Exploring your dark side to become better. Is the new trend in network psychology safe?

Hashtag with 2.4 billion views on TikTok. 1.7 million Instagram posts. A work in excess of one million copies sold across the Atlantic within just a few months of its launch (December 2023 figures). With him Shadow Work Journal (Translated in French by Albin Michel), 24-year-old TikToker Kayla Shaheen has entered the lucrative personal development market.

More than a bestseller, Kayla Shahin sets a trend. in his wake, dozens of coaches and psychologists are publishing their work on this do-it-yourself solution that should help us combat mental health issues exacerbated by the Covid era. A spiritual trend for some, a new mental health practice for others, the approach requires a strong foundation to confront the darkest parts of ourselves and is not recommended for fragile personalities alone.

Discover your hidden strengths

Through daily writing in a notebook, we would gradually understand the uncomfortable aspects of our nature in order to better integrate them. Specifically, his method revolves around several protocols to bring buried emotions to light; reflection in front of the mirror or “identifying the wounds of the inner child”. One way to encourage practice is to keep a ‘shadow journal’.

Actually that shadow (“shadow”) owes its existence to the famous Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Gustav Jung. According to a dissident disciple of Sigmund Freud, this concept refers to the emotions and impulses repressed in the recesses of our psyche to allow us to grow and integrate into the social mold. As PhD in psychology and author Emerick LeBreton explains My shadow work journal (Editions Marabout), this “dark” side contains everything we hide from others (and often from ourselves) because of shame, guilt, or simply the shame we would feel doing so.

And of course, the shadow is opposed to the light. “Light corresponds to the part of our being that we show every day to the people we meet (spouse, friends, colleagues, etc.). People, like an influencer who shoots an Instagram video, are only looking to show their best profile, explains the author, who is also co-founder of Orientaction, a network of companies specializing in health assessment. SKILLS: To do this, they erase their shortcomings and delete those elements that they do not consider worthy of interest. They change their behavior and opinions in order to be accepted.”

Shadow is active

The problem? Shadow is active. It affects our whole life, cunning. It colors our most intimate beliefs, shapes our map of the world, our choices and relationships, fuels our impulsive behavior and our unwanted patterns. “At the root of it all are our crises, our reactions, and our general dissatisfaction,” emphasizes Kelly Bramblett, coach and author. The Complete Shadow Job Guide, Diary and Exercises (Guy Trédaniel Editor). As in psychoanalysis, therefore, it is under the cover of our conscience that we must look for the key to our problems and our well-being. “Our shadow contains potentials, skills, and aspects of our being that, if consciously integrated, can bring new richness to our existence,” notes Émerick Lebreton.

Thus, unbridled anger can become the energy to bring a project to fruition. Once integrated, the mythic bent can develop an imaginative talent for novel writing. “For many psychologists, it is in the shadows and from the shadows that our personality can grow and be renewed,” adds the expert. Meeting this submerged part of the psyche will help to better understand our feelings, clarify our inner conversation, neutralize beliefs. Little by little, our choices will be more conscious, our relationships with others more positive, and anxiety less. Without forgetting that “knowing your own dark side is the best way to deal with the dark sides of others”, as Jung himself said.

The keys to learning

Your dark sides are revealed in strong emotions and resentments that we often prefer to evacuate. Before you start your shadow work commit to noticing and openly questioning your own reactions. Keeping an internal journal of these feelings will help you notice when patterns arise, identify their causes, and decipher how they work. Deciphering the hidden messages of the unconscious also requires learning the basics of a language that is strange to the layman, made up of images and metaphors. “Deep down, everything is more complex and dark. What was obvious is no longer obvious. Fear hides desire. A failed action reveals a hidden intention. A dispute reveals a trauma,” describes Emerick Lebreton.

Be open. When the shadows come to the surface, it’s possible to feel overwhelmed, anxious, and feel negative emotions, three signals that your nervous system is under pressure. Trainer Kelly Bramblett advises to pay attention to the subtle changes in the body. In this case, take a break and return to the breathing technique. Feelings of anxiety are transient. “Even if our dark side can seem scary to us, it also has a positive effect to recognize,” asserts Isabelle Cerf, author. The shadow work of Isabel Cerf. A journal that sheds light on your dark side (Editions Good Mood Dealer By Exergue). Discovering your dark self requires a safe framework that allows you to hit pause when moments of negativity arise and question their origins.

Kayla Shahen recommends ritualizing work time to anchor yourself in the present moment, before and after the sequence. Meditation or conscious breathing thus allows you to create a stable mental state. Isaline Gayraud, clinical psychologist and author Magazine shadow work (Éditions Hachette), is formal shadow work is not always without risk. “It can bring to the surface elements that are sometimes difficult to integrate. Therefore, it is not a job that can be done completely alone. If you feel the need, you can combine it with other forms of support, especially in painful cases where you have difficulty managing certain difficulties, such as anxiety or bereavement.