Your inner child doesn’t speak the language of spreadsheets or to-do lists, they speak in sensations, movements, and feelings.
Your Inner Child Speaks in Sensations
What they do understand is: the flutter in your chest, the tightness in your shoulders, or the sudden urge to curl up under a blanket. They speak in sensations, movements, and feelings.
That means when you’re anxious, restless, or overwhelmed, it isn’t a failure of logic it’s a message from the younger you, asking for care in the only way they know how.
When Anxiety Has “No Cause”
Have you ever felt a wave of heaviness, tightness, or dread with no clear trigger? That experience is often your nervous system replaying old survival strategies. Your younger self may be saying: Please notice me. Please help me feel safe.
These signals are not mistakes. They’re invitations to turn inward. By listening through the body instead of the mind, you can finally respond to those silent calls for attention.
Somatic practices help you meet your inner child where they live: in breath, in movement, in the small moments of physical comfort that say, “You’re safe now.”
Here are seven gentle somatic practices to soothe your inner child and melt away the tension…
EXPLORE MORE – If you’ve ever felt yourself resisting the sensations in your body or wishing your feelings away, learning how to soften into acceptance can be a powerful next step. Read more in Stop Resisting Reality & How to Accept What Is.
1. Butterfly Hug for Instant Soothing
Sit somewhere comfortable, cross your arms so your hands rest on your upper arms, and begin to tap alternately—left, right, left, right. The rhythm doesn’t have to be perfect.
As you tap, breathe slowly and imagine wrapping your younger self in a blanket of reassurance. The bilateral stimulation of the butterfly hug helps calm the nervous system, lets your inner child know they are not alone and says: “I’m here for you. You’re safe. We can rest now.”
2. Weighted Blanket “Cocoon”
Think of how babies calm when swaddled. That same steady pressure can bring profound ease to your adult body.
When an inner child is distressed, a gentle, steady pressure can bring profound calm. Lie down under a weighted blanket or even a thick duvet and allow yourself to sink into the sensation.
Close your eyes and imagine being cradled, no demands, free of judgment, no expectations, just held. Safe. Here.
This communicates safety directly to the part of your nervous system that once scanned constantly for danger.
3. Grounding Through Your Feet
Stand barefoot on grass, sand, or even a warm rug. Shift your weight slowly from heel to toe, noticing the textures under your feet. Feel gravity holding you here, right now.
Rock gently from heel to toe, feeling the textures beneath you.
As you connect to the ground, picture your inner child planting their feet alongside yours, sharing in the stability.
4. Gentle Rocking for Regulation
Rocking is one of the earliest forms of comfort we receive, and your nervous system remembers it. Sit in a rocking chair, sway gently side to side, or rock on your feet while standing.
With every breath, imagine you’re rocking your younger self to sleep letting them know it’s okay to let go.
“Working with Tess, I learned how to truly listen to my body. The simple somatic practices she taught me have brought a level of calm and self-compassion I never thought possible. My anxiety feels manageable for the first time in years.”
— Will P.
EXPLORE MORE – Stress can make your inner child’s signals feel louder and harder to manage. Learning to interrupt those stress cycles can help you reconnect with calm more quickly. You can explore HOW to tame emotions in: → Stop INTENSE EMOTIONS from overwhelming you.
5. Hand-to-Heart Connection
Place one hand over your heart and the other on your belly. Inhale for four counts, exhale for six. Feel the rise and fall beneath your palms.
Whisper something kind to yourself maybe, I’m here with you. You’re not alone. These signals of warmth and presence tell your inner child what they’ve always longed to hear: that someone is here, steady and kind.
Soothe your nervous system with this free 7-day guide with simple daily practices to help you feel calmer and more in control.
6. Sensory Treasure Box
Children explore the world through their senses. Create a small box of grounding treasures: a smooth stone, a soft scarf, a lavender sachet, a marble that catches the light.
Fill a small box with objects your inner child would love: a smooth stone, a soft scarf, a lavender sachet, a shiny marble. When stress spikes, open the box and let your senses explore.
Engaging touch, scent, and sight in this way bypasses the need for words and reminds your inner child: It’s safe to be curious, it’s safe to feel. It creates grounding without forcing words or explanations.
7. Slow Stretch and Sigh
Reach your arms above your head, stretch as far as you can, then release with a long, audible sigh. Repeat three times. Imagine you’re shaking off the stiffness of a long car ride, ready to play.
That sigh? That yawn?
That sigh isn’t just breath it’s your inner child exhaling years of tension, finally allowed to rest.
It’s them letting go of tension they didn’t even know they were holding.
REMEMBER:
Somatic healing is like learning to speak the first language your body ever knew. When you offer your inner child these gentle signals of safety, you’re giving them what they’ve always needed most: presence, kindness, and a steady hand to hold.
Every gentle breath, every grounding touch, every act of presence is a way of saying: I hear you. I see you. I’m with you now.
That steady presence, more than any perfect words, is what your inner child needed all along.
“Tess showed me how to listen to my body—and in doing that, I finally heard the part of me that had been silent for decades.” — Dan S.
