14 Comments

Oh gosh, Tamzin; if I started doing shadow work I think I’d never stop. For a while now I’ve been working on all these Substack blogs about my thoughts and views, but I’ve been working on them slowly because they are the bleakest things ever, like coming out of a sauna and jumping into the endless void of space

In one of my fanfics there is the line “A shadow only falls when the darkness hasn’t won,” which seems to be along the lines of what you’ve written here. I suppose it can be hard to find enough light to cast these things at all if they become dark enough. But maybe that’s a lack of faith in how other people might take these unvarnished things? I don’t really know?

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The image of coming out of a sauna and jumping into the void is such a powerful one Robert! It also suggests deep vulnerability...

It's true, I think it is very hard to have faith that other people will accept the "unvarnished" parts of ourselves, which is so strange given that we are all here with our own sets of "flaws" or shadows. But it's comforting to consider that without the dark, there would be no light, and vice versa...

As always, I so appreciate your thoughtful comments Robert! Also, no fear about the working on your Substack slowly. Creativity comes in its own time, and forcing fast output is just capitalism at work. What you're doing is hard and takes courage ✨

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I've been working on a Shadow Work workbook for about 6 months now. I do a little at a time so as to absorb the information and to actually put the methods into practice in real life. It's been helpful but not as amazing for me as DBT was years ago in helping with my psychological issues... but it is enlightening to say the least!

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That's so interesting Laura! A workbook certainly makes it a bit more straightforward maybe, something to follow I imagine. But yes, different therapy etc can be more effective/enlightening depending on the moment at hand... Putting it all into practice and making small changes can be the hardest part!

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So true. ♥️

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I thought I've been doing shadow work for years, but one that I never looked at came up in a writing class I was part in last week. What a revelation! I am not running away from it anymore. In Aikido practice years ago, I learned that welcoming and using the energy of what scares you is where you gain power. Running away will exhaust and deplete you.

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Absolutely true, I feel that in our first workshop/class this is exactly what we were talking about - facing and using the scariest things on the list for confidence, growth, etc. It's where we need to look instead of avoid, it's the projects that we most want to do, deep down, even if it feels terrifying.

I love that writing class brought one up for you that you weren't aware of! Perhaps that's the whole point of writing/creativity, to show us to ourselves in clearer ways, to process it all. Well done, you're doing amazing things Beata and I can't wait to see what comes next...

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Ohhh shadow work can look so different for every single person. For me it’s a combination of deepening spiritual connections often through breath work, parts work and the contrasting therapy (psychology) sessions I’m attending. But also being a student of birth and death… recognising my patterns and habitual ways of being in the world and acknowledging when it doesn’t work anymore and how to go about changing this. Thank you for the prompt

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Thank you so much for the comment Carly! I see how much you're doing, and how that work can be really hard, but so beautiful. It's amazing to see how many of us are no longer afraid and are determined to be the student, to learn to change those habit, to acknowledge our own shadows, etc. We will all be so much better off for it! Well done, keep going xx

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It was really beautiful to receive your prompt and sit in the reflection. I know I can feel like "I'm not doing enough" sometimes, but when I take the moment to pause and acknowledge, it actually feels like plenty (and in fact, enough). The shadows draw us down and in x

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The warmth in these images, Tamzin. I can feel it. And the invitation to think about our shadow side... Feels like something I need to think more about at the minute x

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Thank you Lindsay! It was a moment of deep warmth and love and reflection. It's a place that means a lot to me too. You're already thinking of a lot of things right now I imagine, and always in your thoughtful writing... so don't add more to your plate!

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So drawn in to that first photo - thank you for sharing. Have only recently heard of shadow work and still don’t know much about it. Sounds like a worthy weekend rabbit hole!

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Let me know how you get on with that rabbit hole! Thank you so much for your comment and I'm so glad you liked the image.

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