How to Develop Our Compassion Muscles: A Follow-Up

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PSYCHIATRIC VIEWS ON THE DAILY NEWS

“I was burned out from exhaustion, buried in the hail

Poisoned in the bushes and blown out on the trail

Hunted like a crocodile, ravaged in the corn,

‘Come in’, she said, ‘I’ll give ya shelter from he storm’”

-Bob Dylan, Shelter from the Storm

On January 17th, our column was on “It’s Time to Flex Our Compassion Muscles” as the New Year began. Recent data had indicated that the public has noticed a decline in compassion in others and for oneself since 2020.

Depending on what side you may be on in all our escalating and unprecedented political divisiveness, accompanied by the deluge of executive orders, it is likely making it harder to be compassionate towards all. Actually though, more compassion may be needed for the other side if that is possible to do, so where do we get it?

This is where psychiatry comes in. Compassion is essential to appreciate the suffering of our patients. Those individuals in society who deliberately harm others may be reacting to their own internal suffering. Do they deserve compassion, too?

An occupational hazard of psychiatry is being exposed to too much suffering without seeing some relief of the suffering. That can contribute to our burnout epidemic, necessitating more self-compassion to compensate, as well as to provide collegial support to one another.

So, if we need more compassion now, where do we get it? Let’s start in childhood because that is where our natural ability to be compassionate is reinforced positively or not.

First is to remember that what we do as parents is more influential than what we say. Therefore, our own behavior must be compassionate for children to notice and copy. Forgive mistakes in the child and others. Then ask your children about how they feel about others who are suffering. Be grateful, including thanking your children for compassionate behavior. Teachers and schools should repeat this emphasis. Compassion is also a concern of many religions, especially Buddhism. We must remember, though, that authority figures can just as well cultishly embrace and insist upon scapegoating and harming the designated others.

Although Charles Darwin is thought to a proponent of “survival of the fittest” in evolution, it may actually be “survival of the kindest.”¹ Instead of Freud’s emphasis on sexual and aggressive instincts, Darwin argued for “the greater strength of the social or maternal instincts than that of any other instinct or motive.” As Valentine’s Day approaches, it then makes sense to appreciate that compassion is attractive to potential romantics.

Compassion turns out to be one of the most important positive psychology characteristics. It benefits physical and psychological health. It’s a buffer against undue stress.

Role models for compassion include people like Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King Jr, and Desmond Tutu. Compassion can be contagious and increase social connectivity. Compassion can be learned and increased in adults. One formal way is through compassion and loving kindness meditative practice. Compassion can also be a focus of therapy.²

It would be a public service for psychiatry to educate the public and ourselves about compassion. It may be an antidote of sorts against undue anger toward others that otherwise only intensifies separateness.

We all need shelter—emotional or physical—from life’s storms.

Dr Moffic is an award-winning psychiatrist who specialized in the cultural and ethical aspects of psychiatry and is now in retirement and retirement as a private pro bono community psychiatrist. A prolific writer and speaker, he has done a weekday column titled “Psychiatric Views on the Daily News” and a weekly video, “Psychiatry & Society,” since the COVID-19 pandemic emerged. He was chosen to receive the 2024 Abraham Halpern Humanitarian Award from the American Association for Social Psychiatry. Previously, he received the Administrative Award in 2016 from the American Psychiatric Association, the one-time designation of being a Hero of Public Psychiatry from the Speaker of the Assembly of the APA in 2002, and the Exemplary Psychiatrist Award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill in 1991. He presented the third Rabbi Jeffrey B. Stiffman lecture at Congregation Shaare Emeth in St. Louis on Sunday, May 19, 2024. He is an advocate and activist for mental health issues related to climate instability, physician burnout, and xenophobia. He is now editing the final book in a 4-volume series on religions and psychiatry for Springer: Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, Christianity, and now The Eastern Religions, and Spirituality. He serves on the Editorial Board of Psychiatric Times.

References

1. Darwin C. The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex. Read & Co. Books; 2020.

2. Gilbert P. The Compassionate Mind. Robinson; 2019.