Shadow Work Exercise

Shadow work can be as light or as in deep as you choose it to be. It can be an extremely powerful tool to heal many traumas, triggers and beliefs that have a massive impact on our day to day lives. Our “shadows” often have a dramatic effect on our health, our perspective, our relationships with ourselves and others, and many other aspects of our lives. 

Because “energy is everything,” what we think, feel and see not only becomes our inner world, but it also becomes our outer world. If we have toxic thoughts (I hate myself, I’m not good enough, no one likes me, I’m fat/ugly, etc.) we create a toxic environment not only within our physical bodies, but with our external environment as well. This is due to the law of attraction: what we think/do/believe is what we become, and, what we show the world, eventually comes back to us.

A toxic body can be: stressed, tired, overly sensitive, numb, angry, overly emotional, over or under weight, weak, prone to illness, skin conditions and digestive issues, just to name a few. 

Our “shadows” often have a dramatic effect on our health, our perspective, our relationships with ourselves and others, and many other aspects of our lives. 

A toxic external environment can include: dysfunctional relationships (feeling unsupported, arguing a lot, communication issues, etc.), poor air and food quality, exposure to certain toxic chemicals and energetic frequencies such as EMF’s, amongst others. 

There are some things that we don’t have a lot of control over. What we do have control over, is our ability to create a healthier environment, thereby providing ourselves with a better opportunity to heal. Just as we can choose to heal and create a healthier external environment, we can also heal our toxic internal environment of emotions, traumas, triggers and beliefs. We can face our issues instead of running from them, thus not only making our life easier, but the lives of those around us easier as well. We only find gain by acknowledging our shadows and releasing them.

Doing shadow work is an extremely powerful self-help tool, and it can be an interesting exercise which yields incredible results! We might even find that undiagnosed niggling knee pain is related to an event that happened three years ago that we didn’t even realize bothered us! The good news is, we don’t need to go back in time. We don’t need to relive anything. We only need to witness and acknowledge the “energy”. 

…shadow work is an extremely powerful self-help tool.

The shadows we carry are energies we have accumulated over time. They can be caused by any number of events, dramatic or not. The shadows often become a part of us because we needed to learn something from them. They were often a form of self-protection – there was some part of us that believed we needed this energy to help us. It’s important we honor this aspect, as we choose to release the energy from our being. 

Here are a couple of important points you should know about when doing Shadow Work

 

Beginning the Process

 

Think about something that upset you recently that you want to let go of. Try to choose something simple if you’re new to shadow work so you can get the feel for the process. I always start with a prayer, asking for beings of light to support my healing and help me release that which no longer serves me in the highest good for all.

Get Grounded

 

Sit in a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed. Have pen and paper close by in case you need to write anything down. Close your eyes, and slow your breath. Feel your feet. On the inhale, imagine and feel energy moving up through your feet, up your body. Release the energy out the top of your head on the exhale. Work with this breath for several minutes until you feel calm and relaxed. When you are ready, feel into your heart space. Place your hand over your heart space if you find this helpful. When you feel connected to your heart space, continue onto the Shadow exercise.

Shadow Exercise

Imagine you are walking down a path in a beautiful forest. You feel safe here, supported by the vibrant and gentle nature surrounding you. Notice what the path looks like, feels like… notice if the path winding or straight. What kind of trees do you see? Are there flowers?Can you hear birds, or the sound of running water from a creek or river? Notice the details of your surroundings as you walk through the forest along the path. Take your time and enjoy yourself. It is beautiful in here.

Up ahead you notice a large rock you can sit on. You walk up to it, and climb up onto the rock. You’re very comfortable and safe here, sitting on top of this rock. You breathe in the clear forest air as you settle into your spot on the rock.

As you continue to breathe slowly, feeling the support from the forest and the rock, you remember the upset you were feeling before, and your desire to release it. You ask this energy to come forward, to show itself to you. You don’t need to be afraid of it. It has been a part of you for a long time. You notice what form this energy takes with no judgements. You ask the energy if it has anything to share with you. Wait patiently for its response.

You thank this energy for its service, and tell it that it’s time for it to be released. You feel gratitude as you watch a pillar of light form in front of you. You assist the shadow energy into the pillar of light where it is beautifully transmuted by the pillar, feeling lightness where there was once a heaviness. Stay with the releasing as long as you feel is necessary. When you are ready, ask the pillar of light to fill in the void now created by the shadow’s absence. Thank the beings of light who love you and assisted you in this healing. When you feel complete, gently get up from the rock, and come back to the room you’re sitting in.