Wake-up the Sleeping Giant: To Heal the Wounded Inner Child - Rachel Devine
Make no mistake about it; the inner child is alive and well and dwells in each one of us. This sleeping giant is powerful, and some would rather let it sleep. However, letting the sleeping giant lie dormant can cause intermittent havoc in one’s life. It can cause fear when you want to exit a relationship. Or uncontrollable anger towards a loved one. And it can cause rage during car incidents and, in some severe cases, cause people to be violent. It will rear its ugly head in times of stress, trouble, grief, and anxiety. The way to arrest these unexpected tantrums of the wounded inner child is to understand them and tame them.
Carl Jung advocated that it was this inside part of all of us that influenced all we do and the decisions that we make. Inner children were a part of us when we were kids that never grew up. They are who hold all the memories and emotions, good or bad, that we experienced.
Let’s look at some inner child healing techniques and ways to reparent yourself.
Awareness of the wounded inner child
The wounded inner child is part of your subconscious mind, and both, in unison, direct your life 95% of the time. When you get up each day and have breakfast, check your emails, brush your teeth, and get ready for work, this is all orchestrated by this dual force. You don’t think about it; it’s an automatic response to your daily routine. Well, 95% of your decisions are made with your subconscious/inner child mind. The question is, what are the inner contents that are driving your life? Are they good contents or bad ones, or a little bit of both?
My inner child is screaming
The first step is to look for patterns in your life that erupt unexpectedly and are screaming for your attention. Are you reactive during arguments? Do you get enraged during car incidents, like when someone cuts you off? Are you violent toward people in times of stress? Are you filled with fear at the idea of dating? Do you have addictions? These are just some clues as to your wounded inner child screaming for help. What is inside you will erupt during stressful times, so these are clues for you to look for so you have awareness of what is bubbling up inside. You want to have this awareness to stop it from continuing.
Self-love
Believe it or not, some of the anger and even fears stem from the fact that most of us did not get our fundamental needs met as children, and we hide the repressed anger deep within us from those times. Additionally, carrying around deep resentments from years of anger can also be what is within. Self-love is one of the keys to filling that inner void that was not filled in childhood. Let’s face it, we are all humans, especially our parents, who did the best they could under the circumstances of their lives. However, the outcome is usually that an adult will have some sort of issue that came out of childhood. Look in the mirror daily and say, “I love you.” Even if you don’t mean it, this exercise will change your inner emotions around to more love.
Inner child meditation
Another form of inner-child healing is meditation. Sit in a quiet room and imagine yourself as a child. Picture what you look like, what you are wearing, and what room in your childhood home you are in. Just picture everything you can. Then, in the meditation, you will approach your inner child as an adult parent and sit with your child. Give your child words of encouragement, perhaps a hug, and reassurance that you are there for them and will always love and support them. Be as loving as you can in this meditation. There is no right or wrong way to do this, or time-frame, just go with your instincts. The more you do this meditation the more inner child healing you will receive.
Affirmations
Affirmations act as a way of penetrating the subconscious, so you put positive words and feelings in there to offset the negative ones from the past. You can say things like, I am here for you, I will support you, I am loved, I am confident, I am worthy, I am beautiful, etc. You can write these affirmations out on sticky notes and post them where you can see them daily as a reminder to say them out loud.
Wake-up call
It’s okay to wake up the inner giant so you can heal. Inner child healing is necessary to eradicate our weaknesses that hold us back in life. Too many of us have anger issues or bitterness from the past, that we want to get rid of. The key to inner healing is through awareness and inner child work. Remember what lies dormant is just waiting to erupt, like a pandora’s box of horrors. You really want to tame that inner child. It will be worth the effort when you start to see your life transform before your very eyes.
Rachel Devine is the author of her new inner child book, Discover the Power of the Secret Within, along with The Third Road and Lessons from the Needle in a Haystack, all on Amazon.
Devine Intervention: Inner Healing Center
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