The Wild Woman Archetype: How It Can Help You

Throughout centuries of history, the human being has evolved obtaining important improvements in their living conditions. Knowledge, science and technology have allowed us to inhabit increasingly civilized and advanced societies. But, in this process, we have also disconnected from our essential nature. This archetype of the wild woman is the one that we must recover to alleviate some of the problems that affect us today.

Have you ever debated between what you really want and what is expected of you? Have you had to contain your impulses, repress your emotions and act with decorum so as not to be rejected? Have you been forced to silence your intuition? If so, you will be able to recognize that discomfort that arises when we annul ourselves. What if we learn to stop?

What is the archetype of the wild woman?

An archetype is a representation of a complete idea. Through a word or image we evoke a whole set of patterns of perception, emotion and behavior that are known to all. For example, when we think of a hero, we all reflect a person who is brave and honorable, strong, persevering and capable of fighting.

And it is that the archetypes are part of the collective unconscious described by Jung. They are symbols that shape that ancestral culture shared by human beings and that influences the experience of each one of us. And it is that these archetypes, with their different peculiarities, end up defining the specific way of being of each individual.

Thus, the archetype of the wild woman represents the wolf, the old woman, the one who knows. An energetic, spontaneous and free woman who is in touch with her instincts and is capable of defending herself. Despite the negative connotations that the word “savage” may suggest, this term refers to the connection with our own nature, that which the civilized world has been taking from us.

The archetype of the wild woman is described by the Jungian psychoanalyst Clarissa Pinkola Estés in her magnificent work Women who run with the wolves . Here she exposes the ravages of this disconnection in current women and how, through stories, myths and legends, she accompanies them in their consultation to recover their identification with this archetype.

How can connecting with the Wild Woman archetype help you?

The social roles imposed on women have varied over time, before relegating them to domestic services and today trying to assimilate them to the male productivity model. However, in all cases its essence has been living curtailed and restricted.

For the same reason, by connecting with the archetype of the wild woman, she can allow herself to be again, with all her gifts and qualities.

Recover creativity

The creative impulse is inhibited many times by the belief that we do not know, we are not worth it and we cannot make mistakes. This archetype reminds us of the right to fail without losing courage, the right to explore creativity and try as many times as necessary.

Learn to defend yourself

Historically, women have been attributed the role of naive, savior and sacrificed. Many women today are trapped in the impossibility of setting limits that leads them to live solving other people’s affairs constantly. This is an invitation to regain strength, to begin to defend yourself, and to do so without guilt.

Listen to intuition

Intuition is a powerful gift that we all have, but that we rarely allow ourselves to listen to. Caution, suspicion and hunches skillfully guide us and if we reject this unconscious voice we can find ourselves in unfortunate situations.

Allow yourself to be intuitive, this is part of your nature. You are not forced to stick solely to logic.

Be in touch with your own needs

To connect with the archetype of the wild woman is to get back in touch with the instinct, with the bodily sensations, and act according to its signals. Recovering the ability to identify when we are hungry or satiated or when we are tired and respond to those needs is basic.

Similarly, identifying when we need help and asking for it is a right that we have also denied for years. It is not necessary to be superheroines and totally independent; pretending it hurts and exhausts. Learning to receive is also healing.

Be spontaneous

Finally, and most importantly, the wild woman invites us to spontaneity, to reconcile ourselves with our desires and our fears. It encourages us to allow ourselves not to meet expectations for which we are not responsible, to not be complacent, and not to dress up to fit in.

Stop pretending and allow ourselves to be, stop feeling a desperate craving for someone else’s love by knowing we are genuinely valuable: these are the teachings of this archetype.

The archetype of the wild woman is always there

Some women are more alienated from this wild nature than others. However, this archetype is always available and accessible to all those women who wish to recover it.

Clearing the layer of conditioning and accessing your deepest essence can be difficult, but doing so will drastically change your life. Why not start today?