I first encountered Ho’oponopono when I was 26.
At the time, I was working in sales, but meeting people itself had become a major source of stress. I struggled with intense anxiety, nervousness, and panic attacks. I constantly felt something was missing, lost confidence by comparing myself to others, and was swayed by daily events, unable to find direction in life.
It was during that time that I found Ho’oponopono. In a class I attended, I happened to sit next to Morrnah Nalamaku Simeona. I asked her about my anxiety and lack of confidence, and she asked me:
“Have you cleaned with the cause?”
The moment she asked, I felt my awareness clearly shift inward. I realized that every experience is something my inner child—Unihilipi—is showing me, and that it’s all repeated memory. Through her words, I learned that overcoming anxiety wasn’t about searching for confidence “outside,” but about working with what is “inside.”
Instead of harshly judging myself or measuring my shortcomings, I began—bit by bit—to build a relationship with my inner child, offering love and care to the part of me I had long neglected. Of course, touching on deep memories or trauma came with pain. I still experienced trembling in my body or felt uncertain about my own decisions in work and relationships. But when I noticed those feelings, rather than asking, “Whose fault is this?” or “Why is this happening?” I first spoke to my inner child. I kept practicing: “When something happens, I first turn inward.”
Fear and anxiety didn’t suddenly disappear. But even in moments of panic, by remembering “The cause is within me” and cleaning, I gradually became able to restore calm within.
When your heart is restless with anxiety and you can’t seem to find a sense of calm or confidence, that is precisely the time to “face what has arisen without fear, observe it, and clean.” That alone is enough. It is a gentle, beautiful process.
Through practice, we can teach this to our inner child, our Unihipili:
“Instead of getting caught in the confusion, we can choose to clean.”
In doing so, we reconnect more deeply with our inner family—and begin to reclaim our true confidence.
Peace,
Caroline Kawaianuenue Sayres
