Checking In With Your Inside Team

A gentle Internal Family Systems-inspired practice for kids and the grown-ups who love them. Meet your feelings, say hello, and practice holding yourself in love and support.

We all have an inside team — the parts of us that feel sad, mad, left out, or overwhelmed. This short meditation helps kids get curious about those big feelings instead of running from them, using simple body awareness and the language of "parts" (think Inside Out, but for real life).
Designed for kids, but grown-ups are warmly invited to listen alongside — or let your child listen on their own. You might be surprised what comes up for you too.

Great for: moments after a hard situation, bedtime wind-down, or any time feelings are running the show.

Transcript

Hi friends! Whether you're listening by yourself or with a grown-up nearby, This one's for you. We are going to take a few minutes to slow down and check in with your inside team. You know, Like if you've ever seen the movie Inside Out, You remember Riley had her inside team. We all have one. Grown-ups, You're welcome to do this right alongside your kiddo because your inside team is in there too. Okay, Let's get cozy. Find a comfortable spot, Sitting or lying down, Whatever feels good. Let your body get heavy and relaxed. We're going to take three slow breaths together to start. Breathe in and let it go. Again, Breathe in and let it out. Feel free to make a nice sigh noise. And one more. Breathe in and all the way out. Good. Notice if anything in your body feels even a tiny bit different than it did a moment ago. Maybe your shoulders dropped a little, Maybe you loosened your jaw. Just notice. You don't have to do anything. You can keep your eyes open, Although sometimes it's easier to not get distracted when your eyes are closed. Now let's check in with your inside team. You know how in Inside Out sometimes one of the emotions kind of takes over? Like when anger gets really big or when sadness just won't budge. That happens to all of us. And right now I want you to get curious. Ask yourself just quietly on the inside, Which one of my inside team members is showing up right now? Maybe it's a sad one, Maybe it's a mad one, Maybe it's the one that feels left out or like nobody understands you. See if you can find where that feeling lives in your body. What I mean by that is you might feel some kind of sensation somewhere in your body. Maybe in your chest, Your stomach, Your throat, Your face. Maybe part of your body feels heavy or hot or anxious or empty. Whatever you find, That's okay. You're not in trouble. We're just saying hello. If it feels okay, Take one of your hands and put it on your body where you feel that team member. And quietly in your head say, Hey I see you, I'm here. Just that. You don't have to fix anything or try and make any feeling go away. Now imagine your inside team like you see it on Inside Out as a little character and you can ask it gently just like you're talking to a friend. What do you need right now? You might hear a little answer or you might just feel a little quieter inside. Both of those are okay. And if that part feels like it did something wrong, Like maybe it made you say something you didn't mean or act in a way that got you in trouble, You can tell it's something true. You're not bad. You are just trying to help. Because that's what our inside team does. Even the loud ones or the angry ones. Even the ones that take over sometimes. They show up because something hurts and they're doing their best. Let's come back now. Taking one more slow breath in and letting it all the way out. Wiggling your fingers. Wiggling your toes. If you had your eyes closed, Look around the room. What can you see? What can you hear? You just did something really kind. You checked in with a team member, A part of yourself that needed some attention. You took a few moments to see how you're feeling. And hey, Grown-ups, If something came up for you during this too, That makes sense. We all have a team on the inside. And sometimes the bravest thing we can do is to sit down next to our kid and say, Me too. I encourage you to share with your grown-up or your kid what happened during this meditation. And you can always come back when you want to check in again. Take good care.