We all have them and very few of like to acknowledge them. They often haunt us from early childhood and they are hard to shake. What am I referring to? Your inner demons. What do I mean by inner demons?

They take various forms for various people. They can take the form of regret, shame, rage, jealousy, grief, loss or any other negative emotion or experience which is always lingering in the darkest recesses of our minds and hearts and casts a shadow over everything we do. You know exactly what I’m talking about because most of you have them.

Inner demons usually originate from painful or traumatic experiences from our past, which we have not fully processed. Now, these do not have to be major traumas, like physical or sexual abuse. They could be as simply as perceived neglect from one of your parents during a brief moment that your sibling got all the attention. It is not the nature of the event that matters but how it is perceived by the experiencer.

How do you know that you have inner demons? There are many signs which can reveal to you that you have inner demons. Some of them are are follows:

1) Do you feel sad or hopeless for no particular reason?

2) Do you suffer from a pattern of negative thinking?

3) Do you continuously face relationship challenges?

4) Are you always in debt and cannot get financially ahead?

5) Are you always suffering with constant health challenges?

6) Are you suffer with anxiety for no particular reason?

7) Do you struggle with one or more addictions?

8) Do you feel that the whole world is against you and waiting for you to fall from grace?

9) Are you surrounded by negative people?

10) Have you ever contemplated ending it all?

These are just some of the questions, which, if you answer yes to, will reveal to you that you likely suffer from inner demons. The problem with inner demons is that most of us fear them, which is why we do everything we can to suppress them.

Why do we suppress our inner demons? It is because, for most people, they are too painful to experience. It is easier to push them away and ignore them by getting lost in the external world. Inner demons are the main reason why people get lost in the outer world and never seek to journey within. This is because they know that their inner demons are there lurking in the shadows and will have to be confronted when they start the journey within.

This is why so few people experience the depths and beauty of their inner world, because of their inner demons, which become gatekeepers to these realms and keep them from entering. So the question then arises, how does one overcome and rid themselves of their inner demons?

It all begins with acknowledging their presence. If you answered yes to any of the above questions, then you likely suffer from inner demons, however, let’s make it simpler for you. If you have lived more than 8 years on this planet, then you certainly have inner demons.

You see, our personalities are formed in the first 7 years of our lives and, for the most part, most of the influences we come across are vastly negative, including our peers, the education system, the mass media, popular culture, marketing and advertising, government, social media and the internet. When we are exposed to so many negative influences, we are bound to have adverse experiences in our early childhood, which are often painful, whose feelings are suppressed, which eventually become our inner demons.

So the question then arises, how does one shake their inner demons and release the grip they have on us once and for all? I will tell you that it is not an easy journey to take and requires discipline, courage and commitment. However, if you are willing to experience some discomfort for your greater benefit, this is the greatest journey you can ever take.

In next week’s blog, I will show you the first step on the path to shedding your inner demons. Until then, ask yourself what are your inner demons and where do they originate from? If you have lived more than 8 years on this planet then you most certainly have inner demons and it is your duty to yourself to uncover them from the shadows if you are to have any hope of ridding yourself of them.

Dr. Nauman Naeem