What is Shamanism?
Shamanism is the word that’s commonly used in the Western world to describe an ancient practice that’s been used for healing and divination for thousands of years around the world. A trained shamanic practitioner has learned how to intentionally alter their consciousness so that they can travel from ordinary physical reality to non-physical reality, also referred to as the spirit world, the dreamtime and non-ordinary reality. Once in the spirit world, the practitioner connects with helping spirits that they have developed a relationship with over the course of many years. These compassionate spirits are actually the ones who do the healing work and/or offer information. The spirits, however, can only intervene in our lives if they’re invited. The shamanic practitioner’s role is to bring someone’s request for healing to the helping spirits.
Is Shamanism a Religion?
It’s actually a practice using specific techniques that can be used in a variety of ways. Shamanism, in and of itself, contains no dogma. However, some shamanic practitioners/cultures attach dogma to the practice claiming there are right and wrong ways to do the work.
What is Shamanic Healing?
Shamanic healing offers an effective way to understand the story of your symptoms because the practice bypasses your conscious mind – the part of you that wants to understand – and gives the practitioner direct access to your unconscious mind, where negative emotional and psychological patterns and wounds reside. These patterns and wounds are perceived in symbolic form, much like a dream. Once in this territory we can begin the process of transforming self-defeating patterns (ie, the bullshit we believe about ourselves) into a new and healthy story, one that’s imbued with personal power and invites your truth to shine through (minus the bullshit!).
The goal of shamanic healing is to bring all aspects of the self – body, mind and spirit – back into balance, to reconnect you with your personal power and invite courage and understanding into your life. To do this, the shamanic practitioner uses the following healing techniques:
Extraction The removal of the seed of self-defeating, negative belief systems and/or emotional traumas.
Soul Retrieval A highly specialized form of healing where the shaman journeys to the spirit world to find and recover soul parts lost as a result of trauma. The fragmented parts are then reunited with your core self making you whole again. Please note: This powerful technique is not advised in a first session.
Power Augmentation Boosts your personal power by connecting you with your own personal animal and plant helping spirits.
How do you work with clients?
What kinds of problems do you work with?
Shamanic healing can be done either in person or long distance.
In-person session An initial healing session typically takes two hours and follow up sessions, an hour and a half. We begin by chatting about what’s going on in your life and what your goals for healing are. Once the direction for the session is set I begin the healing session. I start by doing a brief opening ceremony: sage is burned to clear the room of any negativity and a rattle is used to call in the spirits and set the foundation for a safe, productive session. A monotonous drumbeat is then used to help me get into and sustain an altered state of consciousness. Once in an altered state I travel to the dreamtime, connect with my helping spirits and invite them to address the issues you’ve requested to heal. My job is to closely observe what they’re doing while they work on you so that I can let you know at the end of the session everything that happened. When the healing is completed I’ll tell you everything that I perceived.
Remote/Long distance session Long distance sessions are now done via zoom. An initial healing session typically takes two hours and follow up sessions, an hour and a half.
Sessions begin with an overview of how shamanic techniques can be used to approach healing followed by a conversation about your healing goal(s). Once the intention for your healing session is set, we go offline for approximately 30 minutes while I enter a shamanic trance state and experience your healing dream. During this time it’s recommended that you relax or meditate, focusing on your healing intention. When the healing dream is concluded we reconnect online so that I can share what happened during your dream journey, answer any questions you might have and talk about next steps. Because a lot of details typically emerge during your healing journey, some of which you might not be able to remember or absorb at the time, this final segment of the session is recorded and the link is sent to you so you can revisit the experience as much as you like.
If you have questions or would like to schedule a remote session, please contact Wendy.
If you’re interested in reading a detailed account of long distance shamanic healing, several years ago I wrote a book called Slaying the Mouse that captures my nine-month shamanic connection to a young man in a coma. When the events took place I lived on the east coast and the young man was in a hospital in Arizona.
How often should I receive shamanic healing?
Unlike talk therapy, shamanic healing is not something that’s done frequently. Each session has the potential to get right to the heart of an issue(s). Once the healing work is done, your job is to get to know and accept the new healed narrative that replaces the old wounded narrative, with the goal of really embodying and developing relationships with the parts of yourself that were healed during the session. It’s also about developing relationships the spirit allies who came forward to help you on your healing journey.
