October 17, 2024 • 32 mins
What if the challenges you face today are the keys to unlocking a more profound spiritual journey? Discover how the pandemic's upheaval transformed my career in retail into a path of spiritual awakening through shamanism. Join me as I share the pivotal moments that led to the creation of a holistic wellness center and how a friend's influence sparked a deep exploration into my spiritual lineage.
Experience the turning point that shifted my skepticism to passion after my first energy cleansing ritual with herbs, feathers, and a jaguar whistle. Guided by Ali, a seasoned shamanic practitioner, I embarked on a quest to uncover my ancestral connections to medicine women and delve into rituals and ceremonies. Ali's mentorship opened up a new world, where I began to embrace the call of shamanism and aspire to understand my innate spiritual gifts.
Shamanic healing practices like soul retrievals, sound bath meditations, and oracle card readings have not only transformed my life but also inspired me to guide others on their spiritual journeys. Through the Joyful Shaman podcast, I aim to foster personal growth and spiritual awakening, emphasizing the power of intention in rituals. Tune in for inspiration and a reminder of your inherent worth and connection to the universe, and how embracing these practices can lead to profound shifts in energy and awareness.
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Naomi@joyfulshaman.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hi, welcome back to the Joyful Shaman Podcast.
I'm Naomi, your host with themost, and we are back again with
another episode.
This week I'm finally going tobe talking about how I got into
shamanism and my path andjourney of my shamanic
apprenticeship.
That actually is still going.
It will be lifelong.
(00:22):
So if you listened to the lastepisode, I briefly, briefly
talked about 20s and early 30sand now we're coming into the
last two or three years of mylife, really diving into full
awareness of my spirituality,finally having another awakening
(00:44):
.
I'm sure the universe is likegirl, wake up and just embracing
that head on full speed ahead.
So I want to say it was abouttwo, almost three years ago now
that I had my retail shop that Italked about in the last
episode and I moved from theretail store, once the lease was
(01:08):
up, into a larger facility,literally just a block away, to
expand the service offerings,because at the time, with the
pandemic, small-scale retailreally wasn't able to keep up
with everyone just really divinginto online buying because of
course you know, the world wasshut down and people needed to
(01:31):
shop and of course onlinebusinesses was where it was at.
So I started to see a declineand just the wholesale costs of
things and just my way of doingretail just wasn't quite working
anymore.
So unfortunately, once thelease was up, I said namaste to
that version of the retail store, moved into a larger scale
(01:54):
facility and just focused onexpanding massage therapy,
adding in couples massage,adding in estheticians, adding
in yoga and regular sound bathmeditation and honestly I felt
like, wow, I am finallyaccomplishing this lifelong
dream of this holistic wellnesscenter.
You know, I thought it was itin Sarasota.
(02:15):
That was a hell, no.
And so here I am again doing itand it's actually succeeding.
And it was about, yeah, threeyears ago that I had someone who
is a very dear friend of minehere in the community come and
let me know that they had movedto Lakeland from Colorado and
(02:37):
they wanted to work with me andthat they were a holistic
practitioner, they were aspiritual teacher, they were a
follower of the esoteric pathand honestly, they just wanted
to do massage therapy.
I was like, absolutely, ofcourse, come on down the more
the merrier.
And the reason I said that wasthat week I had told myself out
(03:03):
loud in the midst of my sorrowfrom it not working out what
this guy was super into.
I really wanted to startpivoting my business to be more
of a spiritual base and not justorganic holistics, but really
embracing energy healing, reallyembracing teaching on
(03:24):
spirituality, really embracingon just what that means.
And, honestly, now that I lookback on it, it was probably me.
Just like I need to understandthis for myself, and if I need
to use my business as thevehicle to get me there, I'm
going to do that.
And so when this person came,literally five days later after
(03:46):
I said that audibly to theuniverse, I was like, oh my gosh
, this is the universemanifesting, this is God
answering my prayer.
Absolutely, I must hire thiswoman.
And so I hired her.
And then I felt that I waspressuring her.
I will say that I feel like Iwas pressuring her to be like
okay, so you're the superspiritual person, can you teach
(04:09):
me, can you help me develop this?
I really want to pivot mybusiness.
And she was like, hello, Ireally just want to do massage
therapy, like I need to take abreak from teaching, I need to
do this.
Like she was on her own journey.
And so I was like, okay, but no, not really, I don't really
need you to help me out.
(04:29):
It was a mid-suffrage of me, Iwill say that, and I think,
looking back now, we're bothkind of glad that it did happen,
because it helped us to grow aspeople and also really helped
to formulate our friendship,because it was a little
tumultuous there for a moment.
So she helped me to reallypivot the business and I really
(04:50):
looked up to her as a mentor andas a teacher.
I was like, wow, she's just sodevout to her path, to her
teachings.
I really want to know more,because what is the spirituality
that I want to focus on For mepersonally, you know, like as a
practitioner, as a healer, likewhat is it?
And so she has a background inshamanism as well.
(05:12):
She studied with Lakota chieffor 15 years and also studied
with a Scandinavian medicinewoman because that's her blood
lineage.
And so I was like, okay, well,I'm Mayan and I guess I have
some blood lineage somewhere,but where am I going to find a
teacher like that?
And so I was just learning verybasics from my friend, just
(05:33):
overall, a variety of differentspiritual topics and her views,
and really starting to formulatelike, does this resonate with
me?
Some of it does, some of itdoesn't, and that's okay,
there's nothing wrong with someof the things that she believes,
as she practices.
It's just not my path.
And so I kept desiring, and keptdesiring and asking you know
the universe.
(05:53):
I'm like, please, I think Iwant to understand what the
shamanism thing is.
I just feel like this blanketgeneral term.
Is it religion?
Is it a practice?
Is it a lifestyle?
I don't know what it is, but Ifeel like there's a calling and
it's kind of jazzing me up againin a way that I've never felt.
(06:14):
It's waking me up and you knowI'm researching things online,
looking at different, you knowshamanic schools that were
really expensive, with peoplethat I was just like this isn't
resonating with me.
And traditionally, if you'recalled to the shamanic path or
if you want to train inshamanism or work to become a
shamanic healer, you generallydo an in-person apprenticeship
(06:35):
with a shaman.
