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Why Shadow Work Journal Prompts?
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If you are interested in manifestation and improving your abundance mindset, you will probably learn about shadow work journal prompts. Shadow work journal prompts are an amazing manifestation tool to help you with your healing and spiritual growth.
The term ‘shadow work’ was created by the famous Swiss psychologist Carl Jung who created analytic psychology. The Libra sun sign in me loves how he talks about balancing the good and the repressed sides of our psyche.
“Where there is light, there must also be shadow”
Carl Jung
The shadow is the archetypes that Jung was most concerned with. There was also the the Personal, the self,and the Anima/Animus. These archetypes make up the mind.
Your Shadow self is also similar to Sigmund Freud’s Id theory that your mindset is made up your Id, Ego, and Superego.
They were all concerned with these subconscious traits that control and influence our daily behaviors, and for good reason.
The shadow side are those feelings and emotions we like to ignore and not address. However, as we learned in my abundance blocks post, those subconscious blocks can really hold us back if we ignore them. Shadow work journal prompts are another way to work on those subconscious blocks.
Not all of our shadow self is negative, though that’s what most people think of when we hear shadow self. It’s simply what we suppress. Using shadow work journal prompts helps us unlock and discover these hidden areas.
If we do have a lot of subconscious negative beliefs that we don’t address and break down, it will hinder our manifestation abilities. It will also hurt your relationships and personal career growth. Ignoring our shadow side will hurt us in all ways.
Even though it may be painful at first to use shadow work journal prompts, it is worth looking at and working through!
You can also cause a lot of problems by suppressing sides of yourself that are actually helpful, but somewhere in your life you learned to hide that side of yourself.
By discovering your shadow side and working through it with shadow work journal prompts, you can increase your self-love, learn healthy boundaries, and understand how to cope properly. Who doesn’t need that at some point?
Even if you haven’t experience trauma, you likely have some incorrect subconscious beliefs about yourself and life in general.
Shadow work journal prompts are a great way to increase your self-awareness and just become a better person.
By working with shadow work journal prompts I was able to really improve my life and have an abundance mindset. It’s so amazing and freeing to accept who you are and where you have come from. You will become more spiritual, raise your vibrations, and increase in wisdom.
So how do you know what to do or how to get started with shadow work journal prompts? Keep reading and I’ll explain everything about what shadow work is, how to work on it, and the best shadow work journal prompts to use.
What is Shadow Work?
Shadow work is all about running towards your suppressed thoughts and feelings instead of ignoring them. To do shadow work, you must find out what your incorrect beliefs and behaviors that you incorrectly believe you must hide. You can do this multiple ways, but I really like shadow work journal prompts-which is basically journaling answers to deep questions.
Journaling with shadow work journal prompts about these questions can bring up very low vibration feelings such as shame, anger and frustration towards yourself. Working on these emotions can bring up a lot of negativity at first.
However, Shadow work journal prompts can actually be enjoyable though for those who enjoy self-reflection or are perfectionists. However, it can be extremely challenging at first for some, especially if you have experienced trauma and abuse.
Everyone can benefit though from shadow work journal prompts. We all have subconscious beliefs that can be limiting and that are holding us back from self-love. If you remember from my previous posts, you’ll know that I’m big on self-love being the key for manifestation.
It’s important for just about everything though. You simply cannot be happy and successful long-term by repressing and running from your shadow side.
It will always come back to haunt you!
Many people try to hide this side of themselves and keep it in the dark.
Here are other ways you can do shadow work besides shadow work journal prompts:
*Meditation
*Subliminals
*Working with a shadow work healer or therapist
What is Your Shadow Self?
So, what exactly is meant by the Shadow self?
The shadow self is just that side of you that you hide from people and repress even from yourself due to shame, guilt and fear.
To put it simply, it is quite literally lives in the shadows of your mind.
Your shadow self is in your subconscious mind.
It’s the part of yourself you aren’t aware of. Your conscious mind is more like light, because it can be seen.
We put in our subconscious mind the parts we want to hide, that we reject, or feel ashamed about. We never quite get rid of those feelings, but we try to hide them away.
