Shadow Coaching is not a method—it’s a holy initiation.
Shadow work is a sacred initiation into the depths of the human soul.
Shadow Coaching is for the brave—for the ones who feel the pull toward something deeper, something holy. This is a calling for the spiritual leaders, healers, and guides who know they were never meant to stay on the surface.
A Shadow Coach is no ordinary coach.
You are a torchbearer. A soul midwife. A guide who dares to enter the dark forests of the psyche, not to fix or erase, but to witness, honor, and integrate what was once too heavy to hold.
Shadow Work is Sacred Ground.
It is where we meet the exiled, shamed, and silenced parts of ourselves and others. In this space, we do the holy work of retrieval—gathering what was once lost, piecing back the fragments, and restoring wholeness from within. In this training, you won’t just learn shadow work—you will embody it. You will walk through your own wilderness, face your own shadows, and rise more powerful and present than ever before.
Because the shadows we fear most are also the doorways to our deepest power.
This is a portal. A sacred descent into the raw, honest layers of the human experience where true healing begins. It will crack you open. Strip you down. And then resurrect you into the leader you were always meant to be. As a Certified Shadow Coach, you will know how to see in the dark—and teach others how to rise from it. You will awaken lives. You will guide others back to the parts of themselves they feared were unlovable… and help them return whole, free, and powerful beyond imagination.
If you feel the sacred pull of this work—trust it.
Your journey begins here. And the souls you are meant to serve are already waiting.
We are now accepting inquiries for our 2026 cohort
Natalie Gentry- Body-Centered Practitioner and Coach
I enrolled in the Shadow Coaching certification program because I found that my clients had issues that went beyond the physical paradigm; I wanted tools to support them and I wanted a skill set that would help me to shift my business to include coaching the shadow elements that clients rarely explore. What I’ve discovered was so much more. This program is also helping me to unravel challenges I’ve struggled with as well. Bottom line: the better I’m able to understand and work through my challenges and roadblocks, the better able I am to serve others. This is a wonderful program…I highly recommend it!
Is This Your Path?
You feel it, don’t you?
The quiet hum beneath the surface. The sacred pull toward something deeper—something that matters.
You’re not here to play small or skim the surface of transformation. You’re here to be a catalyst. A guide. A witness to the holy unraveling and becoming of another soul. Shadow Coaching is not just a profession—it’s a profound vocation. A calling for those who long to sit in the fire with others and say, “I will not look away.”
A Shadow Coach is forged in their own transformation. They’ve walked through the wilderness, faced the storm, and emerged with a torch in hand. They are the ones who hold steady in the dark, mapping the unseen, guiding others toward wholeness—not by fixing, but by deeply witnessing and honoring all that arises. They offer sacred space, unwavering presence, and the kind of compassion that touches the soul.
To walk this path is to commit to internal freedom—not just for yourself, but for those you are here to serve. You will learn to see in the dark and help others remember the light that has always lived within them.
Whether you envision a thriving private practice, a part-time offering alongside other work, or integrating these tools into an existing healing or leadership role—this certification meets you where you are and expands what’s possible. Our community of graduates includes therapists, coaches, educators, artists, spiritual leaders, and seekers from all walks of life.
If your heart is whispering yes—listen.
This path is not for everyone. But it may be exactly what you’ve been waiting for.
LEARN MORE ABOUT SHADOW WORK
SOME BENEFITS FROM DOING SHADOW WORK
Cultivates emotional resilience, self-acceptance, and inner peace by helping one understand their wounds, regulate their emotions, and release guilt, fear, shame, and suppressed pain.
Shadow work deepens relationships by helping one set healthy boundaries, show up authentically, release projections, and cultivate compassion—for themselves and others.
Shadow work empowers visionary leadership and bold creativity by aligning one with their truth, dissolving fear-based blocks, and unlocking the confidence to lead, create, and innovate with purpose.
Shadow work fuels personal growth by revealing the roots of self-sabotage, awakening the courage to change, and empowering one to live with purpose and intention.
THE WILDERNESS WALK
SHADOW COACH TRAINING OVERVIEW
Suzanne and George will teach you the powerful tools and concepts of shadow work methods and how to implement them in your life and business.
Foundations of Shadow Work
We understand the need for guidance and practical methods to support building a successful coaching practice. We will share with you many hands-on tools from marketing, finance and business.
