Welcome into practice.
This is a 10-minute meditation for softening self-blame.
So when you're ready,
Please close your eyes or soften your gaze.
To a comfortable position.
And we will begin.
Most of us hold ourselves to a much higher level.
Than we'd ever dream of holding other people.
We have this inner sense of responsibility.
Of righteousness about how we should live our lives and how things should or shouldn't go.
And then when we feel things haven't gone quite to plan.
It's easy to turn.
To blaming oneself.
But perhaps there is a different way.
Next time you Start to criticize yourself.
Or feel yourself going towards a thought spiral of negative emotions towards yourself.
Are you able to stop?
Question.
And to treat yourself as you would a friend.
If a closest friend came to one of us with this big feeling of shame of something they'd been through,
None of us would turn around to our best friend and say,
That's exactly right.
How terrible of you.
We would appease them.
We would remind themselves of their true,
Beautiful,
Kind nature.
And remind them that's what other people see when they look at them.
Next time you turn to blame.
That you were able to show yourself the same kindness.
You're able to remember the This isn't the truth of who you are or of how other people see you.
If you were to imagine speaking to yourself.
As a best friend,
Then you can know with absolute certainty that all the people who love you in your life will see yourself in that same light.
They wouldn't turn.
Bad to the mistakes you've made in your past.
Would turn straight to the inner goodness and they would know that that is the true essence of who you are.
That any other mistakes are just small blips.
On an otherwise spotless sheet.
So when we show this kindness to ourselves,
It is not to placate ourselves or to fool ourselves into thinking things aren't what they are.
It's actually to remind ourselves of what is true.
Because the thing about the inner critic is.
.
.
A lot of what they're saying.
Is not accurate.
It's hard to remember that sometimes.
In the difficult moment.
But nevertheless,
It is true.
There is a space,
A separateness between the thoughts that pop into your head and the true you,
The inner self.
And that means that just because you think something.
Does not always mean that it is reflective of the truth.
And of course,
If This is a thought process that you have a history of.
It's not always possible to change these things overnight,
And nor should we ever expect to.
However,
These hard edges around ourselves of criticism.
Are something that we can try to change.
Like the rigid edges of a pen.
One soft towel which has been left to dry out in the sun.
It only takes a couple of minutes in the wash for it to start to soften.
Can you soften the edges of what you are saying to yourself?
Can you start to create a different narrative?
Kinder narrative and I argue with you today that that would be a truer narrative.
When you hear the negative voice.
Can you just softly ask yourself?
State one thing that you like about yourself.
Or one thing that you've done that day that you're proud of and that you know shows you're true.
Wonderful bright centre.
And it's through these gradual moments of changing the narrative.
Of remembering the good.
That you can start to soften the edges.
And over time.
With gently,
Gently softening the self-blame.
