HI everyone! I have been putting a picture of my kid self as the homescreen on my phone and it has been jarring and healing to look at my younger self and think of kind things to say to them . . .
that is hilarious about being a barista who doesn't like coffee! But I suppose it saves you from the temptation to over-caffienate? :) Thanks for sharing your preferences!
Thanks for this prompt. I have done some EMDR and was thinking that it would be nice/helpful to choose a youngest me that needs some love and compassion, and then move to older pictures of me as a kid as she’s filled up with love.
This is such a thought-provoking prompt! I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently, because I’m an archivist who literally burned childhood journals and actively suppressed memories for so many years.
I don’t have access to most of my childhood photos because I’m no-contact with my family, but I do have one photo of my first birthday and it’s been powerful to spend time with it. In my case, I’m finding that primary sources like photographs have the power to unlock memories that have been intentionally suppressed.
I’m not trained in neuroscience, but I’m curious if perhaps primary sources can act as memory anchors? That is, tangible artifacts that can freeze memories in time?
I was definitely thinking about that aspect -- I know that some people don't have access to those because of no-contact. I'm no-contact with my parents, but they sent all my childhood pictures with my sister a couple of years ago.
I do think that it was can help remember... but also, whether or not you remember, it can be helpful to see yourself as a kid, and have compassion just like you would for any kid you'd see at that age, you know?
Going through childhood photos - I can see how full of life I am until I hit like 12/13.. my eyes are full of being unsure of myself because my dad really didn’t want me growing up too fast so I wasn’t allowed to wear makeup or care about dating.. but I also was told I wasn’t allowed to be a teenager, that I had to be a young adult and skip the teenage drama and rebellion.
Before that I see so much of myself that I try to tap into now - Amy who loves adventure, having an opportunity to be brave, my face being beet red in the summer from playing so hard, running again and again to ride the same roller coaster with my brother, loving being in the pool, enjoying my parents before our lives became all about being missionaries. And in some ways because I don’t allow religious talk or disrespect from my parents now I can still see glimpses of our relationship before RAP really sunk its ugliest, sharpest teeth in.
Things I like:
1- all the different shades of green that come with spring and how the colors of the flowering trees mix in.
2- playing with my camera
3- laughing with friends or at episodes of modern family.
One thing I don’t like:
Feeling tired and grumpy and stiff in my body. lol hello age and hello pms? I don’t like it!!!! It’s very freeing to feel prompted to ask about something I don’t like because even though (duh) it’s ok to not like ~literal pain~, I still feel like I have to chin up and put on my best face. All. The. Time. 🙃
I'm glad it felt good to name what you don't like. It's really important to be able to do that! All of your reflections on kid Amy were so poignant to me, thank you for sharing.
This is a practice my therapist recommended for me this week 😂. I don’t have access right now to pictures of my little self, but I have found that I have access to be with her through certain music. For me, the practice has just been grief upon grief. Connecting to my own sadness and crying has been such a struggle for me, so being able to cry feels cleansing and expanding to me.
I’ve done some inner child exercises before and always find it somewhat difficult. But looking at a picture of myself makes it easier. When I do, I see a child that was genuinely trying so so so hard to be good, good enough, to be accepted and loved unconditionally.
Things I like:
Fuzzy, cozy items like squishmallows and blankets
Cinnamon anything; the color, the scent, the taste
Slow walks outside, slow enough to notice the ladybug climbing up a blade of grass
These are so fun to read! Thanks for sharing everyone.
Likes:
- wearing the color green
- mid-life tulips (when the petals are relaxed, but haven't fallen out yet)
- spontaneous post-dinner mini-dance-parties with my family
Dislikes:
- those tiny ants that just appear randomly in the house and you don't know where it came from and you can't see anymore, but for it to have gotten up on the desk, it's been traveling for awhile and where are the rest of them? and how can I make them go away and never see a tiny black speck move unexpectedly on a counter or floor space ever again in my life?
Going through childhood photos can be such a bittersweet exercise, but a great one. It took me a while to make the idea of "re-parenting" make sense in my head, but something about taking the time to look at and connect with little-kid-me is one of those things that definitely has helped make it make sense - That that kiddo is still very much with me every day. We're on this journey and figuring ourselves out together. And often times, especially in therapy, they're the one who needs to do the talking - and I need to sit back and listen to what they have to say.
