Heather McPherson

08/04/2026

30/03/2026

29/03/2026

A quieter truth…clarity. No fixing, no replacing or getting rid of. Allowing instead of avoiding. In safety it surfaces.

Most people approach shadow work like something is broken.

Like there are parts of them that need to be healed, removed, or replaced.

But a deeper layer of shadow work exists beyond that.

It is not about fixing.

It is about clarity.

The kind of clarity that strips away illusion.

A witch working at this level stops asking, “How do I heal this?”
and starts asking, “What is actually true here?”

Where am I lying to myself?
Where am I staying out of habit, not alignment?
Where am I choosing comfort over truth?

This form of shadow work is quieter.

There are no rituals needed in the moment. No candles or tools. Just radical self-honesty.

Because the shadow often survives not through darkness but through avoidance.

The patterns you keep repeating.
The dynamics you keep accepting.
The feelings you keep explaining away.

When you begin to look at them without softening the truth, something shifts.

Not because you forced change.

But because illusion cannot exist where it is fully seen.

This is where shadow work becomes powerful.

You stop negotiating with what you already know.

You stop needing validation for what your instincts have been showing you all along.

And from that place, your actions begin to change naturally.

Not from effort.

But from awareness.

Because once you truly see something clearly you cannot unknow it.

And that is where real transformation begins.

29/03/2026

26/03/2026

Reflecting on Self Awareness today —

Many people think they're self aware. Maybe even most?
But self-awareness is a daily, moment to moment practice that involves checking in with your own heart, mind, and body.
And in a world where our attention is constantly being pulled in a million different directions, it's a practice that takes presence, boundaries, and the willingness to slow down.

Self awareness is learning how to read your own internal (and sometimes external) signals — the sensations you feel internally when you're feeling down, the way your body responds to someone's complimentary comment, the flurry of thoughts you have after a terse interaction — to begin to notice these seemingly small shifts, and to get curious about what they're telling you.

Self awareness is the ability to put space between who you are and these different sensations, reactions, feelings, and moments of rumination. (It's also becoming aware of how your past shows up in these moments and responses, too). Because when you recognize that you are not your feelings, reactions, or behaviors, the ability to respond in new ways to yourself opens up a whole new way of being.

I'll add here, self awareness is not:
Obsessing over how others perceive you,
or bypassing what's here by reframing or looking for the silver lining,
It's not constantly scanning for what you should fix,
or hiding behind logic, humor, spirituality, or competence to avoid feeling.

It's really learning how to become your own safe and consistent witness.
To be on your own side and to just notice —
without immediately fixing, changing, or pushing into the next moment.
Because when you can be fully and safely to present to what's really here,
the next step usually shows itself.

We had our first Regulate + Relate last weekend, and I'm going to be holding another one on April 18th.
If you want to come into a quiet space, slow down, tune in, and then meet some lovely people who are interested in authentic conversation and connection — come join us!
https://theeqschool.co/regulate-and-relate

25/03/2026

24/03/2026

24/03/2026

This isn’t an anti-therapy post; therapy can be great & it’s been super helpful to me and so many others.

But I have been noticing for awhile that many people think of therapy as the only route to navigating emotional difficulty & rewiring old patterns. And while it can be so helpful, therapy is also most often an expensive, 1:1 experience that takes us out of the context of the thing we’re navigating. It’s also often reactionary as opposed to proactive; we come to therapy when there are issues.

Again, in a wider context, that’s not a bad thing for many reasons. But I believe that therapy should be viewed as a helpful resource more than the *entire answer* to anything emotionally challenging or mental health related.

(also, therapists are not always great educators, and pyscho-education is really helpful for many people who lean toward meaning-making to feel safe enough to try something new).

When we zoom out, this segmented approach makes sense; our society has become more & more individualistic. Many people don’t feel they have supportive community or feel like they have people they can go to for help or support. People (myself included) feel bad asking for ‘favors,’ without immediately offering something in return. (We’re allowed to receive!)

But the most important moments in my healing & growth journey have actually come from taking part in healthy communities. From being allowed to be messy, from engaging safely in conflict and being willing to share and listen, from showing up consistently, and from learning from our experiences together and getting better at communicating as we go.
From seeing healthier behavior modeled & adopting that norm myself. It’s been imperfect and has made imperfection seem a lot less scary.

I believe that this experience is possible for everyone, but that as a culture we have to be willing to see the value in increasing our collective emotional intelligence. We have to be willing to shift some of our cultural norms away from stark individualism & see that we ALL benefit when we can look out for and hold space for one another.

On Saturday we held our first Regulate & Relate meetup in Portland, and it was so wonderful to get together. It was a small group, and together we slowed down, checked in, and connected with likeminded others who are deeply committed to learning, growing, and opening themselves.
Join us in April:
https://theeqschool.co/regulate-and-relate

22/03/2026

13/02/2026

Your body is constantly scanning the environment for signals of danger or safety.

That information flows through your autonomic nervous system, shaping how your gut functions, how your immune system responds, and how your hormones are released and regulated.

When you live in a state of chronic stress, your sympathetic nervous system stays switched on. This alters gut motility and digestion, increases intestinal permeability, disrupts immune balance, and promotes low-grade inflammation. Over time, repair and regeneration take a back seat to survival.

When you feel safe, calm, and socially connected, the parasympathetic nervous system becomes dominant. This state supports digestion, immune regulation, metabolic balance, and cellular repair.

That is why nervous system regulation is foundational to health. Drop a YES below, and I’ll DM you some quick tips on how to support it, practically and biologically. 🧘‍♀️

13/02/2026

Reiki is a comforting modality for not just humans, but also for cats and dogs and other pets. Compassionate and forward-thinking humans all over the world are fans of the practice of Reiki, a system of integrative energy healing. Within the last several decades, the offering also of Animal Reiki an...