"When you are compassionate with yourself,
you trust your soul, which you let guide your life.
Your soul knows the geography of your destiny better than you do."
-John O'Donohue
I don't know about you folks but I like some science to back up my spirituality. Yes, I'm a minister because I can share what I know to be true from experience not just what I've heard or studied- no airy fairy stuff here. I love the challenge of mixing in the scientific evidence that merges the fields and reminds us that all truth is essentially one and the same.
So, let's look at the facts behind this movement and the idea of self compassion. What does that really mean? It's really very simple; Compassion means to hold someone in your heart. Self compassion is a practice of holding yourself in your own heart. That could sound like intangible stuff, right? It certainly did to me once. Then I began testing my hypothetical self inquiry; What if we tried showing ourselves a little compassion instead of tearing ourselves down? What if we were actually kind to ourselves and believed that we are worthy? And I saw that there is quite a bit of research supporting the movement and the results I saw personally and in my clients were astounding.
There’s a new field of research that says that self-compassion may be the most important life skill, imparting resilience, courage, energy and creativity. BKTY- Be Kind to Yourself is the call to deeply know ourselves as the miraculous, sacred souls that we are and the permission to take compelling right actions to nurture and express that True Self in the world.
Just think about it- Due to our overly-competitive society, researchers speculate the tendency to choose self-punishment, rather than self-compassion, is on the rise. People often believe that punishing themselves will keep them in line and ultimately keep them safe.Oh contraire! Self-criticism can lead to hostility, anxiety, and depression which are issues that can block us from realizing our full potential. Self-critics also report feeling like they have lower energy levels, and often subconsciously engage in self-sabotaging strategies, such as procrastination and overeating.
As for the type A overachievers out there, myself included, let’s just get it out in the open- our most common fear about becoming self-compassionate is that we will become weak willed, it will lower our performance standards and encourage laziness.
Think again- researchers have found that self-compassionate people are actually less likely to sit on the couch all day. All of this might begin to sound like you are indulging yourself, but researchers don't find that at all. People who practice self-compassion tend to have higher standards, work harder and take more personal responsibility for their actions.
So now we have the science to support the spirit. Why did we ever believe the two were separate anyway?? Don't buy that hype :) Be kind to yourself. It's Science, it's Spirit, it Works.
From my heart to yours,
Rev. Sala
I also enjoy the science aspect of spirituality. I feel it helps me understand what I'm doing more thoroughly, and therefore be much better at it! I'm glad you also agree, and I look forward to reading more from you :)
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