How To Nurture Your Inner Child, Comfort and Soothe Our Inner Child in a deeply healing and supportive way.
What is Your Inner Child?
Your inner child is part of you, part of your psyche that has been present from the time you have been conceived.
Our inner child forms different archetypal traits to adapt and survive our environment and family system.
It is where most of us form healthy and unhealthy archetypal traits, personality traits that shape our beliefs and behavioural patterns in adulthood.
The reason why we all have a wounded inner child that needs healing and healthy parenting.
No matter how healthy, caring and nurturing our childhood was, we all have inner child wounds, we all have happy, self-sabotaging and destructive patterns that impact our life, health, relationships and what we manifest in our life.
Nurturing Your Inner Child
Nurturing your inner child is an important part of helping to comfort, reassure and soothe our inner child to become a more happy healthy adult.
But like everything in life there is a healthy way to nurture and approach your inner child and a not so healthy way.
It is that fine balance of being able to really listen and acknowledge the inner child while equally parenting the inner child in a nurturing way.
Like every your child, your inner child can want and crave all sorts of unhealthy patterns in an attempt to self soothe it’s trauma, neglect, abuse and loss.
And this is why it is so important to approach healing your inner child and nurturing your inner child in a healthy balanced and informed way.
10 Ways To Nurture Your Inner Child
Connect With Your Inner Child –
You cannot truly and effectively nurture your the child within until you can make a really healthy and deep soul connection with your inner child. This is a step that shouldn’t be rushed and it requires you to set times in your day, week where you make that conscious connection.
Listen To Your Inner Child –
Part of nurturing and parenting your healthy child is the ability to really listen and acknowledge your inner child.
Many children of certain generations were seen but not heard. And in many ways not seen.
The ability to really listen to what our child archetypes and inner child is trying to tell us is of vital importance. Because if e don’t listen closely enough we can miss very important information, that is why listening to your inner child is so important and one of the most fundamental basics of inner child therapy.
Being Fully Present With Your Inner Child –
The ability to be fully present, requires the ability to be still, be quiet, be fully in the moment is so important. If you struggle to be still, struggle to connect within or to your soul’s essence. You are going to struggle to connect with the heart of your child archetypes that need your attention. That is why the right meditation techniques and soul connection skills can be extremely helpful.
Honour Your Inner Child –
it is so important for us all to respect, value and honour our inner child and all our archetypal traits in a balanced and healthy way. Just like honouring, respecting and valuing a child we love, we have to honour that child in a way without reinforcing unhealthy child wound patterns.
This is why honouring and valuing the child archetypes within us also involves parenting our inner child to recognise unhealthy stuck patterns. For example the shadow traits of the eternal child that doesn’t want to grow up and chooses to continue play out the child role in life to avoid growing up and taking self-responsibility, the victim child who chooses to be a victim of their circumstances, who doesn’t value, honour or respect themself enough to create change.
Soothe Your Inner Child –
Healthy self soothing is an important aspect of nurturing our inner child, the key is healthy self soothing. Unhealthy patterns of self soothing is eating a full tub of ice cream or any other form of unhealthy comfort eating or relying on drugs or prescription medication to self soothe. It involves having deep self compassion for one’s self.
Instead self soothe using relaxation techniques, havening, a relaxing bath, calming and grounding essential oils anything that will help calm down the nervous system in a healthy balanced way.
Play With Your Inner Child –
As adults we forget to have fun, we forget to make some playtime in our day, in our week, our life. It is so important to have fun, laughter, to take time out. The entertainer, jester archetype can help remind us of these qualities.
Get Creative With Your Inner Child –
Creativity can be a powerful therapeutic tool in inner child work, the right type of creativity that feels aligned with your soul can be very soothing and nurturing. Tapping into the artist, creator archetype or the creative child archetype or magical child archetype can help inspire that creativity.
Exploring different creative hobbies can be extremely healing and can help reignite more passion and creativity into our life.
