Learning how to actively comfort yourself can take practice if you are used to being hard on yourself. An easy place to start is by simply bringing your hand to your cheek or your heart center and reminding yourself that you care.
But self-kindness involves more than merely stopping self-judgment. It involves actively comforting ourselves, responding just as we would to a dear friend. It means we allow ourselves to be emotionally moved by our own pain, stopping to say “This is really difficult right now. How can I care for and comfort myself in this moment?”
Self-Compassion (p. 42) by Kristen Neff
Writing Prompt: Treating Yourself As You Would A Beloved Friend
This journaling prompt will help you explore how self-kindness can benefit you. You may find it helpful to practice this week’s mindful movement exercise first. Then take some time after to write using this prompt:
“When I treat myself as though I were my own best friend I ___________________”
It may help to imagine that your best friend is actually talking to you, or that you are writing from the perspective of a divine, all-loving being.