From a shamanic perspective, which is being endorsed by modern quantum physics, the whole universe is made up of moving energy and everything within this universe, be it animate or inanimate, has its own innate energetic intelligence; or soul. Because the shaman understands this simple truth; that at our core we are all made of the same energy he/she is able (through shifting their consciousness to align itself with their inner energetic core) to communicate with all things in the universe; be they spirit, tree, rock or person. They are also able to travel beyond the confines of physical reality and into other invisible energetic realities that have a profound influence on our own, collectively known as the "Otherworld".

Through this process the shaman can assist in healing any imbalances that are occurring for a person in their lives, as outer symptoms will always have a direct energetic root cause, being that that is what we are made of. The shaman travels directly to this energetic cause of illness and assists in healing whilst also helping align the person with their energetic core; allowing them to tap into the vast storehouse of healing and wisdom there.

Techniques

ENERGY RE-BALANCING: Shamans have discovered that we all have an energy body or field that surrounds us resembling a large luminous egg. This energy body is intricately connected to our physical bodies and any problems in our energy bodies will affect our physical bodies. Thus the first step of healing is to realign our energy bodies so that any subsequent healing takes place in a strong container.

POWER RETRIEVAL: We all have powerful allies in the otherworld that protect and support us, similar to the idea of guardian angels in our culture. From a shamanic perspective, however, these helpers usually come in the form of power animals, reflecting the physical vitality and protectiveness of their counterparts in this world. For some unknown reason these power animals can go missing from our lives. The outer symptoms of such power loss can range from chronic misfortune to general low energy/depression to compulsive lying. The shaman will bring back the power animal to the client and return it to their energy field.

SPIRIT EXTRACTION: In the process of everyday living we can quite often find ourselves absorbing negative energies. An example of this is when we are around someone who we can feel is giving off 'bad vibes' and then find ourselves exhausted after spending time with them. These 'vibes' can actually have an affect on our energy bodies causing blockages. Being constantly around situations with a lot of emotional charge can have the same effect as can the suppression of our own thoughts or emotions which in effect turns these powerful energies that need release back onto ourselves, causing problems. Symptoms of this energy intrusions can be localised illnesses/injuries, physical problems, chronic anger or emotional or mental problems that can be traced to a physical cause. This healing technique involves the removal of these energies and replacing them with power in the form of a power animal.

PSYCHOPOMPING: When people die suddenly or have things or people they cannot let go of in this world (or people that can't let go of them), the part of them that survives physical death can get trapped on the earth. This can cause problems both for the trapped soul, as their journey lies elsewhere, and the people left behind who cannot get on with their lives and find themselves somehow haunted by the departed ones presence, especially in dreams. Tragically, quite often the person does not realise they're dead and clings out of habit to their homes or places they would frequent (hence why pubs often have their resident ghosts). The shaman will travel to the soul of the dead person and assist them in their journey beyond the physical world freeing them and the people here they are still adversely effecting.

SOUL RETIEVAL: Whenever anything traumatic happens in our lives (and trauma is always relative to the individual experiencing it it could be a car crash or simply the wrong word said at the wrong time by a parent when we are open and vulnerable as a child) part of our energetic essence that is too pure to experience what is happening will escape from us. The best way to underdstand this is if ever you have looked into the eyes of someone who has gone through a sudden shock, you could probably see that they were not there. In modern psychological terms this process is called 'disassociation'. This is a natural self-preservation method and to a certain extent is happening all the time as the modern world can be particularly harsh on our souls. However, problems can arise when the part of us that leaves gets lost (due to the suddeness of the trauma; post traumatic stress disorder is a classic sympton of soul loss) or refuses to come back (when the situation is chronic such as ongoing emotional or physical abuse). The symptoms of soul loss can be addiction (literally trying to fill the hole left in us); emotional dependency (looking for that part of ourselves in others); acute anxiety ; vague feelings of having lost part of ourselves; depression/ loss of direction etc. This powerful healing tool involves the shaman travelling to the otherworld to recover the lost soul part and return it to the person's energy field.