What I Ask Myself Now Instead of “What’s Wrong with Me?”

“With self-compassion, we give ourselves the same kindness and care we’d give to a good friend.” ~Kristin Neff For a long time, I carried a question with me that I rarely said out loud. It wasn’t dramatic. It didn’t sound cruel. It felt reasonable—even responsible. What’s wrong with me? The question surfaced whenever I felt stuck. When motivation disappeared. When I couldn’t seem to do the things I thought I should be able to do with ease. It appeared quietly in moments of overwhelm, in the pause before self-judgment set in. I asked it sincerely. I believed it was the …