Self-reassurance reduces neural and self-report reactivity to negative life events

Background Whilst research has shown how self-criticism may increase both neural and self-report markers of negative emotion, less well known is how self-reassurance - a compassionately-motivated cognitive self-relating style - may regulate negative emotion. Method Using fMRI, we invited participants to engage in self-criticism and self-reassurance toward written descriptions of negative life events (mistakes, setbacks, failures). Results Our results identify that neural markers of negative emotion and self-report markers of trial intensity during fMRI are suppressed under conditions of self-reassurance, relative to self-criticism. Limitations Future work to control for autobiographical memory during this fMRI task is needed, to explore how memory can contribute to self-reassurance and self-criticism. Conclusions Engagement in self-reassurance can reduce the ‘sting’ of negative life-events, both neural and self-report, which holds important implications for therapy.