And I was like, holy hell, thisis Lakeland.
Where in the fuck am I going tofind somebody that is a shaman?
Like?
Okay, I'm going to have toaccept that.
I'm just going to have to dothis online.
And it was around holidaysseason, december, yeah, about
(06:55):
three years ago that I had threenew clients that week and I had
rolled out a new vibrationaltherapy session where I was
using sound healing on andaround the body, starting to
incorporate, you know, smokecleansing and laying of hands
and really embracing that Reikiside of me.
(07:16):
Of course, I had studied Reikilike almost 20 years ago but
never really embraced it.
I was just like, man, it iswhat it is.
I did a continuing educationcredit, let's move on.
And so I was just like, well,let me just start doing some
things, let me start feeling itout.
And people really responded andI knew it was the universe like
continuing to nudge me of like,yes, yes, keep going, let it
(07:36):
flow through, you know, kind ofthing.
And so these three new clientsthat week said, wow, you have
such a beautiful gift.
And I'm like, wow, thank you,okay.
And they said, do you know awoman named Allison Smith or Ali
Smith?
And I'm like no, and they'relike she's a shamanic healer.
She also teaches kundalini yoga.
(07:58):
She does a lot of the samestuff that you do.
You guys should meet.
You would really be able to,you know, get along.
And I was like, okay, well,cool, but I don't know.
Those three people, completestrangers, all in one week said
her name three times and when Iheard it the third time I was
like, okay, I need to ask forher telephone number because
(08:23):
obviously the universe is tryingto send me a sign.
This is not a coincidence, thisis a synchronicity.
So the last client thatmentioned her name, I said you
know, I never would do thisbecause this would not be
professional.
But you're a spiritual personand you're the third person this
week that has told me thiswoman's name.
Will you please give me hertelephone number so that if I
(08:45):
feel that I have the courage toreach out to her, to talk to her
, I can.
And they're like, yeah, ifanything, she does energy
healings at her home and alsoteaches private yoga classes.
Just say, like I referred youand you know, if you just want
to go and experience thatyourself, and I was like, okay,
they gave me her number.
It was before Christmas and Icalled Allie.
(09:06):
And I was like, okay, they gaveme her number, it was before
Christmas and I called Allie.
And you know, I told her who Iwas and briefly the story, and I
said can I set up an energyhealing session with you?
I wasn't even going to energyhealers.
I worked with my friend and wetraded energy healing.
But I was really getting morefrom my friend because she's
been a 20-year tarot reader, shehad a successful business
(09:27):
online.
So I was like, ooh, receivingfrom my friend, but I really I'd
never gone to another personphysically to receive energy
healing, much less shamanichealing.
So here I am, going to Allie'shouse, and she was on the north
end of our town, of thisbeautiful house on this
beautiful lake, and I'm like,what am I doing here?
(09:50):
And so I walk up to this woodbuilding that her husband had
built for her.
She had a private gymdownstairs where she did private
classes, and then upstairs waskind of like a pseudo apartment,
but that's where she did hercounseling and energy work.
So, walking up the stairs and Iknock on the door and she opens
(10:11):
the door and she's like hi.
And I was like, oh shit, okay,all right, this is a lot of
energy, you know, and I'm stillkind of quiet and introverted
and just a little bit repressed,just nervous and anxious.
And so, you know, she makes metake off my shoes.
She says, you know, can Icleanse your energy?
(10:33):
And I was like, yeah, sure, youknow, I was used to that, doing
that in the studio all the time, lighting up the stage,
lighting up the Palo Santo, youknow, moving around and
cleansing it.
And I was like, okay, it's justlike.
So stand here, you know, extendyour hands and close your eyes
and start to take some deepbreaths.
So I'm like, okay, I do it.
(10:54):
She has the herbs lit, she hasthis massive, massive fan of
these beautiful feathers andthen she starts flapping the fan
in front of me so forcefullythat I have this thing about air
blowing in my face.
When I go get my hair done andthey're going to blow my face,
(11:16):
all the little hairs come off.
They have to tell me because Ihave to hold my breath.
I don't know when that started,but it's been like that for
many years.
And so when I feel large gustsof air in my face at such close
proximities, it like makes mestop breathing, like it makes me
choke a little bit.
So it caught me off guard.
So I'm like you know?
And she's like are you okay?
(11:37):
And I was like I just didn'tknow it was going to feel like
that, and she laughs and sheclears my energy.
And you know we go and sit downon the couch and she's like so I
just want you to let me knowwho you are.
Why are you here, what are youseeking?
And I'm like, I don't know, man, I just here's my story and I
don't know what that means.
But I'm maybe interested inlearning about shamanism and
(12:00):
finding someone that can teachme, find someone that can tell
me about it so I can understandwhat it is.
And if this is a path for me,am I supposed to use it in my
business?
I don't know.
And she's like well, I used tohave my own shamanic school.
I typically don't teachstudents one-on-one.
I have private clients where Ido energy healings and I'm by
(12:22):
referral only, because you don'tfind her on Google.
She doesn't have a brick andmortar, she's totally by
referral and she chooses if shewants to work with you.
And she said well, let's havesome more conversations.
We had a conversation about mychildhood and I was feeling
anxious around that time.
Financially, we weren't doingwell that holiday season, the
(12:43):
economy was starting to take theturn post-COVID, with the
inflation and all of that, andso I was just a bundle of nerves
.
And she did this energy healingcalled a chakra illumination
and this exercise, you know,showed me how to understand the
chakra system or how to clearthe chakra system using muscle
(13:05):
testing.
And just I felt this powerfulenergy surge into me when she
like touched me and then usedthis powerful jaguar whistle
that was extremely loud and blewit right into my belly button
and I was like, oh my God, whatis happening to me?
It was crazy, but it feltamazing and I just had this like
(13:29):
burst of energy and just likethis whole thing just cleared in
my mind and I just felt totallynew and I was like, wow, wow,
this is it.
Man Like this is me.
I need this, I need this in mylife.
Christmas happened and I wasjust thinking about it more and
(13:51):
more and just taking in thatexperience and just being like I
really want to learn.
I think this is what's going tore-energize me.
I think this is what's going tochange things for me.
You know, I just was tired ofmy business.
You change things for me.