Send A Letter To And From Our Inner Child –
Sending a deeply caring and loving letter to and from our inner child can be extremely healing and cathartic. Sending a letter to your inner child to tell your child that you love and care for them can help open deeper doors to self healing. Sending a letter from the wounded child to the adult you stating what you really need right now can really help you identify what your wounded child really needs and wants at a deeper soul level.
Parent The Inner Child –
Parenting our inner child is a vital part of the healing process, if we cannot parent our inner child we cannot help the child grow up in a healthy and balanced way. A healthy parent helps teach our inner child healthy patterns that help us become a healthy happy grown up.
Unhealthy parenting teaches in an unconscious way unhealthy patterns, self sabotaging and destructive patterns in our life. So part of parenting your inner child is teaching your inner child a new way of being
Healing Our Inner Child –
The right Inner Child Healing can be extremely powerful at helping you make massive shifts in your life, your relationships, your business and career.
So it is important to choose the right type of inner child therapist, or an inner child healer or inner child work that will best suit your inner child needs. Choose an inner child therapist that understand trauma, self sabotaging patterns and your most dominant archetypal traits that are running or ruining your life.
I have personally met and worked with so many clients through the years that have felt more damaged or traumatised by therapists or healers that don’t really know what they are doing.
Listening to what our inner child really needs than just wants is crucial. And don’t be shy about asking the therapist about their qualifications, level and area of expertise in inner child work; years of experience and how many clients they have worked with. It is important our inner child feels safe and is safe with a therapist, counsellor, coach or healer.
If you are ready to help soothe, nurture and heal your inner child to that happy healthy child and adult you deserves and is meant to be check out my new lightworkers portal, where you can access a variety of inner child meditations, inner child courses and spiritual self development tools and techniques and so much more.
Sample some of my Free Inner Child And Archetypal Resources in the Lightworkers Library.
Understanding The 12 Main Archetypes In Therapy, Healing and Business. What are Archetypes? And what benefits can come from understanding your main archetypal traits in your life, relationships and work?
Understanding Archetypes is extremely useful in certain types of therapy and healing when approached in the right way. I began studying Archetypes over 25 years ago. I would go on to study Archetypes from the psychological and psychotherapy perspective, the spiritual and healing perspective, and then Archetypal Branding and Marketing.
Archetypes go hand in hand with Inner Child Healing and can be extremely helpful in helping us identify more clearly our personal strengths and our weaknesses.
To understand Archetypes it is helpful to look at the work and views of Swiss Psychiatrist and Psychoanalyst Carl Jung. Specifically his Jung Archetypes and the Jungian Concept of the Psyche. Carl believed that we all have human inclinations and/or traits that we in many ways are born with. What he regarded as heritable psychic structures that play a part in how we experience and show up in life.
When he used the word the Psyche he viewed the Psyche as the all-encompassing aspects of one’s thoughts, emotions, feelings, and behaviour. While many today would describe the psyche as just the mind.
According to Jung, he viewed the psyche as 3 Major Realms
Consciousness – Awareness which he regarded as the ego; the memories, thoughts and emotions you are aware of.
Personal Consciousness – a layer where we hold events that we are not consciously aware of It is where we hold events we have perhaps ignored, denied or discarded.
Collective Consciousness – the realm that holds in many ways a whole collection of Universal Traits; shared attitudes, beliefs, ideas, and wisdom that relate to individuals and large groups of individuals.
Through clinical patient and historical research, Jung discovered that many individuals no matter their cultural, society, religious status or beliefs, held commonly shared unconscious traits. From this understanding and research the concept of Archetypes was introduced.
The 4 Major Jungian Archetypes
The Anima/Animus,
The Persona,
The Self
The Shadow
This would eventually lead to Jung suggesting there were a variety of different archetypes, which included the Child, Mother, Father, Hero, Trickster, Wise Old Man…He explained that different archetypes were not fixed but in-fact interchangeable with other archetypes. That is why what is regarded as the 12 Main Archetype’s can look very different in certain types of work.
What Are The 12 Main Archetypes?
Today the work of Archetypes has evolved from Jung’s Main Archetypes. Like for example Psychometric Analysis, Archetype analysis is used to assess certain traits; attitudes, beliefs, behaviour, strengths and weakness for therapy, healing, job placement, education, branding, and marketing.
