13 Ways to Use Archetypes to Heal
I was in my second year of graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania when I first discovered Goddess Archetypes.
And it might surprise you to know that I didn’t actually learn about them in school.
My graduate experience was far more traditional, focusing more on Psychodynamic Theory and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy than it did Depth & Archetypal Psychology.
But since I am forever a student, and someone who was drawn to the worlds of both science and spirit, I spent a great deal of my time outside of class doing my own research on ways to help others (and myself) heal.
My introduction to the world of depth and archetypal psychology came to me through the spiritual world, through a course I did with Marianne Williamson back when she was primarily known as a spiritual rockstar.
Until then, I thought of mythology and the worlds of Gods and Goddesses as a cherished part of my childhood education, but one that was nothing more than mere fantasy and something I’d just have to leave behind as I got older.
But when I was introduced to books like Women Who Run With the Wolves and Goddesses in Everywoman in that course with Marianne Williamson, it was like a portal opened up and every cell in my body screamed, ‘YES!’
I felt alive. I felt awakened. I felt like a missing piece had been activated and my soul was just on fire for it.
It was through those books that I began to explore the realm of archetypes and the power they hold in helping us heal, grow, and live into the women we came here to be.
I have devoted the last 13 years to discovering and mastering the deepest, most profound, most effective ways for people to heal and I’m convinced that archetypes are by far one of the most powerful tools we have available to us.
My goal here today is not to dive into everything there is to know about archetypes, but rather to give you a taste of what they are and why I find them to be such an incredible tool in women’s healing.
What are Archetypes?
Although the concept is ancient, the term ‘archetype’ comes to us from Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung.
He defines archetypes as patterns that exist in the collective unconscious. They are ways of being, thinking, and behaving that affect us on a subconscious level.
I see Archetypes as kind of like a template; they’re universal characters that have their own unique way of existing in the world that we can see replicated in the human psyche throughout time, place, and culture.
Contrary to what you might think, archetypes aren’t just some irrelevant philosophical or psychological concept that is only useful to psychoanalysts or academics in the ivory tower.
Archetypes are everywhere.
Archetypes reveal themselves to us in stories, mythology, and folklore. They’re the reason why we can draw connections between various characters with similar personalities or story arcs (think Frodo from Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter for example).
Archetypes have been around as long as history and this is part of why, I believe, they are so universally understood. They’re encoded within us, they’re part of our DNA, they’re part of our shared story as humans.
We see ourselves, our strengths, our weaknesses, and our stories reflected back to us through archetypes, whether we knew that was what was happening or not.
To get straight to the heart of the matter (no pun intended), archetypes, like symbols, are the the language of our souls and of the subconscious.
We understand archetypes on a level that bypasses the conscious brain and this is why they are such a profound tool in healing and personal growth.
Why I Work with Greek Goddess Archetypes
There are many different subcategories of Archetypes and a variety of ways to utilize them.
Archetypes can be as general as the Maiden, Mother, Crone trio or as specific as a particular God or Goddess.
In my work, I almost always start by introducing my clients to the Greek Goddess Archetypes, because those tend to be characters that most people have the most familiarity with.
Most of my clients have heard of at least one of the Greek Goddesses, if they’re not actually closeted fans of mythology to begin with.
In general, the Greek Goddess Archetypes tend to have greater resonance with the women I work with and they provide a beautiful foray into the world of archetypes. They function as a gateway and help us develop a common language and set of concepts to work with.
From there, it’s much easier to branch out and explore other archetypes and the nuance that comes with them.
The first archetypes I tend to introduce women to include:
Artemis, Goddess of the Moon, the Hunt, & the Protector of Young Girls and Women in Childbirth
Hera, Goddess of Heaven, the Queen
Demeter, Goddess of the Grain
Aphrodite, Goddess of Love, Beauty, & Creation
Each of these Goddesses has a very distinct way of thinking, specific strengths and weaknesses, career patterns, and relationship goals.
When women understand which characteristics belong to the Goddesses inherent in them, a whole new world of knowledge, insight, and power opens up to them, and that is where the real magic begins.
Archetypes & Women’s Healing
One of the things I love most about working with archetypes is the almost immediate resonance and understanding that happens when a woman is introduced to them.
Women can feel their archetypes. We resonate with aspects of these Goddesses immediately.
Even by hearing a five minute synopsis of the characteristics inherent with each Goddess, my clients go “Ohhhh…yeah, that one is me and I’ve got a little bit of her and oh yeah I can definitely see how this one is out of her temple.”
Suddenly, it’s very easy to see why you tend towards thinking, behaving, or living in a certain way.
