Teaching compassionIf I would create a list of the words that the pandemic left behind used to extreme that would be - dealing with emotions, empathy, compassion and mindfulness. While in my first newsletter I talked about emotions, today I choose to bring compassion on the stage. Barkley University reports about a compassionate attitude and this is how they see it: ”we will not just choose ourselves, but we will choose others in their humanity. We will not close our hearts to others, but we will open them up to others - and in doing so we will open ourselves up to the gift of enhanced relationship and belonging.” Sometimes it is hard to find a compassionate attitude especially when you are under a lot of stress, when you are tired and exhausted and when you feel that you are treated unfair or when your values are violated . The anger that builds in us only makes us feel worse and that anger creates responses in our body. So what then? How do we deal with it - when there is no way out that we can see in this point in time? The researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison ran a study where they observed people in MRi and how their brain changed when hearing positive and negative things. Some of them were practicing compassion meditation and others were not. And they realised that those who were cultivating compassion and kindness through meditation had their brain regions affected. ”The practice can make a person more empathetic to other people’s’ mental states”, say researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
If you want to read more about the study here is the link of the article with more details on the topic. I got carried away and didn’t explain what self-compassion meditation is (like the ones that people from the study were practicing). Self-compassion is the act of extending king and empowering thoughts to one’s own mind and body, while letting go and practicing forgiveness.
Why do it? Because when the self - compassion supplies are full, we are more empathic, resilient and compassionate with us, but also with others. Also, self- compassion meditation reduces anxiety and depression, boots self-esteem, improves authenticity and decision-making process, promotes genuine self-care and strengthens relationships. I recorded a self-compassion meditation session and you can listen to it here, on my Mindfulness Podcast. The one that I chose is directed to self and it was created by Helen Weng and her colleagues at the Center for Healthy Minds (CHM) at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Before hitting play, there is a need of preparation for this: find a comfortable spot where you can sit in a relaxed position, remove your shoes, light a scented candle if you like that and think about the intention you bring into this. Now you are ready to play it:
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