A mindfulness practice to help you experience the self-compassion that naturally exists within you, and consider the simple ways that you care for yourself each day.
You will:
MP3 Link: https://soundcloud.com/user-877205336-555180076/meditation-for-self-compassion
This meditation is a self-compassion meditation of revealing loving presence.
You can do this practice sitting, lying down, or even standing.
We’ll begin by simply settling into the breath and the body.
As you inhale, notice sensations of breath throughout the entire body, and as you exhale, relax and release that attention.
Inhale, noticing sensations in the body.
Exhale, relaxing and releasing.
Continue this pattern of noticing through the inhale, and relaxing through the exhale, on the rhythm of your own breath.
When the mind slips away—caught up by some idea, memory, or image—no problem at all.
Simply relax; release whatever has captured your attention, and return—for just a bit longer—to settling into the breath and the body.
Noticing through the inhale, relaxing and releasing though the exhale.
[PAUSE]
We’ll now shift and focus our attention away from the breath and the body and into our practice of self-compassion.
In this practice, we’re going to focus on the subtlety of compassion for ourselves—that’s already here.
We begin this by simply noticing right now, right here.
Is there a sense of care, kindness, and compassion for ourselves?
The very basic human condition is one in which we are seeking to be okay.
Noticing this basic human desire to care for ourselves, see if you can feel that as a presence.
Noticing whether in the body this sense of caring or kindness can be experienced just through the simple breath.
Inhale, noticing a caring presence.
Exhale, noticing a caring presence.
This may feel hard or abstract. You can reflect on the simple ways that you take care of yourself…
Listening to this meditation.
Taking care of your body through bathing, feeding.
Think of the simple ways that you try to avoid difficulty and discomfort.
For example, shifting or moving the body if you’re uncomfortable.
Putting on a warm sweater if you’re cold.
Just notice these simple ways we’re already kind to ourselves—caring about our well-being.
Instead of having to generate or construct self-compassion, feel or imagine simply revealing the self-compassion which is already here–our desire to alleviate our own suffering.
Continuing again through the inhale and exhale—
Inhale, considering this loving presence that’s already here.
And exhaling extending a wish of compassion to our self.
Inhale, noticing the loving presence already here.
And exhale, extending that loving presence and compassion to ourselves.
[BRIEF PAUSE]
This may feel hard or hokey at first—no problem at all.
Setting our mind and intention towards this caring way of being can create a natural form of relaxation and resilience, so keep steadying the mind here.
Noticing a caring loving presence, extending a caring loving presence—for ourselves.
[PAUSE]
Consider continuing this feeling of loving presence throughout the rest of our day and evening.
No need to shift anything, simply bringing this practice to a close.
Eve Ekman, PhD
Senior Fellow at the Greater Good Science Center
Participants in an eight-week Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) program reported feeling greater self-compassion, mindfulness, and life satisfaction at the end of the program when compared to a control group.
Studies indicate that self-compassion practices are a form of self-care that may reduce burnout in adults who work in service-oriented professions like teaching. A review of 22 self-compassion related therapies indicates that self-compassion approaches can reduce both anxiety and depression. In fact, self-compassion strategies may even be more effective in addressing depressed mood than strategies like cognitive reappraisal (shifting your thinking about a negative event) and acceptance.
When we face challenges with students or colleagues, and we beat ourselves up about them as a result, we can end up feeling even more stressed and isolated. A healthier response is to treat ourselves with kindness and understanding. In fact, teachers who are more mindful and self-compassionate foster more emotionally supportive relationships with students in their classrooms.
And for those using the practice in higher education, self-compassionate college students are more likely to ask questions, seek help, and participate in the classroom activities.
Do you want to dive deeper into the science behind our GGIE practices? Enroll in one of our online courses for educators!
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