Which parts within you haven't yet been allowed to get evolved? Which are still stuck in childhood survival modes?
In terms of developing skills to begin to be able to see the truth in who you are and what you needed to do to get "here" is to be able to begin to honour the fact that there are parts within you that you may find less attractive. Jung called them the shadow parts, they are the ones often buried deep within us, who don't get to see much light, nor do they get much nourishment and when they do come out they often hang together with a potent mix of shame, guilt, doubt and or even disgust.
I think we can all agree that that is not conducive to self acceptance or self love; which surely is the place we want to get on this journey to integrity and authentic self expression?
For a moment imagine a human being who is completely perfect, what kind of image do you get? A kind of Barbie and Ken situation, terrifying. That is nothing to aspire towards. It's clear that we need all these different aspects and layers of ourselves (the attractive and the unattractive to have something to work with and towards, so that we can begin to want to put in the work and be on the road to self discovery and deep integration of mind, body and spirit.
In a safe environment you can begin to explore these unacknowledged/ undesired parts within you. I find movement my gateway to getting to a place where I can begin to unravel and with time, can open up to the many parts within me that are under developed and under nourished; the shadow parts that I haven't accepted within myself.
So why not set aside some time every week, to explore some of the areas that might not be as shiny and "nice" as the other ones? To learn to accept those parts within you and give them some nourishment, so that they are not such a shock to the system when they present themselves. Because they will come out eventually, no matter how hard we might try to suppress those parts within ourselves.
Just because we haven't accepted them doesn't mean we shouldn't accept them. It's the how and with whom you chose to explore these parts is important, because they require some trust.
Much of what I teach is movement, as this is the language I'm most fluent at and am able to express myself most deeply and fully. Learning to move through areas within your body and re-awakening a sense of wisdom within the tissues; muscles; tendons; ligaments; organs; bones & bone-marrow; down into the deepest layers and into the cells, re-educating our physical bodies so that we can accept ourselves the way we are perfectly imperfect. And when these darker parts within us, do surface it's won't be such a shock to the system. You can begin to work through them in a state of non-judgement, with integrity, authentic truth, giving more meaning to who you are and eventually being moved to a state of deep self love.
Unravelling from the many years of stored or dormant trauma, is a journey you might want to begin with a therapist. This is deep work and very rewarding when you find the right therapist for you. I'm not a trained trauma expert, but I am working through my own and I'm learning so much. It is all beginning to make sense, why I have been the way that I am and for the first time in years I'm beginning to truly see myself again.
Let's face it, we all need to do some trauma work, we have just survived a pandemic, there isn't a human-being on this planet who is not affected in one way or another by some form of trauma. It's often the ones with the most trauma who end up doing the deepest work on themselves and come out to be the bravest, kindest people earth has known. So bare that in mind next time judging someone for not having their shit together and or when beginning your own healing journey.
And although I'm not a trained trauma-therapist; I can provide you with a safe space, where you can begin to find some level of acceptance with who you are in truth, in essence. Physically moving to end up being moved on a whole other level.
Love,
Samira x
