šŸ–¤ Weekly Witchy CHALLENGE- From the Shadows

I did some journaling a few nights ago as part of my Shadow Work.

One of the questions I asked myself was why Iā€™ve been getting very angry lately when people are rude to me while Iā€™m working or shopping. Sadly, the people in my town arenā€™t that friendly. One time, when I was in Walmart, a woman yelled, ā€œHello, youā€™re in my wayā€ instead of saying, ā€œexcuse meā€. I had the urge to just stand there defiantly and not let her through. But it was a week or two before Christmas and Yule and I didnā€™t want to make things difficult for other shoppers.

My friendly/polite customer ratings have gone down a bit at work. My boss has told me thatā€™s itā€™s not that difficult to be friendly and polite. That he works more than I and always try to be friendly and polite. I too always try to not be rude, even when Iā€™m tired or just having a bad day (which Iā€™ve failed to do occasionally). My grandpa has and dad has the attitude that ā€œif I can do it, so can you.ā€ Unfortunately, I carry this attitude with me sometimes.

I try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt and remember that everyone canā€™t do what I can do because weā€™re all different physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Everyone has a reason for why theyā€™re being rude, but that doesnā€™t necessarily mean thatā€™s just part of their personality. They might be tired from work, might not be feeling well, under a lot of stress, and a myriad of other reasons.

This challenge was a bit difficult for me because itā€™s never easy to confront the darker aspects of yourself, but none of us are perfect beings and itā€™s not shameful to admit or acknowledge your flaws.

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Anne2,
They say the best medicine is laughter! 10-4

Jeannie

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For this challenge, I turned to a book I got last month, called Journaling the Tarot. How it works is when you pull a card a day it has a list of questions you can use as journaling prompts. Like the cards some are happy and some not so nice.

So I went to the Nine of Swords, the most depressing card in the deck in my opinion, and went to the first question. ā€œWhat are you overthinking? How might you form a better sense of balance?ā€

And I realized that I still overthink what people say and think about me. I shouldnā€™t care but I do. I worry about if Iā€™m polite enough if people will like me, all those superficial things. Because society demands we conform probably, not sure why else I would worry. As much as Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers tell you itā€™s okay to be different, school kinda beats it into your head that everyone has to be the same.

Not quite sure when this turned into a phobia for me, but it did. Iā€™m getting better though, and at least Iā€™ve admitted itā€™s a problem and am now working on it. Something for me to journal on in the future.

So thatā€™s what I worked on for Shadow Work. Hope everyone else is doing okay.

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:warning: TW/Content warning: Blood, depression, anxiety. I will blur out any parts that may cause discomfort, but just a headā€™s up that it will contain content about blood and mental health. Please feel free to skip over this post if that will make you uncomfortable. :warning:

As I said earlier in this thread, this was a perfectly-timed challenge because Iā€™ve been wanting to delve deeper into Shadow Work, and to start working on harnessing the energies of the Dark Moon, especially as it relates to Hekate.

Iā€™ve been working through a flare-up of my depression and anxiety symptoms the past two weeks or so, so I havenā€™t been diving into this challenge quite as deeply as Iā€™d like to, and Iā€™ve been as gentle as possible on myself while still working to embrace my shadowy side. I have saved the workbooks shared by @Artemisia (thank you for sharing these! ^_^), and will work through them after Iā€™ve worked through this cycle of not-perfect mental health.

In the meantime, Iā€™ve been journaling and trying to figure out how I can continue to push through and continue this up-swing Iā€™m currently on. I reached the conclusion that a large portion of my anxiety and depression has been related to my tendency to procrastinate.

Iā€™ve had a huge boulder on my shoulders lately: Iā€™m turning 26 in the next few days, and on that day, Iā€™ll be losing my health insurance coverage because Iā€™m ageing out of my parentsā€™ plan. Iā€™ve been so stressed out and absolutely overwhelmed by all the different options and how complicated and expensive healthcare is here in the US. I was finally able to pull myself together enough to overcome my mental shut-down and just bite the bullet and sign up for a health plan. As soon as I finished the process, I felt a HUGE weight lifted off my shoulders, and feel like I overcame a massive block in my self-improvement.

Now that that obstacle is out of the way, I can focus on working on overcoming my procrastination.

My journaling has also revealed the root of several of my other stressors and Iā€™ve been able to work through what I need to do to work on overcoming them as well.

In terms of working with the energies of the Dark Moon, Iā€™ve been working on forming a relationship with Hekate. I donā€™t want to go into too much detail because I feel like I want to keep something information personal. I will say that in addition to my usual devotion/offering to Hekate Iā€™ve been doing, I suddenly got the urge one night to offer a bit of blood to Hekate. I got this feeling that she was waiting for me to show some sort of serious effort on my part, so I picked up some sterile single-use lancets.

