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Practicing self-compassion – A conversation with Chloe Enright

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Mindfulness and breathwork, two ancient practices that have revived in popularity in recent years as powerful tools to cultivate a sense of calm and balance in our lives.

Compassionate Co was set up and founded by Killarney Local - Chloe Enright, a Public Health Practitioner and Breathwork Facilitator who has extensive experience in health research, health communications and surveillance. With a particular passion for mental health, Chloe began to research the area of self-compassion and based on her own experience, developed ‘Your Self-Scribbler’, a guided journaling experience for improving self-compassion.

Chloe’s background is in Public health, which encompasses health promotion, epidemiology and health protection. Public health as a discipline focuses on prevention of disease, rather than treatment. Her recently launched business, Compassionate Co, follows these same principles – the upstream approach.

PREVENTION IS KEY

“I like to say the interventions I provide arm people with tools to protect and support their own mental wellbeing, rather than letting it get to the stage where illness has developed, and treatment is required. These tools are in the form of guided journaling and breathwork. Both of which support the development of mental resilience as well as other positive health benefit”

“I was always fascinated by the complexities of health as a discipline and that deepened even further when I was faced with health challenges myself, relating to my physical and mental well-being. Through my own journey, I realised the huge connection between mind to body, and body to mind and the degree of influence one has on the other.”

DISCOVERING SELF-COMPASSION

It was on this self-development journey that Chloe came across the concept of self-compassion. She described self-compassion as “treating yourself with kindness through difficult or challenging thought and emotion”.

It’s treating ourselves like we would a friend in times when these emotions or thoughts arise, and choosing to be kind over harshly self-critical.

“There is a choice! We are hard-wired to criticise ourselves, but we can change that. There is a framework that supports cultivating self-compassion. It is based on three pillars (mindfulness, self-kindness and common humanity). Being mindful of what we are feeling rather than over-identifying (mindfulness), choosing to be kind to ourselves over harshly self-critical (self-kindness), and realising that imperfection is part of the common human experience”

“I worked hard on learning the concept, as I was probably the most un self-compassionate people you would meet! Always criticising myself! Once I learnt the concept, I began to notice how good I was feeling. If I made a mistake in work? It happens, rectify and move on! If I noticed I was critiquing my body, noticing how that made me feel, and making a choice to replace it with kind phraseology. It started to veer into every area of my life, and I truly became my happiest version of self.”

YOUR SELF-SCRIBBLER

Late last year Chloe got news that she needed another major spinal surgery and she was devastated. Knowing what was ahead, she knew that there would be lots of difficult emotions involved pre and post recovery and she was looking for resources to help her cope.

“I went and looked for a journal which allowed me to practice self-compassion during this time. And there wasn’t one! And so, Your Self – Scribbler was born, the guided journaling experience to help you cultivate self-compassion”

“The journal is guided and is based on the three pillars for self-compassion: mindfulness; self-kindness and common humanity. The journal asks you a series to questions that require you to dig a little deeper than you average journal, but there is plenty of examples to draw on. Mindfulness – helping you to put words on how you are feeling and helping you to identify what you need based on those feelings. Self-kindness – breaking down unhelpful negative judgements you have made about yourself. Common humanity – discussing any difficult emotions you are feeling, reiterating that these are completely normal”.

Chloe is also a breathwork facilitator and runs a number of classes and workshops both locally and around the country. Breathwork is engaging in conscious breathing practices, where you move your focus completely to the breath.

“Breathwork allows you to practice mindfulness as it allows you to connect with your body, and move into the present moment – which is mindfulness! So, you could say breathwork is a mindful experience. Every attendee to my classes has a mindful hour, through connecting with their bodies through their breath. There is a huge amount of evidence that has been published in recent years on the benefits of breathwork, and the evidence base continues to evolve”

Chloe is due to launch her online facilitation classes in the coming weeks. She feels this was important to make it accessible to all, as it’s not always feasible for people to attend her classes in person, she will be sharing details on her socials in the coming weeks!

If you are interested in finding out more about Chloe and joining her on a journey of practising self-compassion you can find her on Instagram: @compassionateco, Facebook: Compassionate Co, TikTok: @compassionate_co and her website is www.compassionate-co.com, email: info@compassionate-co.com.

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Rotary Club’s Wine & Art Night raises €25,000

The Killarney Rotary Club’s annual Wine & Art Night, held before Christmas, was another resounding success, raising a grand total of €25,000 for local community projects. President Ciara Irwin Foley […]

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The Killarney Rotary Club’s annual Wine & Art Night, held before Christmas, was another resounding success, raising a grand total of €25,000 for local community projects.

