title: Self-compassion in clinical practice.
abstract: Self-compassion is conceptualized as containing 3 core components: self-kindness versus self-judgment, common humanity versus isolation, and mindfulness versus overidentification, when relating to painful experiences. Research evidence demonstrates that self-compassion is related to psychological flourishing and reduced psychopathology. Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) is an 8-week training program, meeting 2.5 hours each week, designed to help participants cultivate self-compassion. MSC contains a variety of meditations (e.g., loving-kindness, affectionate breathing) as well as informal practices for use in daily life (e.g., soothing touch, self-compassionate letter writing). A detailed clinical case illustrates the journey of a client through the 8 weeks of MSC training, describing the key features of each session and the client's response.
authors.affiliation: Harvard Medical School/Cambridge Health Alliance, MA, USA. ckgermer@gmail.com
authors.forename: Christopher K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Germer
authors.forename: Kristin D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Neff
mesh_terms: D054523:Adult Survivors of Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000628:therapy; D004644:Emotions; D004645:Empathy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019122:Meditation / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D013811:Psychotherapeutic Processes; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D012649:Self Concept
keywords: compassion; difficult emotions; meditation; mindfulness; psychotherapy; self-compassion