Dreamin Reviews: Self-Compassion, How do I do that?

By: Jasmin Roden, LMSW, CAADC

One of my favorite reads on Self-Compassion is The Mindful Path to Self-compassion: Freeing Yourself from Destructive Thoughts and Emotions by Christopher K. Germer, PhD. Dr. Germer is a professor at Harvard and her co-developed the Mindful Self-Compassion program. To learn more about that, click here. Dr. Germer is an expert on the benefits of self-compassion and mindfulness. He blends these two and educates others on how to mindfully practice self-compassion. In addition to his written publications, he also has a great website with free meditations that you can listen to. In addition, he has a workbook (I have not seen this yet but I trust that it is great) that will help hold you accountable for implementing skills for self-compassion.

The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion is one of those books that I would read slowly and take the time to absorb the information and practice what is being shared. Part one of the book is discovering what self-compassion is and how and what mindfulness is. Dr. Gremer defines self-compassion as “a form of acceptance…it’s acceptance of ourselves when we’re in pain.” Mindfulness is paying attention to the present moment. To be mindful is to wake up, to recognize what is happening in the present moment. The book is scattered with exercises that start as five minutes in length. Dr. Gremer has sections within the chapters titled “Try This” that instruct you on how to practice self-compassion and mindfulness. One of my favorites in part one is Mindful Walking. 

Part two of the book really explains the foundation of loving kindness meditations or Metta, and how to practice this skill. Pitfalls and what loving kindness is not is also included in this part of the book. Again, there are a lot of opportunities for practice. Dr. Germer even suggests that you read this part of the book and practice what is shared for a week. A portion of loving kindness meditations is to also extend compassion towards others. This strengthens a person’s empathy and connection. My favorite practice in part two is applying loving kindness to a “difficult person.” It’s pretty remarkable how I feel and think afterward about that particular person.

Part three is how to customize self-compassion to fit into your world. Dr. Gremer also includes several appendices that help identify emotions, additional self-compassion exercises, and further reading and practice. Dr. Germer helps the reader explore their personality type and some of the barriers for them in practicing self-compassion.

Readability: Moderate. It is a book that takes time to truly absorb what is written. There are some small visuals throughout the book that help explain the book's concepts as well.

Recommended Reader: I would say that this book is geared towards adults primarily. This is a helpful book for those who are into meditations and have a tendency to beat themselves up.