Shame-"a soul feeding emotion": Archetypal work and the transformation of the shadow of shame in a group development process

Abstract

Carl Gustav Jung changed the way of thinking about the person, the conscious and the unconscious. According to Jung, every person carries a shadow and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the denser it is. Shame is viewed as an intense, "soul eating" emotion which can impact negatively on the individual. Caroline Myss has developed a therapeutical concept to work with Jung's archetypes in individual therapy from a positive psychology perspective. The question addressed in this chapter is how shame can be transformed from shadow into light, from the unconscious into consciousness. The aim of this chapter is to present a selected single case study on a therapeutical process working with shame, shadow and archetypal psychology in an individual and group process. Findings show that shame can be transformed through therapeutical work from a "soul eating" into a "soul feeding" emotion.