Does Everyone Have a Shadow Side?
Yes!
Everyone has a shadow side, and this isn’t a bad thing. It’s really just a survival skill we all develop as children.
However, not everyone wants to work on that side so the fact that you are is a great step in the right direction!
What Are Some Shadow Traits?
Believe it or not, all shadow traits are not automatically negative. Our souls are both light and dark. It’s who we are at our core, and so we cannot live in fear our true nature. The shadow side is created out of survival, and sometimes we outgrow these survival skills we developed. If you are ready to live more than just survive, then getting rid of those shadow traits that no longer serve your daily life just makes sense
Shadow work is all about finding those shadow traits that you no longer make sense and forgive yourself for havint those. We had them for a reason so there is no need to feel shame about them!
Here are some examples of shadow traits you likely no longer need:
- Jealousy
- Rage
- Anger
- Selfish
- Manipulative
- Vane
- Arrogant
- Worried about how come across to others
- Intolerant/Stubborn
- Impatient
- Egotistical
- Judgemental
- Defensive
- Fearful
How to Find Your Shadow Traits
If you are unsure what shadow traits to work on, there are some things to pay attention to.
Ask yourself:
What things , people and events trigger you?
Are there any traits you really dislike in other people? Often times it’s a reflection of what we dislike in ourselves.
Do you notice yourself doing certain things over and over? For instance, do you get into the same kind of relationships? Do you notice the same problems at work or the same arguments with your spouse?
Really spend some time journaling and meditating on what areas in your life are causing you issues. You can also think about areas you are having trouble manifesting in. For instance, if you want to buy a home but are having difficulty, maybe there is an area from your childhood that matches up?
We moved a lot as a kid, so for me, a shadow trait could be feeling like I don’t deserve stability or a nice home of my own.
Keep in mind it may not be only bad traits. It just has to be something you repress. For example, as a child I was actually very confident and assertive. However, my very shy sister was embarrassed and would tell me to be quiet and not speak up. So, I learned to question myself and became shy as well.
As I became older I realized this insecurity was holding me back and forced myself to do things that scared me- I tried out for solo parts in choir, did quiz competitions in front of hundreds of people, etc. Over time, I became my more bold self again and stopped worrying about everyones opinions. I even ended up doing stand-up comedy as an adult! This, from someone who used to be terrified to even raise my hand in class!
Your shadow traits can be positive or negative. The key is that you feel a need to hide them from others in order to survive, or that suppressing them is negatively impacting your life. While jealousy is a negative emotion, it’s completely normal. What you would want to work on is why is it something you feel it so often and why you are ashamed of a normal emotion. See the difference? It’s not that being jealous is abnormal, it’s the shame and constant feeling of it that is what you need to address.
How the Shadow Forms
It all starts in our childhood. As a helpless child you need your parents for everything. If they don’t like something you do, well, you have no choice but to adapt it for their approval.
We learn to hide what they dislike and emphasize what they do in order to survive. This is how the shadow self forms.
Think about your own children. I know I have been guilty of telling (or wanting to) my son to get over something because I thought he was being too emotional. In some ways, we need to help our children learn to control their emotions because they can’t overreact to everything.
However, we need to do it in a way that still validates them for having those emotions.
That is tough for any parent or caregiver to do, especially as we are still learning to deal with our own feelings.
So, it’s no wonder that we perhaps develop unnecessary survival skills or even damaging ones despite our parents being good people.
How Do You Use Shadow Prompts?
Now that you understand what the shadow self is and which shadow traits to work on, it’s time to get to work!
One way to do shadow work is to journal with shadow work journal prompts.
Shadow prompts are just a series of questions that address potential shadow traits in yourself to journal about.
All you need to do is grab a blank notebook or journal make a note of the journal prompts in this blog post, and choose one to get started.
They get your thinking and, if you keep a shadow work journal prompts journal, can help you sort through your shadow traits, where they come from, and how to move forward.
That’s all there is too it!
Once you have done the work to find out what shadow traits to work on, you should be able to come up with your own shadow prompts to journal. However, it can be nice to have a big list of them to choose from. You may even see some shadow prompts you didn’t think of but that you resonate with.
