THE PSYCHOLOGIST'S SHADOW. Or About Balance

The "shadow" is what we don't accept in ourselves. According to Jung, the shadow is the unconscious part made up of the unacceptable or rejected aspects of personality. For a psychologist, one manifestation of the shadow can be the inability to maintain balance between work and rest, between helping others and taking care of oneself.

It's quite common among psychologists to hear complaints about constant busyness, overload, and professional burnout. They give themselves to others, neglecting their own needs, sometimes with hidden pride, thinking "this is just who I am, I give myself away." This state has almost become the "norm" in our field, but it's precisely this shadow that needs to be recognized and addressed.

I really dislike slipping into my own shadow-taking on too many tasks, forgetting about rest, and spending weekends on work. But how good it is that I've learned to recognize this and stop. Every time we get on a plane, we hear the flight attendant's instructions: "In case of cabin depressurization, oxygen masks will drop. Put your mask on yourself first, and then help the person next to you." It's a fitting metaphor for psychological work.

Taking care of yourself isn't a weakness, it's a necessity. You can't help others if you're running on empty.

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