
Research in human emotions shows us that the difference between shame and guilt is not just a minor linguistic one: the difference between “I did something bad” and “I am bad” is a huge one.
So what is it?
“I did something bad” describes a behavior. That’s guilt.
“I am bad” focuses on the self. That’s shame.
Studies show that the price of not realising the difference between these two concepts can be a life of misery. So, we have to ask:
What does shame correlate with? What’s the danger here?
What are major shame triggers?
And how we can work on our shame resilience?
I talk about all this in this episode!
Listen to it now and share it with the ones who need it.
As promised, references and recommendations!
- An article – with an interview inside! – on the dangers of our shaming self-talk
- Watch Your Language! series: in it, you’ll find the episode on self-compassion that I mention in this very episode
- Brené Brown’s research
- An interesting summary of guilt and shame by the National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioural Medicine
4 responses to “The Potentially Life-Saving Difference Between Guilt and Shame”
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