That’s why I put together this big list to help you get started.
You probably won’t connect with all these prompts. The ones you’re drawn to immediately are usually the ones you should start with. We all have completely different backgrounds, personalities, and struggles; we all have different shadows. Always pursue what resonates with you.
I’ve curated the shadow work journal prompts below specifically to get you to squirm. They likely will not be comfortable. But understand this: the deeper you dig, and the more you hold yourself accountable, the more enlightening the process of answering them will be.
With that being said — take care of yourself. Take breaks. Exhale. Have a self-love practice on hand for when you find yourself getting overwhelmed. Shadow work journal prompts aren’t about delving into trauma every hour of the day — it’s about bringing light to the darkest aspects of yourself, and healing what you’re called to heal.
As a professional shadow worker, I’ve observed that the best prompts are often those that are difficult to work through. Once you prove to yourself that you can work through them, however, you increase your self-confidence and learn to trust the process. In other words, you learn how to challenge yourself, while also learning when to take a step back if it gets too intense.
These prompts should be a helpful launching-off point for deep reflection. While at first it may be uncomfortable, know that guiding yourself through this process will help you settle into yourself and develop a sense of inner security and peace.
Best Shadow Work Journals
If you enjoy my list of shadow work journal prompts, you will love a shadow work journal! Trust me, it’s worth it to spend a few dollars and get a nice, guided journal. Something about a pretty journal with prompts in it that makes it easier to stick with your journaling habits! Here are my favorites, but there are a ton on Amazon:
In this highly rated journal you will learn:
Self-Discovery And Self-Acceptance Techniques
· What Is A Shadow And How It Is Created
· How to Recognize The Shadow Within Yourself
· The 4 Easy Ways To Spot Your Shadow
· How to Acknowledge Your Emotions
· What an Inner Child Is And If Your Inner Child Is Wounded
· 5 Tips On How To Heal Your Inner Child
· Integrating The Shadows: Shadow Work For Creativity And Energy Open To Pleasure
· … & Lot More!
I love this one because in addition to prompts, you also have ideas for gratitude, recognizing triggers, mandela coloring pages, etc:
- Find 90 prompts to explore your shadow self
- Release wounds kept from childhood
- Discover memories you have hidden from yourself
- Learn to love your whole self
- Regain the strength to set boundaries to protect yourself while allowing yourself to be happy in a way you never imagined!
- Reflections, Gratitude, Daily Trigger
- 10 Quotes
- 4 Blank Letters To…
- 4 Pages for Notes
- 4 extra Mandala coloring pages, in the end it will help you relax and feel calm
502 Shadow Work Journal Prompts
Here is my big list of shadow work journal prompts! If you still aren’t sure what shadow work journal prompts to use yet, that’s ok! Read through the categories and pick the one you connect with the most. There is no need to overthink it! There are more than enough shadow work journal prompts here for you to find at least a few to get started.
Popular categories are childhood and love and relationships, but there are no right or wrong shadow work journal prompts to start with. I do recommend you stay in only one category at a time though until you are ready to move on.
You can create a ritual space to journal each night and work on your shadow work journal prompts. Personally, I prefer before bed time so you can really soak up all the information, but you can do these shadow work journal prompts at any time. Same thing with the location- you don’t need a special sacred space, but at the very least, you will want quiet and privacy.
Keep in mind shadow work journal prompts can bring up some heavy and difficult emotions. There is no shame in reaching out to a professional if it becomes too much to process on your own!
Childhood Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- Who were your heroes? Who did you look up to? Why did you look up to them?
- How did you learn to manage your emotions as a child?
- Did you at any point feel like a victim in childhood? What about as an adult?
- Do you now play the victim instead of taking responsibility for any wrongs on your part?
- Do you blame your parents or caregivers for anything?
- If you imagine yourself as them now, can you understand them better?
- Were your caregivers financially stressed, overworked, had health issues, etc?
- Who disappointed you as a child? Do you have any similarities with them?
- What was your biggest childhood fear? Why?
- How have you overcome that fear as an adult?Would you say your childhood was happy? Sad? Healthy? Stressful? Lonely? How did you get over it in adulthood?