For preferences, let's see. I like:
- Being in nature, especially hiking in the woods. The sounds, scents, sights, all of it. It's the most grounding thing in the world for me. It helps me feel whole.
- Black cats. Hubby and I have four, currently, and have had seven between us in our lives, and they're just the sweetest, most gorgeous little spirits.
- Physical books. Though I have to do a lot of audio books these days due to time, there's nothing like the experience, touch, scent of a beautiful hardbound book ♥
Something I don't like:
- Feeling trapped, regardless of the situation. Few things manage to upend the state of my mental health faster.
I like playing Pickleball, talking to and petting cats and donkeys. I dislike speeding cars/trucks who pass in no passing zones. I will get a picture out of myself. I have the perfect one of me at camp looking very nonbinary
HI everyone! I have been putting a picture of my kid self as the homescreen on my phone and it has been jarring and healing to look at my younger self and think of kind things to say to them . . .
as far as my preferences go today I like:
checkerboard patterns
light roast coffee
eucalyptus trees
and something I don't like:
motorcycles that make loud noises!
oh, what a lovely prompt. i won’t get a chance to look at childhood pictures of me today, but i would love to do that exercise soon.
3 things i like:
-bright colors
-strawberries
-lip gloss
1 thing i don’t like:
-coffee (which is ironic because i’m a barista)
💜
that is hilarious about being a barista who doesn't like coffee! But I suppose it saves you from the temptation to over-caffienate? :) Thanks for sharing your preferences!
Thanks for this prompt. I have done some EMDR and was thinking that it would be nice/helpful to choose a youngest me that needs some love and compassion, and then move to older pictures of me as a kid as she’s filled up with love.
Likes: Overalls, squishy things, plants (and touching them - texture bliss!)
Dislike: Being jostled
I definitely hate being jostled as well! Even unanticipated touch from my kids has taken some time to get used to.
Overalls are so fun!
And they barely touch your body lol, my favorite thing about them! Plus all the pockets.
YESSSS! For all those reasons, one of my summer staples is my shortalls!
Love this prompt idea. Three things that I like: red roses, graphic novels, and quirky earrings
One thing I don’t like: the texture of mayo
I now like mayo - but for many years I couldn't stand the texture or color. Also, I don't know when this changed.
I love that! It's so cool when something changes for the better!
Quirky earrings! 😍 What are some of your favorites?
Hard to choose! These days, anything macabre/witchy. This post has a recent picture of the stuff in rotation: https://allthethreads.substack.com/p/quirky-earrings-as-spiritual-practice
😍😍😍 What a fabulous collection!!!
Thank you! It's a fun hobby!
This is such a thought-provoking prompt! I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently, because I’m an archivist who literally burned childhood journals and actively suppressed memories for so many years.
I don’t have access to most of my childhood photos because I’m no-contact with my family, but I do have one photo of my first birthday and it’s been powerful to spend time with it. In my case, I’m finding that primary sources like photographs have the power to unlock memories that have been intentionally suppressed.
I’m not trained in neuroscience, but I’m curious if perhaps primary sources can act as memory anchors? That is, tangible artifacts that can freeze memories in time?
I was definitely thinking about that aspect -- I know that some people don't have access to those because of no-contact. I'm no-contact with my parents, but they sent all my childhood pictures with my sister a couple of years ago.
I do think that it was can help remember... but also, whether or not you remember, it can be helpful to see yourself as a kid, and have compassion just like you would for any kid you'd see at that age, you know?
Going through childhood photos - I can see how full of life I am until I hit like 12/13.. my eyes are full of being unsure of myself because my dad really didn’t want me growing up too fast so I wasn’t allowed to wear makeup or care about dating.. but I also was told I wasn’t allowed to be a teenager, that I had to be a young adult and skip the teenage drama and rebellion.
Before that I see so much of myself that I try to tap into now - Amy who loves adventure, having an opportunity to be brave, my face being beet red in the summer from playing so hard, running again and again to ride the same roller coaster with my brother, loving being in the pool, enjoying my parents before our lives became all about being missionaries. And in some ways because I don’t allow religious talk or disrespect from my parents now I can still see glimpses of our relationship before RAP really sunk its ugliest, sharpest teeth in.
Things I like:
1- all the different shades of green that come with spring and how the colors of the flowering trees mix in.
2- playing with my camera
3- laughing with friends or at episodes of modern family.