President Ciara Irwin Foley expressed the club’s delight with the amount raised, thanking club members and everyone who contributed to this impressive sum. She highlighted that this popular annual event directly supports vital local initiatives such as schools, clubs, and charities in the Killarney area.

Ms. Irwin Foley extended particular thanks to the event’s long-standing key sponsors: Daly’s SuperValu, Killarney Brewing & Distilling Co, and Killarney Credit Union, acknowledging their crucial and consistent support over the years. The team at The Great Southern Killarney was also thanked for ensuring the smooth running of the event. Appreciation was also given to the businesses that sponsored door prizes and competitions, including The Rose Hotel, M.D. O’Shea’s, CRL, and The Lake Hotel, as well as to Mike Neeson for providing entertainment.

The Wine & Art Night provides a valuable platform for local artists and craftspeople, with up to fifty showcasing their work. Some artists have been involved since the event’s inception, making it a wonderful networking opportunity. There is always significant interest from artists to participate in this worthwhile cause, with a percentage of their sales donated on the night. Many also generously donate their artwork for the auction, where 100% of the proceeds go directly to the beneficiary fund.

The beneficiaries themselves play an active role by selling tickets for the event in advance, using this as a key fundraising method for their own projects. The schools, clubs, organisations, and charities involved put in tremendous effort, and it is always inspiring to hear how the funds raised have positively impacted them. For example, the Hospice sells their Christmas cards at the event, and the Irish Pilgrimage Trust sells raffle tickets to help bring local people to Lourdes at Easter.

Organising the Wine & Art Night is a significant undertaking for the Killarney Rotary Club, with extensive preparations happening well in advance. Many individuals contribute their time and effort, with numerous volunteers ensuring everything runs smoothly on the night. It is this collective effort that makes the event such a success.

The €25,000 raised this year has been distributed to the following deserving beneficiaries: Faha N.S., Fossa N.S., Gaelscoil Faithleann, Knockanes N.S., Loreto N.S., Loughquittane N.S., St. Brendan’s (Sem), Hospice, Irish Pilgrimage Trust, Kerry Stars Club, Killarney Athletic, and Killarney Valley AC.
The Killarney Rotary Club is already looking forward to hosting their next Wine & Art Night at the end of November.

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Kerry Jobs Fair to connects job seekers and employers

Job seekers and employers in Kerry will have a chance to meet at the Kerry Jobs Fair 2025 on May 20, at the Rose Hotel in Tralee. Over 30 companies […]

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Job seekers and employers in Kerry will have a chance to meet at the Kerry Jobs Fair 2025 on May 20, at the Rose Hotel in Tralee.

Over 30 companies from the county will be there, offering hundreds of job openings across different sectors.
The free event is organised by NEWKD Local Development Company, in partnership with The Rose Hotel and Tralee Chamber Alliance. Anyone interested can attend by registering on the day.
People looking for work can explore opportunities in areas like office administration, IT, accounting, finance, hospitality, manufacturing, food production, and retail.
The event aims to link job seekers and employers with useful information and support related to employment.
Alongside employer stands, there will be a careers clinic offering help with CV writing, interview skills, and information on training and career development.
There will also be workshops for both employees and employers about employing people who are not Irish citizens.
Robert Carey, NEWKD SICAP Programme Manager, said that bringing together many employers, services, and speakers will give job seekers a great chance to talk directly to potential employers, join workshops on career progression, and learn about employment schemes like Tús, CE, and WPEP. He added that employers will get to meet job seekers face-to-face and get information on employing people from abroad, which is important for business growth.
Efforts are being made to help Ukrainian refugees and those seeking international protection attend the fair, with information provided beforehand and interpreters available on the day. NEWKD, as part of the Kerry Community Response Forum, highlights that employment is key for refugees integrating into the community.
During the event, employers can learn about the specifics of employing migrants, get answers to common questions, and raise any concerns. A workshop for employers will be led by Frank O`Boyle from the Irish Refugee Council.
In addition to the job fair, there will be information sessions for all visitors on topics such as CV preparation (led by Sean Connell, HR at NEWKD), interview skills (presented by Lydia Oboryna from the Open Door Initiative), employment law for migrants, accessing the labour market for those with temporary protection, and entrepreneurship workshops on starting a business and finding funding.
The Newkd Kerry Jobs Fair 2025 is supported by the Rose Hotel and the Tralee Chamber Alliance, with funding from the SICAP programme, which is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Local Community Development Committee (LCDC).

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