Self-Empathy Is Not Self-Indulgent, It’s Playful
I am on a learning spree — engaged in advanced trainings in Non-Violent Communication and Internal Family Systems. At every step of the way, I’m integrating what I learn into my work, building connections across disciplines. Mostly, I love stuffing myself with ideas until I’m full-fit-to-burst (as my grandfather used to say after a huge, delicious meal, which always included my grandmother’s pie).
Every once in a while, I cross over the line from full to not-even-a-wafer-thin-mint-more-or-I’ll-throw-up.
One recent week, I had four opportunities to engage in a deep self-empathy practice, a cornucopia of written, embodied and partnered exercises. When I got to the fourth iteration, I was experiencing a serious case of self-empathy burnout. No more fucking empathy. My navel is over-gazed. My partner in the exercise is pretty creative though and he responded to my resistance with a playful idea — we role played a conversation between the part of me who was resistant and the part of me who wanted (and always wants) to offer me self-empathy.
This idea of formally acknowledging the different voices in my head comes from Internal Family Systems. A technique that honours and explores our natural and inherent multiplicity. Here’s a simple example of the kinds of voices we all have: You’re served a piece of chocolate…
