Mental Health begins in the Body: Laying the Foundations for a Successful Shadow Working Journey
Shadow work is the process of bringing the unconscious beliefs, emotions, habits, and thoughts that keep us living in fear and self-sabotage into conscious awareness. When people first hear that, I’ve notice they begin to over-intellectualize the process, making it more difficult to directly feel and, thus heal, on a deeply transformational level.
Shadow Work is about taking radical responsibility for our experiences, our healing, and our impact on the world, which requires that we learn quiet the inner critic, tune in to higher states of consciousness and awareness, and heal long held limiting patterns and wounding from the past.
However, that may not be possible without taking in the very real body processes that need adequate support in order for us to produce the right amount of the brain chemicals that we need to feel the happiness, motivation, and bliss we are looking for.
What is the Shadow and Shadow Work?
The Shadow and Shadow Work are both terms brought to the West by Carl Jung. He demonstrated that beneath our conscious actions and desires there are unconscious motivators that follow similar patterns that were learned or reinforced through life experiences. The ‘shadow self’ is an archetype made up of all the traits, feelings, behaviors, and thoughts we suppressed as we learned to become acceptable, loveable, contributing and recognized members of society.
Our ‘shadow selves’ are the parts of us that we have learned to reject or disown in favor of the love, acceptance, and approval of our caregivers and closest relationships. This includes both positive and negative aspects of our personalities. Our Shadows act as a kind of emotional warning system that goes off whenever we begin to express our true selves. This is because we learned at a very young age from our parents, peers, or both that expressing your true self could cause emotional pain.
The easiest way to define the shadow is this: the feeling of self-doubt, fear, and hesitation that come up each time a change is made in your life — even if that change is for the better. The voice inside that asks “Can I really do this? How am I going to do this?” That is your shadow. Even when the change is for the better, our shadows will make themselves very known through our fears of being judged, our need for perfection or recognition, or our anxiety and worry.
The goal of a successful Shadow Work journey is to bring more of yourself into your awareness, integrate the parts of yourself that have been rejected and disowned, and embody more of your Authentic Self in this lifetime. Jung called this process “individuation,” but it can also be known as self- actualization or Fulfillment.
That means releasing yourself from the bonds of shame, meant to keep you small, silenced, and confined to only ‘acceptable’ and limited roles; breaking the habit of blaming others or yourself for life circumstances and events and instead taking radical self-responsibility; and experiencing more freedom, self-expression, and peace through living in integrity to your authentic self.
Shadow work starts with a strong foundation of self-love and self-care habits.
It begins with a belief that you are worthy of the life you desire; are you willing to make changes and stick to habits even when it gets hard; are you willing to dig into your own depths to unearth the gold in your shadows? Are you willing to change patterns of thought and behavior that limit your potential to feel whole, loved, successful, and confident even if those patterns are the only things you’ve know until now?
Shadow Work begins with an unshakable faith in yourself that, not only are all parts of yourself worthy of being seen, heard, and felt, but also that you and only you can truly give them that honor. No one else will know you as intimately and deeply as you have the potential to know yourself.
Most overlook this part of Shadow work — implementing self-care habits like going outside, spending time with pets or loved ones, adding more movement into their day — in favor of the purely mental aspect of Shadow work like journaling or processing past events.
But taking responsibility for your experience, healing yourself, and making the bold decisions that living authentically requires will be much easier when your body has enough of the feel-good chemicals that make love, peace, and connection a lived experience rather than a mental construct.
Serotonin, oxytocin, endorphins, and dopamine all play a HUGE role in how (or if) you experience happiness. They determine whether or not you are interested in life, feel supported and connected to others, find joy or experience bliss day to day, and are motivated to really go for your dreams.
While there is a genetic component and many other factors to consider when it comes to chronic mood disorders that may require additional supplementation, modern life today is not conducive to supporting our bodies in producing and maintaining adequate levels of these chemicals for anyone.
SEROTONIN
In May of 2021, the EPA estimated that American’s spend on average about 7% of their lives outdoors, which is equivalent to one half day per week. Spending time outdoors and sun exposure increase our levels of serotonin, a key chemical in fighting depression and anxiety. Vitamin D, also suspected to play a key role in mood stabilization is produced by the skin when exposed to the sun.
Spending time close to nature doing outdoor activities like swimming or hiking. Meditating outdoors can help boost your serotonin as well.
DOPAMINE
Similarly, dopamine, which is our brain’s reward system and helps us to stay motivated, is also thrown out of whack by modern daily living: the constant stream of high stimulating and attention-grabbing media we’re exposed to daily, the high-sugar and carbohydrate foods that line the grocery store shelves, and the to-do list that never gets any smaller, all make it difficult for us to find pleasure in the simple things or find joy in pursing our long-term goals.
Meditation, getting enough sleep, and eating more natural, whole, and raw foods will help your body produce dopamine naturally. Celebrate all your wins! Every step, no matter how small, counts.
OXYTOCIN
In this age of global connection via technology, loneliness and disconnection has never been more rampant. Human beings crave connection, intimacy, and vulnerability with another and yet we spend most of our lives experiencing life by proxy of our Instagram feeds and Facebook walls instead of looking someone in the eyes.
Oxytocin, also called the ‘love chemical’ is responsible for our feelings of love, connection, intimacy, and safety. We usually associate Oxytocin with the reason we feel so blissful and connected to our lovers after sex but sex or orgasm is not the only way to experience the effects of Oxytocin.
Playing with your pets, hugging your loved ones, giving and receiving compliments, and spending time with babies and small children also increase our Oxytocin levels.
ENDORPHINS
Endorphins are most often associated with the feel-good state after a workout, sometimes called the “Runner’s High.” They also play a key role in diminishing our perception of pain and prompt the release of dopamine.
Most endorphins are released when we exercise, yet less than 1 in 4 Americans get enough exercise. Our lifestyles tend to be sedentary, meaning we spend more time sitting or lying down than we do getting our heart rate up or breaking a sweat. Endorphins also flood our system when we laugh and eat dark chocolate.
Cardio, weight training, laugh yoga and laughing meditation are fun ways to boost your endorphins.
Uncovering our limiting beliefs will reveal where and when we learned to adopt those beliefs and what evidence we have gathered to prove those beliefs are true.
We will also begin to see the actions that we took or did not take based on those beliefs, and the times when we acted from our own wounding rather than our true nature of unconditional love.
All this newfound awareness and clarity can leave us feeling a bit more negative or even toxic than we were expecting. As you realize you may have held yourself back from opportunities, made choices against your own best interest, or come to terms with the ways in which you acted from your pain you’re going to need self-compassion, acceptance, and forgiveness. You’re going to need a community to turn to, a support network of friends or family that can remind you of your light.
All of this is possible only when your body is in balance and getting the care that it needs to produce the molecules it needs to thrive. It won’t matter if you have a support network if you don’t feel as if you’ve bonded with anyone. It won’t matter what dreams you may have if you feel completely unmotivated and uninspired to go after them.
While there are many natural and medical remedies out there for stress, depression, or anxiety, it is important to remember the vital role you play in maintaining your own mental and physical health.
There is absolutely no shame in needing medication or supplements to aid your journey to wholeness, but those will only take you so far. It is important to cultivate the habits and practices that will support you not only in healing your past but in creating a life of ease, joy, and purpose in the present.
