A cornerstone of the Guiding Light Recovery program is our seven focus points. These are seven different aspects of living a new life that we ask clients to learn about, contemplate, and integrate into their daily lives. We believe participants in our program need the following characteristics to have the best opportunity for life-long recovery. These are the characteristics of Willingness, Honesty, Vulnerability, Self-Awareness, Self-Compassion, Responsibility, and Spiritual Formation. Each of these focus point principles are thoroughly, comprehensively, and holistically explored in the Guiding Light Recovery curriculum. Though each person may have their variations, we want each client to articulate and demonstrate their understanding for what these statements mean as they grow in the recovery process.
This week’s focus is on self-compassion. This is a surprisingly challenging focus point because it involves a delicate balance of thinking in a different way and acting in a different way. Self-compassion is about active wellbeing: what can you do to care for yourself with kindness, discipline, and love, just like you would a close friend? When you’re in a funk, this might mean taking a walk outside. When you’re beating yourself up about a mistake, this might mean challenging your own thoughts. When you’re living in comparison, it might mean reminding yourself of the value you have by simply being human. Simple things, powerful results. How can you show yourself grace and kindness today?
