The experience of sadness resulting from acting out of alignment with the heart or true self. Doing something we really don’t want to do. There is a need to return, atone, and/or reconnect with the true self. We hurt the self. Healthy guilt is sometimes experienced after causing harm to another person, but it is indicating harm to the self and is a healthy alarm informing us that we are off-track. Unhealthy guilt is feeling guilty for something for which we are not really responsible. In this case, it is a projection of personal guilt over not being true to the self. If it remains unconscious, this pattern can perpetuate itself and compound feelings of guilt, ultimately leading to a chronic experience of guilt or shame.
