Day 13: Powerful Inner Child Healing

healing your inner child
The most profound therapy I ever did was inner child healing. I learned how to heal my inner child through some of the deep practices of engaging my inner child. Healing the inner child is a process, but one I highly recommend.

The most profound therapy I ever did was inner child healing. I learned how to heal my inner child through some of the deep practices of engaging my inner child. Healing the inner child is a process, but one I highly recommend.

Within our inner world, is this beautiful inner child. This child is a part of all we do and a piece of our mind, body, and soul that is yearning for love, affection, and appreciation. The inner child is there to remind us of the times in our lives when we were carefree, and life was less stressful and painful.

inner child healing

Learning how to heal your inner child is learning what healing the inner child will do for you now. Sometimes inner child healing involves letting go of serious trauma, or pain you shoved down so many times in an effort to survive. Other times, inner child work is designed to help you remember to go back to a time when you felt safe and protected.

In other situations, inner child healing involves giving the inner child the things they were lacking as a child, thereby repairing the abandonment and attachment wounds. This was the work I had to do, and it was liberating and I have experienced a profound awakening since giving my inner child the space to heal.

The Plan: How to Heal Your Inner Child

The first step in learning how to heal your inner child is to acknowledge what the inner child feels. This can be done through identifying some childhood memories that come to mind. Some of these memories will be pleasant, some of them will be excruciating, and in the case of painful memories, I highly encourage working through the pain with a licensed therapist. After acknowledging the child, it’s time to listen to what the inner child is feeling and experiencing.

The last part we will do as a journaling exercise. We will write our inner child a letter. Take out your journal or open a blank text file on your computer.

how to heal your inner child
  • Write the date at the top
  • Write the quote I am sharing below
  • Now we will write a letter to our inner child. This letter will be difficult to do so let’s start by watching a quick video from Isabelle Miner who speaks her letter to her inner child in this video:

In order to write a letter to being healing your inner child, you must connect with your inner child. Inner child healing isn’t easy, but it begins with truly reaching out to him/her and understanding where they might need your help. Today’s resource can help you explore this connection and reach out the place where healing your inner child can fully begin.

After watching this short video, let’s ask ourselves some questions for self-reflection and to open the connection to our inner child before writing our letter. Write these answers down on your journal page:

  • What did you enjoy doing as a child?
  • What brought you joy as a child?
  • What are some of the things that you wish you knew that you know now?

Now let’s ask questions to our inner child, and these answers we will use in our letter (which we will do in today’s quick exercise):

  • Ask your inner child, How do they feel?
  • Ask your inner child, How can I support you?
  • Ask your inner child, What do you need from me?
  • Ask your inner child, What choices can I make now that will give us both the space and the love we need to heal?

Now that you have asked these questions of yourself, and your inner child, try to calm your heart with a reminder of how your inner child helped you in your quest to healing your inner child.

  • What lessons are you grateful for in your life?
  • What did your childhood show you that was right?
  • What did your childhood show you that was wrong?
  • What do you do now to honor your memories?

Quote of the Day

The quote for today comes from Brennan Manning This is an affiliate link. He is an author, writer, and speaker who led spiritual retreats. His claim to fame is his book entitled, “The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up, and Burnt Out This is an affiliate link.”

After writing the quote and all the pieces of the journal entry for today, write how you can use this quote in your journey to healing your inner child.

An Extra Resource for Inner Child Healing

Today’s extra resource is really powerful. I recently found a blog called MG Mindfulness that focuses on a lot of the same topics I have posted about and a lot of topics I will be posting on in the future.

One of the blogs, written by Tiffany Trieu, that I read recently was called, “What Is Inner Child Work? A Guide To Healing Your Inner Child.” This blog is a beautiful guide to understanding the concept of the inner child and how to heal your inner child. It includes information about why inner child work is important, when it’s time to begin inner child healing (including the signs you may be needing to do inner child work), and how to connect with your inner child.

At the end of the blog, Tiffany Trieu shares a resource she wrote with journal prompts for healing your inner child. I highly recommend downloading this resource and doing the 7 sessions to really begin the quest of healing your inner child.

