Inner Child work

I am a big believer in therapy, and of reducing stigma. So I am going to be a bit vulnerable here today and do some self-disclosure.

Recently I have gotten back into therapy myself, realizing that I needed a bit of a tune up and we are currently doing some inner child work. This can also be called parts work, or ego state work, and it’s not just for those with Dissociative Identity Disorder or Other Specified Dissociative Disorder.

This is a picture of me when I was about four years old. And this is the little girl I picture when we do inner child work. When I work on re-parenting, this is the little one that I am working with. When I do meditation focused on self-compassion, I imagine I am holding her and sending self-compassion to the both of us.

I share this, because it can feel hokey and weird to do for the average person. But there is power in learning to care for parts of self who did not get the care they needed.