The Search For One's Identity

Life is a journey in which an individual travels. During this long and epic journey one discovers who he is and what he is meant to do. Throughout this adventure, the individual continues to build onto oneself, creating his own self-concept and self perception. These two elements are sometimes thought to be the same thing. However, there are differences. Self-concept is the set of attitudes, opinions, and cognitions that a person has of oneself. On the other hand, self perception is the idea or mental image one has of oneself and one's strengths, weaknesses, and status. In short, self-concept can be seen as an overview of someone’s morals, while self-perception is the more in depth ideas about an individual. Self-concept is like a house. It has personality and shows what it is like on the inside while self perception is like the furniture and salient details in that house. It is specific and unique to the owner of the house and personality. Every individual, whether a child or an elderly person, has a certain self-concept and self perception. “Perception differs from individual to individual due to a variety of personal and cultural differences” (Perception). For an individual to find his own perception of one’s self and a concept of one’s personality, he needs to observe the influences of relationships both romantic and familial and the society surrounding them and his relationships.
Although relationships shape one’s self perception, it is the breakup that truly determines their self-concept. Throughout a relationship, the couple creates a bond where they in a way see themselves as one. When a relationship ends, one, or even both of the individuals can have intense emotional distress because of this. An example of that distress is called Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), or depression. This depression can affect all aspects of that individual’s life including, one’s mood, body, behavior, and mind. (“What is Major Depression?”). An individual can go through such a