This offering is an intensive version of the empirically-supported 8-week Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) program, which combines the skills of mindfulness and self-compassion to enhance our capacity for emotional wellbeing. Program activities include short talks, experiential exercises, meditation, group discussion, and home practices. MSC is an opportunity to explore how we typically respond when difficulties arise in our lives and to learn tools for becoming a warm and supportive companion to ourselves.
This program is designed for members of the general public. Meditation experience is not necessary to participate in MSC. All are welcome!
Teachers
Kristin Neff, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in Educational Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin. She is widely recognized as one of the world’s leading experts on self-compassion, being the first to operationally define and measure the construct over 15 years ago. In addition to her pioneering research into self-compassion, she co-created the Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) program and co-founded the Center for Mindful Self-Compassion with her colleague Chris Germer. Kristin wrote the bestselling book Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself, published by William Morrow in 2011. She co-authored two books on MSC with Chris Germer: The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook (2018) and Teaching Mindful Self-Compassion Program (2019), both published by Guilford. She is currently writing a book called Fierce Self-Compassion, to be published by Harper Wave in 2021. Kristin has a popular Ted-X talk on self-compassion with almost 1.5 million views, and is regularly featured in the media. Her website, which contains videos, guided practices, a way to test your self-compassion levels and hundreds of research articles is: www.self-compassion.org
Christopher Germer, Ph.D. is a co-developer of the MSC program and a co-founder of the Center for MSC. He is the author of the popular book, The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion, and co-author (with Kristin Neff) of the professional text, Teaching the Mindful Self-Compassion Program, and a workbook, The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook. Chris is an MSC Teacher Trainer and leads MSC intensives and workshops around the world.
Chris is also a clinical psychologist and lecturer on psychiatry (part-time) at Harvard Medical School. Chris has been integrating the principles and practices of meditation into psychotherapy since 1978. He has co-edited two influential volumes –Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, and Wisdom and Compassion in Psychotherapy – and he is a founding faculty member of both the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy and the Center for Mindfulness and Compassion, Cambridge Health Alliance, Harvard Medical School. Chris maintains a small private practice in Arlington, Massachusetts, USA, specializing in mindfulness and compassion-based psychotherapy.