Anita, one of my regular Mindful Monday participants, shared a note on Monday with me. She said “You always remind us to be compassionate with ourselves. I read something in The New York Times, printed it, put it up on my desk, and want to share it with you too.” The note says:
“Self-compassion – treating ourselves with kindness and understanding in the face of our mistakes and failures.”
I love this definition of self-compassion. For the perfectionists among us, treating ourselves with kindness and understanding when things don’t go as planned or we don’t reach a goal, kindness and understanding are not the first things we turn to. To this day, my mentors and close friends still often remind me “Don’t be so hard on yourself. Be gentle with yourself.” So, when I was off on Wednesday and my parasympathetic nervous system in full swing, making me all relaxed after Yoga, I found myself in a space of reflection. A little voice came into my head and asked me “How can you love yourself more?” I have been playing with this question since and invite you to do the same. Listen to what comes up for you, what ideas arise, what brings you joy. But also notice what distracts you and how can you find more stillness in your life. If you haven’t listened to my Tune into Your Body meditation yet, here is the link again. It’s only nine minutes and a great start to get out of your head and into your body more.