Physician and psychotherapist Charles Whitfield was the first to write a comprehensive, systematic, and helpful book on the phenomenon of the Inner Child. It is a modern classic of psychology that is as fresh and useful today as it was when it was first published.
It is conservatively estimated that over 50% of the population has experienced childhood trauma, often in toxic family situations. In some cultures, the figure is as high as 70, 80, 90%. Because of this, the central element of human consciousness, our True Self, begins to hide.
In The Inner Child, Dr. Whitfield explains how our Inner Child is wounded and presents a program for healing. He takes the reader through four steps leading to the rediscovery of the Authentic Self:
1. Learn to be "real" by practicing with safe people.
2. Identify your healthy human needs.
3. Mourn unmourned grievances, traumas and losses.
4. Work through the most important issues of recovery, relationships and life.
Books on the topic come and go, but this work remains a powerful introduction to the diagnosis and treatment of childhood trauma. It is recommended by both therapists and people who have had similar experiences.
The idea of the Inner Child – the child within us – has been part of world culture for at least two thousand years. Carl Jung called it the Divine Child, Emmett Fox called it the Miracle Child, and psychotherapists Alice Miller and Donald Winnicott called it the True Self.
The inner child is the part of us that is highly alive, energetic, creative and fulfilled. It is our Authentic Self – who we really are.
Most of us deny our Inner Child – we are unconsciously pushed to do so by our parents and society. Due to the lack of care and freedom of expression, a false or codependent “I” arises. We begin to take a victim position in life and have difficulty resolving emotional traumas. Gradually, mental and emotional problems accumulate, and with them come chronic anxiety, fear, confusion, emptiness. We become unhappy.
Denial of the Inner Child and the subsequent emergence of a false self, or negative ego, is especially common in those children and adults who grew up in troubled families - those where chronic illness (physical or mental), harshness, coldness, or neglect were common.
However, there is a way out. We can find and heal our Inner Child, stop relying on the false self and break free from the bonds of suffering. This is what my book is about.
Author: Charles Whitfield
Translation: Gorokhov Vasily
Year of issue: 2022
Pages: 224
Dimensions: 212x146x15 mm
Publisher: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber
Cover type: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-5-00195-283-1