Long before I changed careers and started working from home, I was a family counselor in the field of chemical dependency. We worked with patients and their families to identify dysfunctional family patterns that were keeping them stuck.

One of the things we learned is that families developed certain roles that they played within the family and then unintentionally carried out those roles for the rest of their lives.

With each new family that arrived, one of the roles that I was most interested in identifying among our new group was that of lost Boy, because that was the role I played most often in my own family.

The missing child is the one in the family most likely to be overlooked. On a trip, if they stop to go to the bathroom, this is the child they will forget. Lost children are quiet, withdrawing their energy because they think they will be safer if they are not noticed. Unfortunately, they often get so good at being invisible that they continue to do so unconsciously, even after they have left home and become adults.

“Because they are often overlooked, they feel lonely, depressed and rejected. They often have difficulty connecting with others and prefer to be alone… Because they try so hard to remain invisible, they are often passed over overlooked by people who might be able to help them.” -The Center on Addiction and the Family, Brooklyn, NY

Were you a lost child? Are you still hiding as an adult?

This article is the fifth in a series on healing life lessons, called “Getting Out of Your Own Way.” Although you won’t know for sure what his life lessons are without having your palms read, you can see if this problem is familiar to you and seek healing if so.

Through manual analysis, we can examine your fingerprints to determine both your life purpose and life lessons. Life lessons are the challenges you must overcome in order to inhabit and live your life with full purpose. Here you have been wounded in the area of ​​being visible and letting your light shine in the world. This life lesson is about boredom, apathy and blocked creativity, sometimes to the point of denying having it.

There may also be a feeling of not fitting in, of not belonging. Healing those wounds would mean breaking the fear that binds you, finding your voice and putting yourself in the spotlight. To heal what blocks your self-expression so that you can put yourself out there in a way that fits your life’s purpose.

Here are some journaling questions for reflection…

– Is the description of this problem familiar to you?

– What are some lost child experiences you had that are examples of this life lesson?

– If you had not played the role of the lost child, how could your life be different?

– What are some memories from your past where the story could have been different if you had not played this role? Rewrite those stories, giving them the ending you think they would have.

– How is your life today still affected by this issue?

– Describe how your life could change if you could stop playing this role.

Now that you are more aware of how this issue has been a challenge in your life, the next step is to find the memories and beliefs related to it that need to be healed. You can then find and choose a healing technique that suits you.