Shadow work is usually a life long journey too heal from the things that life throws at you
I don’t know about you, but things happen in my life that harm my self-image and confidence regularly
I use Shadow work to find those pains and start healing
Shadow work is not easy! It is simple, but that doesn’t make it easy. Not all the work you do in Shadow work will be hard and painful. It depends on the trauma that you are targeting. Some traumas that I have worked on were easy to overcome, and others were incredibly hard. All are worth the effort.
Having a plan and realistic expectations are both very important for Shadow Work
If you are doing Shadow Work for the first time, I highly encourage you to start with an easy trauma
Only you know what that is
My sister and I have the same trauma, but they impacted us differently
It is a smal trauma for me, but an extremely painful trauma for her
You know how painful something is when you mess with it
Choose something small when you first start out
Is shadow work hard?
Shadow work is simple
There are many ways to do it, but I am going to talk about journaling since that is what I do
When I do Shadow Work, I choose a journal prompt that feels right, meditate on it for a couple minutes, and then write down everything that comes to mind until my mind goes blank
It is a simple three-step process!
BUT!
That doesn’t make it easy
There are different levels of trauma
The trauma that is not a deep pain for you will probably be pretty easy to uncover and face
It won’t be pleasant, but it may not be hard and painful
Deep traumas can be very hard to uncover and face
Many of those traumas have been there for years and you have been running from them
At least that is how it is with me!
I have been doing Shadow work for a few months but I still have many traumas and limiting beliefs that I need to uncover and face
Some of them were uncomfortable but not too bad
Others were extremely painful to face
Just like most new things you try, start with the easy stuff
Things that are uncomfortable but not painful or terrifying
The more of those you face and conquer, the more confidence you will build for the hard traumas
Don’t forget that you can always look for professional help if the hard traumas are too much to face alone
What does shadow work feel like?
Shadow work is the process of letting all your thoughts and emotions out without judging yourself
Sound scary?
It can be
I grew up in a household where I had to be very careful what I said (verbally and body language)
Thoughts and emotions that were not approved by my father meant pain
So learning to let those out has been a challenge for me
Those big emotions and fears can be scary to face
The beginning of Shadow work can be scary and painful, but the freedom you get when you have uncovered a trauma and healed from it is incredible
Before you start Shadow work, make sure you are in a good place
If you are thinking of doing Shadow work because you are drowning right now, only do the things are struggling with right now
You don’t need to add more to your plate
I didn’t start until I felt like I was emotionally capable and safe
Is shadow work just journaling?
Journaling is sitting down and just writing the things that are on your mind for that day
You talk about what happened that day, how it made you feel, and what it reminded you of
Things from your past might come up, but because of something that happened that day
Shadow work is journaling but it is deeper
When I do Shadow work, I use journal prompts that feel right
Your intuition will tel you what you need if you let it
I choose a prompt or two and medititate on it for a while
I am not trying to think about the best answer
Just let your mind think about it and the answer will start to come
Your thoughts about the subject are the answer
After a couple minutes of meditating on the journal prompt, then I write down everything that comes to my mind
Don’t leave anything out for any reason
Keep writing everything that comes to your head until your mind goes silent
This could take 30 seconds or it can take several minutes
Release it all
After doing this for a few weeks, you’ll start to see patterns
Statements that you say about yourself or your life a lot
Those statements are your beliefs and they impact your life a lot!
Once you can see them, then you can decide if they are benefiting your or holding you back
Is shadow work worth the effort?
Shadow work can be painful but it is 100% worth the effort
You are going to suffer from your trauma for the rest of your life if you don’t take steps to heal
You may not be aware of them all the time, but they impact the choices you make, the thoughts you think, and the emotions you have
Instead of burying those beliefs and traumas, Shadow work helps you bring them to the light and heal
Healing could look like changing a belief, or it could look like learning to love that part of you
Only you can decide what needs to happen
But the feeling of finally being free is incredible
The first belief that I tackled was my belief that I had to have a perfectly flat stomach with some abs showing to be beautiful
This wasn’t a super painful belief so it was easy to face
But it was very uncomfortable
After using affirmations, looking for things I loved about my appearance every day, and fighting the thoughts that didn’t serve me…
I started noticing that belief changing
It isn’t perfect yet
Some things take time
But I looked at myself in my underwear last week…
And for the first time, I didn’t think anything bad about myself
My first thought was that I felt pretty!
That was a huge step for me
What I didn’t know is how much it affected my life
I am more playful with my husband, more confident in the way I look, and I am able to show my kids what self-love looks like