The 12 Main Archetypes
The use of Archetypes has become a bit of a trend. So Jung Archetypes in many ways have been adapted and modernised to suit modern times but for the purpose of this blog in relation to therapy and healing I have chosen below
The light aspect of the Caregiver, the Nurturer Archetype is an individual whose traits are mainly selfless, their strongest traits in life are empathy, compassion, and giving. They naturally want to nurture and protect those they meet. They are often very strong empaths and lightworkers.
Common shadow aspects of the Caregiver is their tendency to protect and give unconditionally without thinking. Victim, Martydom, Rescuer Traits. This often lead to over-giving, lack of boundaries, difficulties saying no. Which can lead to being undervalued, taken advantage of, exhaustion, burnout, frustration, resentment.
The Creative Archetype’s most positive traits include the natural flair and ability to dream, create, be original. They have a tremendous gift of imagination, innovation and self-expression
The Artist or Creative Archetype’s shadow trait include their perfectionism, strong traits of neuroticism, or tendency to put creativity over positive solutions. Overthinking and emotional instability can lead to relationship difficulties, introversion.
The light aspects of the Innocent are their optimism, positivity, their ability to see good in everyone and their desire for everyone to like them. They tend to believe the world is a great place to live. They long innocence, rebirth and in many ways salvation.
The shadow aspect of the innocent is their naivety, innocence, dreamlike view of the world and others mean they can lack judgment and discernment. They are one of the easiest archetypes to impress but are fearful of being punished for doing wrong.
The light aspect of the Explorer Archetype is their sense of adventure and freedom seeking. The enjoy seeking and exploring new places, new experiences, they have a strong tendency towards personal freedom and space.
The shadow aspects of the Explorer Archetype include the restlessness or dis-ease that comes with being bored or feeling you are in the one place or doing the same thing for too long. Their lack of fear or lack of boundaries for new adventures, new places can lead to challenges around commitment, focus, persistence, rules and boundaries. It can also be a major cause of unhealthy forms of escapism like drugs, alcohol, adrenaline junkie.
Hero Archetype also known as Champion, Defender, Rescuer, Warrior
Positive aspects of the Hero Archetype include the depth of courage, energy and power they have to achieve something they believe is the honourable thing to do. They are about making the world a better place, defending the rights of others. They can often see the bigger picture in relation to governments, organisations and society.
Shadow aspects of the Hero Archetype can be a strong need for power and limelight. Their tremendous level of ambition that can get work against them or others. Doing almost anything including stepping over others or sacrificing them self to achieve that goal. Can be viewed negatively as Conspiracy Theorists although they tend to have a wider view than others on what is actually going on.
The Magician and Alchemist Archetype’s most positive and light traits include the ability to be a catalyst for transformation and growth. They tend to have a much stronger and deeper connection to the universe and unseen than many other archetypes do. So tend to have strong intuitive and or psychic traits. I tend to attract a lot of Alchemists in my work as many are natural healers, spiritual teachers and transformational coaches.
The Magician’s shadow traits include being easily seduced my magic, money and illusion. They don’t always have patience and like the Magician Apprentice want to get the results without always doing the work or practice. This alongside having very strong opinions can make them sometimes the challenging student. Or cause them to not reach their full potential or fall for their own illusion. They can as quickly destruct or self-destruct as transform and make great change.
The Lover or Romantic Archetype main light traits are feminine, love, emotions, passion, sensitivity, devotion and commitment. This archetype is easily suppressed by strict or rigid parenting.
The Romantic or Lover Archetype’s shadow traits include their deep fear of rejection, their need for someone else, their need to please. Lack of Self-Love and Self-Care. Can have a strong tendency towards co-dependency issues, over-attachment, and neuroticism. Suppression of the Lover Archetype can lead to all sorts of addictions and promiscuity.
Jester Archetype also known as the Clown, Fool, Trickster, Party Host,
Jester Archetype’s main positive traits are their strong ability to have fun, be the life and soul of the party. They have a natural ability to uplift others and get others to join in and engage in activities or communication. Tend to be entertaining and or a natural comedian. Their main motto tends to be you only live once.
