Hi. I'm Monica. And I have low self-confidence.

Okay, phew. That just felt like I was introducing myself at an AA meeting or something.

I know I'm not alone in feeling like this. In fact, if there were support groups (probably wouldn't be a bad idea, by the way) for people who feel self conscious, I feel like the line would be out the door.

Sometimes, when I look in the mirror, (and I have seen this happen with other people as well), I automatically flinch. Why is it that many people seem to be afraid of their own reflection?

When watching "The Today Show" in the office this morning, I heard the hosts talking about a "self-confidence patch." 

Similar to a Nicotine patch, the personal care brand Dove claimed that this patch erased the addiction of self-hate while wearing it.

Dove

Wow! I almost jumped out of my seat in the middle of the newsroom.

If something so simple could cure me of my self-consciousness, then sign me up — pronto! 

But…there's a catch.

Okay, let me start from the beginning.

Dove told women that they were going to be part of a study to test a "revolutionary new beauty product," and, for two weeks, they documented how it made them feel.

According to "The Today Show," here are some of the women's reactions after wearing the patch 12 hours a day during the test:

"I've been more comfortable in clothes I didn't wear before, more comfortable doing my hair differently, showing off my face more," said one of the participants, Tahnee.

"I've been more social with the patch on," said Tracey.

"I'd love people to have the kind of change that I've had," said Brihtney.

At the end of the study, the subjects found out what was in the patch. And the answer — nothing! 

Dove

"Psychologist Ann Kearney-Cooke reveals to the women that there was never actually anything in the patch, and that the confidence they got from feeling beautiful was within them, the whole time," write Melissa Dahl of "The Today Show."

So does this mean that we all have the ability to feel confidence already within ourselves? This study shows that — yes.

These women just believed they were going to be more self-confident, and so they were.

 But not all of us have a placebo, tricking us into feeling great about ourselves. I'd be okay with being on a placebo for the rest of my life and never knowing it's not real if it meant feeling better about myself.

 So, what's the answer then?

 Trick your own mind into feeling good about yourself. Fake it until you make it.

Walk with your head held high, even if you don't feel like it. Stop talking negatively about yourself to others. And, even more importantly, stop talking negatively about yourself to yourself.

 Act like you're confident to the rest of the world, even if you don't feel it inside. And, in time, you will start to feel it. Because, I am telling you, you have no reason not to feel confident.