10 Negative Side Effects Of a Spiritual Awakening Nobody Talks About

A spiritual awakening is a real phenomenon - you suddenly see through the veil of society and can't continue living your old life any longer. You realize that our present humanity is very far removed from what really matters: to love and let love.

But if you think that a spiritual awakening is all love and light, you couldn't be further from the truth.

If you enter into this stage of your life, nothing will ever be the same again. Is this good? After all, according to most 'enlightened' people, a spiritual awakening is the best thing that could ever happen to you.

A spiritual awakening wakes you up to the harsh reality that most people are unhappy, including yourself.

It makes you aware that many of us are always looking for something better and can never really be at peace. That a lot of people hurt each other, whether consciously or unconsciously.

A real spiritual awakening is hard work. You have to dedicate a lot of time to get to know yourself and your shadows. It's really easy to close your eyes again and fall back into your old (toxic) patterns.

It's actually not fun at all to see how everybody around you is mostly living on auto-pilot. How we are all mainly chasing money and power.

Why did the Universe want to show you this?

The good news is that it is indeed all worth it in the end. You entered into this awakening to grow as a human being and to be a better person to others.

That said - a spiritual awakening can also make you really confused.

The negative side effects of a spiritual awakening

Nobody really talks about the bad side effects of a spiritual awakening, but they are as real as the whole process of waking up itself. Having entered into a spiritual awakening myself three years ago, I encountered (and still do) the following bad side effects during my process:

1. You become boring

This might be the most persistent negative part of being spiritually awakened - people perceive you as boring. Whereas before you used to love going out and partying; now you prefer to meditate in nature and learn about the secrets of life.

You still try to have fun and get drunk sometimes, but it just doesn't resonate with you anymore. You find the conversations shallow, and you drift further and further away from your friends.

They comment on how boring you became - you never want to do anything fun anymore! And now that you think about it yourself, you are actually pretty boring.

What happened to the extroverted, funny person you once were?

A spiritual awakening makes you listen to your soul and your purpose in life. And for most people that is not partying and getting drunk all the time. You might resist this fact in the beginning, but at some point, you conclude that you've lost that part of yourself.

It's up to you to see that as a good or a bad thing.

2. You doubt yourself even more

Congratulations, you got the chance to really evolve as a human being! What an amazing opportunity - or not?

When you first start learning about your spiritual awakening, everything is amazing. You feel so lucky that you could get out of the matrix, and that you are growing so much. You seek other spiritual friends and make wonderful connections.

But it wouldn't be a spiritual awakening if you start doubting yourself again at some point.

Who are you? Why are you here? What is the meaning of life?

This might make you lose trust in your progress and you try to be your old self again. You'll soon find out though that you don't resonate with either version of yourself anymore- not your old one, but not your new one either.

An awakening is notorious to make you always doubt everything over and over again.

3. You get confused about real spirituality

What is being spiritual anyway? Is it to believe in God? To become Buddhist? To dedicate yourself to yoga and meditation? To endlessly pursue inner healing?

Real spirituality can't be put into a box.

Being spiritual is different for everybody. You might get confused about what is the ultimate truth - who holds the real secrets of the Universe?

You compare religions with each other. You might become obsessed with Taoism, follow Allan Watts' words, or become a monk for a while. You buy 'spiritual' items; like tarot cards, crystals, or incense sticks.

But it all ends up making you more confused. What if it's all made up, and we are just a bunch of sheep trying to make sense of it all? Never coming to a conclusion?

Being confused is a not-so-fun part of being spiritually awakened.

4. You lose friends

If you enter into a spiritual awakening, you will get more and more removed from the people that you call your friends. You want to stay away from gossip, and only deep conversations get you excited.

Especially if you are the only one of your friends who sees how toxic our society really is, it might be very hard to explain that to them. They are still convinced that they should make a lot of money and that a powerful career reflects success in their life. Or they are conditioned to follow the general fear mentality we mostly live in right now.

It's very hard to stay friends with people who you just don't resonate with anymore.

And they probably think that you are into some woo-woo shit and it's just a phase in your life.

It's a sad side effect that you will lose some of your life-long friends after you get more spiritual. It's okay though; people come and go into our lives, and sometimes you just have to say goodbye if your friends are not good for your personal growth anymore.

5. You follow the wrong gurus

This is a trap that many spiritual seekers fall into - you follow the wrong gurus. Many 'enlightened' people claim to have special healing powers, and can't wait to show you how it's done.

