The subconscious is a psychological term that means below the conscious mind. It refers to a domain of experience that is hidden from our awareness, but nonetheless impacts our behavior by manifesting as habits, desires, fears and attachments. Subconscious is sometimes used interchangeably with the term unconscious. A concept popularized, though not invented, by Sigmund Freud, one of the founders of modern psychology. In Freud's theory, the unconscious is a kind of storehouse of instincts, urges, desires and memories that are beyond the reach of our waking awareness. It is common to liken the unconscious to the submerged portion of an iceberg. That which we can see of the iceberg is that aspect of our personality that is present to waking life. Like the iceberg, however, so much exists below the surface that informs the character of what appears above it. So much of what remains hidden from the light of our awareness influences our character and personality. The subconscious is also sometimes referred to as one's shadow, a term developed by Carl Jung, one of Freud's protégés, because it is characterized by feelings, urges and desires that one cannot immediately identify with. These urges become disavowed in the early years of childhood when our sense of individuality is still being constructed, because they are taboo perhaps in our society or in an individual family unit and don't fit the idealized picture we project of ourselves. As a result, they become repressed and faded to reside in the hidden world of the unconscious, where they are largely unknown to us, unless we take the time to investigate them through some form of contemplative or therapeutic practice. Practices like dream work, hypnosis, meditation, visualization and shamanic healing techniques are all effective ways to bring the murky underworld of the subconscious to light. Because the subconscious often includes unresolved aspects of our personality, these practices can help us integrate these shadowy parts of ourselves so that we can live a more fulfilled and a quantumous life.