Chronic Pain Liberation Program

Inner Child Workshop

Hi, I'm Ellen Light, Integrative Healer here to talk to you today about working with your inner child. You may or may not have heard about doing inner child work, but I can tell you that in my many years of working with clients, I find it to be extremely important, powerful, and beneficial. This is because the wounds that the inner child carries, the old emotions and beliefs about ourselves and the world, are expressed until they are healed.

So you could be having an issue in your adult life with your health, money, or relationships that's actually being caused by an emotion that was unexpressed or unhealed as a child. So how do we work with these younger selves?

The most important thing to remember is that we want to be gentle, slow, and respectful. We want to listen, acknowledge, and affirm. So working with the inner child is not the place to say, get over it.

That comes from the adult rational brain. We need to get down on our knees and get to child level as we speak to the child and affirm their experience. This allows that energy to leave their body. It's really quite heartwarming to see a younger part of you heal, and you can often see or feel it.

If you're a person who processes visually, you may see the physical changes in the child, but it's not necessary to be visual. You can also sense this in the body. So how do we connect with an inner child?

Most often, it's by looking at something that's causing distress in your life. I worked with a client today with serious food allergy issues. Upon reviewing her history, I found unexpressed grief and rage.

Food allergies and sensitivities are common, but extreme cases limit your dietary choices. It's crucial to work with those younger parts influencing your health or even your financial beliefs. For example, if your inner child felt ignored or unimportant, they might believe they're not worth it, impacting your finances.

Let's get to work, shall we? Let's use the client with food allergies as an example. We'd ask about their feelings and sensations related to their condition, and try to relate it to a younger self. Acknowledging the child's feelings is crucial.

It's essential to be present, either by sensing or visualizing the child. The trapped energy starts releasing when the child feels heard. The child might have a physical or emotional response to being acknowledged.

One might need to ask the child if there's anything the associated emotion would like to say or do. For instance, if it's anger, let it express without editing, as long as it's safe. Once expressed, reaffirm the child's right to those emotions.

Sometimes, the child might be in an unsafe place in your memories, and it's essential to move them to a safe space for the healing process. This could be a natural setting, a room, or even within your heart.

It's important to be patient and establish trust, especially if the child has experienced trauma or if we, as adults, have been harsh on our inner child. An apology might be necessary. Offering positive affirmations like, "You deserved better," can be healing.

It's rewarding to see a once hurt inner child now playing and happy. However, there are times when the child might feel apathetic or in a state of freeze due to overwhelming emotions. In such cases, it's essential to be patient and allow the child to thaw out and come back safely.

Seek professional support if you're new to inner child work or encounter a deep freeze state. The good news is that most inner child work deals with common childhood issues, not always traumatic ones. They just want to be heard.