"Talk to yourself like you would to someone you love."
-Brene Brown
Have you ever stopped to think about how you treat yourself? Are you kind with your words? Do you give yourself grace when you make mistakes? Do you offer words of encouragement when faced with a challenge?
Self Compassion is not something that comes naturally for most of us. It is something that we must intentionally cultivate.
The first step in developing the skill of Self-Compassion is to create awareness around the relationship you have with yourself. As you go about your day notice your self-talk and ask yourself, "Would I say this or do this to a close friend or family member?"
Slowly begin to establish new habits that support YOU and YOUR overall wellness. Use the resources below to get started.
Don't Be So Hard on Yourself
As you navigate this stressful time, we want to remind you to practice a little self-compassion. Here is a short podcast on self-compassion along with the self-compassion technique referenced by the student being interviewed.
Interested to know where you rank on self-compassion?
Take the Self-Compassion Test developed by Dr. Kristen Neff, one of the leading researchers on the subject.
Fill Your Cup
We wouldn't expect a car to run without gas or our cell phones to work without recharging the battery.
So why is it that we have that expectation of ourselves?
There's a quote that says, "You can't pour from an empty cup"
We need to be intentional about looking for ways to refill our cup.
Check-in with yourself often and ask-
"What do I need right now?"
"How can I meet that need with the time I have available?"
You can also print this Mental Health Check-In Mini Poster and keep it somewhere visible as a daily reminder to check-in with yourself.
Scheduled Self-Care
Now more than ever, it is so important that we make the time to take care of ourselves. I think many of us intend to practice self-care but we end up prioritizing other things that come up throughout our day. Unfortunately, this bumps our self-care time off our calendars.
The trick is to make an appointment with ourselves. Honor that commitment as if it were a medical appointment or date with a friend.
Here are some helpful tips:
Decide on a specific activity based on the amount of time you have available. Ask yourself, What do I need right now? How can I best meet this need with the time I have available?
Schedule a specific time block for your self-care. It can be 5 minutes, 1 hour, or a full day. Each of us have different responsibilities and therefor different time available for self-care. But ALL of us can find at least 5 minutes.
Add the appointment to your calendar, planner, or phone.
Set a reminder so you don't forget.
And show up for yourself!