You know I just was tired of mybusiness, didn't want to keep
doing massage you know, reallytired of massage and just was
like what is next for me?
(14:13):
I contacted Ali after the newyear and I said would you be
willing to meet with me againfor another session, and this
time it was two hours.
And I told her.
I said I really feel that I'mbeing called into shamanism.
This might sound a little crazy, but I think my grandma visited
me a couple years ago and toldme I came from a lineage of
(14:35):
medicine women, and I don't knowif that sounds totally wild to
you, but I think if you're opento it, you're meant to be one of
my first teachers.
And she looked at me and she'slike oh, so you finally figured
that out.
And I was like what?
And she's like I knew it fromthe moment that you contacted me
(14:56):
, it came into my intuitiveawareness that I was going to be
taking on a new, powerful,advanced student who, to them,
is not quite aware but isunlocking her gifts.
And so when I met you and Italked to you, I could feel that
energy rising.
And she's like in your spiritguides, we're already telling me
(15:17):
this is her.
This is her, this is her.
Open her up, clear her andallow her to be your student,
because it's going to transformyou as well.
And I'm sitting there and I'mlike what?
But internally I'm like, yeah,she's going to teach me.
Oh, my God, this is such a hugehonor because she teaches no
(15:41):
one anymore and I am just overthe moon one anymore.
And I am just over the moon andI committed to working with Ali
, going every month for twohours talking about different
aspects about shamanism.
I would do research and I wouldask about what is a power
journey or what's a soulretrieval, or what's this and
(16:02):
what's that, and she wouldexplain things to me.
But she's like you already knowthis, it's already in your
medicine.
I'm just unlocking your mind sothat your logical mind can
catch up with the subconscious.
Because I was like, oh, I knowthis in this way, or I already
(16:23):
do this.
And she's like, yes, yes, youdo.
And I was like, okay, and so Istarted to learn about different
rituals and ceremonies and whywe do them and her experiences
and her perspectives and her wayof teaching them from the
(16:44):
people that she has learned overmany years, and so it has been
a powerful journey and we havebecome wonderful friends.
I see Allie as like a bigsister.
Fun fact, we actually had theexact same birthday of course,
different ages, but ourbirthdays are both June 13th and
(17:07):
we're both Gemini's, which iswhy she has big energy, like me
has been this profound journeywith Allie of going and
receiving and opening myself upto new perspective, new thoughts
and just a powerful anddifferent way to receive and to
(17:29):
give counseling to people.
I remember after the firstsession, we talked about healing
circles, and healing circlesare when people gather together,
generally around the fire inshamanic practice, and it's like
open share time.
It's a time where we theteacher or the guide or the
(17:52):
shaman is sharing stories, issharing teachings, is providing
some kind of healing to thegroup or to an individual, and
other people are bearing witnessto this.
And I had already been thinking, wow, I feel like I could do
this.
You know, we have been leadinggroup sound bath meditations for
(18:13):
well over a year and a half andI'm like, I think I would
really like to offer this to mycommunity and she's teaching me
about this and in my mind I'mformulating like, okay, I'm
going to do this on the firstSunday of every month from 2 to
3.30.
I'm going to channel messages,I'm going to do this, I'm going
to do that, and people are goingto come and blah, blah, blah,
like I'm already.
Like, once again, I getpassionate about something.
(18:35):
I'm going in, you know to thedeep end.
And so I learned about healingcircles and I told her would
really like to offer this?
Do you feel that as a studentjust starting out, this would be
appropriate?
And she said you are far moreadvanced than you think.
(18:56):
You need to step into yourpower and know that you're not
just a part-time shaman, you'rea full-time shaman.
When you walk the spiral path,you are all in.
And I sat there and I wasreally taking it in and I said,
(19:17):
okay, I guess I'll do it.
And so I started my firsthealing circle.
I put the announcement outthere of what it was that I was
going to be channeling messagesand providing a safe space for
people to come and share and Iwas going to be doing group
energy healing and group soundhealing and it was all going to
(19:39):
be donation.
I never charged anybody.
The first time that I openedthat, over 20 women came and I
was just blown away because I'mlike, oh my God, this is
actually happening, like peoplein the community are opening
themselves publicly to shamanichealing, like no one that I know
(20:03):
of was doing it through apublic brick and mortar business
, and it was such a beautifulexperience.
It's also where I reallystarted to step into mediumship.
I have this beautiful friendhere in my community who is an
(20:24):
amazing entrepreneur, just thisbeautiful, gentle, cancer-y soul
.
I love her, such a cancer.
And she came and it was in themidst of heavy grief, a huge
life change in her life, and shecame just looking for support
and her friends came with her.
And she came just looking forsupport and her friends came
(20:45):
with her and it was just thisprofound moment and her father,
who had recently ascended intospirit, came and it was the
first time that I could see andunderstand that, oh, I'm
clairvoyant, I can see and I canhear.
Clairaudient.
(21:07):
I saw her father stand behind mebecause I was sitting on this
mat on the floor, and I couldsee him wearing a cowboy hat and
a mustache and he's darkskinned and you know she was
from Texas and he was speakingto her half English, half
Spanish, and he's like pleasetell her that I'm here.
And I was like oh my God,what's happening?
(21:30):
And I put my hand on her and Isaid I have to say something to
you.
I hope that it resonates.
I want to know if it's okay,are you in the space to receive?
And she's like, of course, andI told her everything that her
(21:50):
dad told me and just the tearsstreaming down her face and like
the peace that she felt, evenher friends were crying and I
was just like, oh my God, thisis my path, this is my work.
I am an open conduit to be ableto help people heal.
A lot of those women that werethere had gone through serious
(22:11):
trauma, trying to healrelationships with their mothers
, their fathers, their children,loved ones, caregivers,
understanding their purpose,understanding why they were here
and in that first healingcircle.
That's what solidified, this iswhat my grandma meant.
And then from there it's takenme a while to embrace and being
(22:38):
the full-time shaman, because apart of me was still feeling
less than A part of me was like.
You know, I'm a young person.
Shamans typically traditionallytrain for 20 to even 30 years
before they are called a shamanin their tribe, in their culture
.
You know me, it's been threeyears really, and I just went
(23:02):
with it.
I just opened myself up to trydifferent things.
Now there are some things inshamanism that don't really
resonate with me at this pointin my life.