Another post I loved on this blog was written by Tanya Carroll Richardson, entitled, “6 Exercises To Help You Honor & Heal Your Inner Child.” Tanya Carroll Richardson digs into some nurturing exercises aimed at giving love and attention to the inner child healing process. Her post is easy to read and has a few nuggets of valuable and sensible information.

My Story from Inner Child Work in Bali

In 2019, I traveled to Bali, Indonesia to go to a retreat called the “Be Kind Retreats.” I was met by some of the best women I could have ever met; including earthy goddess Linda, the powerful yet gentle Loes, the thoughtful and caring Vanessa, the yogi master Stephanie, and so many others.

Additionally, I met some of the most incredible people who became my friends for the rest of my life. Jim, Baggus, Tine, Char, Leandra, Erin, Dan, Cassie, and Baggy. I also found my favorite place in Canggu called ORE Studios, where I remembered how much I love to sing and dance and be around music.

While I was in the retreat, I wrote a letter to my inner child, and I drew a picture of my inner child. I had to come face-to-face with the childhood memories that eventually were tainted with trauma and heartache and led to the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder. I had to bring it all back to the surface and find the strength of my inner warrior, who had learned how to survive it all, in order to be strong enough to re-parent and begin my healing inner child work.

I didn’t sleep too good while I rehashed my pain, forced myself to face it, and found myself mentally and emotionally drained while I learned how to give myself all the love I had been storing up unintentionally. No one in my life taught me how to be gentle with myself. Most of the time, I learned how to criticize myself and assault myself with hurtful reminders of how unworthy I was when I couldn’t do something well.

I had to learn to make a grand gesture to myself and honor the inner child healing journey through intentionally being there for myself. In the middle of a foreign country, with no one I got to know well before coming there, I found myself standing in my power, feeling like the aching heart break from forgetting who I am, was replaced by this new desire to love all of myself; be it good, bad, or whatever.

I encourage you to get uncomfortable like I did traveling 32 hours away from my home by myself, as you learn how to heal your inner child. If you get uncomfortable, you will learn that there is beauty in the discomfort. There is strength and fortune in the discomfort and you will learn that your feelings are the work and expression of your soul.

Here I was as a teenager, putting on a fake smile that hurt so much to do. All I wanted to do was cry, and yet I tried in every way to be strong. She taught me a lot about how strong I really am, and for that I am deeply grateful.

Quick Exercise to Learn How to Heal Your Inner Child

Learning how to heal your inner child can be extremely painful, and sometimes, it is best to work with a licensed therapist if you feel that you are not safe doing so on your own. Healing the inner child involves being extremely open and honest with yourself, and your pain. Again, a licensed therapist can be a great support in learning how to heal your inner child.

You will need a few things to complete this quick exercise of writing a letter to your inner child.

  1. Grab a couple of pieces of paper and a pen or pencil
  2. Grab some pictures of yourself between the ages of 6-10, 11-14, 15-20 and then a recent one.
  3. Watch the meditation video below to help you connect with your inner child.

Now let’s write the letter to our inner child asking for forgiveness, acknowledging their pain and feelings, offering forgiveness for the things they are struggling with, and giving them thanks for all they did do to protect themselves and us. If you are struggling to figure out what to write, refer to Tiffany Trieu from the extra resource who shares with us journal prompts for healing your inner child.

Remember to be gentle with yourself while you work through inner child healing. It is not an easy process to learn how to heal your inner child, but I encourage you to try to not give up or to reach out for support when you need extra guidance.

Read More About Healing the Inner Child

Niki Maria

Niki Maria

I am a student and I am currently studying to become a Neuropsychological Researcher. I have a passion for helping people find the strength to deal with life and love and sharing the stuff I am learning in school. I also absolutely love music, and while I am no Mariah Carrey or Beyonce, I love to write and sing my own songs for fun. It is awesome stress relief.

Subscribe

Just subscribe to get the latest posts from Niki Maria in your inbox.

maarten-deckers-227224-unsplash
Keep in the Know

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Get notified about new articles without worrying about spam.

%d bloggers like this: