Heroine’s Journey

A Metaphor for Psychological Transformation

“Everyone around you expects you to describe your experience in purely personal or medical terms. In contemporary society we believe that psychological and medical language best conveys the experience we have of a dark night. You are depressed and phobic; you have an anxiety disorder or a bad gene. But perspective thinkers of other periods and places say that good, artful, sensuous, and powerful words play a central role in the living out of your dark night. Consider this possibility: It would be better for you to find a good image or tell a good story or simply speak of your dark night with an eye toward the power and beauty of expression”.

Thomas Moore, PhD

The Hero’s Journey, conceived by Joseph Campbell, represents the traditional path of a heroic figure, usually male, embarking on a quest to obtain a valuable prize or “Boon.” This journey typically involves facing external challenges and achieving conquests. On the other hand, the Heroine’s Journey centers around introspection, emotions, and intuition. It serves as a model that brings equilibrium to a society which historically prioritizes extraversion and action.

Here are the phases of the Heroine’s Journey, which often take on a spiral, non-linear path, with individuals not necessarily progressing through them in a strict sequence:

Separation from the Ordinary World: At the beginning of this journey, an individual is trapped in an everyday existence marked by psychological challenges. This could include states like anxiety, depression, illness, over functioning, addiction, loneliness, grief, trauma, a general numbness, or loss of creativity. The ordinary world feels restrictive, joyless, and emotionally heavy. Bud Harris, a Jungian Analyst, describes, “This is the ordinary world before the beginning of the journey, when our identity, our place in life, our personal values and goals, our idea of who “I” am, what “I “think “I” am, my vision of the future, my hopes, dreams, and longings all seem to be in place. The Departure from our ordinary world usually begins with an event . . . in which we experience a disaster. This is understood, in the deepest levels of our soul, to be a “call to adventure,” according to Joseph Campbell.”

The Call to Adventure: Within this challenging psychological state emerges a call to embark on a different path—a call rooted in recognizing the need for change and healing. It’s a stirring awareness that something must shift. 

Refusal of the Call: Despite the call, there is often resistance. The individual may doubt their ability to overcome their psychological challenges, facing fears, stigma, or judgments from others. This resistance can be a formidable obstacle. This is a non-acceptance of reality. We say things to ourselves such as, “This shouldn’t be happening to me", ”What will other people think of me? " and “I can’t let things fall apart.” Understandably, there can be much fear around losing stability, safety, health, and sometimes sanity in this stage. Individuals can get stuck in this stage, resisting the changes the psyche is pushing us into. I think of this stage as clinging to the rock wall inside a deep well, refusing to let go and fall when there is no other way. Dr. Marsha Linehan, the creator of Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, describes surrendering to the call  ‘radical acceptance’ and describes it as “playing the hand you were dealt, not the hand you wish you were dealt.”

Meeting the Mentor: As we move along the way, we meet the mentor. The mentor offers strength, wisdom, guidance, and support in navigating psychological challenges. The mentor can be an inner archetypal figure we meet along our internal journey or can come externally through therapy, support groups, or self-help resources.

C.G. Jung, the father of Analytic Psychology, discovered his most significant mentor, Philemon, in a dream. He developed a deep relationship with Philemon, whom he relied on for guidance and wisdom. Of Philemon, he says he was “simply a superior knowledge, and he taught me psychological objectivity and the actuality of the soul. He formulated and expressed everything which I had never thought.”

Crossing the Threshold: With newfound resources and support, the individual confronts their psychological challenges head-on. They begin the journey toward inner transformation, recognizing that change is necessary and possible; all the while, pain and struggles continue.

Maureen Murdock, PhD, expands on this idea, “During this part of the journey, the woman begins her descent. It may involve a seemingly endless period of wandering, grief, and rage, of dethroning kings, of looking for the lost pieces of herself, and meeting the dark feminine. It may take weeks, months, or years, and for many it may involve a time of voluntary isolation—a period of darkness and silence and of learning the art of deeply listening once again to self: of being instead of doing. The outer world may see this as a depression and a period of stasis. Family, friends, and work associates implore our heroine to “get on with it.”

