Fear
You are a gentle, empathetic, and considerate soul who cares a great deal about other people. However, something is lurking within the depths of your subconscious, and that force is fear.
Fear can manifest in countless shapes and forms. It can emerge as an obsessive compulsion, an addiction, repetitive nightmares, generalized anxiety, unwillingness to take risks, fear of other people, clinging to toxic relationships, avoidance, the need for control … and countless other expressions.
Deep down, you are terrified of something, and it is eating you up. What are you afraid of? Who is the Lord or Lady of your Underworld?
One helpful way to discover what you’re scared of is by doing shadow work. Your shadow self is the part of you that you’d prefer to deny, repress, escape, numb, or disown; it possesses everything that you’re afraid of … and also secretly desire.
One simple way of doing shadow work is to take something you’re currently afraid of and ask, “What is the worst that could happen?” Examine your response. What irrational fears have taken root in your mind? What core beliefs about yourself are sabotaging your capacity to experience inner peace?
By slowly confronting each source of fear and compassionately meeting and understanding it, you will provide yourself with a sense of safety as you explore the unknown. Perhaps the fear you carry is only really an absence of self-love, a disconnection from your soul?