Shadow work and why it’s important.
What is Shadow work:
Shadow work is the inner work that one must do in order to grow spiritually and emotionally.
If we don't work on clearing energies from the past, those energies are likely to become stagnant and hold us back from welcoming new energies, people and things into our lives. Thus we keep restricting ourselves; self sabotaging our own future and potential, you could say.
You see, we restrict ourselves to the same potential and cycles that we so desperately want to get out of, we subconsciously created these coping mechanisms in our childhood through either wanting to protect our inner child or by limiting beliefs that was passed down to us by adults, teachers, mentors, friends and even our own selves.
Shadow work is linked to how we treat and react to people around us and most importantly to how we react and treat ourselves.
Shadow work is working to recondition the root causes of our actions and limiting beliefs, when we understand where these aspects rooted from and how it’s benefiting us in the current moment we can only then re-evaluate and release them.
The important thing about shadow work is that it’s not just a one time thing, it’s an ongoing process, the more you do shadow work the more there is to work on, some might even say it’s like opening a can of worms. Anyone who’s done shadow work will tell you that it’s not an easy task but most definitely very fulfilling and rewarding.
We eventually attract friends and romantic partners that come to mirror these shadow aspects to us.
Why is it shadow work so important?
As we become more conscious we realize that we can create and tweak our own beliefs and make them fit to whatever feels right to you. We realize that we can choose to take the blank slate that’s being provided to us as conscious adults or if we’d like to stay and follow what it is that we were taught as we grew up, You can choose to no longer have those limiting beliefs and or restrictions but unfortunately many people carry their past with them into their future, not working on what it is that’s holding them back and taking generational & historical lessons on into a society and a generation that was made to stand out and stand up and this is all thanks to a little thing called the “comfort zone”.
Here’s some tips on how to do Shadow work:
Whenever a shadow thought pops up, instead of going into guilt and shame trying to ignore that thought, sit with it, acknowledge it and ask yourself what pattern or limiting belief is this connected to and how is it serving you to belief that about yourself.
Set intention to break these patterns and limiting beliefs. Intention is the most important thing when working towards a better you.
Remind yourself that it’s ok to feel what you’re feeling, treat your emotions as visitors and let them pass by, don’t dwell in negative and low vibrational feelings.
Raise your vibration by going outside, listen to binaural beats, enter a meditative state, journal, wear some feel good crystals, dance or simply come talk to one of our advisors.
Shadow work is important for growth.You can learn alot from your shadows if you aren't busy denying them.
So, one thing that I have become aware of in sessions with my clients are that they seem to think that shadow work and the shadow self is the same thing, but it is not and thinking this way can delay your healing journey. I will be pointing out the differences in my next article, keep a lookout!
What does your shadow self mean?
What is the 'shadow' self according to psychology? The 'shadow' is the side of your personality that contains all the parts of yourself that you don't want to admit to having. It is at first an unconscious side. It is only through effort to become self-aware that we recognise our shadow.
More to come on this topic, soon.
Book recommendations on Shadow self.
Light side of the Dark Chasers by Debbie Ford
