This Is What Happens When You Get In Touch With Your Inner Child

When you feel lonely, angry, depressed, anxious, resentful, passive aggressive, react from ego not love, disconnected, irritated, and confused, it's time to get in touch with your inner child. It's time to acknowledge these things and validate how you feel and find new ways to cope.

In light of my ongoing struggling health issues I shared about in my previous two posts, I knew I had to lighten up.  I knew I needed to get in touch with my inner child in order to manage the incredible overwhelm, anxiousness and bouts of depression I was dealing with.

And not just for my kids sake. You see, it was easier to be playful with the kids. Especially my younger two, they were too cute, curious and fun. I had no choice but to get playful at times thankfully.

Rather, I needed to get in touch with MY OWN inner child to find my joy. To help me shift from the incredible stress in my life.  It was time for me to slow down, and to “stop and smell the roses” so I  could be less susceptible to the stress of my illness.

I had experienced long periods of losing my sense of play and almost felt incapable of even knowing HOW to DO play that lit me up. Motherhood and life are tough jobs, and if you are not careful to care for yourself, you will lose that sense of playfulness that is so vital to your well-being.

The Health Affects of STRESS

An extreme amount of stress (like I had experienced for YEARS) can have immense health consequences.  It will affect your immune system, cardiovascular and neuroendocrine, central nervous systems, and take a SEVERE emotional toll.

Untreated chronic stress can result in serious health conditions including anxiety, insomnia, muscle pain, high blood pressure and a weakened immune system. Research shows that stress can contribute to the development of major illnesses, such as heart disease, depression and obesity.

Indeed, stress can affect your body, your thoughts and feelings, and your behavior. Being able to recognize common stress symptoms can give you a jump on managing them.

But by finding positive, healthy ways to manage stress as it occurs, many of these negative health consequences can be reduced. All of these manifested for me and it took years to recover. It's important to recognize them as soon as possible.

Your Inner Child Is Stress Free

Your inner child is that beautiful, innocent, intuitive, fun-filled, little being that just wants to create, play, and use her imagination. That part of you that reminds you to have fun, not take things so seriously, lighten up a little, and splash in mud puddles. Your inner child's job is to play!

Yet somewhere along the way, your child ends up feeling as if they need to be the adult because they feel unheard, left out, scared, abandoned, isolated, and lonely. Why? Because they have no one telling them that they're okay. They don't have anyone to remind them that they're children and that children play.

Ever notice how kids can find the simplest (and even dirtiest) things, like a stick, or puddle and just play with it. They don't need a reason to stop and find the joy in things, they just naturally do it. They don't worry about the mess.

As burned out mommas, we can stand to learn a lot from this example. Your inner child is that part of you that that reminds you to have fun, not take things so seriously, lighten up a little, and splash in mud puddles. Their job is to play!

PLAY Is The Gateway To Your Vitality

Playing and allowing your inner child to emerge helps you to better cope in life. When you get in touch with your inner child you get to experience all of the fun, freedom and innocence that comes with being a young child again. It's the ultimate form of STRESS relief.

When you give yourself permission to be playful, spontaneous, and creative, you connect more deeply with your genuine, authentic self and your intuition.

As I transitioned out of my marriage and had a big health crash, I saw a need to look on the lighter and brighter side of life. I had lived in fear with anxiety for far too long and it was too heavy to carry anymore. I needed to learn to shift and let it go so I could enjoy life again.

When you connect with your inner child and your full authentic self you will feel joyous, free, more playful, fun and creative. 

This will allow you to have more intimate connections, with others and yourself. It will help you to not react out of emotion, giving you more clarity and less drama in your relationships. It will help you create better boundaries and will allow you stop being a people pleaser. It will help you get to know yourself in ways you never knew about, resulting in self-love and healing.

Now, I'd love to hear from you. How can play, imagination, curiosity and invention be a part of your daily routine?  Feel free to share in the comments below.