Practical Self-Compassion Activities We All Need!
Self-compassion is definitely a difficult part of self-care and most of us are not able to achieve our goals in this area. And, this is simply because, no you cannot just say “I love you” to yourself and hug yourself when you are feeling down and think that you will feel better.
Most of us are our own critics and self-compassion would really help us gain some self-confidence and realize our self-worth. So, here are a few “practical” self-compassion activities for you that you can actually practice:
Mood Board
We all have different moods and different ways to deal with them. So first things first, I want you to list down all the moods you usually experience in your daily life. That could be fear, failure, sadness, nervous irritation, anger, frustration, and even happiness for that matter (self-compassion is also important when you are happy, no partiality).
Now besides each mood, write down what you would tell a friend who’s going through these moods? Keep this note handy, and whenever you feel any of these emotions, go back and read what you wrote. You cannot really criticize what’s written because that’s pretty much your own advice.
Pros and Cons of YOU!
We all are humans and it is not possible for us to be perfect. So make a list of all the things you are insecure about, you think you suck at, or things that you have always found to not be your cup of tea. Now beside each negative remark, write something that you are proud of, your favorite memory or things and people you are grateful for.
Now every time you don’t feel good about yourself, check which one of your cons is the reason you are feeling the way you are feeling, and then check that positive comment you wrote beside that. Now smile, because you found a reason to be happy and not feel absolutely useless about yourself.
Discharge Your Mistakes
Let’s say you have a lot of negativity stuck inside your head, and it’s high time we release it. Sit in a meditation posture, take a deep breath, think about only one negative comment, and with the exhale, feel the negative thought wiping off from your brain to your shoulders to your back to your toes, and then wiggle your toes to shake them off to the ground.
Cute and simple, isn’t it? So go on with this exercise until you are done with all the negative thoughts in your mind and then combine it with another self-care activity like taking a hot shower or decluttering your closet.
Judge Me All You Want
Half of our lives we spend thinking about how others perceive us or how we get society’s acceptance, may it be our looks, our career, or our relationships. In this race to achieve validation, we forget what we as an individual want.
So make sure that you don’t avoid self-compassion just because you think that you don’t deserve it because you are a certain way or your preferences are different from the people around you. You are going to hate me for this, but write the things you love to do, the people you love to be with on a piece of paper (I know you hate writing, but please, do it).
Help Me, Please!
Who said self-compassion needs to be done alone? Here’s one activity for you and your favorite person to do it together, because obviously, you both know that you deserve some self-compassion.
Maybe you both could write love letters to each other, or gift something meaningful, or hang out someplace, or anything that just reminds you both that you are lovable and you deserve this level of compassion.
Final Words
I will repeat this again, Self-compassion is difficult. But it is also important. So, what do you do with things that are important? You schedule them in your daily routine. All the activities mentioned above can be done in less than 10 minutes which is much lesser than the time you put into intrusive thoughts and overthinking. So this is a win-win situation and you better stop whining about adding an extra task to your daily schedule and go love yourself!
