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Asking yourself, “how long does the Dark Night of the Soul last?” The duration of a Dark Night of the Soul depends on which type you are experiencing, and how you approach this kind of spiritual depression.
“How long does the Dark Night of the Soul last?” is a very normal question to ask if you’re going through spiritual depression.
To answer this question, we first need to understand that there are two types of Dark Night.
I explain each of them in detail in this blog post, but in summary:
Type 1: the ‘spiritual’ Dark Night of the Soul
An unavoidable stage of the spiritual awakening journey which starts at fifty percent integration with our higher selves, during which all of our chakras are constricted to the same degree;
Type 2: a ‘growth-oriented’ Dark Night of the Soul
Blockage beyond 50 percent of one or more chakras, which can happen suddenly (due to trauma) or manifest as a gradual decline, caused by our own actions or inactions, or negative circumstances.
These types of spiritual depression manifest differently to one another and require different lengths of time to exit.
(Not sure if you’re having a spiritual awakening? Discover the 7 major signs of awakening in this blog article.)
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How long does the spiritual Dark Night of the Soul last?
As I mentioned, this type of Dark Night descends suddenly, at 50 percent integration between your earthbound soul and higher self.
You will notice when it arrives because it comes after a period of deep connection with the universe, when your chakras are in full flow.
Typically the transition into this kind of Dark Night takes around 24 hours.
So, how long does the Dark Night of the Soul last in this case?
Assuming you continue with your spiritual routine (more info below) the shortest amount you can get through this type of Dark Night is three months.
However, it can last longer if you don’t do the right things, up to around nine months.
In this new age of enlightenment, it is very unusual for the spiritual Dark Night of the Soul to last longer than this, as long as you are maintaining your spiritual routine.
(Discover the symptoms of the Dark Night of the Soul in this blog article.)
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Not everyone gets through the spiritual Dark Night of the Soul on the first attempt
In fact, many people give up on the spiritual journey entirely at this point.
Please don’t!
What lies on the other side is truly amazing and will transform your life.
If you stop practicing your spiritual protocols (meditation, yoga, spending time in nature, for example), then you will slip backwards along the spiritual awakening continuum.
In other words you will start to ‘de-integrate’.
This relieves the symptoms because you return to an earlier phase of awakening.
However, the difficulty is that, assuming you keep up your spiritual practice, you will keep returning to the spiritual Dark Night each time you reach fifty percent integration with your higher self.
It’s not uncommon for people to keep bouncing in and out of the spiritual Dark Night without understanding what is happening to them.
To avoid this, follow the spiritual protocols below.
Protocols for the spiritual Dark Night of the Soul
Because we exit the spiritual Dark Night at around 65-70 percent integration with our higher selves, the priority during this stage of the awakening process is to continue to integrate.
You can do this by undertaking what are typically understood as ‘right brain’ activities.
These include:
- Creating art
- Making or playing music
- Spending time in nature
- Yoga
- Meditation
The surest, quickest way to facilitate integration is to meditate at least once a day.
Read this blog article to learn what to do during the spiritual Dark Night of the Soul.
Watch the video below for a super-easy daily third eye meditation that takes just five minutes.
How long does the growth-oriented Dark Night of the Soul last?
This type of Dark Night is designed to encourage you to change and grow.
It can be triggered by a wide variety of situations and behaviours, so the length of time it takes to exit depends on the circumstances and the steps you take.
Reasons for a growth-oriented Dark Night include:
- Unhealthy lifestyle
- Excessive use of drugs or alcohol
- Behaving in an unethical or mean-spirited way
- Not dealing with past trauma
- Remaining in situations that make us unhappy, such as bad relationships or jobs
How deep this spiritual depression is for you will depend on the how severe the behaviour or situation is which is causing one or more of your chakras to constrict.
So to answer the question, how long does a Dark Night of the Soul last? (the growth-oriented kind):
If you catch the downward spiral in time and take the necessary steps, you can exit this kind of Dark Night very quickly, sometimes in as little as a week or two.
However, if you allow the situation to escalate, or do nothing about something which is making you unhappy, then this type of Dark Night will deepen until you take action.
So basically, how long it lasts is up to you.
Once you have taken the steps you need, then you should feel a ‘lightening’ within a couple of weeks or perhaps as long as a month or two, depending on how far out of the spiral you need to climb.
Please bear in mind, if you are dealing with a situation that has been going on for a long time, then the road back to full chakra health may be a long one, however there is no doubt at all that you can do it.
Remember, the universe never gives us a problem we can’t solve.
Protocols for a growth-oriented Dark Night of the Soul
As with a spiritual Dark Night of the Soul, right brain activities will help to alleviate the symptoms of this type of Dark Night.
They may also afford you flashes of insight which help you decide on your course of action.
But the only way to truly exit this type of spiritual depression is to make changes to your thinking, your behaviour, or your life.
It can be helpful to consult a third party at this time, a counsellor, coach, or therapist.
You may also identify some deep inner work you need to do, especially if you had a difficult or abusive childhood, or have been in abusive relationships.
Change is difficult, but it’s necessary if you want to live a happy and fulfilling life.
