A Little Self-Compassion Can Go a Long Way

The World Health Organization defines mental health as “a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.” In fact, mental health is such a significant topic, the United States has observed Mental Health Awareness Month in the month of May since 1949. Mental wellness is much more than merely the absence of a mental health disorder or illness; it also includes having the coping skills and resilience to handle all of the challenges and curveballs that life throws our way (Ghandour et al., 2019). 

While Covid-19 has had a significant impact on all parts of life nationwide and globally, the educational community specifically has taken a brutal blow. In truth, “there has never been a time in history when educators have felt such overwhelming levels of stress, burnout, and exhaustion” (Baylis, 2021, p. 4). This unsettling trend has impacted the entire learning community from K-12 to higher education, including students, teachers, and administrators. At the start of the pandemic, most educators’ workloads increased with the sudden shift to online learning. Pressure on schools expanded as major decisions were expected regarding in-school attendance, wearing masks, vaccine mandates, and preventing the further spread of Covid-19. According to Kramlich and Beck (2021), the added burden on teachers without adequate resources or proper preparation for their increased workload impacted the emotional health of many. As a result of the stress of the pandemic, many educators were stretched too thin and chose to retire early or leave the profession altogether. The toll on teachers has been unbelievably high.

What hope and advice is there, then, for those fiercely-dedicated educators who have remained in the field? One particular strategy relates to empathy. Moving beyond simply sharing someone’s feelings, empathy includes both perspective-taking and compassion. As noted by Kramlich and Beck (2021), authentic empathy is rooted in self-compassion and starts with the inner person of the educator. To assist the educator in developing empathy, it is important to take stock of the educator’s compassion toward themselves. With the Covid-19 pandemic still fresh in our minds, political upheaval, and continued unrest in our neighborhoods and streets, these additional layers of stress have the power to unsettle even the most resilient of educators (Kramlich & Beck, 2021). As we are all carrying extra stress, anxiety, and grief, empathy is an important gift we can offer to ourselves as well as to each other. 

Yet there is more good news for educators who are struggling, and it entails realizing the power of self-compassion. According to Neff (2023), “self-compassion involves acting the same way towards yourself when you are having a difficult time, fail, or notice something you don’t like about yourself” (para. 2). Self-compassion demonstrates the notion that one is kind and gracious to themselves, even when faced with hard feelings and personal failings. It is the realization that we are not perfect as we honor and accept our humanness. Life is full of frustrations, losses, mistakes, and tragedy. This is the human condition. However, the more we open our hearts to this reality instead of fighting against it, the more we can truly feel compassion for ourselves and all fellow humans we encounter in this gift called life (Neff, 2023).

Based on Neff’s (2023) research, listed are the three elements of self-compassion:

Self-Kindness vs. Self-Judgement: Self-compassion entails being warm and understanding toward ourselves when we suffer, fail in life, or feel inadequate, rather than ignoring our pain or torturing ourselves with self-criticism.
Common Humanity vs. Isolation: Self-compassion involves recognizing that both suffering and personal inadequacy are part of the shared human experience… something that we all go through. No one is perfect. 
Mindfulness vs. Over-Identification: Self-compassion requires taking a balanced approach to negative emotions so that feelings are neither suppressed nor exaggerated. Mindfulness is a non-judgmental, receptive state of mind in which one observes thoughts and feelings as they are, without trying to suppress them. We cannot ignore our pain and feel compassion for it at the same time.
In an effort to revitalize one’s overall well-being and grow resilience, educators can also add practical exercises into their daily routines. Examples include deep breathing and mindfulness exercises, meditation, yoga, journaling, choosing joy and gratefulness, and positive self-talk. As you begin this new journey of self-compassion, you can find more ideas and encouragement at Dr. Neff’s website by clicking here. May we devoted, hard-working educators try just a little bit harder to practice self-compassion as we continue pouring into the dear students we teach and inspire.

 

References

Baylis, L. (2021). Self-Compassion for Educators: Mindful Practices to Awaken Your Well-Being and Grow Resilience.

Ghandour, R., Sherman, L., Vladutiu, C., Ali, M., Lynch, S., Bitsko, R., & Blumberg, S. (2019). Prevalence and treatment of depression, anxiety, and conduct problems in US children. The Journal of Pediatrics, 206, 256-267. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2018.09.021

Kramlich, D., & Beck, R. (2021). Self-Compassion: Growing resilience and perspective-taking in turbulent times. Journal of Transformative Learning, 8(1), 36–45.

Neff, K. (2023). The University of Texas at Austin: https://self-compassion.org/

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Dr. Sandy Mercier

Biography

Dr. Sandy Mercier first came to Concordia University Irvine as a full-time faculty member in 2014. She serves as an Associate Professor of Education and Director of both the Curriculum & Instruction and Learning, Design, and Technology Master of Arts in Education (MAEd) programs. Dr. Mercier recently completed her Ed.D. in Adult Education from Capella University. Her dissertation focused on the importance of enhancing mental health resources for nontraditional students in higher education.