Freya Shi

Unlearning, to Love
An Academic’s Memoir on Truth, Meaning, and Spirit

What happens when your mind becomes your prison?

I was trained to think critically, to understand the world through theory and philosophy. But academic knowledge left me detached from my body, my emotions, my life. I could explain suffering but not transform it. I was brilliant, but miserable. Anxious. Depressed. Afraid.

To survive, I had to unlearn everything I thought made me intelligent. I had to fall into the wounds I’d spent years avoiding. I had to let old versions of myself die, again and again, through crises that broke me open.

This is the story of that breaking. And what emerged on the other side.

Through critical theory, depth psychology, somatic practice, astrology, and spirituality, I found a way back to my body, back to the world, back to a life I could actually feel.

The poison became the medicine. The depth of the wound became the source of peace.

Unlearning, to Love is a memoir and a guide for anyone trapped in their thinking mind, anyone who knows something needs to change but doesn’t know how. It’s for those carrying wounds they’re afraid to touch, and those ready to discover that healing comes from descending into the depth of what once seemed impossible.

This is a journey of intellectual empowerment, emotional healing, and spiritual transformation. And it’s a journey every one of us deserves to take.