Audio Collection: Psychology Tools For Developing Self-Compassion
Psychology Tools For Developing Self-Compassion is an audio collection which guides clients through an empirically-supported programme of compassionate mind training (CMT). This skills-development program is designed for those who struggle with self-criticism, shame, self-esteem, or any other consequences of living with a tricky brain. CMT has been demonstrated to increase how much compassion an individual has for themselves and for others, which can not only reduce psychological distress but also increase wellbeing. Developed with Dr Chris Irons, one of the main international trainers of Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), the audio collection contains over five hours of exercises that your clients can practice to develop their self-compassionate motivation.
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1. About this audio collection (MP3)
2. What is compassion, why do I need it, and how might it help me? (MP3)
3. Living with a tricky brain (MP3)
4. The three systems (MP3)
5. Attention and mindfulness: the foundations of compassion (MP3)
6. The spotlight exercise (MP3)
7. Mindfulness of sounds and thoughts (MP3)
8. Mindfulness of body (MP3)
9. Mindfulness of breathing (MP3)
10. Mindful walking (MP3)
11. Developing your soothing system (MP3)
12. Body posture (MP3)
13. Facial expression (MP3)
14. Voice tone (MP3)
15. Breathing to activate your soothing system (MP3)
16. Combining soothing breathing with a soothing smell (MP3)
17. The power of imagery and memory (MP3)
18. CFT calm place (MP3)
19. A memory of feeling cared for (MP3)
20. A memory of caring for others (MP3)
21. Developing your compassionate mind (MP3)
22. 'Trying on' the qualities of compassion (MP3)
23. Being a compassionate person (MP3)
24. Developing your compassionate other (MP3)
25. Broadening your perspective (MP3)
26. Directing your compassionate mind (MP3)
27. Compassion to others (MP3)
28. Receiving compassion from your ideal other (MP3)
29. Focusing compassion on your self (MP3)
30. Compassionate letter writing (MP3)
31. Wrap-up (MP3)
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Introduction & Theoretical Background
Audio collections from Psychology Tools can help your clients to develop the skills they need to confidently face challenges in their lives. They are designed to be flexible so that they can support work completed in therapy, operate alongside therapy, or be completed independently of it. Each collection is self-contained, supporting your clients as they learn and eventually master new skills.
The Developing Self-Compassion audio collection guides your clients through a variety of ideas and exercises derived from Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT). Regular self-practice will help them to increase their compassion for self and others, which has been demonstrated to reduce psychological distress and increase wellbeing. The audio collection contains six sections:
- Section 1: An introduction to compassion focused therapy
- Section 2: Attention and mindfulness: the foundations of compassion
- Section 3: Developing your soothing system
- Section 4: The power of imagery and memory
- Section 5: Developing your compassionate mind
Therapist Guidance
The Psychology Tools For Developing Self-Compassion audio collection is for anyone who wants to learn more about the ideas and practices of compassion focused therapy. It has been designed to be versatile, so it is suitable to support work with therapists who have been trained in compassion focused therapy, or to be used as a stand-alone collection of exercises. To assist the integration of the exercises into their clinical work, therapists can download the scripts for each exercise for use in-session.
In order to help your clients to get the most from this audio collection it is useful to help them to understand that it was designed to work like a training course in compassion focused therapy: when these trainings are conducted in-person they often happen over consecutive weeks so that participants have a chance to digest the information, and practice the exercises. Good advice is that this definitely isn’t
References And Further Reading
- Gilbert, P. (2014). The origins and nature of compassion focused therapy. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 53(1), 6-41.
- Gilbert, P. (2020). Compassion: From its evolution to a psychotherapy. Frontiers in Psychology, 3123.
- Irons, C., & Beaumont, E. (2017). The compassionate mind workbook: A step-by-step guide to developing your compassionate self. Robinson.
- Irons, C., & Heriot‐Maitland, C. (2021). Compassionate Mind Training: An 8‐week group for the general public. Psychology and psychotherapy: Theory, research and practice, 94(3), 443-463.
- Leboeuf, I., Andreotti, E., Irons, C., Beaumont, E., & Antoine, P. (2022). A randomized controlled study of a French compassionate mind training. Mindfulness, 13(11), 2891-2903.
- Savari, Y., Mohagheghi, H., & Petrocchi, N. (2021). A preliminary investigation on the effectiveness of compassionate mind training for students with major depressive disorder: A randomized controlled trial. Mindfulness, 12(5), 1159-1172.