How to Reclaim Your Light Shadow: The Forgotten Key to Personal Growth

“We not only project our darkness—we also project our light.”
— Connie Zweig

When most people hear “shadow work,” they think of trauma, pain, and the hidden parts of ourselves we wish would go away. But there’s another side to the shadow—and it’s not dark at all.

It’s radiant.
And it is powerful.
It is you at your brightest.

And it’s time to reclaim it.

What Is the Light Shadow?

The Light Shadow, also known as the Golden Shadow, is the part of you that holds your creativity, power, joy, sensuality, and confidence—the parts that were too often judged, rejected, or feared by others (or by you).

As psychotherapist and author Connie Zweig explains:

“We fear our greatness as much as our destructiveness. So we project our brilliance onto others, never realizing it was ours all along.”

Why Do We Hide Our Brilliance?

We learned to:

Dim down so we wouldn’t threaten others
Hide joy or success to avoid jealousy
Underplay our intelligence, beauty, or ideas to avoid being “too much”

All of this shapes the unconscious belief that being fully ourselves is dangerous. So we tuck away our light—and with it, our joy and potential.

What the Experts Say About Reclaiming the Light

Spot Your Projections

Robert Augustus Masters teaches that what we admire in others often points to our own disowned brilliance.

Reflection: “What am I drawn to in others that I might actually be seeing in myself?”

Revisit Childhood Messages

Think back to when you were told not to shine too brightly.
Debbie Ford encourages us to rewrite those moments—not to stay in the wound, but to reclaim the wisdom buried there.

Journal Prompt: “What was I doing when I first felt I had to tone myself down?”

Create a Safe Space to Express Your Light

Whether in therapy, coaching, or trusted community spaces, you need somewhere safe to try out your light.

Connie Zweig reminds us: “We need to embody the light, not just admire it from a distance.”

Own Your Power Out Loud

Start saying aloud what you know to be true—but have been afraid to claim, “I am…”:

Creative
Wise
A powerful presence.

These affirmations aren’t arrogance—they’re acceptance.

Ritualise Your Reclaiming

Ritual helps us make the invisible visible. Try lighting a candle and saying, “I welcome back my light.” You could also try drawing your light self as a symbol or moving your body to music that expresses your radiance.

Make it sacred. This is a homecoming.

This Is Not About Ego. It’s About Essence.

In my own journey—from a childhood of being invisible in war-torn Belfast, to surviving an abusive marriage, to guiding women worldwide into healing—I’ve seen this over and over:

Reclaiming your light is the deepest healing of all.

Because what we often fear is not failure, but our own power.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.” — Marianne Williamson

You Were Born to Shine

If you feel blocked, stuck, or endlessly in recovery mode, ask yourself:

“Is there a part of me that’s afraid to be fully seen?”

Your Light Shadow holds not just your talents—but your life force.
It’s where your soul has been hiding, waiting for the invitation to return.

You are not here to stay small.
You are here to shine.
And now is your time.

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