As a newly-made spiritual person, you believe everything. These people are so radiant! And their life is like a dream! They have so many followers; they must do something good with their lives, right?

You get obsessed with their YouTube channels and buy every course they recommend. After all, you are the one who needs guidance, and you feel like everybody around you knows more than you. Even the wrong people.

The sad truth is though, that there are many sharks in the spiritual world. They might actually have some sort of wisdom, but this doesn't mean that they are better than you.

Be aware of any guru or healer who claims they can heal you - they are probably the ones that need the most healing themselves. Spiritual narcissism is a real thing, and you should know about this.

6. You lose a lot of money

Following the previous bad side effect of an awakening: you most likely lose a lot of money when you reluctantly step your feet into the spiritual world.

This is because you believe all the crap that people try to sell you at first.

Whether it is their 'blessed' tarot deck, or that mega-expensive online course that promises you to get enlightened. Or maybe because you get obsessed with spiritual healing events; like breathwork sessions, cacao ceremonies or plant medicine/psychedelics retreats.

Don't get me wrong, though - these ceremonies could be really helpful. In fact, I am a big fan myself of this type of healing.

But there is a difference between paying a fair price for these things to cover the costs, or having to put down thousands of dollars to attend a retreat with a 'medium' that claims he/she should get paid top-dollar for their services since "money is energy that should flow".

7. You think you have arrived

Another bad side effect of a spiritual awakening is falling into the trap of new-age spirituality. New age spirituality is using your new status as a spiritual person to not face your issues.

You think you have seen the light, and you have arrived. You entered the 5D, saw some visions, became enlightened, and now the work is done.

But this is actually where the real work begins - how "enlightened" are you to realize that enlightenment doesn't actually exist?

There is always more to learn about yourself and your shadows. You will never ever stop growing and evolving.

8. You become entitled

This is a dangerous side effect of being spiritually awakened - you feel better than others. You think you have gifts that others don't have. That you deserve to get what belongs to you.

You look down on people who "are not there yet". Your new friends and you are so awake! You use the Law of Attraction to manifest all you feel entitled to. You tell people that they create their own reality, and all they need to do is change their course. After all, they chose their own life, right?

It's very common to fall into this negative side effect of a spiritual awakening. But despite the fact that you have woken up to the toxicity of our matrix society, that doesn't mean that you deserve more than others.

Or that you should close your eyes to a lot of misery that people have to endure. They didn't choose to be born into a war-ridden country or be locked up in a basement to be sexually abused.

To really realize you became entitled, is a true sign of growth.

Nobody chooses to have bad things happen to them. If anything, you should feel heightened compassion for everybody around you. Especially the people who are less lucky than you.

Because ultimately, a spiritual awakening teaches you that We are all One.

9. You think you need to heal others

This is a bad trait of many spiritual people that I have encountered so many times. And truth be told, I also fell into this trap.

I thought I learned so many lessons about life and the Universe, that others would want to learn the same. I diagnosed people with which problem they had and thought it would help them to know about this.

You feel the urge to make it your mission to wake others up as well.

After all, you do feel different. And maybe you really do see what is the issue with somebody else, and how they could improve their lives. But who are you to knock them off their feet with your truth if they are not ready for it?

Everybody is on their own journey at their own pace. You cannot heal anybody else but yourself.

People will naturally come to you if they feel like they want help and you inspire them.

10. You wish you never entered this stage in your life

After getting aware of all these negative side effects, what the hell is the purpose of getting into a spiritual awakening anyway?

Especially if you have been a victim of a bad guru, you might want to turn your back on spirituality completely. Why did you have to enter this journey that is so full of fake people?

If everybody is so awakened as they claim to be, why is there still so much misery in the world? If only you could go back to the fun times you had before where you didn't have to navigate this confusing awakening bullshit…

The good things about a spiritual awakening

Fortunately, there is also a silver lining in entering into an awakening. It's true that you get more peaceful and happier in general. You stop searching for external validation, and you just trust the pace of life. You learn that your intuition is always guiding you.

You feel more secure about who you are, and you can genuinely enjoy the beautiful things on this amazing planet. You learn to trust in your skills, and might completely change your career around into something that really fulfills you.

A spiritual awakening definitely isn't all red wine and roses, but if you are genuine about your process and your intentions, you do reach a state of higher consciousness that can inspire and truly help others.

And that, I think, is the real purpose of a spiritual awakening: let everyone be on their own journey, and have empathy for the thousands of people that fight every day for their life.