The Self-Loathing Project

by Katherine Cobb

A fifteen-year project.

Hundreds of women.

Varying ages, backgrounds and cultures.

One set of questions.

The mission: To expose self-loathing and help women overcome the silent debilitating epidemic of self-judgment.

Read their stories, think about your own and expand your view.


PRAISE FOR THE SELF-LOATHING PROJECT
“The Self-Loathing Project is an honest and eye-opening view, describing how so many of us feel as women. Each of us has something we are carrying around. Some of the stories were heart-wrenching, some of them inspiring, but all of them moved me in a way that made me feel bonded to each and every one of these brave women. It felt like I was sitting in a living room listening to a group of friends just tell their stories and I wanted to wrap each one of them in a hug. I believe we can all relate to every message. A wonderful read.”—Jenn Lefebvre, blogger and influencer, A Healthy Makeover

“This book really touches on something important to all women—and the author has given it a voice and a space for discussion. The variety of ages is impressive, as is the variety of responses and candor of these women. I particularly like how the author bookended the interviews with upbeat, clarifying content. Her introduction sets the tone for what the reader is about to experience while her closing chapters and supplemental material bring the interviews together with understanding and hope. An amazing collection that is well curated and crafted.”—Viqui Dill, blogger and musician, Happiest when Folks Sing Along with Me

Paperback

Published October 1, 2021

About the author

Katherine Briganti Cobb writes books about love, relationships and our shared, often messy humanity. She writes fiction, nonfiction and picture books and is also writing romance with heart and heat under the pen name K.C. Lake.

Reviews

[Tanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Follow the tales of how women judge themselves against the high expectations everyone else seems to have for them. See how they deal with trying to prove themselves
I received a copy and I am willingly leaving a review

[Celicia Fowlkes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really quick read about how women look at themselves in the mirror and constantly judge themselves. When they say that we are our harshest critic, it true. Everyone else can tell you that you are beautiful just the way you are or how well you do something. And it still wont matter until you believe it yourself. Mental blocks hold us back from truly living our lives. Whether it was rejection or not hearing what you wanted to hear. Its just an opinion that is spoken by an imperfect person that should not be held to a gold standard. This book teaches you so much about yourself while reading. The best lessons I took away from this book are that you have to love yourself, flaws and all, accept who you are as a person and to be honest with yourself.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[The Word Count · Rating 4 out of 5]

What makes this piece wonderful is that it is not a lecture or self-help book designed to guilt the reader into a life change. The Self-Loathing Project is a simple, running testimonial that brings focus to a trivialized element of the female psyche. Its rawness creates an overall arc of normalcy. This heightens the sensation that self-loathing is not an isolated, uncommon struggle. The blunt, honesty of the essays makes the struggles comprehensible to any reader, even readers who have not experienced these issues first-hand.

I eagerly await Cobb's next work!

[Bethann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved reading this and picked up a few good quotes or pointers, but I wish this book had also focused more on the self-loathing that comes from things other than hating your body. I do agree with the women who answered the questions of this research, that every woman pretty much hates something about their physical self, but I would love to hear more about how other people feel about things like: their abilities, their parenting, their attitude, etc.

[Caroline · Rating 2 out of 5]

I kind of loathe myself for having read this. I thought since it was a 15-year project it would be much tighter and more insightful.

[Katherine Cobb]

When I began noticing how often women put themselves down, it occurred to me this was a pervasive, negative inner voice that seemed present in more women I knew than not. It awakened my own awareness of an ugly voice talking inside my own head—an unwitting sidekick, narrating my every action and decision. I embarked on a mission to explore the topic and began interviewing women, and getting them to dig deeper for where and how and why this internal critic started for them. I stayed with it over the years, learning, growing, and trying to figure out how best to serve this up to other women to help them overcome it. Along the way, I resolved my own self-loathing and embraced self-love instead. The culmination of this work is presented here with the goal of letting the reader have their own takeaways vs. me telling you how to feel or what to do. I do provide resources, and share my own story of how I overcame this negativity, for those who endeavor to transcend it. Buy it for yourself and for the women in your life. And be well.