Suddenly, you understand why your personality leans in this direction rather than another.
Suddenly, you get instant clarity about why a certain aspect of your life isn’t working, feels out of balance, or isn’t providing you with the sense of meaning and satisfaction that you thought it would.
When you start to see your own inner landscape in terms of these various archetypes, a whole new world opens up to you.
And because archetypes are the language of our souls and of our subconscious, they bypass the neediness of the conscious brain and go straight to a deeper level within us…one where we feel empowered and clear, rather than weak, confused, or like victims to our own experience.
Every single time I introduce a woman to her archetypes, something clicks.
All of a sudden she understands herself differently; not as a broken and in need of fixing (as so much of the therapy world is insistent upon reinforcing), but as a complex being who maybe just needs to learn how to activate her strengths instead of just focusing on her weaknesses.
13 Ways to Use Archetypes in Your Healing
1) Activate Hidden Strengths
When you understand the archetypes that are present within you, you can start to see how each Goddess has her own strengths and weaknesses. Many times, women will have an archetype present that they had no idea about, and once they start to learn her nuances, they see that they’ve had latent strengths hidden within them they can start to activate, use, and leverage.
2) Decrease Shame Around Weaknesses
Looking at archetypes as aspects of our inner psychic structure helps us conceptualize weaknesses not as a moral failing, but rather the function of a Goddess who is “out of her temple” (i.e. running wild) or out of balance. This gives us both a new vocabulary and a new compass to work with to decrease the shame we might feel about our imperfections.
3) Increased Clarity Around Imbalances In Your Life
Every Goddess has her own personality, which includes a zone of genius and specific desires. For example, women with a strong Hera crave the depth of an intimate romantic relationship while Athena women could care less about a relationship and just want to succeed in their careers.
But the women I work with are more complex than that. They might have a strong Hera AND a strong Athena AND a strong Demeter and really want to be mothers. When you know which Goddesses are part of your inner pantheon and you know what motivates each of them, you can start to see imbalances in your life in terms of competition amongst the Goddesses. When we combine this knowledge with the cyclical work of the Sacred Feminine, we can start to help support each of your Goddesses in seasons where she is front and center and give you tools to quell her when she needs to take a back seat.
4) See Unhelpful Patterns in Your Life as a Function of a Particular Archetype (and Have a Roadmap to Heal it)
So often I see women playing out maladaptive patterns in their lives without the awareness that it’s simply a Goddess who is out of her Temple and needs some healing. For example, when I work with women who are chronic people-pleasers, perfectionists, and have trouble voicing their needs, desires, and opinions to others, I automatically know that Persephone is in play. And when we have that information, there are certain tools and skills that we can call upon to help Persephone heal.
5) Understand Why It’s Been Hard for You to Attract or Keep the Relationship of Your Dreams
Many women come to me wanting to find a healthy romantic partner after a series of toxic mishaps, and when this happens, we have to work with her inner Hera. When out of her temple (i.e. not functioning properly), Hera can be jealous, needy, clingy, and try to mold and change herself to become the “perfect” woman for the man she is interested in.
However, as we previously discussed, women can also have other archetypes active that become “competitive” with Hera, and tempt the woman to put other things in front of a romantic relationship. Women with a strong Artemis, Athena, Hestia, or Aphrodite can often feel themselves internally torn between wanting their independence (for one reason or another) and the desire to fall in love and build a life with someone.
Knowing which archetypes are affecting your love life gives us a clearer picture of the psychic forces at play and an easier, more tangible way to work with them.
6) Conceptualizing Mental Health Challenges Differently & Regaining Your Agency to Heal From Them
Traditional psychology does a very poor job at exploring the psycho-spiritual elements of many mental health issues. Have you ever noticed that the more someone goes to therapy, quite often the more they need it? As Positive Psychology researcher Shawn Achor once said, “If you go into a therapist’s office with one problem, we want you to leave knowing you have ten. Why? Because the business model is predicated on you coming back for more.”
When we infuse archetypal work into the Sacred Feminine, Soul-Healing work we do here, it gives you the chance to tell a new story about the struggles you’ve been through. Instead of seeing yourself as a diagnosis, you get the chance to see a mental health challenge in a mythic context, as part of your Soul’s journey, and as an opportunity for growth instead of as a death sentence or something you need to spend the rest of your life working on in a therapist’s office.
7) Helping You Capitalize on Your Strengths to Leverage in the Workplace/Your Career
Having an understanding of your inner psychic structure and all the different strengths you can tap into has numerous spiritual benefits, but it also has some immensely practical benefits as well. One of my unique strengths is helping women identify and leverage their archetypal strengths to advance in their career, use their skills in a non-traditional way (this is how I became a Consumer Insights Director creating brand strategies for Fortune 50 companies with no business training), or make a career change without necessarily needing more education.
