Silence Your Inner Critic: Mindful Self-Compassion for Caregivers (with Kathryn Lovewell)

In this episode of the Able to Care podcast, behaviour specialist Andy Baker is joined by Kathryn Lovewell, founder of Kind Mind Academy, award-winning speaker, and best-selling author of The Little Book of Self-Compassion, The Voices in My Head, and Every Teacher Matters.

Together, they explore how self-compassion isn’t soft—it’s essential. Drawing on Kathryn’s experience working across schools, prisons, foster care, and families, they unpack the power of mindful self-compassion in daily life, especially for those in support roles.

Whether you’re a parent, teacher, or carer feeling stretched thin, this conversation offers something rare: permission to be kind to yourself—and practical steps to start today.

💙 Sponsored by: Carers Card UK

We’re proudly supported by The Booster Way Community

• Kathryn on LinkedIn: Kathryn Lovewell

• Instagram: @theboosterway

• Kathryn’s books:

  • The Voices in My Head

  • The Little Book of Self-Compassion

  • Every Teacher Matters

• Andy’s book: able-training.co.uk/podcast

💡 Three Key Messages:

1. Self-compassion isn't self-indulgent—it's essential. For carers and educators, kindness to ourselves fuels how well we care for others.

2. We pass on our inner dialogue. Children and young people absorb how we speak to ourselves as much as how we speak to them.

3. Start small, stay consistent. Rewiring our inner voice takes time, but small acts of self-kindness each day create lasting change.

⏱️ Timestamps / Chapters:

• 00:00 – Intro: The power of how we speak to ourselves

• 01:42 – Sponsor: Carers Card UK

• 02:00 – Meet Kathryn Lovewell and her journey into self-compassion

• 05:00 – Understanding the inner critic and “Crusher” vs “Booster”

• 10:30 – Why self-compassion is so hard but so necessary

• 15:20 – How changing our inner voice transforms relationships

• 20:00 – Recognising signs of emotional depletion and burnout

• 28:00 – A guided Self-Compassion Break exercise

• 35:00 – The Booster Way: Building emotional language in families

• 42:00 – Creating a culture of compassion in schools and homes

• 47:00 – Modeling healthy self-talk for children

• 52:00 – Practical ways to calm and regulate during tough moments

• 56:00 – Busting the myth: Self-care isn’t selfish

• 59:00 – Final message: No one needs to suffer alone

🎯 Why Listen to This Episode:

• You’ll learn practical tools for calming the inner critic

• You’ll hear powerful real-life stories from education and parenting

• You’ll walk away with a new language to share compassion with your children and yourself

• You’ll discover why modeling emotional wellbeing is the most effective teaching tool of all

This is an episode for anyone who’s ever said, “I just don’t have time for self-care.” You do—and Kathryn Lovewell shows you how to make it count.

📲 Stay Connected:

The Able Hub: www.ablehub.uk

Andy Baker’s Book: Targeting the Positive with Behaviours That Challenge

📱 Follow Us:

📲 Instagram: @AbleTraining 📲 LinkedIn: Able Training 📲 TikTok: @AbleToCarePodcast 🌐 Website: AbleHub.uk