Inner Child Journey

 Have you ever done an inner child journey?

If you aren’t sure, they are usually structured as a guided meditation that has you use your imagination to tap into aspects of yourself and childhood memories.

The idea is to identify and release traumas, fears and beliefs that are contributing to unwanted life patterns. 

These meditations are wonderful and can be very life changing.

But, I think it's important to notice when our inner child shows up in our daily lives.

This child aspect is full of innocence, wonder, and creativity.

An excitement and curiosity flows through it showing a zest for life and being alive!

But, this inner child has also gone through disappointments, uncertainty, and doesn’t feel safe or good enough sometimes.

We have all been hurt and let down. How we cope with those things is different but there are some similarities.

When you catch yourself feeling super upset over something small, you are likely reacting from that wounded child version of yourself.

Abandonment and rejection wounds are extremely common and show up in peculiar ways.

Like if someone doesn’t like a social media post you made and suddenly you feel super stressed and worried.

Deep down that could be connected to the belief that I need approval or I will be left.

And as a child that is life or death.

You need adults to care for you or you won’t survive. If someone doesn’t like your post, you won’t die… but that primal fear has been activated.

So what can you do to support yourself when the inner child demands attention?

First, notice when you feel hurt.

Yes, simply notice when you feel hurt by something.

Not the reason why or even trying to change it.

Admit that you’re feeling upset and let those feelings rise up.

You may cry, you may feel frozen.

Just be with yourself in those moments.

Here are some things that I personally like to do to support myself:

• Give yourself a hug.
• Tell yourself it's going to be alright.
• Ask, what do I need right now? 
• Really listen to the answer
• Now act upon it to build that trust with your inner child.

There’s no right or wrong way to do this. Just be consistent and build the trust and let all parts of you know they are loved and accepted.

It may feel awkward or scary at first, but I promise it works.

Deep down we all just want to be accepted and the greatest gift is the love, acceptance, and approval from yourself.

Lots of love to you and your inner child!