Empathic Distress

Self-compassion plays a crucial role for caregivers. Whether you’re a parent, caring for your elderly parents, or are a professional like a nurse, doctor, social worker, or therapist, you need to turn compassion inward in order to sustain turning it outward.

Opening to Generational Pain

Generational pain is everywhere, and when we start to open our hearts through self-compassion practice we will likely run into it. Pain stemming not only from our connections to those who were hurt and oppressed in the past but also to those who hurt and oppressed others.

Take the Self-Compassion Challenge

The research overwhelmingly supports the fact that self-compassion enhances mental and physical health, improves relationships, provides strength and resilience, and increases motivation and performance. But in order to reap the benefits of self-compassion, we need to actually practice it in daily life.

Self-Compassionate Motivation

One of the biggest blocks to practicing self-compassion is the belief that it will undermine our motivation. People think that if they’re kind to themselves, they’ll become lazy, irresponsible, and complacent. The opposite is true.Tender self-compassion allows us to accept ourselves unconditionally, while fierce self-compassion spurs us to take action to change behaviors or situations that cause suffering. This means that instead of taking it personally when we fail, we remember that failure is human, and we try to learn from our mistakes.

Setting Our Intentions

During the holiday season, a lot of different thoughts and emotions are sure to arise. There may be happiness and satisfaction from connecting with our loved ones and the spirit of giving. There may also be a sense of dissatisfaction or lack, especially if our relationships aren’t what we would like them to be.