In this video, I explore the Feeling Body archetype, traditionally known as the Lover.

This is the part of us that longs to belong and connect. It connects us to others, to ourselves, to our bodies, to nature and to the flow of life. Our inner child lives here. Our creativity, spontaneity and imagination live here. Our sensuality and sexuality live here.

This archetype can be wild and free, but it is also deeply vulnerable. True connection requires vulnerability. To connect deeply with another person, or even with ourselves, we must first be willing to be seen in our softness.

Grief is not the problem, it is the key that unlocks this archetype. When we allow ourselves to grieve loss, we soften. If we do not grieve lost connections, we cannot fully open to new ones. The grieving process clears the way for connection.

At its core, the healed Feeling Body knows:

You are lovable. I enjoy connecting with you. I enjoy being loved by you.

We explore:

• The Yin and Yang aspects of the Feeling Body

• Yang: reaching upward and outward, connecting to spirit, to others, to the wider flow of life

• Yin: looking inward and downward, connecting to the soul and the life flowing within

• The primal bonding instinct: our survival depends on connection from birth

• The mating instinct: powerful, natural and not to be pushed into shadow

• The gateway emotion of grief as the doorway to softness and reconnection

• The core wounding message: “You are not lovable” or “You don’t love in the right way”

• How inflation shows up (drama, emotional intensity, clinginess, crisis cycles, addictive patterns, trauma stored in the body)

• How deflation shows up (stoicism, dryness, disconnection, loneliness, shaming warmth or vulnerability in others)

• How we consciously explore instincts and attractions in a safe space rather than pushing them into shadow

• How we work somatically in Shadow Work, locating feelings in the body and using metaphor to gently transform stored trauma

• How we process grief around lost relationships so you can stay connected in a joyful way rather than through pain

A healthy Feeling Body can say, “I feel sad.” “I feel frightened.” “I feel excited.” It expects to be welcomed in its vulnerability.

A wounded Feeling Body cannot safely express its true feelings. Instead of saying, “I’m scared,” it may control. Instead of sharing sadness, it may create drama, or it may shut down entirely and disconnect.

In Shadow Work, we work directly with the body. We help you find where feelings live physically, a tight chest, a lump in the throat, butterflies in the belly, and we gently support you to stay present with those sensations. As you process stored grief and unmet longing, connection becomes safe again.

This is connection with authenticity. Not drama or disconnection, but warmth, vulnerability and embodied intimacy, unlocked through grief. Healed through the knowing that you are lovable.