Initially, most people will do 1-2 shamanic healing sessions over the course of a year and then return when they feel the pull to do more work. They may not come back for another 3-5 years.
What are your fees?
In-person healing session:
First session = $170 (Session time: 2 hours);
Follow-up session(s) = $130 (Session time: 1.5 hours)
Remote healing session: (Please contact Wendy directly to schedule):
First session = $185 (Session time: 2 hours) Please see the response to “How do you work with clients?” for remote session details
Follow-up session(s) = $140 (Session time: 1.5 hours)
House/Property Clearing Ceremony: $110 (added fee based on travel time/mileage)
Free consultation: I’m happy to offer a free phone or email consult if you have questions or want to run your situation by me before making a decision to schedule a session.
Can I combine a Shamanic Healing session with a Harmonic Egg® session?
Following a Shamanic Healing session with a session in the Harmonic Egg® is a powerful combination. The Egg gives your body the opportunity to bring the Shamanic Healing into harmony with your body, making for a quicker integration of the shamanic healing.
A shamanic healing session can be added to either a single Harmonic Egg® session (RESET package) or for chronic concerns, 3 Egg sessions ideally over three consecutive weeks (BIG MEDICINE package). The fees vary depending on whether it’s your first shamanic healing session or a follow-up shamanic healing session.
Perhaps because of my background as a psychotherapist I seem to primarily work with people who are struggling with depression, anxiety, low self esteem, unhealthy relationships and/or have a history of trauma. Many of the people I work with usually find me when they’re feeling stuck in their symptoms and have tried contemporary approaches like psychotherapy and medication without success. I also work with people who have the desire to take the next step in their spiritual journey or are interested in discovering their soul’s purpose, but are feeling blocked. From the shamanic perspective it doesn’t matter if your symptoms are manifesting emotionally, mentally, physically or spiritually because everything is tied together.
How successful is shamanic healing?
Over the years I’ve found it difficult to predict how successful a healing session is going to be. But I can say that I’m continually blown away by the outcome of many healing sessions, which is why I keep doing this work. I tell the people I work with that in most cases a healing session doesn’t result in instantaneous change, but is more like a huge jump start to your healing process. The effects of a session can take hours, days and sometimes weeks to fully integrate and manifest. But to maintain the momentum of the session it’s important to consistently use the tools you received during a session on a daily basis in order to keep from slipping completely back to your old unhealthy patterns. If you don’t stay on top of things, the effects of the healing will be short-lived.
One of the things I’ve discovered is that the success of a session is relative to your desire for change and healing (in most people this is usually coupled with some anxiety about changing). In other words, the more motivated you are – the more you want to change – the more likely you’ll experience long term effects.
Click here to read testimonials.
What kinds of things do you see when you're in an altered state?
To me, the shamanic realm, or the spirit world, is the realm of information that’s perceived symbolically. When in a trance state I connect with the dreaming of you. Many times the focus of the healing session (eg, low self esteem) is revealed to me like a story or fairy tale and the healing that happens changes the nature of that story. The healed narrative becomes a story of personal power and strength and possibility. If I’m perceiving accurately nothing I perceive should surprise you.
Should I be afraid of what you might find?
Many people express concern that I might discover something unsettling or upsetting about them or their lives when doing a healing session. What I’ve found is that if I’m perceiving correctly nothing I encounter during a session should come as a surprise. Instead it should be a validation of your experience.
Do you offer Shamanic Training?
I currently offer training for people who are interested in having a shamanic practice. A training program is designed based on your shamanic goals (ie, personal and spiritual growth, learning healing techniques, etc). I also recommend that participating individuals complete The Magical Path shamanic workbook in conjunction with their training.
Also available is the BECOME YOUR OWN SHAMAN Introductory Online Course, a self-paced course that will give you a solid introductory foundation for developing a personal shamanic practice.
What is your fee for Shamanic Training?
Currently, the fee for in-person shamanic training is $45/half hour with most training sessions lasting an hour and a half. (The frequency is up to the individual)
Do you offer Shamanic Workshops?
One-day shamanic workshops are typically offered in the Spring and Fall. Workshops are currently on hold, but will be offered again in the near future.
What is Your Cancellation Policy?
Please give us 24-hour notice if you need to cancel your appointment to avoid a $75 (initial shamanic healing session) or $60 (follow-up shamanic healing session) late cancellation fee.