My introduction to my Inner Child came through a channeler. Natalie Giannelli, intoning the Scottish brogue of 19th century Scottish physician Dr. Peebles, told me over and over that most of my worries and concerns could be soothed by attending to the youngest parts of my psyche with something called the Inner Child Meditation.
The process would be simple: For 1-3 minutes every morning, I was to call to my inner child. Without criticizing her, I was to notice what age she was, what she was wearing, and hear her out. When she was done letting me know all about her concerns, I was to simply gather her in my imaginary arms, soothe her, remind her that I loved her, and let her know that she didn’t have anything to worry about, that I was an adult now and would take care of everything.
Every morning thereafter, I would try. I would shut my eyes and try to bring her to mind. Nothing. I would call to her. Nothing. After about two weeks, I could vaguely feel her presence, but it was as if she were fifty feet away, adamant that she would never trust me enough to come near.
I kept at it anyway. After about six months, I could reliably conjure an image from a photograph of me on the day of my first communion, but this felt artificial, like I was for sure doing it wrong. Nevertheless, I began to ask her questions and imagine the responses. This also felt fake, but it was better than nothing—and, surprisingly, it began to be cathartic. Her answers would release emotion in us both. We would cry and I would hold her and let her know, “I’m an adult now. I’m going to take care of everything.”
From that persistence came a flood: For about a year, or year and a half, I spent every morning crying for a few minutes with my inner child. It was as if every tear I’d held back as a child was finally released.
I recommend the Inner Child meditation to almost all of my clients at one time or another. I also recently started adding an Inner Child overlay into my Resonant Attention treatments. If I notice that it feels like processing should be starting, but there is some fear, or worry, or reluctance, I might expand my attention to include the Inner Child, or perhaps even touch Stomach 9, the point on the neck that is considered, in some lineages, to be resonant with the inner child.
If you feel worried that you “aren’t doing it right” or “so and so can do it, but I can’t” or “I’ll never be able to do it,” try attending to the inner child with either—or both!—of these methods. She’ll appreciate it.
Love,
Stella
WoW. Thank-you for sharing. My inner child was love, joy/ bliss. I miss that so.