It extends beyond feeling and understanding the other's pain and involves taking action. Note that this doesn't necessarily mean that to be compassionate, we must solve the other person's problem. Rather than taking it upon ourselves to fix the issue or volunteer advice, action can simply mean asking relevant and thoughtful questions and actively listening.

Some researchers, like Marcela Matos, suggest that compassion is sometimes feared because it's seen as a sign of weakness and could expose us to distress. However, her and her team also found that the fear of self-compassion and receiving compassion from others is linked to poor mental health outcomes, like depression, anxiety, stress, self-criticism and shame.