Guilt, like shame and embarrassment, is a self-conscious emotion, meaning it involves thinking about oneself and ones actions. It’s a feeling that you have done something wrong, violated a moral rule, or caused harm to someone.
Healthy guilt can be a positive motivator for change, driving individuals to make amends, apologise and repair relationships and even change their behaviour moving forward.
However guilt can become ‘unhealthy’ if it’s excessive in nature, misplaced (taking responsibility for something that was not of your making) or prevents forgiveness of self. This is when it can spiral into negative self-talk, self-blame and even depression.
Guilt often gets ‘confused’ with Shame. Guilt focuses much more on the action, the ‘I did something wrong’ feeling, whereas Shame focuses more on the self, the ‘I am bad’ feeling.
