The Inner Child

While childhood exists as a specific stage in the human life cycle, it also represents a psychological state in adulthood, sometimes called “the inner child”. This state of being consists of the children that we once were, still existing at some deep level of our psyches.

The inner child in the adult contains much of our creativity, spontaneity, and joy, as well as many of our deepest fears, angers and hurts. As we get more involved in the complexities of adulthood, it becomes more important for us to connect with our inner child, to help us achieve balance in our lives. Here are a few ways you can do this:

• Take time out each day to do something playful or childlike. Buy yourself a lollipop, skip down the street, watch Bambi on videotape, or do something that nourishes you.

• Consider taking personal growth workshops for the inner child, where you can more fully explore this part of yourself.

• Finally, keep a journal and dialogue in print with your inner child. What does she really need?

By providing nourishment to your own inner child, you’re helping to nurture your real life child as well.

Thomas Armstrong, Ph.D. is an award-winning author and speaker with twenty-eight years of teaching experience from the primary through the doctoral level, and over one million copies of his books in print on issues related to learning and human development. He is the author of nine books including Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom, In Their Own Way, Awakening Your Child’s Natural Genius, 7 Kinds of Smart, The Myth of the A.D.D. Child, ADD/ADHD Alternatives in the Classroom, and Awakening Genius in the Classroom. His books have been translated into sixteen languages, including Spanish, Chinese, Hebrew, Danish, and Russian.