Self-compassion key to a longer life

People who go easier on themselves and have self-compassion are more likely to live for longer compared with those who don't, a new study claims.

According to telegraph.co.uk, researchers from Brandeis University in the US say people with self-compassion don't blame themselves for things and therefore tend to be less stressed. They are also more likely to forgive and forget when it comes to arguments, instead of constantly focusing on them.

The researchers note that anyone who is able to forgive themselves for things than are out of their control will have a healthier and happier life, reports business-standard.com.

On the other hand, people who cannot forgive themselves tend to have higher stress levels and remain worried for longer, which can lead to long-term health issues. In fact, untreated psychological stress can lead to someone developing cancer, Alzheimer's or cardiovascular disease.

The researchers came to their conclusions by monitoring the stress levels of 41 people over two days. Participants were asked how much they agree with a number of statements to assess how much self-compassion they have. The researchers accounted for other influencing factors, such as depressive symptoms, and found that people with higher compassion levels are less stressed.

On the second day of the test, the researchers found people with very little self-compassion had even higher stress levels than they did on the first day.