Our mental attitudes, beliefs, and expectations can have a big influence on whether we thrive and prosper or stagnate and decline. Rick Hanson, an eminent neuropsychologist, describes how the brain has a negativity bias designed to keep us safe rather than happy. He says that this makes our brain like Velcro for bad experience and Teflon for good experience.
An example of this negativity can be seen in how we often relate to ourselves with harsh attitudes of self-criticism. But a harsh, self-critical, inner voice can undercut our self-confidence and self-esteem and lead to feelings of guilt and shame that undermine our mental wellbeing. This often results in higher levels of stress, anxiety, and low mood.
However recent research shows cultivating heartfelt positive mental states, such as loving kindness and compassion, leads to increased resilience, mental wellbeing, and contentment. Combining with mindfulness, experiential training in loving kindness, compassion, and gratitude gives us greater mental flexibility and enables us to meet three of our essential needs, for safety, satisfaction, and connection.
Mindful self-compassion (MSC ) is an experiential live online six-week group training programme based on the groundbreaking research of Kristin Neff PhD and the clinical expertise of Christopher Germer PhD. This short adaptation of MSC is designed specifically to be delivered online and teaches core skills that empower participants to respond to life’s difficult moments, with kindness, care, and understanding. It enhances abilities to:
• Practice self-compassion in your daily life.
• Motivate yourself with kindness rather than criticism.
• Handle difficult emotions with greater ease.
• Transform challenging relationships, old and new.
• Manage caregiver fatigue.
• Practice the art of savouring and self-appreciation.
The programme activities include meditations, short talks, small group experiential exercises, group discussion, and home practice. The goal is for participants to directly experience self-compassion and to learn practices that evoke self-compassion in daily life. This training can best be described as a group interactive adventure.
Course facilitator Martin Delaney MSc (mindfulness, compassion, and insight studies ) completed training to teach this course, under the direction of Kristin Neff and Christopher Germer, at the University of California San Diego Centre for Mindfulness.
A free introduction to mindful self-compassion event will take place on Tuesday September 15. The six-week course starts Tuesday September 22. To learn more contact [email protected], phone 083 3930654.
