inner child en · NOUN
Meanings
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The childlike aspect of a person's psyche, typically, the personality and the memories of one's childhood, especially in the context of coexisting with, and being suppressed by, an adult aspect of the person.
I will start by stating that most of the time — especially in our relationships — it is not our adult self, but rather our inner child, who is actually running the show. We all have an inner child.
2010, Bree Maresca-Kramer, It's That Simple!: A Woman's Book on Relationships, Life, Ourselves and the Healing of It All, It's That Simple!, page 57:2009, Jo Woodiwiss, Contesting Stories of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Springer Nature (Palgrave Macmillan), 2009, Softcover reprint, page 186, A level of intensity can be seen in Anne's account, although Anne's investment was not so much in the world of her adult self but in the therapeutic world of inner children. […] Anne worked hard on her healing but the majority of this work was done on, or with, her inner children.
In traditional marriages, the woman mothered both inner children by holding the emotional content of the marriage, cooking and keeping house.
2012, Shakti Durga, Empowering Relationships, Higher Guidance, page 110:As I encouraged him to stay with that pain, he fell deeply into the reality of the inner child. The need in this inner child for love was very real indeed. He loved this inner child with all his heart.
1993, Barbara Ann Brennan, Light Emerging: The Journey of Personal Healing, Bantam Books, page 135:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| inner children | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Relateds
puer aeternus · id · inner chimp
Translations (14)
es niño interior (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · ca nen interior (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · fr enfant intérieur (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · gl neno interior (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · ru внутренний ребёнок (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · fi sisäinen lapsi (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · pt criança interior (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · cmn 內在孩童 /内在孩童 (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · de Inneres Kind (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · ro copil interior (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · eu barruko umea (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · pl wewnętrzne dziecko (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · it bambino interiore (childlike aspect of a person's psyche) · ja 内なる童心 (childlike aspect of a person's psyche)