- Did your hero or organization live up to your childhood beliefs ? How did that make you feel?
- What is your most vivid memory of being disappointed as a child? Do you expect to be disappointed as an adult now too?
- When did you feel unloved as a child? Why?
- What could have made your childhood better? What would that have looked like? What emotion does that bring up for you?
- What was one time you remember feeling wronged as a child? How did you react? Has this affected you as an adult? How?
- When I was a child, I was told not to ________________. This made me feel ________________________ because ______________________________________________.
- Write about one of your worst childhood memories. Describe who was there, what their role was, and how it made you feel. Has the situation been resolved? How can you gain closure?
- What character traits did you develop as a result of your childhood? They can be anything-good or bad. Who or what helped the development of those traits?
- List out your parents or caregivers values, beliefs, and habits. Have you internalized or adopted any of these?
- What are your parents’ or guardians’ character traits? How did those influence you as a child? How are you similar or different from them now?
- What’s the worst character trait you have because of your childhood?
- What or who do you think caused it?
- How do you feel about that?
- What are your parents or caregivers best/worst traits?
- How are you alike or different from them? What is the worst emotion somebody could trigger in you? (anger, envy, etc.)
- Why do you feel so strongly about it?
- Does your answer differ according to the person in question?
- What’s a question you had as a child that you never got an actual answer to? Do you have it now?
- What were your parents or caregivers main values while you were growing up? Do you hold them still or do they differ? How so?
- How did you process emotions growing up? How do you process negative emotions now? Has this changed over the years?
- How do you react when you get angry? Is this similar to people from your childhood? Why do you think that may be?
- What parts of your parents or caregivers do you see in yourself now? When did these begin to become noticeable?
- What main thing did you want in childhood that you didn’t get?
- Why did you want it so much?
- How has this shaped your adult life? What is or was your mother’s worst trait? Do you share this? Why?
- What is your fathers worst trait? Do you share this? Why?
- Do you have any trauma from childhood? Do you feel it was your fault? Why?
- How do you feel about your childhood?
- Was it mostly positive or negative?
- Who made you feel safe and who let you down?
- Who were you close to? How does drama make you feel?
- Are you what you would call dramatic?
- If so, do people call you dramatic? How do you feel about this? Do you hold a grudge against anyone?
- What is stopping you from letting it go?Who have you previously had conflict with and supposedly resolved it, but you still don’t really trust them?
- How did they make you feel?
- What worries you about that relationship now?
- How do you feel about asking for help?
- Is it a sign of strength or weakness? Why is this?
- What makes you self-conscious around others?
- What makes you feel unsafe? Write about it in detail.
- What do you think would have made your childhood better? How do you feel about that?
- What toxic traits have you realized in your parents?
- How did it make you feel when you realized that your parents weren’t perfect?
- Do you also feel you have these toxic traits too?
- Outline the memories that stand out the most to you from your younger years.
- What is your relationship like with your family?
- Has your connection strengthened since you were a child or has it gotten worse?
- What are your parent’s best and worst personality traits?
- Do you see any of them within yourself?
- What’s your worst childhood memory?
- Who was there?
- How did they comfort you or make it worse?
- What would you like to say to them? Perhaps write them an unsent letter.
- What event in your life do you wish had a different outcome?
- How would it have improved your life?
- In what ways is your life better for it not having worked out?
- Do you have any other traumatic childhood memories?
- What authority figures (individuals as opposed to institutions) did you respect growing up?
- What qualities did/do they possess?
- Do you share any of those traits?
- How might you develop/enhance them?
Betrayal Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- Think about one time where you’ve felt betrayed. What would you say to that person?
- Write about a time you felt let down by someone you used to look up to?
Envy Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- What’s one trait you see in other people that you wish you had? Why do you not have this character trait yourself?
- Who are you most jealous of?
- Why?
- How might you be able to work towards getting the things or traits they have that you feel envy about?
- What tends to trigger envy for you? Why do you think this is?
Anxiety Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- Do you often over-think what you’ve said or done? What usually triggers this?
- What makes you anxious?
