As Ohio enters a warmer season with longer days and more sun, it’s a bit easier to feel hopeful and joyful. We’ve finally kicked out the winter blues, and although conditions such as seasonal affective disorder are less likely to occur during the spring and summer months, it's vital to take care of your mental well-being and physical health throughout the entire year.
One way to do this is to explore the process of self-compassion. Defined by Dr. Kristin Neff of self-compassion.org, self-compassion centers on the idea that you should care for yourself just as much as you would a stranger or friend that you see suffering or experiencing misfortunes.
While many are taught as children to be mindful of others’ sufferings and be compassionate, this rarely expands to our own view of ourselves on a day-to-day basis. Self-judgement, isolation, and over-identification all lead individuals to be harder on themselves than they would anyone else.
Whether you’re your own worst critic, you feel alone in your mistakes, or your negative thoughts and emotions are overriding your brain, self-compassion may be the tool you’ve been looking for to bring peace.
Originally drawn from Buddhism, Neff began to empirically study self-compassion in order to draw scientific conclusions from the age-old meditation traditions she experienced through the religion.
A few of the basic ideas behind self-compassion include practicing forgiveness, having an open mindset, expressing gratitude and generosity, and being mindful.
Self-compassion not only leads to greater happiness and life satisfaction, but also increases emotional intelligence and social connectedness
To better practice forgiveness in your life, start by not punishing yourself for mistakes or mishaps. Understanding your inner value to friends and family beyond your actions are a key component to this practice of self-compassion.
With a growing mindset, you are further deterred from naturally being upset over obstacles or failures. Any unexpected events can be seen as opportunities to challenge yourself and grow as a person, rather than an unscalable mountain that will stop you in your tracks.
Instead of focusing on what is lacking in your life, having a positive attitude fosters a life spent expressing gratitude. Giving thanks every day of the year for what brings you joy, whether big or small, means you have less time to ruminate negativity.
Finally, be mindful. All of the ideas described previously cannot be accomplished without a sense of awareness in each moment. Appreciating all of life, rather than just what you remember at the end of the day, helps you more accurately perceive your actions and thoughts, leading to lessened self-judgment.
For practical steps on how to lead a more positive life, look no further than self-compassion.org.
To determine if you may need a heightened sense of self-compassion, ask yourself how you would treat a friend. If you find yourself being more judgmental of your own actions than you would the actions of others, treat yourself as a loved one and respond in a similar manner.
Taking a self-compassion break to relax and practice mindfulness, even for a small amount of time, can also help you focus and rejuvenate the rest of your day.
Practice self-compassion through writing by keeping a self-compassion journal. Think about what was difficult for you to appreciate about yourself that day, whether for mental or physical reasons, and learn to give yourself kindness and forgivingness.
Self-compassion not only leads to greater happiness and life satisfaction, but also increases emotional intelligence and social connectedness. Through consistent practice of exercises and guided mindfulness, individuals can expect healthy self-esteem and resilience with an increased ability to patiently work through anything life throws at them in a positive manner.
Maggie Ash is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
