I'm never saying to myself, "Rach, you're doing ok. You're trying to deal with depression, an eating disorder, and some other personal problems and you've come part of the way already. You're trying to prepare for a new, challenging role--that of mother--as best as you can. You are attempting to build a career, maintain a house, nurture a marriage, nurture other relationships, keep up with errands, and have a spiritual life. And that's not even the full list. You're doing all of this simultaneously and I know how much you care and how much you expect of yourself. Just keep going!"
That's not the internal dialogue I have, but I'd like to move more in that direction, because constant (and I mean CONSTANT!!!) self-criticism isn't helping.
I'm not sure how to build more self-compassion: talk to myself Stuart Smalley-style in the mirror every morning? Read "Self-Compassion" by Kristen Neff or "The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion" by Christopher Germer to get some ideas? I've been eyeing both books for a bit now. Hmm.
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