Thanks for sharing, Jessica. I believe this to be true, but to be honest, sometimes I let how other people think of me define me. It is, of course, not some illogical but conscious choice, like "'Jake is always hungry. He's always thinking about food'. Oh, therefore, I am the Whale." Perhaps that's an exaggeration, but it's pretty much along those lines. And I suspect some people like me over-emphasize the part for which they're criticized. Instead of looking at themselves as an apple with a bruise, the apple is the bruise. But painstaking deprogramming and/or mindfulness meditation (and some luck) might help over time.