Workshop
Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC):
Core Skills for Mental Health Professionals
with Christopher Germer, PhD
“For someone to develop genuine compassion towards others, first he or she must have a basis upon which to cultivate compassion, and that basis is the ability to connect to one’s own feelings and to care for one’s own welfare… Caring for others requires caring for oneself.”
~ Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama ~
This workshop presents the theory and core practices of the empirically-supported, 8-week Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) training, a structured program specifically designed to help people become more self-compassionate. Self-compassion is the capacity to treat ourselves with the same kindness and respect as we would treat someone whom we truly love when they suffer, fail or feel inadequate. Research has shown that self-compassion reduces anxiety and depression, boosts emotional resilience and wellbeing, and helps individuals maintain a healthy lifestyle. Fortunately, self-compassion can be learned by anyone.
The workshop consists primarily of experience-based learning, including meditation, lecture, group exercises, and discussion. It is a journey of self-discovery and self-kindness.
Participants will learn:
- what self-compassion is and isn’t
- how to enhance mindfulness with self-compassion
- how to motivate oneself with kindness rather than criticism
- the art of loving-kindness meditation
- how to handle difficult emotions with greater ease
- how to transform challenging relationships
- how to integrate self-compassion into clinical practice
- how to enhance one’s own health and wellbeing
Christopher K. Germer, PhD is a Clinical Instructor in Psychology at Harvard Medical School, a founding faculty member of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy, and a psychotherapist in private practice in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. He leads workshops internationally on mindfulness and self-compassion, is author of The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion, and co-editor of Mindfulness and Psychotherapy and Wisdom and Compassion in Psychotherapy. www.MindfulSelfCompassion.org