Past Life Parenting: What If Your Child Has Been Here Before? (And Other Wildly Comforting Thoughts) by Amy Molloy

In her new book, Wise Child, journalist and mother of three, Amy Molloy, dives into the world of past life parenting—a concept that’s as mind-bending as it is deeply comforting. All over the world, parents, therapists, educators, and healers are saying the same thing: this generation of children is different.

So, instead of reshaping these sensitive, wise souls to fit outdated systems, what if it’s time we reshaped how we parent? 

“There’s something wrong with my baby.”

That’s what I would have told you if I’d had the courage to say it aloud during my son’s first year.

I wasn’t a first-time mother—I thought I knew what to expect with a newborn. But from the moment my son arrived, he seemed different: unsettled, overstimulated, and often impossible to soothe.

As a parent, I knew kids often mirror our emotions—so naturally, I blamed myself. Was I anxious? Too distracted? His symptoms—insomnia, sound sensitivity, chronic cough, a mysterious rash, and an odd sense that he just didn’t want to be here—felt like they were my fault.

By the time he was 14 months old, I was depleted. I had nothing left in the tank. And although I wasn’t new to the world of inner work and spiritual healing, it had always focused on me.

Since my dad’s cancer diagnosis in my teens, I’d been piggybacking on his spiritual journey. I’d been seeing the same healer, Yvonne, since my twenties—even after moving from London to Sydney. Over the years, we’d explored my mind-body-soul connection, and I’d even dipped into past life regression to better understand the eating disorder that plagued me through my youth.

But after becoming a mother, I never thought to explore my children’s past lives. (Why would I?)

That changed after one particularly rough week. I’d just stumbled off a 28-hour flight with a toddler and baby, and there I was—sobbing on Yvonne’s couch. Did I really have what it took to raise these kids, especially this deeply sensitive soul?

An hour later, I walked out with a new understanding of who my son had been before this life—and a whole new blueprint for parenting him. I received what felt like a full download: who he’d been, why he returned, and why modern life felt so jarring to him.

As a journalist, I try to approach everything with a healthy dose of skepticism. But something about this just clicked. It felt… true.

And the ripple effect?

He started sleeping through the night. He handled crowds. His cough vanished. Most importantly—I stopped trying to change him. I stopped comparing him. I saw him.

He’ll always be my intuitive, empathetic child—the one who sometimes feels out of place in the system. But after two years of research for Wise Child, I’ve found tools and systems that support him for who he truly is.

Parents. Teachers. Therapists. Healers. Mediums. They all agree: these kids are different. They’re incredibly articulate, energetically aware, and deeply sensitive—and they demand we tear up the old parenting rulebook.

5 Lessons From Writing (and Living) Wise Child
Through hundreds of interviews and plenty of real-life parenting moments (some messy, some magical), here are five lessons that changed how I show up as a parent—and as a person.

1. Validate What They Feel—Even When It Doesn’t Make Sense (to You)
One mum told me her three-year-old refused to sleep in a certain room because ‘the shadows feel sad.’

It didn’t make logical sense—but it was real to that child.

These kids often speak in emotional metaphors. They may not have the words, but they’re tuned in. And if you listen closely, you’ll find wisdom wrapped in whimsy.

Yes, it’s hard to stay present (especially four hours into a monologue about Pokémon), but your gut will tell you when they’re speaking truth. Those are the moments to crouch down, meet their eyes, and really listen.

Bonus tip? Write it down. I keep a note in my phone titled: ‘Amazing Things My Kids Say.’

2. Brush Teeth, Cleanse Energy
Sensitive kids absorb everything. By bedtime, they’re carrying other people’s emotions, energy, and noise.

So we made ‘energy hygiene’ part of the nightly routine. Just like brushing teeth, but for the soul.
Ideas include:

• Imagining the day washing off in the shower

• Breathing deeply while picturing golden light

• Shaking out the hands and feet to ‘reset’

It doesn’t need to be spiritual. Just intentional.

My daughter has a ‘monster-away spray’ by her bed to clear her space each night. Placebo or cosmic magic? Who cares—it works. And it teaches her that she’s the boss of her own energy.

3. Teach Emotional Discernment: “Is This Mine?”
One of the most powerful tools I’ve taught my kids is a simple question:
‘Is this feeling mine, or did I pick it up from someone else?’

These kids are emotional sponges. One minute they’re fine, the next they’re in meltdown—and they can’t always explain why.

Helping them separate their own emotions from what they’ve absorbed? Game changer.

(And honestly, most adults need this tool too. I share how to teach it in the book!)

4. Invite Curiosity, Not Certainty
Big questions come fast and often: ‘Where were we before we were born?’ or ‘Why do people die?’

You don’t need the perfect answer. What works best? Flip the question.
‘What do you think?’

My favourite quote from the book comes from a 10-year-old:

‘If you die in one dimension, you come back in another, but you’re not quite the same. I know, it’s hard for your generation to understand. I’m not afraid of death. I live in full acceptance.’

These kids aren’t looking for someone who has all the answers. They’re looking for someone willing to wonder with them.

5. Trust Your Kids—They Chose This Life (And So Did You)
At three years old, my daughter (born during lockdown) turned to me and said:
‘Mummy, I chose to be born during the pandemic. So you don’t have to feel bad anymore.’

I hadn’t told her—not her, not anyone—about the guilt I carried for birthing her into global chaos.

She just knew.

She wanted me to know: she chose this. (A concept I explore in book in the chapter on Soul Contracts).

This generation were built for these turbulent times and, if we teach them to trust their instincts, they can hold the world’s future solutions.

Nothing in this book takes away from the beautiful messiness of raising kids. They’ll still tip coffee into your laundry and hide your AirPods in the fridge.

But they’ll also say things that stop you in your tracks and make you rethink everything.

As a wise 12-year-old quoted in Wise Child explained:

‘When we make a mistake, instead of asking ourselves ‘What is wrong with me?’, we can simply think, “How could I do better?”’

‘Our inner voice is the most powerful voice we hear—so we must use it wisely.’

Amy Molloy is a journalist, Hay House author and mental health storyteller who produces uplifting content for the biggest names in global publishing. Wise Child is available now, published by Hay House.
Follow Amy on Instagram @amy_molloy.