Common Jester Archetype shadow traits include not always taking things seriously, because they fear being judged as boring. They often have challenges around being mature, sensible and taking self-responsibility. Their darkest shadow elements include deception, lies and manipulation. The reason the Jester is viewed as both positive fun and as the Trickster devious and deceptive is because their polar opposite tendencies. The Jester can therefore be fooled by their own mind, believe anything is possible, not see their own limits or limits within a situation.
Orphan Archetype also known as the Communitarian, Realist, Everyday Girl Or Everyday Man
Realist Archetype’s main positive traits include their strong abilities of equality, they are normally highly sociable and are particularly relatable to the man on the street. Think the boy or girl next door.
Realist’s shadow traits include their fear of being the odd person out, excluded, so they can easily themself and their values just to be part of the group, the community.
Rebel Archetype also known as the Outlaw Archetype
Rebel Archetype’s main light traits is their Free Spirit, their ability to expand and break perceived limitations, and level of independence.
Rebel’s main shadow traits include their fear, frustration with rules and boundaries, think of the Rebel without a clue or Rebel without a cause. In the negative state they can have a tendency to go against the grain or rules just for the sake of it. This can lead to a lot of self-destructive or self-sabotaging patterns in life, relationships, work and business.
Ruler Archetype also known as the Leader, Father, Royalty or Sovereign Archetype
Ruler Archetype’s main positive attributes include their natural ability to be a leader, to lead than to be led. They tend to be an authoritarian figure, that has courage, strength and a broad view of a situation.
Shadow traits of the Ruler Archetype include repressed anger, the need to dominate some sort of control or power over others. And their inability to see what they are suppressing than leading or motivating. Their struggle to trust others and to delegate. And insatiable thirst for material success or status, difficulty asking for help or admitting when wrong.
Sage Archetype is also known as the Philosopher, Teacher
A Sage’s positive attributes include their strong thirst for deep wisdom, truth and knowledge. They tend to live a life full of introspection and introversion. The tend to philosophy their life’s journey as a series of lessons and insights. The sage in some ways is the more mature, knowledgeable and wiser Magician.
Common Sage shadow traits include they can be the never ending student, always learning, but never taking any action or use their knowledge for any common good. Often a life that is analysed than lives. Can struggle to be fully in the moment.
Introduction To The 12 Main Archetypes
Now this is just an introduction to understanding the 12 Main Archetypes. Archetypal healing goes a lot wider and deeper. When applied in the right way it can be a powerful tool in Inner Child Therapy, in Healing and in certain types of Spiritual Coaching and Mentoring.
The reality is there are so many different archetypes that are in the collective unconscious. So many than can be used and explored to support us in different ways. But the most important one for you is identifying your strongest main archetype. That main archetype that shows up in you in the way you live your life every single day.
Understanding Yourself Through The 12 Main Archetypes
I believe the more we understand our main archetypes, the more we can understand ourselves. It can also be extremely helpful in identifying your strengths and those things you need to work on. I also use Archetypes as a tool to help healers, coaches and Spiritual Teachers build a business around their strengths rather than their weaknesses. Archetypal Branding to help capture the energy and emotion of their business and them in their marketing.
If you would love to explore archetypes and inner child work, check out the Gold or Quantum Level of my Spiritual Marketing Club Membership where you can access a library of archetype courses and archetypal sessions including a variety of inner child therapy and healing sessions.
Heal Your Magical Child– Your Inner Magician Archetype and Inner Wounded Child. Learn why healing your inner alchemist and magician archetype can help you in your life, work, and spiritual business.
As a therapist who has been a huge fan of Archetypal and Inner Child Healing and Therapy for well over 25 years, I know how powerful healing your magical child is. Especially as a healer and coach who helps many magician alchemist archetypes with their business. I am very familiar with the beautiful light and shadow aspects of the magical child. The powerful gifts of the alchemist and magician But equally the common sabotaging patterns when the Alchemist is coming from a state of fear, anxiety, trauma, lack, or rejection.
