“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” ~Buddha
When we look in the mirror, what do we see? We may notice our frizzy hair, crooked teeth, short eyelashes, thin lips, uneven eyebrows or a plethora of other things. Yet when others look at us, they are more prone to see what we overlook–that we are friendly, optimistic, outgoing, hard working, strong, resilient, creative, kind, sensitive, thoughtful… Why are we so much harder on ourselves than we are on others?!
I recently opened a “Marriage Minute” email from the Gottman Institute and read about self-love. This is something that has been on my mind over the last several weeks, and I thought it would be helpful to dedicate a post to a powerful form of self-care that we often overlook: Self-compassion.
Compassion itself is defined as the sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others. Compassion literally means to “suffer with.” In order to have compassion, we must first notice that someone is suffering, and then we feel moved by their suffering so that our hearts respond to their pain. When we extend compassion, we feel warmth, caring, and the desire to help the suffering person in some way. Having compassion also means we offer understanding and kindness to others when they fail or make mistakes, rather than judging them harshly. Compassion is the realization that suffering, failure, and imperfection is part of the shared human experience.
Even though we all need it, self-compassion is so much easier to show someone else than it is to show ourselves! The time has come to focus on extending this kind of compassion to others as well as ourselves.
Practicing compassion towards ourselves is really no different from having compassion for someone else. Self-compassion is…
- Acting the same way towards ourselves as we do others when we are having a difficult time, fail, or notice something we do not like about ourselves.
- Being gentle with ourselves when confronted with painful experiences.
- Cutting ourselves some slack instead of ignoring pain or judging ourselves harshly.
- Being kind and understanding when confronted with imperfections.
- Being warm and understanding toward ourselves when we suffer, fail, or feel inadequate, rather than ignoring our pain or flagellating (punishing) ourselves with self-criticism.
- Recognizing that being imperfect, failing, and experiencing life difficulties is inevitable.
To be clear, self-compassion is NOT self-pity (being immersed in our own problems), self-indulgence (unrestrained gratification of our desires), or self-esteem (our perceived sense of worth or value).
Ultimately, self-compassion is an ongoing process of honoring and accepting our humanness, and recognizing that things will not always go our way. It is knowing that we will inevitably encounter frustrations, make mistakes, and fall short of our ideals. This is the human condition–a reality shared by all of us! The more we open our hearts to this fact–instead of constantly fighting against it–the more we will be able to feel compassion for ourselves and all our fellow humans in the experience of life.
Here is my challenge to you: The next time you are tempted to put yourself down, practice self-compassion instead. Recognize that you are doing your best, and that your effort is what counts. Give yourself the benefit of the doubt. Celebrate your progress. Be kind to yourself. I can assure you that implementing more compassion (towards yourself) into your life will have a powerful and positive effect on how you view yourself, others, and the world. Should you find that you need help working through self-deprecation, please do not hesitate to contact me today. I am always accepting new clients!
Melissa Cluff is a licensed marriage and family therapist based in Lewisville, Texas, personally seeing clients in the North Dallas area.
Resources:
- Cluff Counseling: “Finding Your Strengths”
- Cluff Counseling: “Life is Hard–Choose Joy”
- Cluff Counseling: “Measuring Your Success”
- Cluff Counseling: “The Positive Influence of Affirmations”
- Cluff Counseling: “Practical Ways to Practice Mental Hygiene”
- Cluff Counseling: “Self-care: Is it Selfish?”
- Cluff Counseling: “Self-Esteem & Self-Worth: Two essential Components of the Self”
- Forbes: “Science Explains The Link Between Self-Compassion And Success”
- The Gottman Institute
- The Gottman Institute: “Be the Change You Wish to See in Your Relationship”
- The Gottman Institute:“Avoiding The Trap: How To Stop Judging Yourself”
- The Gottman Institute:“Self-Interest is Not Selfish in Relationships”
- Mind Body Green: “10 Wonderful Ways To Practice Self-Love”
- Psychology Today: “8 Powerful Steps to Self-Love”
- Psychology Today: “A Seven-Step Prescription for Self-Love”
- Self-Compassion
