Last Thursday we were treated to Haley’s latest presentation entitled  “Healing Your Inner Child” 

Haley began by relating how it is possible that any trauma from your childhood can contribute to PTSD. When working on dealing with your inner child, you first need to find and know your inner child. 

Your inner child is part of your sub-conscious that picks up on memories from the past and how you grew up. If you’ve had emotional or physical trauma, it can make even the smallest things you are dealing with seem huge. Unhealthy decisions are sometimes made if you are influenced by trauma. Sometimes if you have experienced self-sabotage in your past relationships, it can be linked to trauma as well.  Even though you may not realize it, your inner child is always there and ready to come out and play. When this happens, sometimes you may experience avoidance. Or if someone asks how you are doing, you are always saying you’re fine, even though that may not be true. 

There are many ways we can connect with our inner child, and following are a few examples;

1) keep your mind open 

2) remember finding your inner child can affect your present and future 

3) you can look to children for guidance 

4) try watching movies or television from your childhood 

5) look at old photos to bring you back to your childhood 

6) try visualization exercises, and try to visualize yourself living as a child again 

7) do something creative, such as drawing or painting 

8) spend time doing something you used to do as a child 

9) talk to your inner child by journaling, or even talk to yourself in the mirror 

10) try free writing 

11) learn to forgive yourself for something you’re aware of now, but maybe weren’t aware of as a child 

12) try meditation 

     Remember that trying to process your inner child can be heavy-duty, but also may be rewarding. You’ll need to learn to re-parent your inner child, as it may be time to move on and finally forgive yourself. 

Great job presenting Haley!