What Is Shadow Work — and Can It Help You Heal?

We all have parts of ourselves that we don’t like to admit to — insecurities, fears, selfish thoughts, old wounds. But what if those parts you’ve tried so hard to ignore actually hold the key to your personal growth?

That’s where shadow work comes in. It can help you explore and accept the hidden sides of yourself — the parts you’ve learned to ignore or push deep down. And while getting in touch with your blind spots might sound uncomfortable (or even spooky), it’s actually a powerful way to better understand who you are and why you react the way you do.

We asked psychotherapist Natacha Duke, RP, to shine a light on shadow work and how it can support your emotional health.

What is shadow work?

Shadow work is a type of self-exploration, often done in therapy, that helps you uncover and accept the parts of yourself that you’ve tamped down. They’re parts of your personality that you may not even know exist because they’ve been buried deep in you.

The idea comes from Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung, who coined the term “shadow self.” Your shadow self can include aspects of yourself you deem undesirable, like anger, jealousy, selfishness — or even confidence or assertiveness, if you were taught those things were “bad.”

“The parts we hide from ourselves aren’t inherently good or bad,” Duke explains. “They’re just part of who we are.”

For example, if you pride yourself on being generous, you might feel irritated — even triggered — by someone who sets boundaries or puts themselves first. That frustration might be a sign that your own desire for boundaries is buried in your shadow.

“Often, the shadow self is created in childhood,” she continues. “We’re told certain traits aren’t lovable or acceptable, so we repress them. But what we resist, persists.”

Shadow work can help bring those repressed parts to the forefront, so you can accept them and live comfortably with them.

Benefits of shadow work

There isn’t much peer-reviewed research on shadow work, as it’s hard to measure. Shadow work can be done in so many different ways and people are affected by shadow work differently.

Even still, uncovering and facing your shadow self — gently and intentionally — can lead to real growth. Some potential benefits include:

• Better self-awareness
• Improved self-esteem and self-acceptance
• Stronger, healthier relationships
• Less emotional reactivity and more emotional regulation
• Less shame and self-criticism
• More clarity around your values and boundaries

“Shadow work can unlock new and exciting aspects of your personality that you’ve been avoiding,” Duke says. “You might even find strengths you didn’t know you had.”

How to start shadow work

There are many ways to approach shadow work, but it’s often most effective when guided by a therapist, especially if you’re dealing with mental health conditions, trauma or intense emotions.

“Being able to validate how you’re feeling and see those aspects of your personality in a different light is enough for some people,” Duke notes. “For others, they might need more techniques or deeper work to come to terms with how they feel about themselves.”

That said, there are simple ways to begin exploring your shadow on your own, too.

Start noticing your triggers

Think about the last time you felt a strong emotional reaction — anger, embarrassment, jealousy, frustration, etc. Ask yourself:

• What exactly set me off?
• Why did that bother me so much?
• Does this remind me of something from my past?

How you react can give you clues about what’s hiding under the surface.

Try journaling

Writing things down can help you make sense of what’s lurking in your shadows. Some prompts to start with include:

• What traits in others bother me the most — and why?
• What parts of myself do I try to hide?
• What was I praised for as a kid? What was I punished for?
• Are there parts of myself I’m afraid people will see?

“Journaling helps you reflect without judgment,” Duke advocates. “And once you begin to notice your patterns, you can’t unnotice them.”

Work with a therapist

Shadow work can bring up painful or complicated feelings. That’s why therapy is often the safest and most effective space to explore it.

“It can be difficult to unlock what we’ve been repressing and uncover that without an objective party involved,” Duke explains. “A therapist can help you identify patterns, connect the dots from your past and find healthy ways to integrate those parts of yourself.”

If you live with panic attacks, insomnia, anxiety, depression or other mental health concerns, Duke recommends that you first focus on stabilizing those symptoms before diving into shadow work.

“You need to be able to regulate your emotions to a reasonable extent before we begin,” she advises. “It can stir up feelings that are unexpected or uncomfortable, so you want to start from a good place.”

Not every therapist uses the term “shadow work,” but many types of therapy — especially psychoanalytic, psychodynamic or inner child work — explore similar ideas. Art therapy and role-playing may also be a part of your treatment.

Practice self-care and grounding

Shadow work can be intense. It’s normal to feel more emotional as you peel back the layers. That’s why it’s important to balance your therapy with grounding and self-care techniques like:

• Meditation
• Gentle movement or exercise
• Spending time in nature
• Talking to trusted friends
• Doing things that make you feel calm and connected

“You might feel worse before you feel better,” Duke recognizes. “That’s why it’s so important to take care of yourself and move at your own pace.”

Final thoughts

Shadow work isn’t about fixing yourself — it’s about accepting your full self. It’s a process of getting curious, not judgmental, about the parts of you that have been hidden or misunderstood.

By bringing your shadow into the light, you don’t become someone else. You become more you — more whole, more aware and more grounded in who you really are.