Compassion occurs when our feelings and thoughts about others transcend empathy to include the desire to help. When we feel compassion, our heart rate slows, we secrete the “bonding hormone” oxytocin, and regions of the brain linked to empathy, caregiving, and pleasure light up, resulting in our desire to care for other people. At Turning Point, we help students develop compassion by providing genuine opportunities for them to be helpful and generous and by modeling compassion ourselves.
