Natalie Moore, LMFT teaches two practical self-compassion techniques: compassionate self-talk and compassionate self-touch. These early therapy tools help build resilience when you're struggling.
In the self-help world, we hear a lot about self-esteem, but what about self-compassion? Hi there, Natalie Moore, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist here, and this is the third video in my series on the top techniques that I use with clients very early on in our therapy together to help them develop some resiliency tools. So if you haven't checked out the first video on conscious breathing, I encourage you to go over there and check that out. I'll leave the link below. And if you haven't checked out the second video on what's called somatic resourcing, I also encourage you to check that out. Again, I'll leave the link below. So today's day 3, and today I'm going to be talking about self-compassion. Okay, so what is self-compassion? So compassion is kindness and understanding, and so self-compassion is directing kindness and, and understanding toward yourself. So when is self-compassion most helpful? So when we are having a really tough time, having a really bad day, maybe we just made a big blunder or mistake at work or accidentally hurt somebody in a way that we didn't mean to. Sometimes a lot of self-judgment and self-critical thoughts can set in and feelings of guilt and shame can also set in, maybe even fear or concern about the impact that we had on someone else. Can really overwhelm us and really take over. So self-compassion is an amazing tool that we can use to help soothe ourselves through these difficult emotions. So it's not with the intention of making them go away. Sometimes it can soften them or ease the process of moving through the emotions, but it's really a way of just being with the emotion and again, having that kindness and understanding toward ourselves that we're going through a hard time. So how do we cultivate self-compassion? So there are two 2 ways that we can do this. The first is with compassionate self-talk. So this is with consciously saying things internally to ourselves that are kind. So the best way to approach this is to imagine what a good friend would say to you in this situation, or what you would say to a good friend in this situation. So think of those things. You might say, "You did your best. You didn't mean to hurt anyone." You're going through a really hard time right now. I know this is really tough for you. You're learning, you're growing, you're figuring it out. You're not perfect. I think you get the idea here. So that's the first one. And then the second way that we can practice self-compassion is with compassionate self-touch. You can touch your arm or you can give yourself a little squeeze or a hug. Sometimes it feels good to cup one hand in the other and lay it on the lap. And you can even do a deeper hug or squeeze. Some people really like putting one hand or both hands over the heart and feeling into their heart center as they feel those difficult emotions. I hope these tools are helpful for you. I hope you use them the next time you make a big mistake or feel upset with yourself for doing something silly. I know that I make mistakes all the time, and self-compassion is a really helpful tool for me to get through those and remind myself that I'm doing my best and that it's okay to make mistakes. If you have any questions about self-compassion—what it is, why to do it, how we can do it—please leave your questions in the comment section below. I'm happy to answer those. If you have any requests for future videos on anything having to do with mental health and relationships or holistic wellness, always happy to do video requests. I love listening to the needs of my audience instead of just making my best guesses for what you all might want to listen to and watch. Please do that. If this video was helpful and you enjoyed it, if you could hit the like button, subscribe to my channel, if you could share this on social media or with a friend, I would really appreciate that. It helps me get the message out to more people. I am I am a licensed therapist in California and provide telehealth sessions for all of California residents. If you resonate with my approach and want to schedule a free consultation with me, I'm happy to talk to you about your needs and if I might be a good fit for helping you. All of my contact information is down below, so feel free to reach out to me. I hope to hear from you soon. Take care. Bye-bye.
5 Things You Need to Cultivate Total Wellness with Natalie Moore | Authority Magazine
