Kindness
The brain perceives physical pain and verbal pain in the same way; meaning the brain reacts the same way when someone is being punched or yelled at. In the same way the brain benefits from external and internal kindness. In both ways the body will start reducing stress, blood pressure, anxiety, and depression. That means being kind to yourself and to others helps greatly.
Self-love
“What is self-love, then? Is it something you can buy in a beauty makeover or a new set of clothing? Can you get more of it by reading something inspirational? Or, can a new relationship make you love yourself more? The answer to all of these questions is No! Although they feel good and are gratifying, you can't grow in self-love through these types of activities. Since, self-love is not simply a state of feeling good. Self-love is a state of appreciation for oneself that grows from actions that support our physical, psychological and spiritual growth. Self-love is dynamic; it grows by actions that mature us. When we act in ways that expand self-love in us, we begin to accept much better our weaknesses as well as our strengths, have less need to explain away our shortcomings, have compassion for ourselves as human beings struggling to find personal meaning, are more centered in our life purpose and values, and expect living fulfillment through our own efforts.”
-Article in Psychology Today by Deborah Khoshaba Psy.D.
-Article in Psychology Today by Deborah Khoshaba Psy.D.
Steps to Self-love
- Be Mindful-You will find out very fast what you will love, tolerate, and hate. You will also find out how you treat people and how they treat you.
- Understand limits- Understand what activities will push you physically, emotionally, and mentally, but also what will push you over the edge. Of course it is perfectly fine to go outside your comfort zone, but keep in mind how far you can personally go.
- need vs. want- You will become healthier when you focus on the needs in your life and use wants as a treat.
- forgive yourself- We all make mistakes and it is easy to say that you are not good enough. But understand that the kindest, strongest, and smartest people had to fail to get better. Understand that there will always be another time to retry and if you wont care about the task in a year or five years, then its not that important.
- Live with a purpose-Maybe you don't know clearly what you want or what the outcome will be, but try to make a goal to keep you going.
- Live in the moment- You can't change the past, or foretell the future, the only thing that you can change is right now. Be thankful for the lessons and events that you are living are the current moment.
Steps To Loving Other people
- “Can I help?”-How can you build empathy and see problems that other people many be dealing with
- Lead even when it is hard-When people are in groups they often won’t help others because they assume that others will help, or it seems hard to stand out from a group.
- Step outside of your comfort zone-Try to be kind to people you don’t agree with, or seem different. In this way we can become comfortable with being uncomfortable and become more active in changing the world
- Forgive and Forget-Keeping grudges won’t help you, or anyone else involved. This attitude mentally drains you and damages your skills to love others
- Kill them with Kindness-It’s hard for people to hate someone that is constantly living and welcoming. In this same way it will be easier to forgive and forget
- Walk in someone else’s shoes-It’s is easy to point fingers when you don’t understand how others are feeling. Always try to think before you judge.
- Express your love to those who love you most-An easy way to practice kindness is to give it to people that you are comfortable with.
- Don’t beat yourself up-We First have to be kind to ourselves in order to understand how to help others
Actives!
Butterfly Origami
For this activity you will need a square piece of paper, some string, and another strip of paper. Use the directions below to make the butterfly. Then either on the wings, or from a piece of paper you string from the butterfly, write a kind word or phrase. You can hang this anywhere to help you stay positive or to remind yourself to stay kind. Butterflies also represent the "the phenomenon whereby a minute localized change in a complex system can have large effects elsewhere." Meaning that even the smallest actions can have grand effects
Simon Says
This is a simple activity to get the students moving. Use this activity to show that what we do to ourselves or how we lead other people will reflect on the people around us. If we treat ourselves poorly then it will reflect in out attitude and in how we treat others. If we treat other people around us cruelly, the others will do the same.
Popsicles of Positivity
This is a small piece of decoration that can be put anywhere to remind you of kindness and positivity. you will need some type of jar and Popsicle sticks. On each stick write either a goal or something kind. When ever the students need a pick-me-up or a goal the can pick from the jar. You can also color code the sticks to match the goal or kind phrase.
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