- Why?
Values and Passion Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- What are your core values as a human?
- What’s the most important value to you?
- What are you most passionate about?
Trigger Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- What triggers you?
- Can you figure out where this came from?
- Write about a time you felt let down or abandoned. What emotions did it trigger?
- To what extent was your reaction rational or irrational?
Mental Health Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- What are the first signs that your mental health is dropping?
- When are you hardest on yourself?
- Why?
- Where do you think this started?
- Why do you put yourself under so much pressure?
- Why are you so reluctant to be nice to yourself?
- When I get sad or upset, I cope by?
- I learned this coping skill from?
Failure Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
- How do you see failure?
- What is your definition of failure?
- How does it make you feel?
- Are you afraid of failure?
- Why might this be?
- How did your parents or caregivers react to failure?
Insecurity Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
103. What situations make you feel not good enough?
104. Why do you think this is?
105. What aspects of yourself would you like to improve?
106. Why?
107. Has anyone in your past ever made comments suggesting that you should?
108. If so, how did this make you feel?
109. What are your toxic traits?
110. How do these present themselves?
111. How do you project these onto others?
112. What do you wish you could change about yourself?
113. Can you change it?
114. How do you feel about who you are as a human?
115. Why?
116. What one thing could somebody say to you that would ruin you?
117. Why do those words hold so much power?
118. How can you begin to take the power out of those words?
Forgiveness Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
119. How often do you forgive yourself?
120. What kind of things do you feel you need to be forgiven for?
121. Why is this?
122. Write about a time where you messed up and needed forgiveness. Did you ask to be forgiven? Did you apologize? How did it go for you?
123. Write about one person you’ve never forgiven. What happened and why did you not forgive them? Was it warranted?
124. How has this event affected you going forward? Do you think you could forgive them now?
125. How did you move on from this?
126. Do you forgive yourself when you have done something wrong?
127. When you make mistakes can you move on from them or do they continue to hurt you?
128. Is there anyone you hold a grudge against? If so, what is holding you back from letting go and moving on?
129. Do you hold grudges?
130.What do you struggle to let go of?
Attachment Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
131. Do you form obsessive or unhealthy attachments easily?
132. Why do you think this might be; do you have a fear of change, abandonment or rejection?
133. Do you find it difficult to form emotional attachments? Does commitment make you get restless? Do you dislike staying in one place for a certain amount of time?
134. Where do you think this comes from?
Self-Care Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
135. How do you use your free time?
136. What gives you enjoyment?
137. What self-care do you practice regularly, if any?
138. What’s your favourite way to self-sooth?
139. Describe your perfect self-care day.
Negative Emotions Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
140. How do you deal with negative emotions now?
141. What’s one negative thing I can’t stop telling myself?
142. Where does this thought come from?
143. What emotions do you tend to avoid?
144. What negative emotions do you tend to avoid?
145. Why might this be?
146. What negative emotions do you actually feel quite comfortable sitting with?
147. Why might this be?
148. Do you ever have physical reactions to emotional feelings?
149. Write about these. Why do you think this happens?
150. Who regularly (or last) belittles or downplays your emotions?
151. How does it make you feel?
152. What emotions tend to bring out the worst in you?
153.Why do you think that is?
