
1-Hour Class on Self-Compassion for Healthcare
I will be offering a free online Zoom class on Self-Compassion for Healthcare on Thursday, October 28 at 7 pm Eastern. Here are the details:
This class is drawn from the evidence-based Mindful Self-Compassion program developed by Dr. Kristin Neff at UT Austin and Dr. Chris Germer at Harvard Medical School. There are about 3000 peer-reviewed publications exploring the role of self-compassion in well-being, and research shows that self-compassion skills can be of particular benefit to healthcare professionals, allowing them to experience greater satisfaction in their caregiving roles, less stress, and more emotional resilience.
Of course, no training can fix a broken healthcare system and associated problems like the workload, the understaffing, and the EMR. But it really is possible to change how you are affected by those realities. This is because we are all caring and compassionate people, but for some reason many of us do not include ourselves in that circle of care—we tend to be unnecessarily harsh with ourselves. And that has consequences. We can’t be all we want to be for those around us, and we don’t even have our own backs when things get difficult. There is something fundamentally empowering when you re-learn how to deeply appreciate and care for yourself, and it isn’t hard to do.
In this session, we’ll talk about what self-compassion is and how it does—or does not—show up in your life. We’ll cover the research on the benefits of self-compassion, and address common misgivings, such as the perception that self-compassion is ‘weak.’ We will then try some in-the-moment practices designed to cultivate self-compassion in the midst of difficulties. There is usually some time for both small and large group discussion, so this is also a chance to share your experience with others. And although the class is only an hour to honor everyone’s time drought, I’m happy to stay longer to discuss this further.
The class is freely offered; I have found these practices so useful that I want to make them as accessible as possible. If you find the class useful, donations are welcome but by no means necessary. Even if you don’t have time to attend, you can register and I’ll send you handouts on what we cover. For my background, you can view the “About Me” page. If you have questions about the class, please contact me directly at jonwalker22@gmail.com. To register, you can go here to view the waiver and sign up for the class, or you can use the button below.
Thanks for your interest, and I wish you well and offer deep gratitude for your work to keep our healthcare system going.
Photo by Sergei Akulich on Unsplash