I don't know if it will ever.
I respect it, but it's notsomething that I do.
So the type of practices that Ido offer in person and now in my
(23:28):
foray into the online world asof this year, is chakra
illumination.
It's using a stone on the bodyto move through the main chakra
meridians and using muscletesting to determine where
energy is stuck, where energy isnot flowing, so that we can
(23:49):
help the individual move theenergy through guidance, but
also us connecting and being theconduit through the universal
energy to be able to move.
I do that with all of myclients massage or just energy
work-wise, because everyonedeserves to have clear energy,
you know, and that's just ourright.
(24:11):
And the other practices that Ido is a practice called
extraction, and extraction issomething that I use in my
somatic trauma work.
And the next episode I want toget into shamanic breath work,
which has been the mosttransformative thing in my life.
And extraction is going to theroot cause of going into the
(24:34):
awareness and the understandingthrough the shamanic journey,
which is a deep, deep trancemeditation, of where we want to
shift and reshape and reframe astory, a paradigm, a limiting
belief that's within usenergetically, when we still
have the roots of things andit's still sending out that
(24:55):
vibration, we are attractingthose similar patterns and
behaviors and experiences tocome back into our lives.
So I was getting people thatwere coming to me that were like
why do I keep dating the samekind of guy, or why does this
keep happening to me, or what isthis about?
I want this to stop.
So doing extraction and cominginto the awareness of like, oh,
(25:16):
this came from your childhood ofnot receiving enough love, or
this came from the trauma thatyou experienced in a negative
coping behavior or you know,unprocessed anger, unprocessed
grief.
When we get to that root, I askthe individual how do you want
to shift this?
Do you want this out and whatdo you want to put in place of
it?
And then I do this wholesomatic breath work, vibrational
(25:40):
healing therapy that I kind ofcreated but kind of mixed in
some other rituals and practicesin there, and I help to get
that root out and energeticallyhelp to literally pull it out,
return it to the earth.
It is one of the most profoundexperiences that I will
facilitate and that person willexperience as well.
(26:04):
Of course I do soul retrievals,which is similar to extractions.
I may do extractions throughsoul retrievals, but my shamanic
healing journey is meant to goand retrieve and understand and
come into the awareness of partsthat you can't remember or
parts that you feel are lost butnot really lost, they're just
buried deep, deep into thesubconscious and bringing them
(26:28):
to light, putting light in theshadow parts.
I do that type of work too,very profound.
I always like to do soulretrieval journeys before doing
extraction or somatic work.
And then, of course, I do avariety of different ceremonies.
When I lead our monthly soundbath meditations, it is a
(26:51):
ceremony.
I make it a ceremony.
I'm sharing a teaching with thegroup, I'm guiding them on a
channeled meditation.
I'm playing the instruments.
Sometimes I just play the drumwhen I do shamanic journey
meditation to take them into theworld of spirit, so that their
guide, so that the celestialangels, beings, whatever, of the
(27:14):
highest and greatest good canconnect with them and take them
to where they need to go, intotheir mind to heal.
These are some of the basicpractices that I do.
Of course I do my ownmeditations.
Of course I read oracle cards,and that's been a big thing for
me because I love it.
I do read oracle cards becauseit's a profound, visual way for
(27:37):
people to understand thechanneled message and to make
the connection intuitivelywithin themselves and to see the
words.
And to make the connectionintuitively within themselves
and to see the words and to seethe imagery, to touch the cards,
because I love to do it inperson.
So that's a tool that we use ofdivination.
Yeah, I use pendulums anddousing rods and things like
(27:57):
that, but that's more of apersonal thing for me.
But really it's about thecounseling.
It's about connecting withpeople in their hearts and
talking to people and saying Ihave been on the path, I am on
the path and I can tell you thatI can relate to you in a
(28:19):
variety of different ways.
And here are the things that Ihave come into the awareness of
and this is how I've shiftedthings and I continue to shift
things over and over and over.
And you're not alone.
And that's what shamans do.
They connect and inspirethrough their own stories,
(28:40):
through their own woundings,through their own practices.
And the ceremonies and ritualsare to reinforce the reframing
and the awareness that theindividual has.
The shamans themselves they cango and speak to spirit.
Yeah, we can talk to spirits.
We can commune for ourselvesand we can call and ask for them
(29:01):
to help us during our journey,which is what I do.
But me personally, I don't doanything.
I'm not the one that's changingyour mind.
I'm not the one that's callingup that stuck emotion or calling
up the way that you want toreprocess your trauma or your
reaction and your response.
That's you.
(29:22):
I just create a ritualisticstructuring container and give
you instructions so that yourmind can be okay with some crazy
shit that's about to happenspiritually.
That's really what it is,honestly, and if you're willing
to be open, to receive this kindof experience and to really
(29:44):
open yourself up down to thatspirit level, that level of
vulnerability to shift andchange, your mind's going to
change immediately and yourawareness is going to grow.
Your ability to observe isgoing to change.
Your energy output, yourvibration is going to change.
(30:05):
It happens every time and I'vebeen doing this work really
almost full-time for about twoyears and now I'm about to step
into it full-time.
It's because of this work I wasable to create the Joyful Shaman
podcast, to feel the couragethat I'm now at the point to be
(30:27):
able to share and yes, I am ayoung baby shaman along the path
and I appreciate my teachersand my grandmother teachers and
all the other guides andteachers that will still come
into my life.
But I am grateful to have theawareness that I have now at 37,
and to be able to shift andcreate the life that I want for
(30:49):
me and to be able to help otherpeople shift and create the life
that they want for themselvesat such a young age.
I am eternally grateful to Godand the universe to co-working
with me and having the patienceuntil I woke up and was like I
(31:11):
need to change.
My life is a shit show and Iwant to make it better.
So that's really briefly aboutmy journey into shamanism, as
this is going to be a lifelongpath for me and I have yet to
still learn more medicine andI'm grateful to my sweet big
(31:31):
sister, teacher Allie Smith.
I think I'm going to take apause here for this week's
episode and next week I'm goingto start to get into more
specific practices and ritualsthat you can do and the reason
behind them and why we do it andhow to make it your own.
(31:52):
The one thing I will say aboutrituals and ceremonies it's not
about following it to the T, Iwill always say it.
