Self-care: 3 things your inner child wants from you

self love
3 ways you can do something good for your inner child

© iDoPixBox / Adobe Stock

Some people didn’t get the support they needed as a child. This can affect their relationships and self-esteem well into adulthood. But the good news is: We can raise, support and care for our inner child ourselves.

The little voice that tells you that you are unlovable or causes us to turn away from our loved ones with other negative thoughts is often far more present than what others are saying to us. Positive affirmations from friends or family are regularly invalidated by them. Sometimes this inner voice is so strong that we keep holding on to past experiences and don’t seem to get anywhere. So one of the tactics to counter them is to take countermeasures within ourselves.

The insecurity of the inner child

Various situations can have led to us not being able to correctly assess other people or our feelings in adulthood. Whether a person was ostracized on the playground, bullied by a teacher, or yelled at by parents for trifles: There are many reasons why our inner child does not know how to deal with certain situations. But now we are the adults and can be the mental support that we were denied as children. With these tips you can do something good for your inner child and gradually ensure more self-love.

1. Accept your inner child

We should be aware that we are not 100 percent grown up, we are also Pieces of our childhood with us forever carry. Many people sometimes react more sensitively to certain situations because of past experiences. It is important to find out why we react more sensitively. What was the trigger and triggered insecurity, fear, anger or another feeling in you? For example, if the parents often did not listen when they were children, it can be a trigger in adulthood when something similar happens with a partner. Find the reasons and reassure your inner child that they are loved and heard.

2. Imagine happy childhood memories

Since our brain is specialized to focus primarily on negative things, we often forget to focus on the beautiful things. Which moments in your childhood were particularly happy? Maybe a situation with former friends, a trip together with the family, a sense of achievement in the school class or baking with your grandmother? Many beautiful experiences can be found in the long period of childhood if we focus on them. Find a situation and imagine it carefully: What do you see, hear, taste or smell? These memories can give us security. If you can’t think of such moments, you can make them up. Imagine what you would have liked to experience and take your inner child with you on the journey.

3. Release your inner child

When we were children there were a number of things that we loved to do. Maybe listen to cassettes or CDs with audio books and create a coloring book with bright colors. Maybe sing and dance extensively. The interests that we had as children and that gave us so much joy are often still a lot of fun for us as adults. We just often think it’s “too childish” to continue some things or don’t make time for the happy moments because we’re too focused on adulthood. Be creative again and inspire yourself by aligning your inner child with your adult life every now and then.

How we nurture the inner child

Becoming self-aware of what the inner child didn’t get and what it wants from us can be challenging. Perhaps even small exercises will help you to integrate more self-love and security into your life. But professional help may be needed, because you keep having negative thoughts on your own and can’t really grasp why it is and how you can change it. In these cases, an outside perspective is often very helpful.

You can also start with books on topics like self-reflection—or try meditation or relaxation to bring clarity. Because starting therapy is not easy for many people and finding a place can be frustrating. Trust yourself, your social environment and people you trust and the help you can get – and remember: It may take a long timeuntil you see progress. But every step you take to help yourself shows strength.

Sources used: PsychCentral, Healthline, Forbes

incl
Bridget

source site-31