Tools to Build Your Business
You will attend a virtual live retreat at the beginning and end of the program as a way to complete and integrate the process. An in-person retreat will be optional for an additional cost.
Virtual Retreats
These will be used for hands-on practice as well as an opportunity to integrate the material in a more visceral way. This space will provide you the answers to your questions and give you deeper clarity of how impactful this work can be.
Coaching Labs and Study Groups
The online learning space houses all your curriculum—videos, audios, and documents. It’s also where you’ll find your interactive class discussion forums, where you can interact with instructors, and where you get to know other coaches.
Online Learning Space
Our live classes use a video conferencing platform. During the program you’ll have monthly classes as well as small breakout room practices, discussions and instruction. These classes will be highly interactive and give you ample time to ask questions, practice techniques, and go deeper into your own healing and learning.
Classes and Mentoring
Lori Kaufman- Creativity Coach
If you are looking to expand your ability to support yourself and your clients as they transverse their healing journey, the Shadow Coaching Certification is for you! Suzanne and George come together to bring their expertise and passion for exploring the shadow. They provide an extensive framework for understanding and working with the shadow along with mentorship, community, and a vast library of excellent coaching tools to support your practice and strengthen your capacity to support your clients safely and with integrity.
LEARNING MODULES
Metaphors offer a powerful and gentle gateway into the shadow—allowing us to explore hidden parts of ourselves and bring them into conscious awareness. By engaging the imagination, they create a safe container for difficult emotions, bypassing resistance and revealing deeper truths that words alone often can't reach.
THE POWER OF METAPHOR
Discover how trauma affects both the body and the psyche. Trauma and addiction often leave behind a trail of fear, disconnection, pain, and shame. Explore how these personal wounds contribute to the collective shadow and create ripple effects across cultures and communities.
TRAUMA AND ADDICTION
The shadow is shaped by our familial, cultural, and relational experiences, gradually forming a false persona as a means of survival and belonging. Over time, this mask can distance us from our authentic self, burying our truth beneath patterns of protection and adaptation.
BIRTH OF THE SHADOW
Dive into the archetypal parts that live within us and discover how they shape our inner world, behaviors, and beliefs. Learn how these powerful energies can either sabotage our growth or become trusted allies on the path to healing, wholeness, and self-realization — once brought into conscious relationship.
ARCHETYPES AND THE SHADOW
Discover how we hide, suppress, and deny our shadow parts — and the profound impact this has on our mind, body, and spirit. Explore how this disconnection shapes our patterns, relationships, and sense of self, often keeping us stuck in cycles of self-sabotage, shame, and disempowerment.
BURYING THE SHADOW
Explore how interpretation, projection, mirroring, and blame keep the shadow alive and active within our most intimate relationships — often reflecting the parts of ourselves we have yet to acknowledge, heal, or integrate. When we learn to see these dynamics with awareness, our relationships can become powerful mirrors for growth, healing, and deeper connection.
FAMILY AND RELATIONSHIP SHADOWS
Our emotions are powerful teachers and trusted allies on the path of transformation. Discover how to navigate shadow emotions like fear, shame, guilt, anger, and grief — and uncover the wisdom they carry.
SHADOW EMOTIONS
Explore the hidden fears we hold around love and joy — including the ways we unconsciously upper limit ourselves and resist success, power, and the full expression of our potential. Learn how these very qualities often live in our golden shadow — the brilliance, love, and strength we’ve disowned or learned to fear in ourselves.
THE GOLDEN SHADOW
Learn More About Shadow Work and Shadow Coaching
“Unless we do conscious work on it, the shadow is almost always projected: That is, it is neatly laid on someone or something else so we do not have to take responsibility for it.”
– Robert Johnson
PROGRAM DETAILS
Can be taken from anywhere in the world!
Virtual Online Shadow Coach Training
(8) Monthly Modules
(32) Pre-Recorded Video/Audio Trainings with accompanying PDF’s and Tools
(8) Monthly Coaching Labs
(8) Monthly Facilitation Calls
(4) 45-60 minute Study Groups with Master Coach Instruction
(4) 45-60 minute Support Groups with one of the Mentors
(4) Private Mentor Sessions for ongoing support
(3) Private Shadow Coaching Sessions for Personal Development
Dedicated Mentor Coach throughout Training
Coaching Toolkit with Exercises, Worksheets, and Business Tools
Business Learning Modules & PDF’s to Support Your Business
Private Student Forum with 24-7 Access to the Group
2 Virtual Retreats
Access to Educational Video Library
Access to Graduate Community after Completion of Program
Optional Live Retreat
Book a discovery call to get started!
