Take a walk on the dark side of your unconscious to learn all about your shadow self and how you can turn tendencies and habits you are unaware of, no matter how dark they may be, into your greatest strengths.
There are parts of us we don’t know about that we hide them from ourselves. We might be ashamed of those parts of us, and we may deny them so successfully, we are completely unaware of them. This is called our shadow self or shadow side, and embracing that side of us is as important as it is empowering. Join Mysticsense to learn about the shadow self and what it all means. Find out how to discover what your unconscious traits are and why they are not necessarily bad traits. Even then, what can be considered negative traits can be transformed into strengths. Find out how to do that with us today!
What is the Shadow Self?
The shadow self is the part of you that you deny so much you push them down into your unconscious mind and try to forget about it. These can be positive or negative aspects of who we are, but a lot of times, we suppress parts of ourselves we don’t like. We seek to repress these things because we want to get rid of them or deny them. This may be out of shame or fears of what these traits can bring about in our lives. These can be our deepest dreams and talents we are rejecting, unwanted desires, or personality traits we dislike.
Why do we do it? We do it because we want to decide who we are. We believe we can cut away parts of ourselves that don’t fit the persona we believe we have. While it is true that people change, and we can discard behaviors, some natural tendencies can’t just be ignored to make them go away. It’s more work than that. Sometimes, we are shamed as children for being “too talkative”, so we stay quiet and self-isolate. Sometimes, we are told we are not good at art, so halt our creativity because the criticism hurts very badly. We tell ourselves that we can stop being who we are, but when we least expect it, who we naturally are will come out anyways. That is our shadow side, and it is a very important part of us. We can’t ignore dark times either and you can read about them here: Dealing with Dark Times Spiritually
What is The Unconscious Mind?
The unconscious mind is feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that influence our behavior, and we are not aware of it. Repressed desires and feelings, and automatic responses to things are all a part of the unconscious mind. It has been compared to an iceberg by experts. The conscious mind is the part of the iceberg that is above water, but an iceberg extends beneath the surface, and can be very large. Like with the part of the iceberg that is under the surface, the parts of us that we are unaware of can influence as much if not more than what we are aware of.
What we put in the unconscious is typically the things we dislike. Anger issues, biases, compulsions, and anything we perceive as weaknesses can be relegated to the unconscious. Traumatic things we have forgotten about are relegated to the unconscious mind as well. The unconscious mind forms parts of our personality, and it influences our behaviors even though we are not aware of this. Some believe we stuff feelings down into the unconscious mind because we find them threatening, and it is easier to be unaware of them than to face them sometimes. The unconscious mind is believed to be responsible for irrational fears, and some of our dreams are believed to show what is in our unconscious mind. Read about spiritual dreams and their meanings here: How to Interpret Dreams Spiritually
What if We Deny Our Shadow Self?
Denying our shadow side doesn’t keep it at bay. It causes problems for us. We can project our dark side onto other people when we deny it and we don’t even realize we do this. Denying our dark side can make us struggle to form and maintain healthy relationships. It also causes insecurities.
We Project
We will project things onto other people if we don’t accept our shadow side. This entails denying the existence of something within us and associating this with someone else. This can manifest as false accusations. If you have the roving eye, you might assume every lover you have is cheating on you. Accepting that you are not completely faithful in your heart is more constructive than assuming that not everybody else is. Being aware of our shadow self helps us to accept it instead of wrongfully assuming other people are that way. Read about unconditional love here: Unconditional Love Meaning
We Struggle with Relationships
Our shadow self can contain bad things. It can make us cruel, dishonest, selfish, or prone to negative thoughts. None of these traits are helpful in forming healthy relationships. They come between us and the people who we love. We are not always aware of our shadow side, but when evidence of it presents itself, denying it won’t help. It just causes pain for the people who are in our lives. Denial keeps you from working on your dark traits, and creates unnecessary relationship issues. Read about falling out with your best friend here: Am I Having a Best Friend Breakup?
We Are Insecure
Insecurities creep in when we deny the existence of parts of ourselves. It is far better to admit to our darker sides and observe them. Anytime you think a dark self trait is too dark- remember- we don’t choose this. Often it is a response to something painful from our past, and sometimes our dark side acts as a protective mechanism. Difficult parts of us need to be lived with and worked on. Not denied. Accepting them accepts us, and being secure enough to embrace all of yourself is a great thing. Read about love crystals here: Crystals for Love
How to Access the Shadow Side
Awareness that everybody has a shadow side is important, but wouldn’t it be better to find out what lies within yours? You can. It might take time, but there are a few methods to access it. Regular journaling about things that happen can reveal hidden traits or feelings. Counseling with a professional therapist and readings can unlock it as well. Then, solitary meditation is a method some people use.