It is about the intention inyour heart and the attention of
where your energy goes, and yourbelief within yourself and your
connection to the universe, andthat's what creates the magic.
(32:13):
I just want to say that you arean amazing person.
Those that are listening tothis or watching this video, you
are loved, you have a purpose,you are fucking amazing and you
are supported.
Thank you for supporting me inthe Joyful Shaman podcast.
If you liked what you heardtoday or liked what you saw
(32:34):
today, please like, follow andsubscribe and share it with a
friend that needs a supportivemessage or would like the show.
Until we meet again, be well,sat Nam friend.
Hi, welcome back to the Joyful Shaman Podcast.
I'm Naomi, your host with themost, and we are back again with
another episode.
This week I'm finally going tobe talking about how I got into
shamanism and my path andjourney of my shamanic
apprenticeship.
That actually is still going.
It will be lifelong.
(00:22):
So if you listened to the lastepisode, I briefly, briefly
talked about 20s and early 30sand now we're coming into the
last two or three years of mylife, really diving into full
awareness of my spirituality,finally having another awakening
(00:44):
.
I'm sure the universe is likegirl, wake up and just embracing
that head on full speed ahead.
So I want to say it was abouttwo, almost three years ago now
that I had my retail shop that Italked about in the last
episode and I moved from theretail store, once the lease was
(01:08):
up, into a larger facility,literally just a block away, to
expand the service offerings,because at the time, with the
pandemic, small-scale retailreally wasn't able to keep up
with everyone just really divinginto online buying because of
course you know, the world wasshut down and people needed to
(01:31):
shop and of course onlinebusinesses was where it was at.
So I started to see a declineand just the wholesale costs of
things and just my way of doingretail just wasn't quite working
anymore.
So unfortunately, once thelease was up, I said namaste to
that version of the retail store, moved into a larger scale
(01:54):
facility and just focused onexpanding massage therapy,
adding in couples massage,adding in estheticians, adding
in yoga and regular sound bathmeditation and honestly I felt
like, wow, I am finallyaccomplishing this lifelong
dream of this holistic wellnesscenter.
You know, I thought it was itin Sarasota.
(02:15):
That was a hell, no.
And so here I am again doing itand it's actually succeeding.
And it was about, yeah, threeyears ago that I had someone who
is a very dear friend of minehere in the community come and
let me know that they had movedto Lakeland from Colorado and
(02:37):
they wanted to work with me andthat they were a holistic
practitioner, they were aspiritual teacher, they were a
follower of the esoteric pathand honestly, they just wanted
to do massage therapy.
I was like, absolutely, ofcourse, come on down the more
the merrier.
And the reason I said that wasthat week I had told myself out
(03:03):
loud in the midst of my sorrowfrom it not working out what
this guy was super into.
I really wanted to startpivoting my business to be more
of a spiritual base and not justorganic holistics, but really
embracing energy healing, reallyembracing teaching on
(03:24):
spirituality, really embracingon just what that means.
And, honestly, now that I lookback on it, it was probably me.
Just like I need to understandthis for myself, and if I need
to use my business as thevehicle to get me there, I'm
going to do that.
And so when this person came,literally five days later after
(03:46):
I said that audibly to theuniverse, I was like, oh my gosh
, this is the universemanifesting, this is God
answering my prayer.
Absolutely, I must hire thiswoman.
And so I hired her.
And then I felt that I waspressuring her.
I will say that I feel like Iwas pressuring her to be like
okay, so you're the superspiritual person, can you teach
(04:09):
me, can you help me develop this?
I really want to pivot mybusiness.
And she was like, hello, Ireally just want to do massage
therapy, like I need to take abreak from teaching, I need to
do this.
Like she was on her own journey.
And so I was like, okay, but no, not really, I don't really
need you to help me out.
(04:29):
It was a mid-suffrage of me, Iwill say that, and I think,
looking back now, we're bothkind of glad that it did happen,
because it helped us to grow aspeople and also really helped
to formulate our friendship,because it was a little
tumultuous there for a moment.
So she helped me to reallypivot the business and I really
(04:50):
looked up to her as a mentor andas a teacher.
I was like, wow, she's just sodevout to her path, to her
teachings.
I really want to know more,because what is the spirituality
that I want to focus on For mepersonally, you know, like as a
practitioner, as a healer, likewhat is it?
And so she has a background inshamanism as well.
(05:12):
She studied with Lakota chieffor 15 years and also studied
with a Scandinavian medicinewoman because that's her blood
lineage.
And so I was like, okay, well,I'm Mayan and I guess I have
some blood lineage somewhere,but where am I going to find a
teacher like that?
And so I was just learning verybasics from my friend, just
(05:33):
overall, a variety of differentspiritual topics and her views,
and really starting to formulatelike, does this resonate with
me?
Some of it does, some of itdoesn't, and that's okay,
there's nothing wrong with someof the things that she believes,
as she practices.
It's just not my path.
And so I kept desiring, and keptdesiring and asking you know
the universe.
(05:53):
I'm like, please, I think Iwant to understand what the
shamanism thing is.
I just feel like this blanketgeneral term.
Is it religion?
Is it a practice?
Is it a lifestyle?
I don't know what it is, but Ifeel like there's a calling and
it's kind of jazzing me up againin a way that I've never felt.
(06:14):
It's waking me up and you knowI'm researching things online,
looking at different, you knowshamanic schools that were
really expensive, with peoplethat I was just like this isn't
resonating with me.
And traditionally, if you'recalled to the shamanic path or
if you want to train inshamanism or work to become a
shamanic healer, you generallydo an in-person apprenticeship
(06:35):
with a shaman.
And I was like, holy hell, thisis Lakeland.
Where in the fuck am I going tofind somebody that is a shaman?
Like?
Okay, I'm going to have toaccept that.
I'm just going to have to dothis online.
And it was around holidaysseason, december, yeah, about
(06:55):
three years ago that I had threenew clients that week and I had
rolled out a new vibrationaltherapy session where I was
using sound healing on andaround the body, starting to
incorporate, you know, smokecleansing and laying of hands
and really embracing that Reikiside of me.
(07:16):
Of course, I had studied Reikilike almost 20 years ago but
never really embraced it.
I was just like, man, it iswhat it is.
