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You know those people who just irk you? The ones you can hardly stand to be around for more than a few hours — or more than even a few minutes?
Sometimes, you can’t really pinpoint exactly what it is about them that bothers you, but it’s something. What is it?
Maybe, on the other hand, you know exactly the things about them that you hate. Maybe you can list their irritating traits on both hands.
In either scenario, the reason is probably this: they remind you of something within yourself, something you don’t like.
I know, how dare I, right? Trust me, I know it’s a hard pill to swallow.
But swallow it, you must (if you care to work on your self-understanding, anyway).
Julia Kristina, licensed therapist and life coach in Vancouver has explored the very same topic (see article here).
“It’s because Carl Jung (one of the grandfathers of modern psychology) found, through his lifetime of work and research, that the reason some people irritate us so much is because they embody something of ours called the Shadow Side.”
“Those unfavourable qualities, habits, or tendencies of someone else we react negatively to are really just our own shortcomings that we’ve turned our back on and refuse to own up to,” she goes on to…
