Unmasking the Shadow: A Halloween Reclamation Ritual
Welcome home the parts of you that were left behind
Sex and Style is written by Somatic Sex Coach Sarah Ward. This is intended as general advice. If you’d like a personalized guidance, I’d be honored to connect with you in a discovery session.
The chill in the air signals the start of witching season, where we don costumes and step into new identities. While we binge watch scary movies for a rush of adrenaline, and answer the door to strangers on Halloween night, is there anything truly scarier than meeting our shadow selves?
Speaking of scary… I’ve seen the church excommunicate people who were painful reminders of its shadows — think feminists, LGTBQ+ people, and free-thinkers. It’s often easier to divorce ourselves from what we don’t like, than to create space for healing and integration.
Our lives and experiences are microcosms of the collective, the nation, and the world. When we are confronted with aspects of society that are unsettling, we may feel triggered to respond with anger, gaslighting, blame, or judgment — toward others and ourselves. This inner chaos mirrors the turbulence we see on the global stage. (Look no further than the presidential election season, the spookiest time of all 😱)
JFK is known for famously saying, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”
The most significant act we can offer our communities is to integrate the uncomfortable parts of ourselves.
If the chaos we see globally reflects our internal chaos, then by cultivating inner peace, we can help create peace on a larger scale.