as I learn to effectively cope with my PTSD.  I think that I am afraid to even try most of the time because I am afraid of failing again.  My lack of confidence turn this fear into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

So how do I get past this?  How does a person learn how to value himself again?  I should have a better opinion of myself.  The PTSD has tried very hard to destroy my life and my family.  Yet, I have persevered and held it all together.  What I realized is that I thought THEY were worth fighting for despite my inability to fight for me.

What a mess.  I literally hate the image I see when I look in the mirror and I wonder how much of that hatred stems from my guilt for having come home from Iraq when other I knew didn't.  Am I punishing myself?  Is that what's going on here?  I don't know.  I do intend to figure it out.  This may take more hand-holding than I thought, though.  The only way a person can truly improve their self-image is by having their worth validated regularly by those who love and care for him.

I don't want empty compliments and platitudes.  I need the people that love me to demonstrate to me why I am a good person.  Maybe I should talk to my parents, my sister, my wife, and others about having them write letters to me.  The idea would be explaining to me why they love me.  What they love about me.  That way, on a down day, I could pull out the letters and remind myself of how my family views me each and every day.  Hmm...