I did a continuing educationcredit, let's move on.
And so I was just like, well,let me just start doing some
things, let me start feeling itout.
And people really responded andI knew it was the universe like
continuing to nudge me of like,yes, yes, keep going, let it
(07:36):
flow through, you know, kind ofthing.
And so these three new clientsthat week said, wow, you have
such a beautiful gift.
And I'm like, wow, thank you,okay.
And they said, do you know awoman named Allison Smith or Ali
Smith?
And I'm like no, and they'relike she's a shamanic healer.
She also teaches kundalini yoga.
(07:58):
She does a lot of the samestuff that you do.
You guys should meet.
You would really be able to,you know, get along.
And I was like, okay, well,cool, but I don't know.
Those three people, completestrangers, all in one week said
her name three times and when Iheard it the third time I was
like, okay, I need to ask forher telephone number because
(08:23):
obviously the universe is tryingto send me a sign.
This is not a coincidence, thisis a synchronicity.
So the last client thatmentioned her name, I said you
know, I never would do thisbecause this would not be
professional.
But you're a spiritual personand you're the third person this
week that has told me thiswoman's name.
Will you please give me hertelephone number so that if I
(08:45):
feel that I have the courage toreach out to her, to talk to her
, I can.
And they're like, yeah, ifanything, she does energy
healings at her home and alsoteaches private yoga classes.
Just say, like I referred youand you know, if you just want
to go and experience thatyourself, and I was like, okay,
they gave me her number.
It was before Christmas and Icalled Allie.
(09:06):
And I was like, okay, they gaveme her number, it was before
Christmas and I called Allie.
And you know, I told her who Iwas and briefly the story, and I
said can I set up an energyhealing session with you?
I wasn't even going to energyhealers.
I worked with my friend and wetraded energy healing.
But I was really getting morefrom my friend because she's
been a 20-year tarot reader, shehad a successful business
(09:27):
online.
So I was like, ooh, receivingfrom my friend, but I really I'd
never gone to another personphysically to receive energy
healing, much less shamanichealing.
So here I am, going to Allie'shouse, and she was on the north
end of our town, of thisbeautiful house on this
beautiful lake, and I'm like,what am I doing here?
(09:50):
And so I walk up to this woodbuilding that her husband had
built for her.
She had a private gymdownstairs where she did private
classes, and then upstairs waskind of like a pseudo apartment,
but that's where she did hercounseling and energy work.
So, walking up the stairs and Iknock on the door and she opens
(10:11):
the door and she's like hi.
And I was like, oh shit, okay,all right, this is a lot of
energy, you know, and I'm stillkind of quiet and introverted
and just a little bit repressed,just nervous and anxious.
And so, you know, she makes metake off my shoes.
She says, you know, can Icleanse your energy?
(10:33):
And I was like, yeah, sure, youknow, I was used to that, doing
that in the studio all the time, lighting up the stage,
lighting up the Palo Santo, youknow, moving around and
cleansing it.
And I was like, okay, it's justlike.
So stand here, you know, extendyour hands and close your eyes
and start to take some deepbreaths.
So I'm like, okay, I do it.
(10:54):
She has the herbs lit, she hasthis massive, massive fan of
these beautiful feathers andthen she starts flapping the fan
in front of me so forcefullythat I have this thing about air
blowing in my face.
When I go get my hair done andthey're going to blow my face,
(11:16):
all the little hairs come off.
They have to tell me because Ihave to hold my breath.
I don't know when that started,but it's been like that for
many years.
And so when I feel large gustsof air in my face at such close
proximities, it like makes mestop breathing, like it makes me
choke a little bit.
So it caught me off guard.
So I'm like you know?
And she's like are you okay?
(11:37):
And I was like I just didn'tknow it was going to feel like
that, and she laughs and sheclears my energy.
And you know we go and sit downon the couch and she's like so I
just want you to let me knowwho you are.
Why are you here, what are youseeking?
And I'm like, I don't know, man, I just here's my story and I
don't know what that means.
But I'm maybe interested inlearning about shamanism and
(12:00):
finding someone that can teachme, find someone that can tell
me about it so I can understandwhat it is.
And if this is a path for me,am I supposed to use it in my
business?
I don't know.
And she's like well, I used tohave my own shamanic school.
I typically don't teachstudents one-on-one.
I have private clients where Ido energy healings and I'm by
(12:22):
referral only, because you don'tfind her on Google.
She doesn't have a brick andmortar, she's totally by
referral and she chooses if shewants to work with you.
And she said well, let's havesome more conversations.
We had a conversation about mychildhood and I was feeling
anxious around that time.
Financially, we weren't doingwell that holiday season, the
(12:43):
economy was starting to take theturn post-COVID, with the
inflation and all of that, andso I was just a bundle of nerves
.
And she did this energy healingcalled a chakra illumination
and this exercise, you know,showed me how to understand the
chakra system or how to clearthe chakra system using muscle
(13:05):
testing.
And just I felt this powerfulenergy surge into me when she
like touched me and then usedthis powerful jaguar whistle
that was extremely loud and blewit right into my belly button
and I was like, oh my God, whatis happening to me?
It was crazy, but it feltamazing and I just had this like
(13:29):
burst of energy and just likethis whole thing just cleared in
my mind and I just felt totallynew and I was like, wow, wow,
this is it.
Man Like this is me.
I need this, I need this in mylife.
Christmas happened and I wasjust thinking about it more and
(13:51):
more and just taking in thatexperience and just being like I
really want to learn.
I think this is what's going tore-energize me.
I think this is what's going tochange things for me.
You know, I just was tired ofmy business.
You change things for me.
You know I just was tired of mybusiness, didn't want to keep
doing massage you know, reallytired of massage and just was
like what is next for me?
(14:13):
I contacted Ali after the newyear and I said would you be
willing to meet with me againfor another session, and this
time it was two hours.
And I told her.
I said I really feel that I'mbeing called into shamanism.
This might sound a little crazy, but I think my grandma visited
me a couple years ago and toldme I came from a lineage of
(14:35):
medicine women, and I don't knowif that sounds totally wild to
you, but I think if you're opento it, you're meant to be one of
my first teachers.
And she looked at me and she'slike oh, so you finally figured
that out.
And I was like what?