The next night, I anointed a candle with Hekate Oil from WitchLab, and pricked my finger with one of the single-use lancets. I added three drops of blood onto the candle, one for each of the three aspects of Hekate. I lit the candle and reflected on Hekate as the Bearer of Light, and asked her to illuminate a proper path for me. Again, I donā€™t want to go too deep into the personal details, but I will say that I had a very intense experience, and feel like Iā€™m a step closer to having a more full-on working relationship with Her. I CANNOT wait for the date of the actual Dark Moon, which isnā€™t until May 11!

At the expense of trying not to ramble too much, Iā€™ll go ahead and end here. I thoroughly enjoyed the Shadow Work and Dark Moon work Iā€™ve done during this weekly challenge period!

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@Amethyst I can totally relate to where you are coming from, but as I get older is when something I heard long ago now comes into my mind and I try to repeat this whenever I have similar thoughts running through my head.

Other peopleā€™s opinions about me are none of my business.

I repeat that to myself a few times so it sinks in and those moments pass. I would consider myself a good person, I always try and do the right thing, but I realize that some actions may not bode well with others. I try not to say anything about anyone that I would not say to them face to face. And for me I follow the Rede ā€œan ye harm none, do as ye willā€.

Despite all of that there will still be those that feel the need to criticize the things I do, and I suppose it is their right, just as it is my right to do as I choose and not let their opinions impact me.

You can also do a daily affirmation to help when necessary. But remember you are an amazing person on an amazing path, we are here to help lift your spirits and provide support along the way.

Blessed be.

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I made a separate Post for this weeks challenge :heartpulse: Blessed Be :heartpulse:

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@Jewitch :warning: CW: blood :drop_of_blood:

Iā€™ve sometimes had a similar feeling with Lilith, that she might appreciate an offering of blood. How to practically extract it has been more of a problem than my willingness really! Sterile lancets sound just perfect for that, thank you for the idea.

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Thank you @Saulamay! Thatā€™s incredibly kind of you. Iā€™m doing better at the worrying over people thing, I used to be highly paranoid. To the point that if someone sat beside me at work one day and moved the next I wondered what I did to make them mad. If they were laughing at me behind my back.

Thank goddess that with time and meds and therapy itā€™s not that bad anymore. Still, your words make sense, I canā€™t control what other people think of me. And Iā€™m blessed to have found this place on my path.

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Iā€™ve recently started a Book of Mirrors that also doubles as a Shadow work journal, and Iā€™ve been pretty happy with my progress with it. Iā€™m finding spending a little extra on the look and feel of it was a good choice and helps me connect better with it.


Shadow work is an important aspect of my Craft, and complements my therapy sessions well too. My latest finding there has been automatic writing when consumed by strong emotions: excitement, frustration, sexual arousal, you name it! It gives a healthy outlet for the feelings and helps me express them in a more constructive and structured way if I so choose, and also leaves a record to come back to later with a different mindset.

Iā€™m also waiting for the post to bring me this Archetype deck by Caroline Myss to explore archetypes with, and how I relate to them! Should be exciting! :black_heart:

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:warning: CW: blood

Yeah, Iā€™d recommend the sterile lancets ā€“ theyā€™re clean, quick, relatively painless, and not excessive :sweat_smile: Iā€™m not necessarily advocating blood offerings, and Iā€™m definitely not advocating self-harm, but I will say that I feel like Hekate appreciated the gesture

You can get single-use sterile disposable lancets on Amazon, or you can get one of the reusable lancing devices and a decent amount of the single-use needles for use with the lancet surprisingly inexpensively! :slight_smile:

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Yep it is @Jeannie1 , GinTama taught me that, itā€™s because of how utterly ridiculous the show is most of the time

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Beautiful job with your journalling and the shadow work prompts, @Christina4! :open_book: Hard work indeed- but I love how you put it! Really great job :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

Congrats on your shadow tarot spread and prompts! You are doing wonderfully delving into Shadow Work, @Artemisia :black_heart: :blush:

You are very welcome, @Jeannie1- the meditation and ritual are great ways to dive into Shadow Work. I know you are dealing with a lot on your plate now, and Shadow Work can be painful- so feel free to take it easy and remember to take good care of yourself post ritual. Good luck! :heart: :pray:

It sounds like a very powerful experience, @anne2- good for you! :clap: Thanks to your inner strength and the light of your spirit guide, Iā€™m glad you were able to surpass the anger and find therapeutic release in your Shadow magick. Congrats to you- it is impressive! :sparkles:

Please feel free to share your Shadow Work prompt, @AliceInWonderdab! I would love to read it :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

Thanks again for all of your Shadow Work experiences in the other thread, @IrisW! :hearts:

It sounds like you have all the tools you need, @elizabeth5- wishing you the best of luck on your first experience with Shadow Work! :blush: Enjoy the cartomancy and workbook :black_heart:

Congrats on your first dive into Shadow Work, @mary25! :clap: Drawing on the moonā€™s energy and using the workbook are wonderful ways to begin an adventure in shadowy magick. It sounds like your spellwork and the meditation were tricky but lead to you finding some meaning. Really well done- Iā€™m proud of you! :sparkling_heart:

