Self-Compassion Break

The self-compassion break as defined by Kristin Neff. This 3-step practice invites us to bring full awareness to our difficult experiences, to remind ourself that difficulties and suffering are part of life, and to meet ourselves with kindness.

Transcript

Self-compassion break.

As we begin this practice,

We can take a deep breath in and a long breath out,

And letting our breath find its normal rhythm,

We can bring to our mind a situation that is causing us suffering at the moment,

Or that is causing us stress perhaps,

And we can check with our body what are the physical sensations that are present when we bring this difficult moment in mind.

And the first step of this three-step practice consists of bringing our full awareness to the fact that this is a moment of suffering,

So to bring mindfulness to what we're experiencing at the moment,

And we can even say silently to ourself,

Oh this hurts,

This is painful.

We can choose whatever words describe what we're going through at the moment right now.

The second step consists of reminding ourselves that suffering is part of life,

And all beings suffer at some stage in their life.

As such,

We're not alone in that suffering.

Other people have felt this way and might feel this way in the future.

If we wish,

We can put our hand over our heart and see how it feels to have our hand on our heart and feel the warmth it creates.

Finally,

The third step consists of asking ourselves,

What do I need right now?

What would an act of kindness towards myself look like at this moment in time?

We can also use a phrase that perhaps speak to us in this particular situation,

Such as,

May I give myself the compassion I need,

May I be strong,

May I forgive myself,

Using the words that seem the most adequate for you in this moment of time.

And as we close this practice,

We can take another deep,

Full breath in and a long breath out.