What is Shadow Work?

What is shadow-work? Shadow work is the act of sitting with your self in your entirety, in the painful feelings we otherwise run from and numb out in acts of avoidance, with addictions like unhealthy relationships, food, shopping, alcohol, social media. It is the work of understanding and healing the parts of yourself you've shunned, stuffed into the darkest corners of your person. It's the work of integrating these parts, unearthing and bringing them to the light so they can breathe and heal.

We cannot truly attain self mastery if we are only working on half of our selves, only being present with parts of us. The truth is, whether we like it or not, our shadow is always with us, following us into everything we do, think, and feel, manifesting itself into unhealthy patterns and blocks in our lives.

I do my own shadow-work by sitting with myself, turning off my phone, clearing my schedule, going back to the most painful parts of my life I have yet to fully emotionally understand, and writing. This isn't easy to do. My brain and body constantly seek excuses for me to resist, to avoid re-experiencing the pain from my past. Sometimes it wins and I'm forced to sit with the guilt of self-betrayal. Other times I win, and although the hours I dedicate to this work can feel excruciatingly slow, the emotions that rise need extra self-care to soothe when I finish, I am always more whole, more true, more powerful after. I urge everyone to embark on this journey and cheer on every shadow warrior already on it, in solidarity.

This was originally featured in a April 7, 2019 post on Instagram at @themorganmay