Ego thrives on comparisons. There are people who think too highly of themselves, and those who beat themselves up for the tinies of mistakes. These people, both of them struggles with a very potent and overwhelming ego. Ego loves to beat others down to make itself look good or undermine itself to make oneself believe that growth isn't possible, so why bother change? 

Now, coming back to the point about perceptions. If you truly analyze what ego is, it is just a part of your brain-mind ecosystem. It exists, but it exists within you. It isn't who you are. But, rather people who suffer from the wrath of ego tend to have this false belief that their ego is their whole identity. 

If I propose that you aren't your ego, then it is natural to ask, who are you? The answer is simple and yet complicated. In its truest essence, you are no one. You are a conscience that see, feel and act. Your identity is just a layer of clothing that you chose to wear. Once you truly strip yourself of your ego, your true unmarked self shall reveal, and in that lay all the solution to all your problems.

There might be a hundred different ways. One that I know of, that has worked for me. However, it is still very much a work in progress. It is meditation. To meditate is to see, beyond decades of masks and layers, to know who you truly are. Meditation helps you seek your true self. Therapy and other techniques might also work, but I won't know, as meditation starts with you, it is cheap and probably the most effective way, I would suggest this. It might not be for you, but you won't know, until you try!

I have suffered a lot. Nearly 28 years of my life. Only now that I stand on the brink of 29th I see peace and happiness. True peace, that emanates from within and doesn't need an external source to shine bright. I wish the same for anyone and everyone who comes to earth. I think we all deserve to be happy, if nothing else. Let's try our best. Let's not be prisoner to our own personal hell.