“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure that you seek.” -Joseph Campbell
I’ve been chasing after my own healing and well-being for a long time.
Until my son was born though, I hadn’t done much actual inner work.
As soon as I began to feel the responsibility of fatherhood, I realized that one of the best gifts I can give my son is to take care of my own issues. Some might say that’s the best gift of all.
The problem for me was, I felt like I had such a laundry list of those issues which I have been pushing aside and piling up all my life. Losing a daughter and never properly grieving over that. Job loss, estrangement from family, emotional traumas I experienced growing up. Traumas as an adult too.
We all go through difficult and stressful times in life. I have just never dealt with any of it in positive way, and that’s if I dealt with it at all.
Even after my son was born, I delayed getting serious, because I found it to be pretty painful work, digging within myself and facing the grief and trauma. There seemed like so much that I either kept buried, or that I developed coping skills around. Some of my delaying was based on an egoic need to pretend that I was keeping it all together, when really underneath was the same mass of confusion, shame and worry that I’ve had inside myself for most of my life.
Although I had a lot going on during my son’s first years of life, I began taking on more of this inner work. I came to see it not only as a gift to my son – I began to see it as a necessity for my own mental health and well-being.
Dr. Shefali & The Conscious Parent
In 2015, I discovered Dr. Shefali.
I think my first encounter with her was seeing her Ted Talk on Conscious Parenting. I was so impressed and felt aligned with everything she had to say. I ordered her book, The Conscious Parent, and tore through it once it arrived.
In 2016, I started attending her talks around the San Francisco Bay Area, and I found myself a supporter and an advocate for the messages she promotes, of doing that inner work within, and of working on changing ourselves as parents.
I was also actually doing more of the inner work that I had been avoiding for so long. It was still so painful and felt like so much to tackle, but I knew I had to do it.
I took up journaling, I began a healthier diet, and I started going to therapy. I was seeing some benefits from those things, but still had many struggles within myself.
The Year of the Awakened Heart
2017 is when things really shifted for me, when I took Dr. Shefali’s course The Year of the Awakened Heart. This online course was a full year of twice-weekly meetings with Shefali. Each week she gave a live teaching on Tuesday evenings and then led a meditation every Thursday.
I showed up every week, I attended each class and meditation, and I began practicing more meditation on my own.
I was journaling about the things I was learning and I got involved in the facebook group she created for course discussion.
It turned out to be a very emotionally challenging journey for me. I faced so much stuff within myself that I’ve been neglecting and resisting for all of my adult life. As mentioned above, grief over losing my daughter years ago, struggles with self-worth, family issues, and emotional pain going back to childhood.
But with the guidance and support of Dr. Shefali, I began to face all my brokenness, and started to pick up the pieces.
It has been an arduous process, very challenging at times. But with the guidance and support of Shefali, along with access to her support network, I realized what an amazing opportunity it was to finally deal with all my stuff.
In addition to the course, I also attended her conference called ‘Evolve’ in Long Beach, California, where I got to meet Shefali and other course attendees. The whole experience was amazing, I’ve never been to anything like it.
All I can say, now that it is January 2018, is that I have really transformed as a result of being in Shefali’s course.
I look back just one year ago, and I do not see myself as the same person I am today.
Some of the ways I have changed:
- I am more aligned with who I am – with my true inner spirit.
- I am more in touch with the great big heart within that I’ve always known existed within, but had been unconsciously protecting from harm.
- I feel I have greater courage to speak my truth now.
- I feel less afraid to talk about some of the difficult and traumatic experiences I’ve been through in my life.
- I also feel less shame, guilt and fear.
It wasn’t easy. The process of transformation felt dark and painful at times. But in the end, Dr. Shefali’s course The Year of the Awakened Heart was such an amazing, powerful and life-changing experience for me.
I feel confident in saying that 2017 will be one I look back on as the year I truly got myself turned around.
2018 – The Year of Manifestation
This year, starting January 2018, Shefali has announced another year long course called The Year of Manifestation, and I am recommending and encouraging others to take this course. (link to sign up below)
It will be another full year of online teaching every week, and Shefali will continue to lead meditations every Thursday.
I can’t recommend taking this course strongly enough, for anyone taking their personal transformation seriously.
It’s worth it, as a gift to yourself, as well as others (because they benefit from your transformation too) – including your children, your families and your friends.
Shefali has scheduled some big name guest speakers, such as Dr. Michael Beckwith, Kate Northrup, Tom Bilyeu, Danielle LaPorte, Lewis Howes and Barnet Bain.
The format will continue as last year, so you’ll get her teachings every week, in a live webinar where she teaches and answers questions.
You also get access to Shefali’s support network of coaches, caretakers, and other awakened hearts. The community Shefali has developed is so encouraging, supportive and insightful. Throughout 2017, we revealed some of our deepest wounds to each other and provided the understanding and empathy as well as practical recommendations for how to move forward. I have no doubt that 2018 will continue along that way and promises to be even more improved.
I just can’t say enough about the last year I spent as a student of Dr. Shefali, and I can’t encourage others more to take her next course.
I am honored to call myself among her tribe.
Course Registration
The link to this year’s course with Shefali is here:
drshefali.teachable.com/?affcode=168253_lav0sjsb
If you want transformation and healing in your life, take the course.
If you are looking for that breakthrough in your own personal development, take the course.
You can go as deep or as shallow into it as you like. It’s just so worth it. You will get a full year of access to Dr. Shefali who is one of the top clinical psychologists in the world (Oprah described her as being the best she’s ever heard).
You can ask questions about your own healing journey. It’s an opportunity to deal with the issues that maybe you have been putting aside for years, just like I had been doing.
For those who may still be skeptical, to give you some idea of what Shefali is about, here is a full (free) playlist on YouTube featuring her coverage of her book The Awakened Family:
And here is a video she recently did explaining how she helps people:
Follow Dr. Shefali on Facebook here
My healing journey hasn’t come to an end, as it’s a lifelong process of discovery, growth and realignment.
What I have done is taken a new direction, with greater courage and sense of self worth, an improved mindset, and a conscious, awakened heart. Thanks to Dr. Shefali. 🙏
– Eric
Sign up for Dr. Shefali’s year-long course ‘The Year of Manifestation’
https://drshefali.teachable.com/?affcode=168253_lav0sjsb
* Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you anything extra, they will help me keep the site up and running AND keep it as ad free as possible. Please read my disclosure policy for more details.