One thing I don’t like:
Feeling tired and grumpy and stiff in my body. lol hello age and hello pms? I don’t like it!!!! It’s very freeing to feel prompted to ask about something I don’t like because even though (duh) it’s ok to not like ~literal pain~, I still feel like I have to chin up and put on my best face. All. The. Time. 🙃
I'm glad it felt good to name what you don't like. It's really important to be able to do that! All of your reflections on kid Amy were so poignant to me, thank you for sharing.
This is a practice my therapist recommended for me this week 😂. I don’t have access right now to pictures of my little self, but I have found that I have access to be with her through certain music. For me, the practice has just been grief upon grief. Connecting to my own sadness and crying has been such a struggle for me, so being able to cry feels cleansing and expanding to me.
Things a like:
-very hot or very cold coffee.
-alternative rock from the 90s and early 2000s
-paddle boarding on the lake
I don’t like: texturing on walls/popcorn ceilings
I love that you have noticed that about yourself about textured walls/ceilings!
I’ve done some inner child exercises before and always find it somewhat difficult. But looking at a picture of myself makes it easier. When I do, I see a child that was genuinely trying so so so hard to be good, good enough, to be accepted and loved unconditionally.
Things I like:
Fuzzy, cozy items like squishmallows and blankets
Cinnamon anything; the color, the scent, the taste
Slow walks outside, slow enough to notice the ladybug climbing up a blade of grass
Something I don’t like:
Being misunderstood and personal space invasion
I love that cinnamon anything part!
After looking at some pictures…
I like: short hair (for myself), baggy clothing, the color grey
I don’t like: wearing the color pink
I will grab one of my photos today. I am overthinking about which one to choose.
Likes: decoupage, tea, the color teal
Dislike: bananas
I also cannot handle bananas in any form 😂
These are so fun to read! Thanks for sharing everyone.
Likes:
- wearing the color green
- mid-life tulips (when the petals are relaxed, but haven't fallen out yet)
- spontaneous post-dinner mini-dance-parties with my family
Dislikes:
- those tiny ants that just appear randomly in the house and you don't know where it came from and you can't see anymore, but for it to have gotten up on the desk, it's been traveling for awhile and where are the rest of them? and how can I make them go away and never see a tiny black speck move unexpectedly on a counter or floor space ever again in my life?
Going through childhood photos can be such a bittersweet exercise, but a great one. It took me a while to make the idea of "re-parenting" make sense in my head, but something about taking the time to look at and connect with little-kid-me is one of those things that definitely has helped make it make sense - That that kiddo is still very much with me every day. We're on this journey and figuring ourselves out together. And often times, especially in therapy, they're the one who needs to do the talking - and I need to sit back and listen to what they have to say.
For preferences, let's see. I like:
- Being in nature, especially hiking in the woods. The sounds, scents, sights, all of it. It's the most grounding thing in the world for me. It helps me feel whole.
- Black cats. Hubby and I have four, currently, and have had seven between us in our lives, and they're just the sweetest, most gorgeous little spirits.
- Physical books. Though I have to do a lot of audio books these days due to time, there's nothing like the experience, touch, scent of a beautiful hardbound book ♥
Something I don't like:
- Feeling trapped, regardless of the situation. Few things manage to upend the state of my mental health faster.
I LOVE black cats!!!!!
Hello! My grandma sends me pictures of my younger self every year for my birthday. So I have quite the collection to look through and reflect on.
Three things I like:
-dandelions
-listening to music
-arranging flower bouquets
One thing I dislike:
-scuffing my shoe while I’m walking. I can feel it in my bones 😭
I've been thinking about mowing the lawn, but I like all the dandelions that are out there!
they're good for the bees too
I always try to pick one up and make a wish when I go on a walk!
I like pictures of me from about 3-5 years old best because I think I was the most free and creative and most myself without masking/ performing.
I like books, cats, making things/crafting. I don't like banjos
I like playing Pickleball, talking to and petting cats and donkeys. I dislike speeding cars/trucks who pass in no passing zones. I will get a picture out of myself. I have the perfect one of me at camp looking very nonbinary
I have a period of about 3 years when I really dressed / looked nonbinary and I love looking at those pics so much!
I have a photo of my 4 year old self next to my coffee bar. I see it everyday. Reminds me to treat myself with so much compassion! I am still her!
I love playing with puppies, I love plants and coffee!
something I do not like is cleaning the shower!