Or maybe we sit on a pseudo-spiritual high horse, protecting our sensitive ego by pretending to never have such thoughts or feelings at all, thinking that we are better-than, perhaps even fooling ourselves. As good and convincing as it can look, this is a slippery slope (I am speaking from personal experience). But the true evidence is in our life.


What is inside of us will eventually manifest in our physical reality. If we are struggling with stress, anxiety, persistent health problems, or relationship issues (does that cover about everybody?) chances are that we have unresolved issues we have pushed into the unconscious. The more we do this, the more unconscious we are, by default.


THE PLACE WHERE THE SHIFT HAPPENS In order to grow our consciousness and spiritual connection, we cannot forever avoid looking into those parts of ourselves we aren’t proud of. It is only when we learn to accept and love those bits that aren’t perfect, or that are painful or yucky, that we really learn to love ourselves – and as a result we are able to more fully connect with, love, and accept others. When we uncover our repressed painful emotions, hidden agendas, core beliefs, and secret pay- offs that no longer work for us, we actually free ourselves from their grip. Once they have been brought into the light of consciousness, they no longer have the same power over us. This is where great shifts happen.


THE CHALLENGE FACING TEACHERS AND THERAPISTS This is where we teachers and therapists also have a challenge. We can establish


The whole business of becoming ‘conscious’ is really about bringing consciousness into that which is unconscious.


and maintain an illusion of perfection and having it all figured out, feeding into the exclusive marketing of love, light, and joy – at the expense of all the rest. OR, we can remain authentic and teach from an open-hearted space of ongoing self-discovery and acceptance of our humanity. We can help to create a community where everyone can feel safe to explore and own their darkness, and even to share it with one another without the fear of being shamed or made wrong.


WORKING WITH OUR SHADOW Working with our shadow can be tricky because the shadow isn’t so willing to come out into the light of day. It has remained hidden for decades, and intends to remain so, because it is where it can drive us without being caught. The shadow contains all of that which we are ashamed of and all of that which we have denied about ourselves. So it also knows that coming out will be painful. Unfortunately there is no avoiding that pain. It’s the avoidance that got us in trouble in the first place! Luckily our body has built-in release


mechanisms for all this build-up, and I believe we can utilise one (or several) of these innate mechanisms to bring to the surface previously unconscious material, suppressed emotions, and negative core beliefs. All the stuff that holds us back in life that we may have not been able to access even through


years of talk therapy. In my breathwork sessions I see people regularly release accumulated emotional charge and have ‘a-ha’ moments of realising patterns that have started early in childhood and kept playing out unconsciously through their whole lives. It is through deep emotional work that finally those patterns can be unravelled and renegotiated. The beautiful thing is that when we


release our stuck anger, fear, sadness, shame, and guilt, it frees the flow of the love, peace, joy, and all those lighter emotions as well! When the emotional body is cleared of old baggage and all these energies are flowing freely, the power of all the meditation, yoga, and other modalities and practices we engage in become super-charged! We can connect deeply and more authentically with one another as well as the divine. When we feel stuck, we are


unconscious. When we become conscious, we remember our ability to choose. ■


Connect with other readers & comment on this article at www.livingnow.com.au


Liisa Halme is an advanced breathwork practitioner, a registered yoga therapist and a senior yoga teacher, as well as a mother and a wife. She


works with individuals and groups in Sydney eastern suburbs.


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