It is common in our current society to be pushed externally and internally to “get back to normal.” This is often what the ego wants, and not the soul. The soul is aware of this all-important transformational journey and pushes us forward despite our protests that we cannot go on.

Tests, Allies, and Enemies: Throughout this journey, the individual faces a series of tests and challenges. Allies emerge as support networks, guides, or personal resilience. Although it may seem that the symptoms are the adversary attempting to thwart progress, we begin to understand their true role as allies, helping push us toward our calling. We’ll discuss this in more detail at another time, but in Depth Psychology, it is called “following the symptom.”

Ben Katt describes facing the three-headed monster of “achievement, perfectionism and striving for the approval of others” as one of the foes he faced on his mythic journey through a major psychological crisis, some of which entailed leaving his job as a pastor for many years to pursue a life more authentic to him as a spiritual coach.

I often work with clients to personify their inner archetypal figures (Nurturing Mother, inner critic, dragon as anger, vulnerable child, rebellious teen, Wise Father, Inner dreamer, and much more). This is where we find our allies and enemies (although enemies are often transformed through relationship) in the inner world.

Innermost Cave: The innermost cave represents a pivotal moment of self-discovery within the psychological challenge. It’s a phase where the individual confronts deep-seated fears, past traumas, and the root causes of their psychological state. Here, there can also be a deep grief about the life that the journey has forever changed.

“I love the dark hours of my being.

My mind deepens into them.

There I can find, as in old letters,

the days of my life, already lived,

and held like a legend, and understood.

Then the knowing comes: I can open

to another life that’s wide and timeless.

So I am sometimes like a tree

rustling over a gravesite

and making real the dream

of the one its living roots

embrace:

a dream once lost

among sorrow and songs”.

Rilke

Ordeal: In a climactic moment, the individual undergoes a significant psychological ordeal—an ultimate test of strength and determination. This ordeal often signifies a turning point in the journey. As many of you know, I love The Lord of the Rings. In my mind, the Ordeal stage is represented by the image of Sam and Frodo, who are almost to the top of Mount Doom where they are trying to destroy the One Ring. They are exhausted and bloodied, not knowing if they can go even one step further.

Reward: After surviving the ordeal, the individual reaps rewards beyond symptom relief. These rewards include improved self-awareness, coping skills, and a deeper understanding of themselves and the human experience. They emerge stronger and wiser.

The Road Back: The individual begins their journey back to their ordinary world, but it’s not without challenges. They face moments of doubt and potential setbacks as they reintegrate their transformed self into their daily life.

Resurrection: In this final phase, the individual faces a life-altering challenge or confrontation—determining whether they have truly transformed and can fully embrace their newfound psychological resilience.

Return with the Elixir: The Journey culminates as the individual returns to their ordinary world, bringing the wisdom, strength, and coping strategies gained during their journey to their lives and the greater community.

It is common to cycle through these stages over the course of an hour, a day, a year or through a larger Mythic Journey that takes place over the course of our lifetime.

Isn't this a fascinating way to re-imagine our struggles? I'd much rather work with a Mythic Journey than a dry, medical diagnosis or description any day. Additionally, this framework offers a rich and meaningful way of going through the struggles we all face as humans. And, I'd argue that the imagination can be an extremely powerful tool in healing, one that is not offered or found in a more pathology-based view of our circumstances.

Sources:

Ben Katt

The Way Home: Discovering the Hero’s Journey to Wholeness at Midlife

Bud Harris

Radical Hope and the Healing Power of Illness

C.G. Jung

Memories, Dreams and Reflections

Joseph Campbell

A Hero With a Thousand Faces

Maureen Murdock

The Heroine’s Journey, Woman’s Quest for Wholeness

Ranier Maria Rilke

Book of Hours: Love Poems to God

Thomas Moore

Dark Nights of the Soul