Welcome to the September 2017 ACT With Compassion newsletter!
In this issue we feature an excerpt from a recent blog post
that proved to be quite popular - "It’s OK Kiddo." On internalizing self-compassion. We also include links to other blog articles, compassion tools, and research updates that we've posted. If you know of anyone who might be interested in our content, be sure to forward the newsletter to him or her. You can also share it on social media with the social sharing tools at the bottom.
We hope you enjoy this issue – if you have any questions or comments, feel free to send them to us!
Sincerely, Jason Luoma, Jenna LeJeune, & Christina Chwyl
Featured Blog Excerpt - July 2017
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'It’s OK Kiddo.' On internalizing self-compassion
Like many people, public speaking has been a struggle for me. When I
first started out, I wasn’t simply anxious about public speaking, I was really bad at it. And I have the evidence to prove it. After the first psychology course I ever taught in graduate school, I was told that I had the worst evaluations in the history of the program. The problems continued in my role as a psychologist when I started giving workshops. I would bore the audience, criticize people, and be confusing. It was excruciating. I knew I was bad, but I did know how to be better. I kept
trying, but I felt like I was failing again and again and again. The hours, and often days, after workshops would be filled with shame and self-loathing. As I think back on that younger me who went through that, I feel sadness for how much pain he endured. That younger me didn’t know any better at the time and was only doing his best.
I didn’t know how to ask for help and I didn’t think others would be able or willing to help me.
I didn’t know how to take it one piece at a time, learning in manageable bits.
I repeatedly bit off more that I can chew, forcing myself to take on things that I
wasn’t ready for. I followed the rule, “if it’s a hard thing, it’s the right thing.”
Today when I speak in public, it generally is accompanied by less shame and self-criticism and even enjoyment sometimes, but it’s taken a long time to get
there.
Here are links to Compassion Tools of the Month that we've featured on the AWC blog in recent months:
You can access all of our posts on clinical tools here. You can read about research on shame and self-compassion that might inform your clinical practice by clicking on the links below:
You can read up on all of our research updates at this link. We also feature original content on our blog - here are links to just some of the articles we've posted, including those we've published since our last newsletter:
Check out more of our original blog content here. We are hosting two upcoming workshops in September on using ACT with shame and self-criticism:
Be sure to check out our Events page for information on other classes, workshops, and conferences relevant to therapists interested in shame, self-criticism, and compassion. If you know of an event you'd like to see listed, please contact us with the details and we'll put it on our website! |
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