Many of my postings on this blog have been on the topic of shame and shamelessness, and my guess is, it's not a very popular topic.

My impression, from talking with friends, is that the word "shame" itself puts people off. I've had friends tell me they never feel shame. And my training tells me otherwise. I can hear the shame in how they describe themselves and how they view the world.

Shame probably goes by numerous other names and descriptions. I think the most basic definition is, the feeling that there's "something wrong with you."

"Something wrong with you" can mean different things to different people. In Shadow Work, we categorize shame by the 4 archetypes -- meaning, each part of us feels shame in a slightly different way.

The Sovereign feels shame as "I'm not good enough" or "I'm not worthy." (Or words to that effect -- we can carry our wounds in slightly different words, but the basic meaning is the same.)

Does the average person think of "I'm not good enough" as shame?  Probably not, but that's what it stems from. We felt entirely good enough at one point, and someone aimed shame at us ("You think you're pretty special, don't you?") and now we feel not good enough.

The Magician feels shame as "I'm bad" or "I can't be trusted" or words to that effect.

The Lover feels shame as "I don't love right" or "I don't belong" or "I'm inappropriate."

The Warrior feels shame as "I don't exist separate from others" or "I'm nobody."