Words cannot express how thrilled I am with this piece from Pawgyle (https://twitter.com/Pawgyle).

If you're just here for the pretty art, no worries, here you go.

If you want a bit of backstory, stick around. You may wanna grab a snack, we may be here a while xD

CW: Mental health, therapy, cptsd, trauma

I've been working with my therapist on internal family systems or "parts" work for quite a while now.
One of the main parts that we've been working extensively with has been my inner child, who's taken to calling herself Shi.
She's what those in the IFS world would call an Exile.
Shi is the little girl inside me who knew she wasn't like the other girls, but couldn't say so.
She became the punching bag of the system.
The trauma, the pain, the teasing, bullying, all put on her shoulders.
The pain of never feeling like she fit in, the pain of coping with being an adopted child, and newer pains like the pain of my divorce and of being taken advantage of. All of it put on this poor little girl.
The worst kind of inner scapegoat.
Through IFS, I've been able to reconnect with her, reparent, and slowly begin to heal years of our shared trauma.
Through working with my therapist, and a lot of tears, I've been slowly seeing my inner critic changing and shifting to being much more supportive and positive.
One of Shi's favorite things are piggy back rides. She'll hop up on my shoulders and we'll look at the sky together, or go on a walk, and sometimes I'll sing to her.
We've always really enjoyed the song "Rainbow" by Kacey Musgraves, and now the lyrics have a bit of a new meaning.

"The skies are finally open, the rain and wind stopped blowin'. But you're stuck out in that same old storm again. Let go of your umbrella, darlin' I'm just tryin' to tell ya that there's always been a rainbow hangin' over your head."
~Rainbow by Kacey Musgraves

I'm truly thankful for the work I've done with IFS and parts work.
Shi is an amazing part of me, and the love and protective instinct towards her is unlike anything I've ever felt.
I'm not ignoring you any more, Shi. I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere.
You are loved