Day 29: Re-Parent Your Inner Child:
Many people in this world have a inner child. If you feel that your inner child needs a lot of healing, then think about ways that you can begin to validate him or her and consider ways that you can begin to give yourself those things you longed for for didn’t fully receive when you needed them.
Here are some ways that you can re-parent your inner child by honoring him or her:
- Acknowledge and Attend to Your Needs: If you’re hungry, eat. If you need a rest, take a nap.
- Allow Yourself to Play: Consider sitting down and doing a simple, child-like activity like finger painting, or coloring.
- Reassure your Inner Child: The next time you’re feeling emotionally triggered, remind your inner child that you are safe now.
- Radically Accept the Childhood that You Actually Had: It’s important to remember that accepting the past is very different from approving of it. Accept what has happened and there’s no way to change it. Accept that your caretakers were doing the best they could at the time. Accept that there are things now you can do to help heal the wounds, but they will take work, commitment and time.
- Work on Forgiving those who Harmed You as a Child: This is a challenging aspect of healing but is very important as you’re only harming yourself by not forgiving others. This is an ongoing process that requires lots of strength, determination, compassion and willingness. It is a lifelong process.
Source(s):
Stop Sabotaging: A 31 Day DBT Challenge to Change Your Life
by Debbie Corso