What is MSC?
At Three Rivers, we think of mindfulness as the process by which a person comes fully alive. Do a quick google search, and you’re likely to find that there is a rich diversity of definitions available for the word “mindfulness.”
Here’s how we define it: 1) meeting each moment of our lives with curiosity and warm-heartedness, and 2) responding wisely.
Over time, the wisdom that is cultivated through mindfulness allows us to see how often we are spending our energy resisting a reality that has already presented itself, and how much we suffer in the process. That said, mindfulness is not a passive practice. Acceptance and resignation are not the same thing. Often what is needed in a given moment is action. Mindfulness simply affords us the space to choose what action is called for, if any.
What is Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC)?
We specialize in teaching a particular mindfulness program: Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC). MSC is a set of skills designed to help you respond to yourself with kindness when you are in distress. For most of us, making an embarrassing mistake is an occasion for self-criticism not self-compassion. Many of us wouldn’t blink an eye at saying truly horrible things to ourselves (“I’m such an idiot!”)–things we would never say to another human being who is suffering. Unfortunately, habitually treating ourselves this way breeds depression, anxiety, shame, anger, and relationship problems. Learning to treat ourselves compassionately has been shown by research to help in each of these areas. In our clinical experience it is the only way to heal shame–which is the destructive common denominator at the root of so many of the ways we suffer as human beings. MSC is typically taught as an 8-week class. Please click here for more information about our current course offerings.