Known as the superego or the judge, our inner critic is the voice in our heads that is hypercritical of everything we do and of who we are. The inner critic shames us and debilitates us. How do we become free of the inner critic? The answer is mindfulness, awareness, compassion, and practice.

Mark Coleman, a meditation teacher and therapist, has written a book to help us become free of our inner critic, "Make Peace With Your Mind: How Mindfulness and Compassion Can Free You from Your Inner Critic." One of the tools is to be lighthearted, to mock the critic. You will enjoy this conversation and find skills and methods to go easier on yourself and to treat yourself (and others) with compassion as opposed to judgment.