Season 3: Facets of Compassion

During his first meeting of the San Antonio City Council, newly sworn in Mayor Ron Nirenberg brought forth a resolution asking the city to join the International Charter for Compassion in 2017 as a way to focus on improving the lives of others.  It passed unanimously and since that time the city has moved ahead on many Compassion initiatives including the inspiration for our UT Health San Antonio Compassion Course. Find out what’s happening next in our compassionate city. 

Reverend Dr. Anne Helmke is the faith liaison for the City of San Antonio, and in her role, she forms collaborations within the city to put compassion into action. In her mind, we are better as humanity if we can put down our boundaries and work together to better our communities.

Roshi Joan Halifax, a Buddhist teacher and social activist, joins Ripples to explore the balance between compassion and equanimity, emphasizing her concept of the "strong back, soft front." She discusses GRACE, her training intervention for healthcare professionals, designed to cultivate compassionate care without burnout. Roshi Halifax also shares insights on overcoming biases, practicing self-stewardship, and maintaining well-being while caring for others.

The difference between feeling sympathy and empathy can have a huge impact on relationships. But what's the difference between these two reactions, and is feeling WITH someone hardwired in our brain through mirror neurons? Dr. Adriana Dyurich, PhD, leads our compassion course on empathy.

Dr. Holly Day serves her colleagues, learners, and most importantly, her patients with a heart and mind dedicated to the principle of compassion in medicine. She joins Ripples co-hosts Dr. Jon Courand and Dr. Adriana Dyurich to discuss the importance of forgiving oneself and forgiving others, and the role forgiveness plays in being a compassionate healthcare provider.

Dr. Jason Morrow, Associate Professor of Medicine at UT Health San Antonio and the Howard and Betty Halff Professor of Medical Humanities & Ethics, joins Ripples to emphasize the importance of self-kindness, recognizing common humanity, and mindfulness. Dr. Morrow highlights the need for deliberate practice in self-compassion, likening it to empathic communication in palliative care, and advises medical professionals to prioritize their well-being to sustain their ability to care for others effectively.

Specializing in treating chronic stress and anxiety, psychologist and adjunct faculty at UT Health San Antonio, Dr. Lindsay Bira explains the importance of fostering emotional awareness to benefit our daily interactions and long-term health. We talk through feelings of guilt, regret, and shame and connect our reactive behaviors to the emotions we feel. In this episode she touches upon the use of tethers or practices that help guide or extricate us from maladaptive thinking or behaviors. The pebble she leaves us with is an example of one type of tether.

Dr. Kanapa Kornsawad speaks about her experience practicing compassionate living and self-compassion. We also discuss the importance of noticing, feeling, and responding in the moment and ethical mindfulness.

Compassion in health care is more than empathy for patients – it’s also about YOU. This season, our co-hosts will unfold the multiple facets of compassion and the benefits gained when lending yourself a little more grace.

Specializing in treating chronic stress and anxiety, psychologist and adjunct faculty at UT Health San Antonio, Dr. Lindsay Bira explains the importance of fostering emotional awareness to benefit our daily interactions and long-term health. We talk through feelings of guilt, regret, and shame and connect our reactive behaviors to the emotions we feel. In this episode, she touches upon the use of tethers or practices that help guide or extricate us from maladaptive thinking or behaviors. The pebble she leaves us with is an example of one type of tether.