Thanks again for your Shadow Work Spell in the other thread, @NickWick! It was beautiful to read :scroll::two_hearts:

It sounds like your Shadow Work and journalling helped you to overcome some internal darkness and conflict to find the answers you were seeking, @Kasandra. Those who work in customer service are my heroes- I know first hand from my own early customer services jobs that dealing with customers takes a herculean effort at times. You found the answer- everyone has their own problems and bad days- the most we can do is be our own source of light. Sometimes it wonā€™t have an effect, but sometimes it can make all the difference for someone else! :sun: Beautifully done- thanks for sharing! :heartpulse:

Journaling the Tarot sounds like a treasure trove of advice- and you are brave for jumping right to the Nine of Swords, @Amethyst! :crossed_swords: Conflicting information and high goals make some advice much easier to give out than to actually implement into ourselves. I also struggle with the ā€œjust be yourself!ā€ goal- it is a long work in process! But sometimes the value really is in the journey, and hopefully you feel a bit more confident and sure after spending this time with yourself doing Shadow Work :black_heart: :relaxed:

Good for you for finding a balance between Shadow Work and taking care of yourself, @Jewitch- it is easier said than done, but I think you did wonderfully! :clap: I think you are very mature- my response to losing healthcare coverage in the USA was to pack up and move to another country :sweat_smile: Congrats on your successful Shadow Work and also wishing you a very happy birthday this week! :birthday: :partying_face: Blessed be!

Beautiful wisdom, @Saulamay! Thank you again for sharing your Shadow Work experience in the other thread :blush::+1:

Wonderful- thanks again for sharing your Shadow Work, @Liisa! :sparkling_heart:

Well done on your Shadow Work Journal/ Book of Mirrors, @CelestiaMoon! :clap: Writing can be a very healthy outlet indeed- may your book continue to mirror your soul and allow you to delve even deeper into your inner worlds! :blush: Thanks for sharing, and enjoy! :black_heart:

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I love a good dive into Shadow Work here and there- although itā€™s not something I can do every week and I always make sure to check that Iā€™m in a good mindset for it :relieved:

After a bit of thought about what to do for this challenge, I combined a Waning Moon Bath Ritual :waning_crescent_moon: :bathtub: with some Mirror Meditation :person_in_lotus_position: :candle:.

A pre-ritual picture:

I filled the tub with water, added some Rose Bath Salt :rose: (kind of a self-love buffer to the Shadow Work) and placed a mirror and single candle next to the tub :candle:

I had a very long and thoughtful soak while looking into the mirror. It was a bit spooky, but the scent of rose and soothing warm water helped to keep me grounded and maintain a feeling of safety during spellwork :sparkles::relaxed:

Thereā€™s been a lot to be nervous and stressed about, so this meditation was definitely a struggle between letting my mind run in worrying circles and actually trying to dig down and find ways to break my problems into more manageable bits :scissors: :+1:

The ritual meditation helped to dig things up, but I found the real value in writing things in my journal afterwards :open_book: . It really helped the stress to come under control and work out in a way that seems less cloudy and mysterious and much more manageable :raised_hands:


I just want to say again really well done to everyone with their Shadow Work! It is definitely a tough aspect and many of you are jumping into Shadow Magick for the first time- it has been so powerful to read your replies! :black_heart:

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Itā€™s friendly reminder time!

:exclamation: This challenge will close TOMORROW :exclamation:

If you would like to participate and havenā€™t done so already, please post about your challenge experience(s) by the deadline: Tomorrow: May 11th, 7:00 AM CET (Central European Time Zone)

Blessed be! :new_moon: :sparkles::black_heart:

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Youā€™re so brave for doing this! Iā€™d have to challenge myself in the future to do this. Thanks for sharing!!! Seems beneficial.

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Thank you, love! It is a good book, with about twenty different prompts for each card. It should keep me journaling for a while!

I just get so afraid about being myself, afraid that people will find out Iā€™m different and persecute me. Itā€™s weird, I wonder sometimes if itā€™s past life trauma or something. Who knows? Thanks for the encouragement though!

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I love writing in my journal to get things out & manageable. Great work! Iā€™m proud of you for doing it. I love taking a shower with intent. Itā€™s very refreshing. Iā€™m happy that you did some work & got through it @BryWisteria

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Oh My Goddessā€™ where to begin ā€˜ there is always so much to say about Shadow Work; every one has a different way of dealing or processing their own emotions. & Sometimes it all gets so overwhelming that you run to your Altar and just start sobbing. You then feel the presence of Nature Nurturing you through it. But if you ever get stuck or so low that u donā€™t know what or where to turn , these are my favorite quotes and or passages that have become special to me.


image



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Yā€™all Iā€™m pretty sure Sheā€™s trying to tell me Somethingā€™ :cupid::cupid:

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Thank you for sharing @steph! Those are great passages/quotes. I hope you have a great day & you will be stronger on the other side. :heart: Have a great day! :sun_behind_small_cloud:

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