Clinician’s trend: A guide to shadow work

“Can you help me with shadow work? I saw a therapist on TikTok…”

If you haven’t heard these words in a therapy session yet, it’s probably only a matter of time.

Whether we like it or not, young people are turning to social media for mental health advice. It’s not surprising that these topics pop up in our sessions, even when they don’t directly tie into the work we’re doing.

If you look up the term “shadow work” on TikTok, you’ll find thousands of videos with billions of views. So what’s it all about? And how should we respond if a client brings it up in session, or even books a session with us expressly to “do shadow work?”

Here’s what you need to know about the Jungian-inspired concept- and how to integrate this mental health trend into your practice, even if you don’t provide Jungian therapy.

What is “Shadow Work?”

“Shadow work” means delving into the darker, often unexplored parts of our personality-traits and emotions we might avoid or deny. Carl Jung originally introduced the concept of the “shadow self.”

“Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it is… At all counts, it forms an unconscious snag, thwarting our most well-meant intentions.” – Carl Jung, C.W. Vol. 11: Psychology and Religion: West and East

Jung believed that shadow work involves confronting these hidden aspects to achieve greater self-awareness and personal growth. These days, you see the concept all over social media, simplified as a tool for self-discovery and emotional healing.

Embracing shadow work if a client brings it up – even if you don’t practice from a Jungian framework – can strengthen your therapeutic relationships. You can validate their curiosity and channel their interest into something valuable. This not only boosts engagement, it encourages clients to learn to trust their instincts when it comes to their healing.

Fortunately, exploring the unexplored self is common in therapy, so “shadow work” doesn’t conflict with most approaches. Even if therapists don’t practice Jungian psychology, they can still enrich therapy by integrating the concept of “shadow work” when clients ask for it.

Application across modalities

“Shadow work” can add depth to therapeutic approaches because it focuses on revealing and understanding the parts of ourselves we may not be aware of.

Using “shadow work” can empower therapists to help clients discover more about themselves – but it’s the therapist’s modality’s core principles and techniques that will determine how shadow work is integrated into the treatment plan.

Here’s how a few of the most common therapy approaches might integrate the shadow work concept into their practice:

Cognitive behavioral therapy

Although the founder of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), Dr. Aaron Beck, rejected the idea of a “seething cauldron” of subconscious activity, he did acknowledge that “automatic” thought processes that occur without conscious awareness play a part in human behavior.

In CBT, the integration of shadow work can take the form of identifying these unconscious thought processes that contribute to dysfunctional thoughts and behaviors.

CBT practitioners can integrate “shadow work” through:

1. Thought records: Encourage clients to not just note their automatic thoughts, but also to explore any recurring themes or emotional patterns that could indicate underlying “shadows” that may be worth exploring.

2. Socratic questioning: When using Socratic questioning, ask clients to think about not just the rationale behind their thoughts, but about the origin of those thoughts, so they can better understand the “shadow” that gave rise to their irrational ideas.

3. Mindfulness and awareness practices: Help clients practice mindfulness exercises that let them observe their thoughts and feelings without judgment. As clients become more aware of their own minds (including their shadow thoughts and behaviors), they can learn how to manage and transform them consciously.

Acceptance and commitment therapy

Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a natural fit for integrating shadow work, because it already acknowledges that there are parts of us that are present but shouldn’t necessarily be “in charge.” By emphasizing acceptance, mindfulness, and committed action aligned with personal values, therapists can help clients make peace with the less acknowledged or understood aspects of oneself- or their “shadow.”

Here are some ideas for explicitly including “shadow work” in ACT practices:

1. Values exploration: A key part of ACT is exploring a client’s core values. When clients identify their values, they can see where their actions don’t align with their deeper desires, which is a natural stepping point to understanding where (and what) “shadows” may be influencing their decisions.

2. Committed action: In ACT, clients commit to taking actions that support their values, which is a way to deal with the “shadow.” If a client avoids or procrastinates, the therapist might help them set goals for proactive behaviors that fight those tendencies.

3. Creative hopelessness: The goal of this ACT technique is to help clients see that their usual ways of handling difficult (or “shadow-driven”) emotions and thoughts (like denial or aggression) aren’t working. By accepting and embracing their shadow parts, clients are able to move forward with new, more effective coping strategies.

ACT therapists can use the “the shadow” concept to help their clients accept and integrate their “shadows” to lead more authentic and full lives.

Internal family systems

The internal family systems (IFS) approach naturally complements shadow work. Both approaches recognize the complexity of the mind and that people have multiple sides to themselves. Plus, IFS therapists already naturally lean toward deeply exploring the less visible parts of the psyche.

Practical ways to integrate shadow work in IFS include:

1. Engaging with exiles: “Exiles” are the parts most closely linked to what we might call our shadow, as they hold emotional wounds and traumas. IFS therapists can guide clients to gently approach and heal these exiles, thereby reducing their disruptive influence and integrating their valuable qualities into the clients’ overall selves.

2. Balancing managers and firefighters: Managers work to preemptively protect the self from pain, often by maintaining strict control, while firefighters intervene in crisis, sometimes through destructive behavior, to protect from hurt. Shadow work in IFS involves understanding these parts’ protective motives and helping them find less extreme ways of fulfilling their roles.

3. Empowering the self: Central to IFS is the concept of the self, which is characterized by qualities like curiosity, compassion, and calmness. In shadow work, the self’s role is to lead and harmonize the internal system. Strengthening the self helps ensure it can provide leadership and balance, allowing all parts to feel heard and valued without resorting to extremes.

By integrating “shadow work” into IFS, therapists can help clients not only recognize and accept all parts of themselves but also transform these parts into sources of strength.

Dialectical behavior therapy

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) focuses on achieving practical outcomes, helping clients manage emotions, tolerate distress, and interact effectively with others. Although DBT is generally more about learning skills for immediate use rather than exploring the deeper, historical reasons behind behaviors, there could be value in weaving some elements of shadow work into this approach—especially when a client requests it.

While keeping its core commitment to practical outcomes, here’s how DBT might gracefully incorporate aspects of shadow work:

1. Mindfulness techniques: DBT already teaches mindfulness to help clients observe their thoughts and feelings without judgment. This practice could be expanded slightly to encourage awareness of emotional responses that might hint at underlying, less acknowledged parts of themselves.

2. Emotion regulation skills: By recognizing deeper emotional currents, clients can use DBT’s emotion regulation tools more effectively. Even a simple acknowledgment of these undercurrents can empower clients to handle intense emotions more skillfully, especially when their feelings seem disproportionate to the situation.

3. Distress tolerance strategies: Introducing concepts from shadow work, such as accepting all aspects of oneself, can complement DBT’s distress tolerance focus. For instance, radical acceptance could extend to embracing both the comfortable and uncomfortable parts of one’s personality.

By weaving in shadow work insights, DBT practitioners can help clients gain a deeper understanding of their behaviors and emotions. This approach respects DBT’s practical focus while offering a richer, more holistic view of the self, allowing clients to explore “shadow work” alongside their DBT process.

Clients who bring up shadow work aren’t distracting from the work of therapy- they’re offering therapists a chance to validate their interests and integrate this concept into sessions. Even if you’re not a Jungian therapist, incorporating shadow work can help clients better understand unexplored aspects of their identities. Just make sure to align shadow work with your existing therapeutic approach and training so that you can leverage your clients’ curiosity and enthusiasm to help them succeed.

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