Trauma and Grief Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
154. How do you carry the weight of your past trauma?
155. How has it affected you?
156. How did you deal with trauma in the past and what do you do to combat it in the present?
157. Have you experienced great grief or loss in your life?
158. Do you feel you could have saved them if only you’d done something different?
159. Why?
Boundaries Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
160. How do you enforce boundaries?
161. How do you feel when people overstep them?
162. How do you react?
163. What misconceptions have you noticed?
164. Can you think about where these started?
165. What are your preconceptions about femininity?
166. Why do you think this is? Where did they come from?
167. What are your preconceptions towards masculinity? Where did these come from?
Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
168. What does the term ‘Shadow Work’ mean to you?
169. What are three main goals you want to achieve with your shadow work journal prompts?
Hurt Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
170. What’s the most hurtful thing you’ve ever done to someone else?
171. What’s the most hurtful thing you’ve done to yourself?
172. How have you moved forward from hurting someone else?
173. How do you plan to move forward after hurting yourself?
Promises Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
174. What’s the biggest promise to you that someone else has broken?
175. How did that make you feel?
176. Why?
177. What’s the biggest promise you’ve broken to yourself?
178. Why?
179. How do you feel about that?
180. Have you ever broken a promise to someone else?
181. Why?
Lying Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
182. What do you consistently lie to yourself about?
183. Do you lie to yourself to avoid addressing your fears?
184. What is the biggest lie you regularly tell yourself?
185. Why?
186. What lies have you previously told yourself?
187. Are you being fully honest with yourself right now?
188. When you really think about it, is there any area of your life you’re in denial about?
189. What do you lie to other people about?
190. Why?
191. What’s the biggest lie you’ve ever told and why?
192. What lies are you telling yourself at this time? How can you face these lies and get on a better track?
Love and Relationships Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
193. Does anyone in your life have a pattern of mocking or not taking your emotional needs seriously?
194. How do you respond when this happen?
195. Make a list of all of the relationships in your life that you no longer need.
196. Why have you stayed this long?
197. How would you feel if you no longer had those toxic relationships?
198. What do you wish you could change about the people closest to you?
199. What does this say about you and your values?
200. Do you allow yourself to be vulnerable in your romantic relationships?
201. Do you put up walls around yourself and your partner or are you completely open?
202. My healthiest relationship is with?
203. She/he makes me feel ______.
204. My unhealthiest relationship is with ______.
205. She/he makes me feel?
206. Do you enforce boundaries with others or are you the type to let people cross lines?
207. Who are you closest to in your life, and do they positively reflect who you are?
208. Are you holding on to people that don’t deserve you?
209.Are your really happy in your relationships?
210. Think about the people closest to you. What would you change about them, if you could, to improve your relationship?
211. What does that say about you?
212. Is there anything you could consider improving about yourself to help?
213. Have you ever been heartbroken? Journal about that time in your life in detail.
214. Is there anyone in your life that you are competitive with?
215. If yes, what caused this rivalry?
216. Who has the most influence over you?
217. Are they aware of that influence?
218. Is your relationship healthy?
219. What is your relationship with codependency?
220. Is anyone in your life codependent?
221. What was the last relationship you walked away from?
222. What was the process of releasing it like?
223. How did you know you needed to leave?
224. Was it a net positive or net negative choice?
225. Write a letter to the person who has hurt you the most in the past five years.
226. Consider burning the letter when you’re done.
227. What relationship has hurt you the most in your life?
228. Whether the person is living or not, make a pros and cons list of how you both learned and were hurt.
229. Are you embarrassed by your sexuality? Why or why not?
230. Who has let you down the most in your life?
231. Are they still around? How do you feel about that?
232. Think about your friends. Which ones make you feel safe, and secured?
233. Do you have any friends that you feel uncomfortable?
234. Examine why this may be and if you have any negative history.
235. Do you know what your love language is?
236. Who has the most influence over you?
237. Is it healthy that they do?
238. Think of a relationship you’ve walked away from. Write down the reasons it was a positive life choice.
239. What person has hurt you the most in life?
240. Write them a letter telling them all the things you’d like to say, but don’t send it. Consider burning it instead.
241. Have you ever broken someone else’s heart?
242. Was it unintentional or intentional? Write about this.
243. Do you ever find yourself manipulating people in an attempt to protect yourself?
244. What is something that you’ve always wanted to confront someone about?
245. Why haven’t you?
246. Do you plan to? Why?
247, Which relationships in your life no longer serve you? Be as honest as possible as its just for you to see.
248.Which relationships feel obligated to? Consider how you’d feel if you allowed those relationships to go away, and then think about whether they’re worth trying to save? How could you be able to do that? Write a letter explaining it.
