Be Gentle with Yourself

Here is the exercise: Say this over and over to yourself."Be gentle with yourself. Be gentle with yourself. Be gentle with yourself." At the same time do the shoulder drop and back release. My friend has shared this phrase with many others who have used it to escape from their own anguish and despair. It is not simply the idea of the phrase that works, however. It is the use of the phrase; the thinking of the phrase instead of the thinking of the despair. The mind is very much like a frightened child at times like this. We need to tell the mind that it is not necessary to beat itself up. The mind doesn’t know this unless we tell it.