Moon Mondays: Eclipse your fears 

While the party roared inside, I slipped into the night, shadows covering me — I had to get my fix. For years, I was a clandestine nicotine junkie. My shame was crushing. I went to extreme lengths to hide it, like a meth head — slinking off like a fiend into Aspen’s back alleys. I even had serious boyfriends who never discovered my humiliating habit. I lived alone, in part, so my dilemma stayed hidden in the closet. A stick of gum and a spritz of perfume were my cheap disguises to shroud my disgrace. 

I tried quitting almost every single day. If you’ve struggled with addiction, you know the chaotic madness of that. I’d start the morning full of hope — today would be the day — only to find myself, by afternoon, consumed by cravings so intense that nothing else mattered. I even turned to chewing tobacco at one point, thinking it was somehow “better” than smoking. Big dip in my lip, spitting brown spew incessantly. I tried the gum, too mortified to ask my doctor for the patches. Day after day, I found myself reaching for that disgrace-filled hit of nicotine. 

That cycle of craving and self-loathing took its toll. And this, right here, is what Jung called the shadow side of ourselves — the places we lock away because the shame feels unbearable. We’re convinced those parts make us unlovable, weird, or broken. Keeping them buried demands enormous amounts of energy. I see this again and again with my clients: the exhaustion of hiding, of carrying the weight of secrecy, when in reality we all have a dark side. 

The weight of the shadow 

This Sunday, the eclipse portal opens, and we are cosmically invited to lean into our inner darkness. Eclipses have always been dynamic symbols of shadow and revelation. The light of the sun or moon is temporarily obscured. Darkness falls. Then the light returns. Ancient cultures often feared eclipses, instinctively sensing their disruptive nature. As recently as last week, I heard someone tell me they dread eclipse season, worried about what it might shake loose. 

But here’s the truth: eclipses illuminate what’s hidden. They provide a vital opportunity to reveal the shadows we try so hard to keep buried. While that may feel scary, embracing our darkness is a profound gift. Eclipse season is a powerful alchemical moment to become more whole. We all want that, don’t we? 

When we shove our shame into the shadows, it always finds a way to come out — often undesirably sideways. Maybe it shows up as getting drunk, binge eating, raging outbursts, sabotaging relationships, or disappearing into habits we heartbreakingly wish we could break, like my nicotine addiction. We’re not bad people — but when we exile parts of ourselves, those parts will demand attention in messy ways. 

Eclipse season is a brilliant time to stop hiding from ourselves, and instead bring compassion to those secreted parts. This eclipse window opens on Sunday with the Pisces full moon lunar eclipse and closes with the Virgo new moon solar eclipse on Sept. 21 — which also lands right at the equinox, an equal balance between day and night, enticing us to create harmony within our own dark and light. FYI, neither eclipse will be visible here locally. 

How do we work with this energy? 

First off, don’t be afraid of it. Eclipse season doesn’t need to provoke fear. Simply allow yourself to notice what’s coming up for you. Instead of shoving your shame or uncomfortable feelings back down, let them breathe. You don’t have to fix them. They simply need recognition and compassion. Let a little light shine into your darkness — with love instead of judgment. 

What is one tiny micro-step you can take during this potent portal to embrace your shadow? How might you honor those hidden parts, so they don’t erupt, like a volcano spewing lava all over your life? If I had faced my addiction with kindness, I could have freed myself so much sooner. 

Eclipses ask us to pause, look inward, and hold ourselves tenderly. They remind us that every one of us has a shadow. None of us are without flaws, without struggles, without moments we’d rather no one knew about. But we are not defective — we are human. When we face our shadows with forgiveness, we step into greater authentic wholeness. That’s the true gift of eclipse season: emancipation. 

Because the empowerment of facing your shadow is the ability to say: This is who I am. Warts and all. And I am still worthy. May you find the courage to embrace your shadow, and, in doing so, discover the vibrant entirety of who you truly are. 

Sheridan Semple is an Astrology Life Coach and the founder of Moon Sisters Circle. She guides women to face their shadows, release self-doubt, and make choices that move them forward with clarity and strength. Find her work at sheridansemple.com or reach her at sheridan@sheridansemple.com.