Connection with Self

I'm reading a book right now called "You Are the One You've Been Waiting For" by Richard Schwartz... it is a brilliant and beautiful book which creates an easy-to-understand illustration of Internal Family Systems Theory. In the book, the author discusses that within each person is a multitude of parts, each jockeying for their own needs and desires to be met. Conflicts within ourselves and with others are often a consequence of one needy part hijacking the situation in order to have their needs met or to satisfy a specific trigger or past hurt. 

One of the primary ways to resolve conflict within yourself or in your interpersonal relationships requires you to identify the hurt part and soothe it... the same way that you might soothe your children. The premise is exceedingly simple in theory, but so complex in practice. This work requires the individual to really go inward and connect with the parts of themselves that they may not like, or may have exiled out of fear of what those part's needs represent to their overall life and wellbeing. That difficult work of truly connecting with yourself is the individual's ticket out of complex, challenging and unfulfilling life situations and relationships according to the author. 

It really got me thinking about myself... and my own parts... and those parts that I have exiled. I'm still in the very beginning of this work, but the idea of it fascinates me and I look forward to exploring it further. I have been using journaling, and many of the prompts we have shared in circle to consider these parts of myself... Perhaps when you are journaling, calling out individual parts of your self instead of taking "full responsibility" could be a helpful way to resolve some of those nagging issues? Perhaps if we are able to connect with these parts of ourselves and soothe them, we will be able to come closer to our highest self.