Here’s a list of 25 questions to journal with and find ways to shift the inner critic and move towards compassion.
- Acknowledge how you feel today?
- How can you give yourself permission to do something life-giving today?
- What do I need right now, small, big or in-between?
- Who are the people in my life who are nonjudgmental, trustworthy and genuinely have my heart in mind?
- How can I spend more time with them in the next month, send a text or email now?
- What is one healthy thing I can do to support myself to reframe the current mood?
- When do I feel happy?
- What are the stories that are regularly playing in my head, listen with curiosity?
- What is one story that doesn’t support me, which I can re-story?
- How can acknowledge a persistent problem in my life, can you write a list of what is not working?
- What is one feeling that I struggle to feel?
- What habits help me move through this emotion?
- What do I need to feel loved from my partner or close friend, name three things?
- What makes my heart come alive?
- How would I speak to a friend who has the same problem I am grappling with today, write a short letter or text to them to encourage and then replace your name?
- How do I wish I was parented when I was six years old?
- What is stopping me from being kind to myself?
- What is one tiny step I can take to chip away at the wall in front of me, stopping me from starting to address a project or problem?
- What is one word that I feel comfortable saying to myself when I need support?
- What is something interesting I’d like to explore this week?
- If I loved myself fully, how would I treat myself every day?
- What’s one small way I can start doing that today?
- What’s a lesson I can learn from a recent mistake?
- What are my greatest qualities?
- What is a brave move this week?
To take a personal retreat with more questions like these to reframe with self-compassion, listen to this playlist and order your copy of Begin Again, a personal day retreat guided journal.