And she's like I knew it fromthe moment that you contacted me
(14:56):
, it came into my intuitiveawareness that I was going to be
taking on a new, powerful,advanced student who, to them,
is not quite aware but isunlocking her gifts.
And so when I met you and Italked to you, I could feel that
energy rising.
And she's like in your spiritguides, we're already telling me
(15:17):
this is her.
This is her, this is her.
Open her up, clear her andallow her to be your student,
because it's going to transformyou as well.
And I'm sitting there and I'mlike what?
But internally I'm like, yeah,she's going to teach me.
Oh, my God, this is such a hugehonor because she teaches no
(15:41):
one anymore and I am just overthe moon one anymore.
And I am just over the moon andI committed to working with Ali
, going every month for twohours talking about different
aspects about shamanism.
I would do research and I wouldask about what is a power
journey or what's a soulretrieval, or what's this and
(16:02):
what's that, and she wouldexplain things to me.
But she's like you already knowthis, it's already in your
medicine.
I'm just unlocking your mind sothat your logical mind can
catch up with the subconscious.
Because I was like, oh, I knowthis in this way, or I already
(16:23):
do this.
And she's like, yes, yes, youdo.
And I was like, okay, and so Istarted to learn about different
rituals and ceremonies and whywe do them and her experiences
and her perspectives and her wayof teaching them from the
(16:44):
people that she has learned overmany years, and so it has been
a powerful journey and we havebecome wonderful friends.
I see Allie as like a bigsister.
Fun fact, we actually had theexact same birthday of course,
different ages, but ourbirthdays are both June 13th and
(17:07):
we're both Gemini's, which iswhy she has big energy, like me
has been this profound journeywith Allie of going and
receiving and opening myself upto new perspective, new thoughts
and just a powerful anddifferent way to receive and to
(17:29):
give counseling to people.
I remember after the firstsession, we talked about healing
circles, and healing circlesare when people gather together,
generally around the fire inshamanic practice, and it's like
open share time.
It's a time where we theteacher or the guide or the
(17:52):
shaman is sharing stories, issharing teachings, is providing
some kind of healing to thegroup or to an individual, and
other people are bearing witnessto this.
And I had already been thinking, wow, I feel like I could do
this.
You know, we have been leadinggroup sound bath meditations for
(18:13):
well over a year and a half andI'm like, I think I would
really like to offer this to mycommunity and she's teaching me
about this and in my mind I'mformulating like, okay, I'm
going to do this on the firstSunday of every month from 2 to
3.30.
I'm going to channel messages,I'm going to do this, I'm going
to do that, and people are goingto come and blah, blah, blah,
like I'm already.
Like, once again, I getpassionate about something.
(18:35):
I'm going in, you know to thedeep end.
And so I learned about healingcircles and I told her would
really like to offer this?
Do you feel that as a studentjust starting out, this would be
appropriate?
And she said you are far moreadvanced than you think.
(18:56):
You need to step into yourpower and know that you're not
just a part-time shaman, you'rea full-time shaman.
When you walk the spiral path,you are all in.
And I sat there and I wasreally taking it in and I said,
(19:17):
okay, I guess I'll do it.
And so I started my firsthealing circle.
I put the announcement outthere of what it was that I was
going to be channeling messagesand providing a safe space for
people to come and share and Iwas going to be doing group
energy healing and group soundhealing and it was all going to
(19:39):
be donation.
I never charged anybody.
The first time that I openedthat, over 20 women came and I
was just blown away because I'mlike, oh my God, this is
actually happening, like peoplein the community are opening
themselves publicly to shamanichealing, like no one that I know
(20:03):
of was doing it through apublic brick and mortar business
, and it was such a beautifulexperience.
It's also where I reallystarted to step into mediumship.
I have this beautiful friendhere in my community who is an
(20:24):
amazing entrepreneur, just thisbeautiful, gentle, cancer-y soul
.
I love her, such a cancer.
And she came and it was in themidst of heavy grief, a huge
life change in her life, and shecame just looking for support
and her friends came with her.
And she came just looking forsupport and her friends came
(20:45):
with her and it was just thisprofound moment and her father,
who had recently ascended intospirit, came and it was the
first time that I could see andunderstand that, oh, I'm
clairvoyant, I can see and I canhear.
Clairaudient.
(21:07):
I saw her father stand behind mebecause I was sitting on this
mat on the floor, and I couldsee him wearing a cowboy hat and
a mustache and he's darkskinned and you know she was
from Texas and he was speakingto her half English, half
Spanish, and he's like pleasetell her that I'm here.
And I was like oh my God,what's happening?
(21:30):
And I put my hand on her and Isaid I have to say something to
you.
I hope that it resonates.
I want to know if it's okay,are you in the space to receive?
And she's like, of course, andI told her everything that her
(21:50):
dad told me and just the tearsstreaming down her face and like
the peace that she felt, evenher friends were crying and I
was just like, oh my God, thisis my path, this is my work.
I am an open conduit to be ableto help people heal.
A lot of those women that werethere had gone through serious
(22:11):
trauma, trying to healrelationships with their mothers
, their fathers, their children,loved ones, caregivers,
understanding their purpose,understanding why they were here
and in that first healingcircle.
That's what solidified, this iswhat my grandma meant.
And then from there it's takenme a while to embrace and being
(22:38):
the full-time shaman, because apart of me was still feeling
less than A part of me was like.
You know, I'm a young person.
Shamans typically traditionallytrain for 20 to even 30 years
before they are called a shamanin their tribe, in their culture
.
You know me, it's been threeyears really, and I just went
(23:02):
with it.
I just opened myself up to trydifferent things.
Now there are some things inshamanism that don't really
resonate with me at this pointin my life.
I don't know if it will ever.
I respect it, but it's notsomething that I do.
So the type of practices that Ido offer in person and now in my
(23:28):
foray into the online world asof this year, is chakra
illumination.
It's using a stone on the bodyto move through the main chakra
meridians and using muscletesting to determine where
energy is stuck, where energy isnot flowing, so that we can
(23:49):
help the individual move theenergy through guidance, but
also us connecting and being theconduit through the universal
energy to be able to move.
I do that with all of myclients massage or just energy
work-wise, because everyonedeserves to have clear energy,
you know, and that's just ourright.