Journaling
Keep a journal for your unconscious mind. When painful feelings surface, write about them and write about how you responded to them. Write about what triggered those feelings. When you surprise yourself with an automatic response to something, journal about what triggered you, how you felt, and what you did in response. Over time, these journal entries will reveal what is in your unconscious mind and what traits form your shadow self. Read about couple’s journals: Couples Journals & Love Manifesting Guide
Counseling
Psychologists are trained to study how our minds work, and how the mind influences feelings and behaviors. They will sit with you in as many sessions as you need them to, and they will help you get in touch with memories, feelings, and behaviors. They will help you to understand all of these things. Some psychics specialize in doing readings about these things also. Read about psychic readings here: What to Ask Your Psychic in Your First Reading
Meditation
Meditation helps you to explore the deeper chambers of your mind. Deep relaxation meditation can help you relax and receive messages from your unconscious. Conscious meditation, or focusing on a particular feeling can also. If you experience a lot of anxiety while you are driving on bridges, meditating on this can help you remember what happened in your past that makes you fearful of them. Sometimes a traumatic experience a long time ago can trigger us later in life and remembering them can help us resolve any issues they cause. Read about dealing with grief: How Can We Deal with Loss and Communicate with the Dead?
How to Embrace the Shadow Side
Once you know what your shadow side is, it is time to embrace it. Denying it won’t help. There are a few things to do to make sure you embrace this side. Accept that we are all imperfect and commit to loving yourself- flaws and all. Then, get in control of your dark side!
Accept Imperfections
None of us are perfect, and our imperfections cannot be ignored or denied. The more we stuff our dark side down, the more it can gather strength and come out at the worst possible moment. It’s there, whether we want it to be or not, so accept it.
Commit to Your Whole Self
We can’t throw away parts of ourselves. We have to commit to live with all of ourselves. Do you hate the fact a past trauma means you are terrified of thunderstorms? Prepare for the next storm. Get indoors before it starts and do things that relax you to take your mind off it. Ignoring how it makes you feel instead of being proactive in self-care only makes sure your shadow side controls you instead of you controlling it. Read about spiritual self-care: Follow Our 10 Steps For Spiritual Self-Care
Control Dark Tendencies
The worst habits we have can be harnessed and controlled to become our greatest strengths. This might sound impossible, but it is true. Qualities that are considered negative can be redirected to be beneficial. Read on to find out how some of the most undesirable habits can become great assets.
Anger to Passion
Do you get angry easily? Are people afraid of your temper? Once you are aware that you have a short fuse, you can redirect your anger to passion. What makes you angry? Injustice? Allow anger about injustice to motivate you to go into a job in justice and fight crime. Does it make you mad when your kid’s sports team keeps losing? Don’t get mad. Get active and volunteer to help coach so the kids can win sometimes. Anger is often caused by the fact you feel something is not going right. So be passionate enough to fix what is wrong!
Control to Protectiveness
Are your friends and family members frustrated because you are always trying to tell them what you feel is the best way to do things? You probably do this because you want to make sure everybody is okay. Instead of trying to boss them around, be protective. Be the one to pack first aid supplies and extra snacks for the hike. Be the one to find coupons to save money. Be the one who calls ahead to make sure your group has a table reserved so you don’t have to wait forever to eat. Use the desire to be in control so you can make things go well.
Jealousy to Loyalty
Are you jealous every time someone else eyes your lover? Prove to your lover you are the most loyal person they know, and they probably won’t care who else flirts with them. Not everybody sticks around, and people who are not loyal break a lot of hearts. Nobody wants their heart broken, so if you prove that you stick around in good times and bad, people will take notice. The right people, that is. It will make people want to be with you forever. Jealousy will only scare them off, so be loyal instead of jealous.
Laziness to Allowing Rest
There is a fine line between being lazy and getting enough rest. Laziness is often the result of knowing that overextending yourself is bad. Be restful instead of lazy. Balance meaningful activity with times of inactivity so your body, mind, and soul can recharge. We are not built to be on the go constantly, but we are also not born to accomplish nothing with our lives.
Obsessiveness to Focus
Obsessing over things might give you a sense of purpose, but it can also keep you away from a well-balanced life. Obsessiveness usually happens because you are serious about accomplishing a goal. It can also help soothe anxiety and provide reassurance. So use your tendency to obsess over things to help you to focus. Pay attention to the way you go into obsessive work mode, and use that to help focus on things you are not so enthusiastic about. Make sure to disengage from what you tend to obsess over.
Overwork to Achievement
They say too much work is a bad thing- but not enough work doesn’t seem to accomplish anything, does it? If you don’t balance rest with productive work, your productivity will drop. It can cause stress, burnout, and you can work so hard, you can’t think anymore. Take enough breaks to recharge your batteries, and then get back to work. The desire to accomplish things will get you farther than not caring about accomplishing things. Just pace yourself.
Our shadow side is usually just another side of our greatest strengths. The key is to become aware of them and learn how to make the most of them. We can either be ruled by our shadow side, or we can be in control of them. People who know you might point out the things you do that you are not aware of, and sometimes, you catch yourself doing things you did not realize you did. Our shadow selves are just as important as the parts of us we are conscious of, and they make us a whole person. May you rule your shadow self and use it to bring out the best in you.
We have selected the most relevant psychics for this article, you can connect with any of them and get accurate advice on this subject.