Arguing and Conflict Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
249. What makes you angry?
250. Why?
251. What was the last argument you had about?
252. Was it resolved?
253. Think of a previous conflict you had with someone. How did it play out?
254. What was your role in it?
255. Did you take ownership for that role?
256. How do you feel about confrontation?
257. Why do you think this is?
258. When confronted, how do you react?
259. Why do I react this way?
260. What was your last mean thought? Did you mean it? Did you tell anyone? Does this type of thought happen a lot? Why?
Character Trait Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
261. Which traits would you least like to describe you?
262. Why would they be so bad?
263. What characteristics and traits do you dislike in others?
264. What are your worst traits?
265. Why?
266. What are your toxic traits?
267. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
268. Why would you choose this?
269. Write your 5 best traits?
270. Write them down and read them out loud or 30 days while you work on shadow traits.
271. What do you think are the worst character traits in a person?
272. When is a time you had these traits?
273. Which of your traits do you feel is most overlooked?
274. How do you think people see you?
275. How would they describe you?
276. How do you feel about that?
Judgemental Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
277. What things make you judgemental?
278. Think about a situation where you would agree somebody could behave in a way you’d normally judge, even though you know you should not. Why is this?
279. What behaviors are you most judgemental of?
280. Is your judgment justified?
Disappointment Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
281. When is the last time you felt let disappointed?
282. Examine how you felt and whether it was truly rational, or if you were triggered.
283. Think of a time you were wronged.
284. How did that make you feel?
Self-Esteem and Self-Care Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
285. Do you believe you can accomplish anything you set your mind to?
286. Why or why not?
287. Are you truly yourself around others?
288. Do you put on a persona around people?
289. Do you truly know who you are?
290. What makes you feel self-conscious or unsafe around others?
291. Are you hard on yourself when you are not self-disciplined?
292. Why?
293. How are you letting yourself down at this time in your life?
294. How could you be better to yourself?
295. What was your last not nice thought? Did you say it out loud?
296. Was it deserved?
297. Were you being unfairly judgemental?
298. What makes you feel most valued?
299. What would you most like to be recognised for?
300. Do you feel unloved or unworthy as an adult?
301. What steps can you take to give more love and self-worth to yourself?
302. Do you accept yourself as you are?
303. What is the worst thing you’ve ever done to yourself?
304. Why did you do it?
305. How can you make up for it and show unconditional love to yourself now?
306. When are you hardest on yourself and why?
307. Is it easy for you to ask for help?
308. Does it make you feel weak or vulnerable?
309. Why do you think this is?
400. Do you feel misunderstood?
401. If yes, what misconceptions do people have of you?
402. What misconception do people have about you?
403. How does that make you feel?
404. Are you comfortable in your skin?
405. If there is something that you would like to change about yourself, what is it and why?
406. Do you practice self-care? Is there more that you could be doing for your wellbeing?
407. What do you most dislike about yourself?
408. Really figure out why this is and if you would feel that way about someone else?
409. Do you enjoy your own company?
410. Do you use other people to fill a void?
411. How do you respond to constructive criticism?
412. Are you over-sensitive to any feedback?
413. List reasons why you are deserve self-forgiveness. Acknowledge that you did the best you could with the information and experience you had at the time. Write an apology to yourself.
Shame Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
414. What memories bring you shame?
415. Think about who you were then, what led to your behaviour, and how you’ve changed since.
416. Now write out the words ‘I did the best I could at the time and I forgive myself’.
417. Think again about those memories of shame. Close your eyes and take yourself back to when you were at your very worst. Relive the feelings of that time. Now look around you and see how far you’ve come.
418. Consider your past self as you would a younger sibling or child-with honesty and compassion. Write your past self a letter, show that understanding and forgiveness.
419. What do you dislike about yourself the most?
420. What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done and why did you do it?
421. What times have I felt most ashamed in my life? What caused the shame?
422. What is the worst thing you’ve ever done to someone else?
423. Why did you do it?
424. Do you still feel guilty for this?
425. Would making amends with this person make you feel better?
426. How can you make up for it?
427. What memories are you most ashamed of?
428. Now, write everything you’re feeling. Really reflect on who you were then, what led up to the memory, and how you have changed since.
Regret Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
429. What’s your biggest regret in life?
430. How can you make peace with that?
431. Think about your situation at the time and give yourself permission to be okay with the fact that you did your best.
