The Importance of Self-Compassion | with a guided meditation

With everything that is happening in our world right now, considering that we have a roof over our head, food and heat, it seems natural to say, “I have so much to be grateful for, so I can’t complain.” I do it myself. It's a lot like a spiritual bypass; “No matter what happens, I am still breathing.”

If we don’t allow our true feelings and hurts to surface because we are told we have it good, how is this honoring our truth? When we don’t process emotions by pushing away, stuffing down, or denying their existence we create stress and disease in our bodies. Over time an unwillingness to experience our own feelings leads to numbness.

We all know that we are not the only ones dealing with the complexity of being human. In our humanity, there are challenges and suffering. Feelings of loss, abandonment, loneliness and fear are universal -- in that way, we are created equal.

When we hold space for others, there is never a time that we don’t gain something, but we need to hold space for our own suffering too. If we reject our own emotions because we don’t feel like they’re important enough, we are missing out on our own humanity. Our suffering shows us what we need to be fully conscious.

Bringing mindfulness and kindness to our inner lives is a kind of spiritual re-parenting. By tapping into the flow of life’s ups and downs, we take care of ourselves. Accepting our emotions and allowing ourselves to feel them, connects us to all human beings. We put our own oxygen mask on first, meaning we tend to our needs so we can be there for others. Then when we hear of other’s suffering, our hearts can be filled with compassion and empathy for all beings in this complicated and sometimes very messy world.