theshamelady

Hi, I’m Kristina - and I’ve moved to a new website. I’m still The Shame Lady, but I’ve expanded to include more emotions here on Emotion Yoga. Don’t worry - I’m still obsessed with shame :) More info & resources below!

The Shame Lady has migrated to Emotion Yoga! WHY?

  1. MORE EMOTIONS. My approach to healing shame is SO helpful that I naturally wanted to expand to include more emotions.

  2. MORE MOVEMENT. Healing shame is about creating and occupying bigger space; moving into who we truly are and have a right to be.

  3. SAME EFFECTIVE APPROACH. Emotion Yoga is about building emotional intelligence using the same method for working with emotion that The Shame Lady has been teaching since 2014.

Who is The Shame Lady and what does she do?

The Shame Lady provides an off-ramp from the infamous shame cycle. Who is The Shame Lady? My name is Kristina (Cizmar) Eklund. After living a shame-filled life, I finally found a way to shed my coat of shame and live life more fully ~ out in the open and with a sense of personal empowerment, self-worth, and true belonging. As The Shame Lady, I share a unique approach to healing shame, through workshops and my book, The Little Book of Shame. The most powerful element of this approach? Redefining shame in a way that allows us to translate our shame from something that's stuck to something we have the power to do something about.

What exactly is ‘shame’? Shame goes by many names. We may feel…

So, how do I work with shame?

In-person workshops are currently on hold due to COVID-19. The Little Book of Shame details the process. Intended for those of us who want to get right to the tools, without the fluff.

It is possible to heal from the heavy weight of shame. If I can do it, so can you.

My life was a study in shame. Having been sexually abused from a very young age, I embodied shame long before I ever spoke the word. After trying various ways of working with shame over the years, and even calling it "low self-esteem" and working with those approaches as well, I finally found something that works. This is an approach you won't find anywhere else!  This approach is grounded in cognitive scientist Charles M. Jones’ theory of emotions. I collaborated with Charles and with coach, consultant and professional experiential workshop designer, Jim Knickerbocker, to create this way of working with shame.

Why did I create something new? In my former position as managing editor of a multimedia publishing company specializing in Health & Healing, Spirituality & Meditation, and Psychology & Neuroscience, I became familiar with the work of a wide variety of healers, trauma researchers, and experts on emotion. But no approach to shame led to lasting transformation. For me, this new approach I co-created is the only one that led me to lasting change.

And I’m in good company. I’ve heard personally from people who have used this approach with abuse-related shame, shame around body image, sexual orientation, financial status/employment status/prestige, health conditions (physical and mental), and race/ethnicity shame.

Join me in living life more fully.

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