8) Infuse More Beauty, Joy, Love, and Ease into Your Life
Oftentimes it is in the under-used or under-developed archetypes were we can tap into a greater capacity to bring more love, joy, and ease into our lives. Similarly, helping you balance any archetypes who are more in excess can tip the scales back so you can start to feel the way you’ve always wanted to feel.
9) Deepen Your Spiritual Connection
Sometimes I work with women who prefer to see the Goddess Archetypes solely as psychic constructs, and that is beautiful. But sometimes it speaks to a woman’s beliefs and sensibilities to see the Goddesses as Divine Beings. I never mandate that a woman see them in either which way, but if you do believe in these Goddesses as beings that you can connect with spiritually, a whole new world of magic opens up.
10) Increase Your Confidence
I’ve often found that there are one, maybe two Goddess Archetypes that a woman feels a deep affinity with. Sometimes we keep that affinity throughout our lives and sometimes they cycle depending on the season of life we are in. Either way, when you can develop a strong relationship with this part of yourself, you will undoubtedly tap into a kind of confidence you didn’t know you had. I’ve seen women heal from decade’s long eating disorders, depression, and anxiety simply by working with their archetypes.
11) Understanding Why You Haven’t Felt Satisfied in Life Even if You “Have All the Things”
One of the great tragedies of human life is when a non-dominant archetype becomes activated and socialized to the point where a woman realizes she has spent her whole life devoting herself to an identity that wasn’t really hers to begin with.
There is so much conditioning that happens for so many women, and when we choose attachment over authenticity (as Gabor Maté says), we can find ourselves in the difficult place of realizing that we’ve sacrificed our truth in order to be loved and accepted by those around us.
Much of the work I do with women is around helping them untangle this conditioning so that they can stop investing an archetype who has taken over their life, but who isn’t actually fulfilling them.
12) Creating a Lifestyle that Feels Nourishing Instead of Depleting
Most of the women I work with find themselves in a position where they don’t know how to rest and they certainly don’t know how to balance the hustle with the rejuvenation. The way you live your life is everything. If you are running yourself into the ground to make a lot of money or hustle to the next step and you let that way of life take over, you will eventually find yourself at the mercy of your Soul and Body when they force you to stop.
I often find this in women with a strong Athena (high-functioning career women), imbalanced Hera’s (women who do everything for their husbands and don’t care for themselves), and Demeter women who put their children’s needs before their owns on a consistent basis and don’t fill up their cups.
In my world we look at creating a holistic way of life that nourishes every part of you and archetypes are a powerful way to start.
13) Helping You Find a Sense of Meaning & Purpose
I’ve spent the last decade in the mental health profession and something I have seen time and time again, across gender, race, SES, and diagnoses (most of them anyway) is that once someone has gotten to a place where their basic needs are met and their symptoms have abated, the thing they care about most is finding a sense of meaning and purpose.
As humans, we crave meaning in our lives. We want to live on purpose. We want to know that we did something important while we were here.
Of course, what this is changes for everyone and it definitely doesn’t have to mean becoming famous or making a lot of money. It’s not about the fame and it’s not about the money. It’s about making our own kind of impact. And the only way to do this is to follow your Soul.
Archetypal work is a powerful way to understand what’s important to you and why. Which Goddesses are most deeply connected to your Soul and which ones are more connected to your Ego? Which ones are loud and which ones need to be heard? And which ones should you follow and which ones might get in your way?
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As one client recently told me, “Archetypes are one of the most helpful concepts I’ve ever learned from you.”
The world of archetypes is part of the lost lineage of the Sacred Feminine.
If we lived in a different time and place, this information would not be new or still considered fringe to so many people. It would be a given. It would be something that the whole of society was familiar with.
Ancient cultures knew the importance of archetypes because they helped everyone understand their place in life, their place in society, and how to tap into their purpose on this planet.
Rites of passage and initiatory processes are based on transition from one archetype into another and this is something our culture has lost.
Perhaps the reason I love working with Goddess Archetypes the most (besides the fact that they are a more efficient way to work. through challenges and help you heal), is that they also connect women directly to the Sacred Feminine and it makes your life actually feel like an incredible spiritual journey rather a trauma we are all collectively subject to.
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If you feel like something has been awakened inside of you and you are ready to explore the Goddess Archetypes that live within you, I would love to guide you through an Archetypal Activation Session and help you catalyze deeper healing, joy, and meaning in your life…