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Mindful self-compassion (MSC) was developed by Kristen Neff and Chris Germer as the first training programme that specifically aims to enhance an individual’s level of self-compassion. In 2012, MSC was developed for use by the general public and has since also been used to benefit some clinical populations The programme integrates principals of mindfulness and self-compassion to teach individuals to be aware of and open to their suffering whilst being kind to themselves, and to create a warm and connected presence.

Mindful self-compassion aims to teach participants techniques to increase their emotional resilience and ability to cope with difficult times in their lives. This is achieved by encouraging participants to be compassionate towards themselves and more mindful of their experiences and emotions. Self-compassion changes the way one relates to them self, and enables them to approach their challenges with self-kindness, care and understanding. MSC also teaches participants how to cope with difficult relationships and how to challenge self-criticism.

The programme incorporates formal and informal methods of practice including guided meditations, experiential exercises, group discussions and homework activities that allow an individual to learn the foundations of self-compassion and the techniques necessary to develop self-compassion. MSC is unlike other mindfulness related programmes such as mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) which primarily focus on enhancing mindfulness and teach few self-compassion techniques. In comparison, MSC is a compassion training programme that focuses on self-compassion and incorporates mindfulness as a component of self-compassion.

Self-compassion
Self-compassion is a term derived from Buddhist philosophy. Self-compassion is defined as “being open to and moved by one’s own suffering, experiencing feelings of caring and kindness towards oneself, taking an understanding, nonjudgemental attitude toward one’s inadequacies and failures, and recognizing that one’s own experience is part of the common human experience”. Self-compassion is composed of three elements; self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness. Self-kindness is being kind and understanding towards oneself rather than judging oneself. Common humanity refers to perceiving one’s experiences as shared human experience rather than feeling isolated. Mindfulness involves being consciously aware of one’s emotions without judgment or becoming over-identified with them. Self-compassion has been associated with many psychological benefits such as lower levels of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and more successful relationships.

MSC formats
The mindful self-compassion programme is offered in a range of formats and can be learned by anyone regardless of their level of self-compassion or life experiences. Each programme is led by one or more trained mindful self-compassion teacher.

Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC)
The mindful self-compassion programme is an eight-week course consisting of weekly group sessions and a half-day silent retreat. The programme is delivered in groups of eight to twenty-five participants who wish to learn the key principles and practices of self-compassion. The half-day retreat involves meditation exercises, yoga and mindful eating. Participants are also encouraged to do half an hour of mindful self-compassion practices every day as homework. The weekly sessions each last two and a half hours and focus on a different theme.


 * Week one: an introduction to self-compassion and it’s benefits.
 * Week two: understanding the foundations of mindfulness.
 * Week three: learning how to apply self-compassion to aspects of one’s life.
 * Week four: developing a compassionate inner voice.
 * Week five: the importance of living to one’s core values.
 * Week six: dealing with difficult emotions.
 * Week seven: dealing with challenging relationships.
 * Week eight: learning how to appreciate and relate to oneself and one’s life.

Live Online Mindful Self-Compassion (LOMSC)
The LOMSC programme is an online version of the MSC programme using the same principles and practices and uses most of the content from the MSC programme. This programme is taught live online over ten consecutive weeks. It is aimed at those who cannot access a mindful self-compassion programme due to location, personal commitments, mobility issues, or those who are already trained and would like to refresh their knowledge and skills.

Two-Day Core Skills Workshop
The two-day core skills workshop is a short programme incorporating the main practices and exercises used in the eight-week MSC programme. Participants are taught the key skills necessary to practice self-compassion in their daily lives.

MSC Intensive Course
The MSC intensive course is a five-day programme incorporating all of the material and practices used in the MSC programme. This course is emotionally demanding but allows participants to deeply immerse themselves in mindful self-compassion.

The MSC Teacher Training
The MSC teacher training programme is a six-day residential programme led by a group of highly experienced MSC teachers. This programme offers the knowledge and practices used and the skills required to teach the MSC programme. Participants are also given the material needed to teach the MSC programme to others.

Making Friends with Yourself
In 2016, the Making Friends with Yourself programme was created for teenagers and young adults in response to the success of the MSC programme. This programme is an adaptation of the MSC programme to include developmentally appropriate activities for young people.

Methods of practice
The mindful self-compassion programme uses group guided meditations, experiential exercises, discussions and homework activities to teach participants to become more self-compassionate.

Guided meditations
Guided meditations are designed to enhance an individual's state of self-compassion, allowing them to be more mindful and present. MSC uses the following meditations:


 * Affectionate breathing: trains an individual to become more relaxed and present.
 * Compassionate body scan: involves focusing on parts of one's body and paying attention to them with self-compassion.
 * Loving-kindness meditation: allows an individual to feel love and warmth towards others.
 * Self-compassion meditation: a loving-kindness meditation directed towards oneself.
 * Noting your emotions: involves recognising emotions and reacting to them with self-compassion.
 * Soften, soothe, allow: working with emotions in the body: designed to soften negative feelings that may arise during times of suffering.
 * Self-compassion break: a reflection upon a negative experience and how to react to it with self-compassion.

Self-compassion exercises
Self-compassion exercises aim to increase one's ability to practice self-kindness, mindfulness and feelings of common humanity and involve writing, reflection and role-play activities. MSC uses the following self-compassion exercises:


 * How would you treat a friend? encourages participants to reflect on how they treat themselves differently to their friends in times of suffering.
 * Self-compassion break: a reminder to participants of the three components of self-compassion.
 * Exploring self-compassion through writing: involves writing a letter to oneself in times of suffering or feelings of inadequacy to increase self-compassion.
 * The criticiser, the criticised, and the compassionate observer: involves sitting in different chairs to understand how different parts of oneself feel at that moment.
 * Changing your critical self-talk: challenges thoughts of self-criticism to change the way one relates to them self.
 * Self-compassion journal: writing down one's feelings during times of suffering whilst practicing self-compassion.
 * Identifying what we really want: involves thinking about the way one motivates them self and challenges self-judgement whilst promoting self-compassion.
 * Taking care of the care giver: encourages participants to offer the same care and compassion to themselves as they do to others.

Group discussions
Group discussions encourage participants to talk about their personal life experiences and home exercises in a welcoming and friendly atmosphere.

Homework activities
Homework activities involve formal meditations and informal exercises which should be practiced for around forty minutes a day and allow participants to incorporate self-compassion into their daily routine.

Effectiveness
Research has shown that mindful self-compassion is beneficial for the general public and some clinical populations. In 2012, a pilot study showed that mindful self-compassion is effective at enhancing self-compassion, mindfulness and psychological wellbeing with these changes maintained after one year. Preliminary evidence from a randomised control trial study also found that those on an MSC programme showed a significant increase in self-compassion, compassion for others, life satisfaction and mindfulness, and decreased depression, anxiety, stress and avoidance.

Research into the effectiveness of MSC for healthcare workers found an increase in their resilience to stress, depression and anxiety. Further research has shown MSC is effective in reducing depression, distress and metabolic symptoms of diabetes in those with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, suggesting that MSC may have physical benefits as well as psychological. It has also been suggested that MSC could benefit victims of intimate partner abuse by reducing feelings of self-blame and shame, depression, risk of suicide, anxiety and PTSD.

The “Making Friends with Yourself” programme has been associated with decreased anxiety, depression and perceived stress and increased life satisfaction and psychosocial well-being in teenagers and young people and decreased stress and increased emotional resilience.