The Safe Place Meditation: Compassion Focused Therapy (10 minutes)

In this exercise we are going to try to create a place in our mind - a place that could give you the feeling of safeness and calmness. If you are depressed or distressed those might be difficult feelings to generate, but the act of trying, and the sense of it being the sort of place you would like to be, is the important thing. So remember, it is the act of trying the exercise that is important, feelings may follow later. Don’t worry if your ‘distractions’ seem overwhelming at times, just gently smile to yourself, go back to soothing rhythm breathing, and try to stay with the exercise as best you can.
🔵 BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
☐ The Compassionate Mind By Paul Gilbert. amzn.to/406R5Ad
☐ The Compassionate Mind Workbook by Chris Irons and Elaine Beaumont.
amzn.to/3RiZ6ha
☐ Compassion Focused Therapy for Dummies by Mary Welford. amzn.to/3HjHsoZ
☐ Mindful Compassion by Paul Gilbert and Choden. amzn.to/3wChWqa
☐ Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World by Mark Williams and Danny Penman. amzn.to/3Dm6cvW
🔵 WHAT IS COMPASSION?
Compassion is the capacity to be sensitive to the suffering of ourselves and others and the willingness to relieve and prevent it. It is a capacity inherent in all of us which for many reasons does not always come to flourish. Fortunately, it can be trained, developed and deepened through practice. Compassion is characterised by kindness and receptivity as well as courage and responsibility. Many believe compassion should be directed towards others rather than ourselves. But self-compassion is not a selfish activity. Research increasingly shows that self-compassion is, like mindfulness, key to mental health and goes hand in hand with greater openness and empathy towards others.
🔵 ABOUT TERESA LEWIS
Teresa Lewis is the founder and Director of Lewis Psychology and a Senior Accredited psychotherapist with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (MBACP Snr. Accred). Qualified in 1995, Teresa has been providing counselling and psychotherapy treatment for nearly 30 years. Teresa holds a masters degree in counselling and psychotherapy and is a qualified EMDR Practitioner having completed training accredited with EMDR Europe. Teresa is also a qualified adult educator and an accredited Mindfulness teacher As a recognised expert in her field Teresa is frequently asked to conduct editorial reviews and endorse counselling and psychotherapy books for international publishing houses.
☐ Email: [e-mail]
☐ Buy Me A Coffee: www.buymeacoffee.com/lewispsy...
🔵 WORK WITH ME
If you'd like to work with me, or a member of the Lewis Psychology team, please click on the links below:
☐ Lewis Psychology CIC (for face to face therapy): www.lewispsy.org.uk
☐ Lewis Psychology Online (for online therapy): lewispsyonline.co.uk

[@LewisPsychology]

How are you? Tell me how you feel after watching this video. I'd love to hear from you.

[@strrrawberrry]

This is softly paced, warm and nurturing. I feel relaxed and safe. Thank you.

[@jackskellington8720]

_Not going to lie, once you said I had to leave I burst into tears. I’ve never had even a mental space for myself and right when I accepted that this was it; it was over. I’ve been crying for ten minutes now and though I know this is old, thank you for helping me find a moment of peace._

[@LewisPsychology]

@@jackskellington8720 Wishing you well.

[@AndyB1286]

I feel nice after listening to this. I picture my safe place as a consultation room in an old building, with wooden furnishings and a fireplace. Probably not what most therapists' rooms are like, I know 😁 But I feel safe there, because it's a place where I can let my breath out (no pun intended!)

[@LewisPsychology]

@@AndyB1286 that sounds lovely. Best wishes.

[@gra6799]

At last a warm English voice ...Aaah 🕉️🙏🥰✨🌟

[@StarB_67]

This video is so insanely helpful! Have you ever thought of making a meditative exercise like this that is more long form? A 20-30 minute video just like this would be the best!

[@pelin2343]

this helped so much. i was having a mental breakdown and feeling terrible. it all stopped when i imagined my safe place: i was sitting, legs crossed on a cloud, more like series of clouds in the sky. there was no ground, it was just a purple/dark blue galaxy at night. the only thing visible were the clouds i was sitting on, the purple ness of the galaxy, the stars everywhere and the beautiful white, big moon. thank you so much, really.

[@LewisPsychology]

I’m so pleased to hear this helped. Take care.

[@millier9658]

I love your imagination. Ah, sitting on a fluffy cloud moving around gently feeling loved and safe

[@s.gideon189]

Thanks so much for posting this!! My trauma therapist has been doing this with me, and I've been tempted to ask her if I can record it the next time we do it bc I've had a lot of trouble doing this by myself when I'm super stressed. Then I realized there may be an app - well I have tried 4 and no luck, then KZbin but most of them had intros or music that were really distracting. I was so relieved when I found this one!! 👍 You do a great time with the pauses as well - I noticed some of the other people went way too fast which just made me more anxious. 😅 This is such a powerful exercise and has been an incredibly beneficial tool for me. 💕

[@LewisPsychology]

I'm really pleased you found this helpful. It's such a powerful exercise for calming the amygdala after trauma. I wish you all the best with the work you are doing with your therapist. Best wishes, Teresa.

[@AndyB1286]

Just did this meditation again. This was the calmest I've felt all day 🙂 Thanks Teresa.

[@flossieandheidi8009]

I’m on a pain management program and they sent this link. It’s so calming thank you

[@LewisPsychology]

Thanks for your comment. I’m pleased to hear its calming. Best wishes, Teresa.

[@romeowandrainbow1040]

Is it pain free you ? I’m on that corse

[@Michelle-mr5hx]

Thank you so much for this meditation. I have been going through a series of difficult life changes & difficult emotions - this meditation provided relief.

[@strrrawberrry]

Thank you. This is helpful, soothing and beautiful. 🙏🏼

[@vishwarana8698]

This is the kind of meditation I was looking for…without music to help me stay focused on wording …thank you…😊😊

[@LewisPsychology]

That’s great to hear. I hope it helps. Best wishes, Teresa.

[@BeepBeepRayya]

This was wonderful! Thank you sooo much! I had such an easy time visualizing

[@sherrysyed]

Thank you!

[@weckybeckybear]

I need to start doing this every morning. It’s great

[@LewisPsychology]

That's great to hear Rebecca. Best wishes, Teresa.

[@rebeccaunasultana9052]

Thank you so much for this video. I feel very comforted, renewed and can start the day from a place of fearlessness. Thank you 🙏 xx

[@LewisPsychology]

It’s lovely to hear you felt comforted and renewed. Have a good day.

[@rebeccaunasultana9052]

@@LewisPsychology thank you and you too ❤️

[@hasseb7716]

You're so good thank you so much I recommend you to do it as ASMR it's gonna be a great thing to watch you as an Asmrartist

[@LewisPsychology]

That’s interesting, thank you.

[@daveadams8283]

My issue is, no place feels safe when the stuff in my head follows me there... 😢

[@charlaynamcgill3603]

I totally feel you 🫶 it can take a while to actually feel "safe" when we might not have ever felt truly safe. maybe try for a soothing place first and try not to judge yourself. keep trying!