432. What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?
433. What made you do it?
434. Have you confessed to it ever?
435. Are you afraid of being honest?
436. Examine why this is and whether it’s truly valid.
437. Are you protecting yourself or others?
438. Could being open about it help to bring you peace?
439. How might you make up for it?
440. What is your biggest regret and why?
Disappointment Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
441. Who have you most let down in your lifetime, and how or why did it happen?
442. Have you made peace with it?
443. Write a letter to the person you disappointed telling them how you feel.
Freedom Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
444. What does freedom mean to you?
445. How do you define freedom?
446. How do you practice freedom?
447. What emotion does this trigger?
448. Which do you value more: freedom or security? Think about why.
Self Sabotage Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
449. When have you been self-sabotaging or destructive in your life?
450. Examine how you were feeling at the time, and what triggered your behaviour.
451. Describe a few times you self-sabotaged.
452. What triggered this behavior?
Life Purpose Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
453. What in your life gives you the most purpose?
454. Are you happy with where you are in your life? Is there anything that you can do to make it better?
Fear Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
455. What is your deepest, darkest fear?
456. Do you feel safe?
457. Why or why not?
458. If not, how can you feel safer?
459. What do you need to do to get your feeling of safety back?
460. What scares you the most?
461. If your greatest fear happened, what would be so bad about it?
462. Do you have recurring nightmares?
463. What are they about?
464. Why do they scare you?
465. How can you confront this fear in your waking life?
466. What unfulfilled dream scares you the most?
467. Why?
468. What steps could you take to build up to conquering your fear?
469. What most frightens you?
470. How might you be able to expose yourself to that fear in a safe way?
471. What’s the theme of your recurring nightmares? What might it relate to?
472. How might you face the fear causing your nightmare?
Respect Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
473. Do you feel as though people respect you?
Habits Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
474. Do you have any unhealthy attachments or habits?
475. What are you doing to curb them and why have you continued to entertain them?
476. Do you drink alcohol, or take drugs to escapd? What pain or emotions are you trying to escape? Can you allow yourself to feel this pain, accept it, and let it go?
Optimism and Mindset Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
477. Do you expect great things?
478. Do you know good things are coming to you?
479. Why do you deserve good, or why not?
480. Do you allow yourself to be sad when unhappy life events happen?
481. Why or why not?
482. I am happiest when I am __________________________.
483. Why?
484. I am saddest when I am ___________________________.
485. Why?
Communication Shadow Work Journal Prompts:
486. What do you wish people understood about you?
487. How might you be better able to demonstrate the quality that people tend to overlook?
488. What do people most often misunderstand about you?
489. How do you feel about that?
490. People misunderstand my ____________.
491. This makes me feel ___________________ because _____________________________________________________________________________.
492. How good are you at asking for help?
493. How do you approach and view it?
494. Do you believe asking for help is an indicator of strength, or weakness? Examine this.
Miscellaneous Prompts:
495. Do you like or dislike pets?
496.Does this stem from a healthy love/untimely death of a beloved childhood pet?
497. How can you work towards healing this if needed?
498. What one obstacle is holding you back from achieving the life of your dreams?
499. Why?
500. How can you overcome this?
501. What makes you feel most valued?
502.What do you want to be known for?
Final Thoughts on Shadow Work Journal Prompts
I hope you enjoyed this big list of shadow work journal prompts and you find it truly healing in your spiritual journey. Have you ever used this tool before? Which shadow work journal prompts do you like the most? Which prompts do you find most challenging? The best way, and the healthy way to become the best version of yourself is to focus on personal growth before trying to manifest!
As human beings, we all have experienced past traumas. So these shadow work questions are a great place to start. Don’t fear the dark side! It can be an extremely powerful tool for improving your mental health issues!
There are many different ways to raise your conscious awareness, but shadow work exercises are an amazing first step to conquering your darker side.
Your unconscious mind is your true self, so try to keep an open mind and find a safe space to do your shadow work journaling for the best results!
It’s also always helpful to speak with a professional and get professional help to deal with the emotions of bringing to light these hidden parts of yourself.
However, if this is your first time going through the process of shadow work, you will not be disappointed! The benefits of shadow work far outweigh any risks!
