A recent study has demonstrated that being kind to yourself (vs. activating the inner critic) has positive physical and mental benefits.
Self-compassion activates a content and calm state of mind with a disposition for kindness, social connectedness and the ability to self-soothe when stressed.
This is in contrast to negative self-talk (aka the voice of your inner critic) that measurably and predictably activates the body’s threat response.
This is really just some scientific evidence to encourage you to notice that negative self talk and replace it with positivity.
You don’t have to be a slave to your limiting beliefs. ?
Think about how many times a day you tell yourself you’re not good enough. We all do it. A lot.
Things like “you’re a bad mom”, “you’re not pretty enough”, “your clothes suck”, “you’re fat”, “you’re too short”, “you’re so dumb”, “you’re bad at your job”, “you’re boring”, “you’re a bad friend”, “you deserve bad things happening to you”….
Homework:
1. Spend one full day noticing your inner dialogue… what you say to yourself on a daily basis and what negative thoughts or limiting beliefs show up. Make note of them (you’ll probably start to see some patterns emerge). You need to be able to spot your negative thoughts before you can change them.
2. Flip the script. Spend some time crafting new ideas. Replace those negative thoughts with positive statements.
3. Make it your JOB to notice every single time you say something negative about yourself and replace it with a positive statement.
Comment and let me know what the experience is like for you!
Yours in health,
Dr. B
Reference
Hans Kirschner et al, Soothing Your Heart and Feeling Connected: A New Experimental Paradigm to Study the Benefits of Self-Compassion, Clinical Psychological Science (2019). DOI: 10.1177/2167702618812438