In this episode of Let's Get Emotional, hosts Tatiana Rojas and Dr. Jennifer Martin Schantz explore one of the most misunderstood emotions we experience: pride. While pride is often confused with arrogance or narcissism, healthy pride is actually an essential emotion that helps build confidence, resilience, motivation, self-esteem, and a strong sense of identity.

If you've ever struggled to celebrate your accomplishments, minimized your successes, battled imposter syndrome, perfectionism, low self-worth, or wondered whether feeling proud makes you selfish or arrogant, this episode offers practical tools to help you understand the psychology of pride and develop healthier self-confidence.

Tatiana and Jennifer break down the psychology and neuroscience of pride, explaining why researchers identify two distinct forms of pride: authentic pride, which is built through effort, persistence, and personal growth, and hubristic pride, which is rooted in superiority and fragile self-worth. They discuss how healthy pride strengthens emotional regulation, motivation, resilience, and long-term wellbeing, while unhealthy pride can contribute to defensiveness, narcissism, and disconnection from others.

You'll learn how pride develops throughout childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, how it influences identity formation and self-esteem, and how it often shows up physically through an open posture, grounded confidence, relaxed breathing, warmth in the chest, and a calm sense of accomplishment.

Drawing from research, therapeutic approaches, and real-world clinical experience, the hosts explore the connection between pride, self-compassion, emotional intelligence, perfectionism, trauma, shame, imposter syndrome, and mental health. They also discuss why many high-achievers, caregivers, helping professionals, and people recovering from trauma often struggle to acknowledge their own accomplishments and how learning to embrace healthy pride supports emotional healing and personal growth.

Whether you're working to improve your confidence, overcome perfectionism, build healthier self-esteem, recover from shame, or simply understand your emotions more deeply, this episode provides practical strategies for developing authentic pride, emotional resilience, and lasting self-worth.

In This Episode:

• What pride is and why it serves an important emotional purpose
• The difference between authentic pride and hubristic pride
• Why healthy pride is not the same as arrogance or narcissism
• The psychology and neuroscience of pride
• How pride strengthens confidence, resilience, motivation, and self-esteem
• Why perfectionism, imposter syndrome, trauma, and shame make pride difficult
• How pride develops from childhood through adulthood
• Physical signs of healthy pride and emotional regulation
• The connection between pride, identity, and long-term personal growth
• How self-compassion supports healthy pride and emotional wellbeing
• Practical strategies for recognizing your accomplishments without minimizing them
• Understanding the role of pride in parenting, caregiving, leadership, and relationships
• A research-backed self-compassion exercise for building authentic pride
• How to celebrate progress while maintaining humility
• Learning to replace self-criticism with self-recognition and emotional balance

Links & Resources:

Tatiana Rojas
https://getherapyservices.com/

Disclaimer:

Let's Get Emotional is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not therapy and does not replace mental health care. If you are in crisis or need immediate support, please contact your local emergency services or a crisis hotline in your area.