There has been a lot of talk lately about compassion - for yourself and for others. Philip W. Mason tackles this topic in his book Compassion for Life. Read an exclusive excerpt before you download your own copy. Find more as you follow the tour. Best of luck entering the giveaway!
During life, everyone experiences difficult struggles and pain. The relief from this pain can come when either we recognize that we are only human and make an appropriate change for the better or when another person helps us recognize it and encourages us to make that change. These two phenomena are called self compassion and compassion and are great powers that people possess to make life better. They are the first steps to take towards a healing process that results in one being able to enjoy and share all the wondrous experiences that life has to offer.
Read an exclusive excerpt:
All of these emotions, ideas, and equations can now be applied to the example of the mother and baby. There are many considerations to have in this discussion, and I will try to walk you through it with the best explanation I can.
Note that baby feels physical pain (hunger pangs) and feels self-compassion (needs to satisfy his hunger). The mother instead feels mental pain from baby crying. She also feels compassion because she wants to feed baby to ease his suffering. Here is a detailed description of what the mother and baby feel during the nursing.
Physical pain of baby:
If baby is not hungry for milk (has no physical pain from hunger pangs), his suffering is very small. When baby becomes hungry from the hunger pangs, the physical pain that baby feels increases. As baby’s physical pain increases, so too does his suffering (the relationship noted for the above equations). In response to the hunger pangs, baby cries for milk (self-compassion, or urge to ease one’s own suffering). The amount of crying and how loud it is (size of the self compassion) depend on the size of the hunger pangs. When the mother offers her milk and baby starts to drink it (she has self-compassion here also since she stopped the pain from the crying), her baby still has the same amount of self-compassion because he is now receiving milk. His suffering is still the same since the hunger pang pain is the same. As the hunger pangs are gradually reduced, his suffering also starts to decrease. At some point, drinking the milk eliminates the hunger pangs (no pain), and baby will not cry anymore. He has little need for self-compassion since his pain has gone away and his suffering is removed.
Mental pain of the mother:
When baby’s hunger pangs are not initially present, he is not crying. The mother has no mental pain and, therefore, no suffering. As her baby cries for milk, the mother’s instinct (response to pain from their crying) causes her to naturally offer baby her milk to stop him from crying (instinctively have compassion for baby). When baby starts to drink her milk, her level of compassion stays relatively the same because she knows that if she removes baby, he will still cry at the same level. As baby’s hunger pangs start to subside, the mother’s mental pain and suffering starts to decrease because she knows that baby will not cry as much if removed (selfcompassion still stays the same). When baby stops drinking and is not crying anymore, her mental pain disappears, as does her suffering. Her instinctive need to have relatively large compassion for baby is now also decreased, and she still has no suffering.
Note that baby’s self-compassion and the mother’s compassion change over time and are completely in unison with one another. The level of compassion felt by the mother increases and decreases with baby’s level of self-compassion. This relationship between feelings and emotions shared between two individuals is one aspect of the strong bond that a mother and baby share.
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And for many of the last fifteen years, I have suffered with serious mental health issues.
I have had numerous in-patient and out-patient treatment sessions and have learned about human frailty and gained a better understanding of the human condition. This has taught me to have more compassion for the world. I have also come to learn that my mental illness is not my fault, for there was nothing I could have done to prevent it. I have come to accept it, have received medical care for it, and am now going through the process of healing from it. It is a very emotional recovery at times, and I now have hope for a much brighter future.
I am now able to love who I am and want to share that sense of hope and love with the rest of the world.
Connect with Philip W Mason
WEBSITE https://philipwmason.com/
GOODREADS https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53329158-compassion-for-life
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ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the excerpt the book sounds very intriguing.
ReplyDeleteWith what intention did you write the book and how far do you hope to go with your story?
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