Re-discovering your Inner World.
Our inner world should be our sanctuary. The place we can escape to self sooth when we need compassion, answers, respite and clarity yet we often rarely spend time there. Instead we often seek soothing from external sources leading us to be disconnected and living outside of ourselves. The problem with that is external sources are not reliable so we stay in a constant state of unrest. There are definitely times we need support, guidance and an escape from the heavy stuff but when we lean too far that way, we put our healing and soothing into the hands of others expecting to feel differently but the reality is we won’t until we access our inner wisdom, do the actions and work ourselves.
In the past, self expression, emotions and feelings have been sold to us as areas of weakness so therefore should be shut down and resisted. Strong people don’t talk about their feelings! But that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s positive to see we are moving away from those mindsets and now embracing just how important it is to embark on self exploration to get to the core of our true nature and fully embrace it.
A number of years ago, I didn’t like the way I was reacting to situations in my life. I was insecure and my behaviour was self sabotaging. I needed to get to the crux of why I was behaving like this. I just didn’t understand and felt out of control. I started counselling and once we started delving into aspects of my life, I began to understand why I was reacting the way I was. So that was great…we got to the Why but how do I now learn to change things? How do I implement actions that will help me self soothe and effectively help me feel better about myself, as that was the core of the issue. I just wasn’t backing myself or loving myself enough to see my worth. I can honestly say it took me a few years to really start facing myself and do some meaningful work. When I was doing my coach training with The Being Way, Inner Child work was one of our modules and it has to be one of the most profound modalities I have encountered to help me develop a strong inner connection and to self soothe.
So what is Inner Child work?
“Inner child work is any form of self-discovery that helps you access the child you once were, along with the experiences and emotions that child was taught to repress. The general idea of inner child work is that if you make an effort to contact, listen to and communicate with, and nurture your inner child, you can find and heal the roots of your issues as an adult.” Harley Therapy, UK.
“Inner child work is so effective because rather than judging, criticising and belittling ourselves (which can become the norm), instead we externalise and project our behaviour onto a younger version of ourselves. This allows us to see the self-harm that is caused by our own thoughts and actions more clearly and step into a parental, caregiver role where it is more natural to nurture and protect. It’s more likely that feelings of love and protectiveness and care will arise rather than judging or belittling ourselves.” - The Being Way
After working with my inner child to bring some things to light that I needed to address, one of the ways I self soothe when I am feeling afraid or insecure is to look at a picture of myself as a child and effectively have a conversation with her, reminding her she is capable and has the ability to navigate whatever outcomes arise in the face of difficulty. If I am not able to access a photo, I close my eyes and engage in a conversation with my younger self. I find it very comforting and helpful.
Something to note, this isn’t about placing blame on anyone, we are all products of our upbringings. It is about letting go of blame and fully immersing ourselves in the healing process (which looks different for everyone) to reshape our inner world, step into taking control of our lives and how we want to shape them. Inner child work can be profound and powerful as we learn to become more compassionate with ourselves but it can also be painful. Depending on your history, it is important to seek out support that works for you to journey through this process of unravelling and unpacking.
This unravelling is the start of a process to take steps towards your inner growth and nourishing yourself so you can retreat to your inner sanctuary whenever you need.
If you are needing support with re-discovering your inner world feel free to get in touch about 1:1 Wellbeing & Soul Support Sessions. We can connect In Person or Online via Google Meet.
