Self-compassion

Self-compassion involves treating yourself with the same kindness with which you'd treat a loved one. Self-compassion consists of three ingredients:

• Self-kindness: Offering warmth and understanding to yourself.
• Common humanity

It’s important to show yourself some compassion, ditch the harsh self-criticism, and learn to be kinder to yourself.

A great way to practice self-compassion is to ask yourself, “What would I say to a friend who felt this way or had this problem?” Chances are, you'd be kind....

Using self-compassion to deal with emotions can calm the emotional and physical stress that fuels unhealthy eating behavior:

• Self-directed kindness can ease the flight-or-fight response by activating the soothing part of the brain.
• Once the body relaxes, the to...