(24:11):
And the other practices that Ido is a practice called
extraction, and extraction issomething that I use in my
somatic trauma work.
And the next episode I want toget into shamanic breath work,
which has been the mosttransformative thing in my life.
And extraction is going to theroot cause of going into the
(24:34):
awareness and the understandingthrough the shamanic journey,
which is a deep, deep trancemeditation, of where we want to
shift and reshape and reframe astory, a paradigm, a limiting
belief that's within usenergetically, when we still
have the roots of things andit's still sending out that
(24:55):
vibration, we are attractingthose similar patterns and
behaviors and experiences tocome back into our lives.
So I was getting people thatwere coming to me that were like
why do I keep dating the samekind of guy, or why does this
keep happening to me, or what isthis about?
I want this to stop.
So doing extraction and cominginto the awareness of like, oh,
(25:16):
this came from your childhood ofnot receiving enough love, or
this came from the trauma thatyou experienced in a negative
coping behavior or you know,unprocessed anger, unprocessed
grief.
When we get to that root, I askthe individual how do you want
to shift this?
Do you want this out and whatdo you want to put in place of
it?
And then I do this wholesomatic breath work, vibrational
(25:40):
healing therapy that I kind ofcreated but kind of mixed in
some other rituals and practicesin there, and I help to get
that root out and energeticallyhelp to literally pull it out,
return it to the earth.
It is one of the most profoundexperiences that I will
facilitate and that person willexperience as well.
(26:04):
Of course I do soul retrievals,which is similar to extractions.
I may do extractions throughsoul retrievals, but my shamanic
healing journey is meant to goand retrieve and understand and
come into the awareness of partsthat you can't remember or
parts that you feel are lost butnot really lost, they're just
buried deep, deep into thesubconscious and bringing them
(26:28):
to light, putting light in theshadow parts.
I do that type of work too,very profound.
I always like to do soulretrieval journeys before doing
extraction or somatic work.
And then, of course, I do avariety of different ceremonies.
When I lead our monthly soundbath meditations, it is a
(26:51):
ceremony.
I make it a ceremony.
I'm sharing a teaching with thegroup, I'm guiding them on a
channeled meditation.
I'm playing the instruments.
Sometimes I just play the drumwhen I do shamanic journey
meditation to take them into theworld of spirit, so that their
guide, so that the celestialangels, beings, whatever, of the
(27:14):
highest and greatest good canconnect with them and take them
to where they need to go, intotheir mind to heal.
These are some of the basicpractices that I do.
Of course I do my ownmeditations.
Of course I read oracle cards,and that's been a big thing for
me because I love it.
I do read oracle cards becauseit's a profound, visual way for
(27:37):
people to understand thechanneled message and to make
the connection intuitivelywithin themselves and to see the
words.
And to make the connectionintuitively within themselves
and to see the words and to seethe imagery, to touch the cards,
because I love to do it inperson.
So that's a tool that we use ofdivination.
Yeah, I use pendulums anddousing rods and things like
(27:57):
that, but that's more of apersonal thing for me.
But really it's about thecounseling.
It's about connecting withpeople in their hearts and
talking to people and saying Ihave been on the path, I am on
the path and I can tell you thatI can relate to you in a
(28:19):
variety of different ways.
And here are the things that Ihave come into the awareness of
and this is how I've shiftedthings and I continue to shift
things over and over and over.
And you're not alone.
And that's what shamans do.
They connect and inspirethrough their own stories,
(28:40):
through their own woundings,through their own practices.
And the ceremonies and ritualsare to reinforce the reframing
and the awareness that theindividual has.
The shamans themselves they cango and speak to spirit.
Yeah, we can talk to spirits.
We can commune for ourselvesand we can call and ask for them
(29:01):
to help us during our journey,which is what I do.
But me personally, I don't doanything.
I'm not the one that's changingyour mind.
I'm not the one that's callingup that stuck emotion or calling
up the way that you want toreprocess your trauma or your
reaction and your response.
That's you.
(29:22):
I just create a ritualisticstructuring container and give
you instructions so that yourmind can be okay with some crazy
shit that's about to happenspiritually.
That's really what it is,honestly, and if you're willing
to be open, to receive this kindof experience and to really
(29:44):
open yourself up down to thatspirit level, that level of
vulnerability to shift andchange, your mind's going to
change immediately and yourawareness is going to grow.
Your ability to observe isgoing to change.
Your energy output, yourvibration is going to change.
(30:05):
It happens every time and I'vebeen doing this work really
almost full-time for about twoyears and now I'm about to step
into it full-time.
It's because of this work I wasable to create the Joyful Shaman
podcast, to feel the couragethat I'm now at the point to be
(30:27):
able to share and yes, I am ayoung baby shaman along the path
and I appreciate my teachersand my grandmother teachers and
all the other guides andteachers that will still come
into my life.
But I am grateful to have theawareness that I have now at 37,
and to be able to shift andcreate the life that I want for
(30:49):
me and to be able to help otherpeople shift and create the life
that they want for themselvesat such a young age.
I am eternally grateful to Godand the universe to co-working
with me and having the patienceuntil I woke up and was like I
(31:11):
need to change.
My life is a shit show and Iwant to make it better.
So that's really briefly aboutmy journey into shamanism, as
this is going to be a lifelongpath for me and I have yet to
still learn more medicine andI'm grateful to my sweet big
(31:31):
sister, teacher Allie Smith.
I think I'm going to take apause here for this week's
episode and next week I'm goingto start to get into more
specific practices and ritualsthat you can do and the reason
behind them and why we do it andhow to make it your own.
(31:52):
The one thing I will say aboutrituals and ceremonies it's not
about following it to the T, Iwill always say it.
It is about the intention inyour heart and the attention of
where your energy goes, and yourbelief within yourself and your
connection to the universe, andthat's what creates the magic.
(32:13):
I just want to say that you arean amazing person.
Those that are listening tothis or watching this video, you
are loved, you have a purpose,you are fucking amazing and you
are supported.
Thank you for supporting me inthe Joyful Shaman podcast.
If you liked what you heardtoday or liked what you saw
(32:34):
today, please like, follow andsubscribe and share it with a
friend that needs a supportivemessage or would like the show.
Until we meet again, be well,sat Nam friend.
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