Beginning is EASY!
FOUNDERS AND FACILITATORS
Suzanne Hanna
Founder
Suzanne Hanna is a psychotherapist, shadow coach, and author who doesn’t just guide others through transformation—she embodies it. After walking 1,000 miles across the country in a radical act of healing and reclamation, Suzanne emerged with a rare and sacred map: the path home to the truest self. Her journey—through heartbreak, betrayal, loss, and rebirth—infuses every step she takes with those she serves. Suzanne is not here to offer quick fixes or surface solutions. She is here to walk beside you through the invisible thresholds of your life—with reverence, precision, and unwavering devotion. To walk with her is to descend into the depths of your becoming. To stand beside her is to remember you were never lost—only buried beneath the weight of what was never truly yours. Suzanne’s work is a pilgrimage into the shadow, a homecoming to truth, and a reclamation of the radiant, untamed self that’s been
there all along—waiting.
George Herrick
Co-Founder
George Herrick is co-creator of the original Wilderness Walk, and since then has been a creative contributor as well as a powerful collaborator with Suzanne. George is the founder of SoulDeep Living, a coaching process that supports people in taking courageous action toward the life that matters most to them. His classes, retreats and coaching lead others through transformational experiences and creative expression to live inspired lives. A life and recovery coach, artist, initiated shamanic practitioner and ceremonialist, George works with people who want a deeper connection to their soul and express their personal, human divinity with compassion, wisdom and a sense of service to something greater than themselves. He is the author of the best-selling book, “STONE WARRIOR; Confronting Life’s Dark Challenges with Stone Art and Meditation,” about his journey through the shadows of recovery from cancer and addiction.
Andrea Arledge
Facilitator
Andrea Arledge is not just a Registered Nurse with over 16 years of experience; she is a pioneering Shadow Coach who blends her deep medical knowledge with holistic practices to guide individuals on transformative journeys. With a rich background in holistic nutrition, somatic healing, and emotional health, Andrea empowers people to break free from the limiting stories that keep them stuck, helping them embrace their true selves and live authentically. Andrea is passionate about normalizing the full spectrum of human emotions and creating spaces where people can explore their inner landscapes without judgment. Her unique blend of skills and compassionate guidance helps clients navigate their emotional worlds with courage and integrity, leading them to profound internal liberation and empowerment.
“Shadow work is the way to illumination. When we become aware of all that is buried within us, that which is lurking beneath the surface no longer has power over us.”
― Aletheia Luna
ALL SUCCESSFULLY CERTIFIED COACHES WILL RECEIVE:
✓ Certificate of certification.
✓ Access to the Certified Coaches Graduate Community.
✓ Ongoing access to all materials and resources.
✓ Access to free ongoing training when available.
✓ Highlighted as a Shadow Coach on The Wilderness Walk website.
✓ Certified Shadow Coach logo to place on marketing materials and website.
✓ Ongoing Supervision.
✓ Access to an expanding library of educational videos.
(Payment Plans Available)
Investment
$5,995 USD
Carolyn Carlson-Intuitive Massage Therapist, Creative Healer & Shadow Coach
Having done Shadow work over the past 6 years in my personal journey work, I knew that I wanted to be able to bring it to others in my professional offerings. The information I am learning and the tangible tools that I am being given have helped me to feel comfortable in my coaching sessions with others. The material is provided in a multi-tiered approach so that all learning styles can engage and become enriched in the certification process. If you are seeking a quality, well-rounded Shadow Coaching Certification look no further.
To become a Certified Shadow Coach participants must complete the following:
Completion of required self-study modules and objectives in the online learning space.
Attend a minimum of 80% of the calls LIVE.
Coach 65 hours outside of class (paid or unpaid).
Complete two written exams based on what you learn and practice during the training.
Schedule and complete 4 one-on-one mentoring sessions with your assigned Mentor.
Schedule and complete 3 personal development sessions with one of the leaders.
Record three 30-minute coaching sessions to review with your leader during your mentoring sessions.
Once your written exams, understanding of material, ability to navigate your own shadow experiences and coaching recordings meet the required standards, you will become certified.
Download a copy of our Program Brochure
2026 Shadow Coach Training Application
Interested? Just click the link below and we will be in touch to set up a FREE consultation call.