8-Week Mindful Self-Compassion Course
Self-compassion brings understanding and resources to ourselves in moments of difficulty, just as we would do for someone we love.
The Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) program is an 8-week group course designed to cultivate the skill of self-compassion. Grounded in the research of Kristin Neff, PhD, and the clinical expertise of Christopher Germer, PhD, the MSC program leads participants through the core principles and practices that help us bring kindness to our struggles, and experience more connection and resilience in our lives.
Kristen Neff has defined self-compassion as bringing together the power of mindfulness, kindness, a sense of common humanity and connectedness. Mindfulness opens us to the present moment, so we can know and accept our experience with greater clarity and ease. Kindness opens our hearts to suffering, so we can give ourselves what we need. Common humanity reminds us of our essential interconnected so we know we aren’t alone. Together they comprise a state of warm-hearted, connected presence.
Self-compassion can be learned by anyone, and provides emotional strength and resilience, allowing us to admit our shortcomings, motivate ourselves with kindness, forgive ourselves when we mess up, relate wholeheartedly and courageously with others, and live more authentically.
What To Expect
The Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) course includes 8 weekly sessions of 2.5 hours each, and a half-day mindfulness retreat. Each week builds on the previous one and participants who register for the course should be able to attend all or most of the 8 sessions. Program activities include guided meditation, short talks, experiential exercises, group discussion, and home practices. MSC is a workshop rather than a retreat. The goal is for participants to directly experience self-compassion and learn practices that evoke self-compassion in daily life. MSC is primarily a compassion training program rather than mindfulness training like Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), although mindfulness is the foundation of self-compassion.
The MSC course focuses on building emotional resources rather than addressing old wounds. Positive change occurs naturally as we develop the capacity to be with ourselves and the range of our experiences in a kinder, more compassionate way. While some difficult emotions may arise when practicing self-compassion, MSC teachers are committed to providing a safe, supportive environment for this process to unfold, and to making the journey engaging and meaningful to all.
This workshop will support you to:
Practice self-compassion in daily life
Understand the empirically-supported benefits of self-compassion
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 savoring and appreciation
With self-compassion, we can motivate ourselves with encouragement, forgive ourselves when needed, face and befriend our shortcomings, care for others while caring for self, and live more authentically. Research shows that self-compassion is strongly associated with emotional well-being, lower levels of anxiety and depression, healthy habits such as diet and exercise, and more satisfying personal relationships.
Prerequisites
The Mindful Self-Compassion program can benefit those we are new to mindfulness practices and also experienced meditators. No previous experience with mindfulness or meditation is required. Registration for the course is required, and participants are asked to provide background information when they register. For more information on MSC and MSC Teacher Training, please see www.CenterForMSC.org.