I see everyday examples of the wounded magical child in so many wounded healers, coaches, intuitive’s, and spiritual teachers. Just like I have been working on those patterns in my own life for many years. Also as a highly empathic sensitive, I see how many unruly empaths are so disconnected from their magical child. Because they are so afraid of their gifts, gifts they have often not really learned how to harness.
The reality is when you can really tap into and heal not just your inner child but your magical child, you can really start to make big shifts. Big shifts in recognising your own power, owning and honouring your gifts, life, and soul purpose that is why shadow work and inner child work is so powerful.
But Inner Child Therapy just like any form of deep soul and trauma work should always be done by someone who has the right skill set. Make sure you choose a therapist or healer who understands and is qualified and experienced to work at deep soul level and with trauma. Unfortunately, I have witnessed and been on the other side of Inner Child work by healers who hadn’t a clue what they were doing. Who had no understanding or experience of working with trauma, no understanding of the psychological damage they can do when they don’t approach Inner Child Healing in a safe effective therapeutic way?
Building Connection With Your Magical Child
With any type of Inner Child work, it is important that the initial connection with the inner child is built on trust. Sometimes especially in those who have suffered a lot of trauma, that connection takes patience and time. Without that initial connection and trust, you will struggle to not just make life-long shifts but you can actually push the inner child into more hiding.
So when trying to heal your Magical Child make sure you understand that in many ways you are dealing with your inner child’s view of their world, their story.
How To Connect With Your Your Magical Child
Get Quiet:
You won’t find your inner magical child in busyness or chaos. It is so important to take time to switch off from distractions, relax and generally be in the moment. Like any child, your inner child can only be heard properly when you take time to be quiet.
Look For Magic And Miracles:
Young children tend to see the magic and awe in everything around them. Their untainted innocence and sense of wonder help* them see the beauty and magic of life and every living creature. They fully immerse themself in so many things we as adults don’t notice or take for granted. So start noticing the magic, the miracles that are here every single day.
Make Time For Fun And Play:
Too much work doesn’t just make jack a boring boy it makes him an unhealthy and unhappy boy. Make a list of all the fun things you enjoyed as a child and start bringing them into your daily and weekly life. Don’t let any distortive thoughts around age, or what you should and shouldn’t do stop you from having some inner child fun. To stay happy and healthy build a strong connection with your eternal child your playful child. Make time for hobbies, things you enjoy doing even those things you love to do but aren’t very good at, and even those things that get very very messy.
Honour Your Magical Child:
When you honour the innocent and magical aspects of your core, you honour your greatest potential and soul desires. The greatest abuse to the Magical Child, or the Innocent Child is not owning, valuing or honouring your gifts. Stop being ashamed or fearful of your gifts. But also honour them enough to nurture them and develop them with the right help. Not fully honouring or developing your gifts or mastering your skills can lead to all sorts of problems. Think of the devastation left behind by the impatient sorcerer’s apprentice and you get the ideal. Many wounded magicians end up being more attracted to dark and illusion than light and pureness without even realising it.
Unlock Your Inner Alchemist:
The alchemist and magician archetypal traits love to experiment with new ideas, concepts, blends, and remedies. Anything that will support create change and shifts. That is why many magician archetypes become aromatherapists, herbalists, homeopaths, flower essence practitioners. Others become mindset practitioners, hypnotherapists, life coaches, energy, and spiritual healers. Or are attracted to many of these tools in their work, my inner alchemist inspired me to study many of these things.
Develop Discernment and Wisdom:
Part of the Magical Child’s journey is about treading the line between dark and light so they can learn how to transform from the dark. So it is very much about developing discernment and wisdom which too often comes from experience than just insight. The deeply wounded Magician and Alchemist Archetype that has been more abused than empowered is easily seduced by power, financial, or celebrity success at any cost. The healed and wise Master Magician has developed discernment and wisdom. They recognise that all that glitters is not gold and that the greatest more precious gold comes from a pure heart and soul.
If you are Ready To Heal more of your Magical Child?
Experience More Of Your Inner Magic And Inner Power In 2023?
