Dan Harris once dismissed the idea of the “inner child,” but psychoanalyst Galit Atlas offers a different perspective: the child we once were can remain an active emotional self-state, influencing adult relationships and reactions without us realizing it.
The conversation explores how childhood experiences, family patterns, and inherited fears can surface in the present, and what can happen when we learn to recognize them.
Key takeaways:
- Meet your inner child: Atlas describes six inner-child archetypes that can help illuminate patterns showing up in adult life.
- Look beneath intense reactions: What feels like a present-day conflict may sometimes have deeper emotional roots.
- Ask “Whose fear is this?”: Some fears may reflect an emotional inheritance passed between generations.
- Understanding can deepen compassion: Recognizing our own childhood patterns may change how we understand both ourselves and other people.
Ten Percent Happier with Dan Harris offers practical tools and expert conversations for a calmer, more mindful life. New Episodes air every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
