6 Steps To Build Trust With Your Inner Child

How do you cope when you experience an emotion of high intensity that rattles you up inside? Do you find that you become highly critical of yourself? Apathetic? Restless? Maybe even avoidant? If this is you, you are not alone! Know that it is not your fault and that it will be okay. You might be wondering, where do I begin? The answer is in building trust with your inner child. 

The inner child is an internal part that carries childlike aspects of a person’s personality in its purest form, which is often described as the parts that are playful, joyful, creative, spontaneous, confident, compassionate, or angry, hurt, and fearful. Our inner child is heavily influenced by their upbringing and their environment. Over time, the inner child will make bids to get your attention as a way to build connection with you. In order to begin fostering and nurturing your connection, we need to be paying close attention to the cues. Once you’re listening, it is a prime opportunity to begin building a trusting and safe relationship. 

Here are 6 steps to build trust with your inner child:

1. Use a compassionate and loving tone

When your inner child expresses an emotion, provide comfort and safety by using a soft, 

kind, and loving tone. 

2. Reflect the emotions you are observing

Make sure to actively listen for the emotions they are expressing and reflect back what you are hearing with kindness and compassion. 

3. Communicate acceptance of their feelings

When your inner child shares their experience, be sure to provide genuine care and radical acceptance for their experience. We heal when we move through our emotions by acknowledging and accepting them rather than repressing, criticizing, or dismissing them. 

4. Reassure them

Let them know that you are not going to withhold care or love regardless of what they are going through. This can help alleviate any fear or hurt they may experience for sharing with you their true feelings. 

5. Offer support 

Try your best to offer support not solutions. You can do this by simply stating, “I am here with you” or asking “How may I support you” or “what are you needing right now?” This allows for the interaction to be focused on supporting your inner child self-lessly.

6. Self-regulate with breathing & mind-body connection. 

Make sure to implement healthy coping strategies when the emotions expressed by your  inner child are difficult or painful to move through. When your inner child sees you make efforts to hold space for them by caring for yourself, they feel your love and connection towards them. 

Remember that you can hold space for your inner child and provide a safety like no one else can through an act of radical self-love when you are ready. You are the love and peace that you seek. It is all within you. Keep going, you’ve got this!