Your Inner Child + Your Adult Self

Inner child work is just as much about your adult self.

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There is a misconception that inner child healing is about focusing on the past since a lot of inner child work revolves around childhood. While this is true, inner child healing is just as much about your adult self too. When we engage in inner child healing, we help the current versions of ourselves, and the future versions too.

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Inner child healing is just a small part in the self discovery journey that is truly about all of the parts of you.

Someone I follow on Instagram posted:

"The response to all adult challenges isn't "You learned it in childhood.""- @yourdiagnonsense Todd Baratz

It got me thinking about how so many of us in the inner child healing space often miss the mark when talking about self discovery and healing. We put so much focus and emphasis on our inner child and our past, that we don't value and focus on our adult experiences and how those have shaped us. When we are engaging in any self discovery work, it is important that we remember that this is about all of the parts of us-- the past, the present, and the future.

Inner child healing and connection is often referred to as New Age psychology, pseudo-science, etc. and is often discredited because of the absolutes in statements that ultimately perpetuate harm onto people who are looking for help. As people who help educate, and work with inner child healing we must talk about how inner child healing is not the only answer. It can be a part of the answer, it can be so supportive, but it is not an absolute. The things that work for me are going to be different than the things that work for you. And working to talk about how this is only a piece of the puzzle for so many of us.

When I talk about inner child connection, I talk about 3 pillars that are applicable to embodying your Loving Adult too—.

Be curious. Have Fun. Receive.

Below are my tips for inner child connection.

Connect with your Inner Child:⠀

When we allow both our inner child and our loving adult to be curious, receive, and practice joy, we can drop deeper down into our desires, our dreams, our self-care, and more.

My three pillars for inner child connection are based on curiosity, receiving, and joy. Connecting with our inner child isn't always necessary, but it can be a way to get to know yourself more intimately, and care for yourself in a better way. Below are my 3 pillars for inner child connection on a day-to-day basis.

-Be curious about your feelings.

Our feelings can be one of our greatest teachers and when we are little we feel our emotions in BIG ways. As adults we either are often emotionally flooded or we are numb. Allow yourself to get curious about your feelings and what is going on with them. How can you meet yourself where you are?

-Allow yourself to receive.

Children are much better at receiving than adults are and this is because when we are little it is acceptable to ask for help. Somewhere along the process of growing up, we learn to find shame in asking for help. Allow yourself to receive what you need whether that’s love, support, grace, forgiveness, kindness, etc.

-Have some fun and practice joy.

The simplest and easiest way to connect with your inner child is by having fun! Allow yourself to be silly, be goofy, dance crazy, jump around, ENJOY yourself. Find a way to have fun that feels good to you.

Be sure to head over to the links tab and check out the free workbooks we have, resources, and our inner child education course that is all about play!