Decluttering By Jungian Archetypes

How to Jumpstart Your Unburdening Journey with Shadow Work

Decluttering is not only a mindfulness practice; it is also a form of shadow work and an unburdening of physical, emotional, and mental clutter. Knowing your Jungian Archetype can help you illuminate your inner world and clear out the cobwebs, revealing hidden treasures. By understanding the patterns that shape your thoughts, behaviors, and attachments, you can clear not only your home but also the emotional clutter weighing you down. Let’s talk about it.

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How Many Jungian Archetypes Are There?

Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, was deemed the father of Shadow Work.

I think it’s important to note here that many other cultures had been practicing their own version of shadow work long before his re-discovery. It is not lost on me his Westernized version of Eastern philosophy. I think it is important to honor and understand where these things originated from and appreciate where appropriate. For example, Tantra, I-Ching, Mindfulness, and Yoga.

For the purpose of this post and my decluttering techniques, we will be focusing on his use of the archetypes.

Jung introduced the concept of archetypes as universal, recurring symbols or themes present in human psychology. While he initially identified a few key archetypes, his work eventually expanded into 12 primary archetypes, which represent different aspects of the human psyche.

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Photo by Dimmis Vart on Unsplash

What Are the 12 Jungian Archetypes?

Jung’s 12 archetypes fall into four categories, each reflecting fundamental human motivations:

1. The Ego Types (Rooted in identity and self-definition)

   • The Innocent – Seeks safety and happiness.

   • The Everyman – Craves belonging and connection.

   • The Hero – Strives to prove worth through courageous acts.

   • The Caregiver – Feels fulfilled by helping others.

2. The Soul Types (Focused on deeper meaning and discovery)

   • The Explorer – Yearns for freedom and new experiences.

   • The Rebel – Challenges norms and seeks revolution.

   • The Lover – Desires intimacy and deep relationships.

   • The Creator – Expresses individuality through artistry.

3. The Self Types (Aiming for mastery and understanding)

   • The Jester – Finds joy in humor and playfulness.

   • The Sage – Seeks wisdom and truth.

   • The Magician – Desires transformation and vision.

   • The Ruler – Pursues control and leadership.

If you missed it, here’s my post about Shadow Work and who it’s for - where I break down the archetypes of Trump, Vance, Musk, and Zelenskyy. So you can see what I mean in real time.

Who is Shadow Work For?

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Are Jungian Archetypes Real?

Jungian archetypes are not physical entities but rather psychological patterns deeply ingrained in human culture and storytelling. You can find that they appear across myths, religions, literature, lore, and even modern media. While not scientifically “real” in a tangible sense, familiarizing yourself with the archetypes is a powerful tool for understanding human nature and personal growth. (And watching politics really is eye-opening when you know the archetypes!) When I first learned about the archetypes, I was blown away as to how accurate it was for me as a Caregiver.

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Photo by Angel Balashev on Unsplash

Using Archetypes and Shadow Work to Declutter

Each of us has dominant archetypes influencing our behaviors—including our attachment to clutter. Shadow work, a process of uncovering and integrating hidden or repressed aspects of ourselves, can help us identify why we hold onto certain possessions with such conviction and wild abandon.

For example:

• The Caregiver may struggle with guilt when letting go of items given by loved ones. Sentimental items.

• The Hero might attach sentimental value to achievements reflected in physical objects.

• The Explorer may accumulate items tied to past adventures, fearing that releasing them means losing part of themselves.

By identifying your dominant archetypes and working through their emotional attachments, you can declutter with deeper awareness and create a lasting impact on your home (and your mind). Shadow work allows you to recognize these unconscious patterns and rewrite the narrative that allows you to free yourself from unnecessary burdens. Changing the narrative will also help you to create a home that truly reflects and supports your present self.

Are you ready to begin your unburdening journey? Let’s discover your archetype! This will be a four-part series in Heal House Journal.

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The Innocent - EGO

The meaning of life for the innocent is truly finding freedom, happiness, and joy for everyone. They seek a utopia. The Innocent are dreamers, optimistic and hopeful, and they try to look for the good in everything and everyone. A childlike innocence.

Their greatest fear may be doing the hard inner work or facing their own shadow. Diving into their deep dark depths because it doesn’t always feel “happy” there.

The Shadow of The Innocent

Now, in Shadow Work, we are always seeking how to turn to the light. The greater good. Service to community. As we know from our physical world, light casts shadows. It depends on which way we are facing, our perspective, that we either see the light or we see the shadow.

The shadow (unhealed, unaware, patterns) for The Innocent may present itself in the following ways -

• Defensiveness

• Naivety

• Unwilling to do the inner work

• Pessimistic

• Cynical

• Codependancy

• Afraid of making mistakes

Healing The Innocent

To turn towards the light, heal, and reach for their utopia - The Innocent needs to take risks in life. Focusing on healing the Muladhara (Root Chakra: safety, security, grounding), the Vishuddha (Throat Chakra: having a voice, speaking truth), and Svadhisthana (Sacral Chakra: creativity, pleasure).

Would you like me to write some words of wisdom in Heal House Journal for healing and unburdening through the Chakras? Let me know »

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Photo by Hendo Wang on Unsplash

Decluttering by Archetype - The Innocent

Now for the physical clutter. Using all awareness we have about The Innocent, the best places to help them create a utopia, seek happiness, feel freedom, and be dreamy would be -

• Kids rooms

• Pet spaces

• Indoor and outdoor plants

• mail

• journals

• old letters

• cards

For the best energy match for The Innocent, they should focus on small areas that will help them feel satisfied, happy, and optimistic, and where they will make very few mistakes - but it also feels like growth and a risk to declutter the area.

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What’s Next?

Do you feel like you match The Innocent? Do you want more information about Shadow Work? Would you like to read about the other archetypes? Subscribe today and get the latest edition of Heal House Journal right to your inbox. This is a four-week special in Heal House Journal - you wont want to miss it!

Don’t forget, there’s always an accompanying meditation for deepening your awareness. This is a mini meditation for the Muladhara (Root Chakra). Have listen.

If you missed yesterday’s beautiful meditation on Heal House Podcast, you can listen here -

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Decluttering with ADHD Workbook For Women

Although in my book I do not discuss shadow work nor the archetypes, I do have a chapter (chapter 8) all about Energy in your home and how to work with it to rediscover your inner peace and reclaim your home as a sacred space. You can also use the information here inside Heal House Journal to help you on your unburdening journey.

Check out my latest post about my debut! »

Subscribe today to follow along for the next archetypes!