The modern world – with its chores and burdens – can take a toll on our wellbeing. It’s easy to feel burnt out and exhausted. But what happens when we feel completely lost? How do we heal if the world becomes too challenging and we experience a mental crisis?
From a psychological perspective, these negative thoughts are given the label of depression. The sufferer is classed as depressed, anxious, or detached. But what if something else is going on? According to shamanism, these psychological crises are due to the soul becoming lost. And we can find our way back to it.
De-Andrea Blaylock-Johnson is a sex therapist who believes that when we experience trauma, our soul separates from us and drifts. It takes working with a shaman, who can reach altered states of consciousness, to help us retrieve our soul. This elevated state leads the shaman into the unseen spirit world, where they are able to find the soul, address the cause of its detachment, and bring it back. We learn to cope with traumatic events by dissociation. This can manifest in various ways. We may experience symptoms of depression (a sense of worthlessness and purposelessness), difficulty adjusting to life after a traumatic event, unhealthy coping mechanisms, a sense of disconnection (living in situations that don’t align with our soul), low energy and negative thinking, self-neglect, and difficulty living in the moment. Phil Borges is a photographer who creates storytelling for social change. He has documented shamans all over the world and discovered they have a different outlook towards mental health issues. He interviewed shamans from different countries and learned that when a person experiences a psychological crisis, they are mentored by a member of the community who has been through a similar experience. The tribe help the individual through their healing process.
In shamanic culture, people have a strong relationship to spirit – praying to the spirits of their ancestors, the forests and mountains. Shamans induce a trance like state, entering an
altered level of consciousness to heal their tribe. Through spiritual practices and rituals,
shamans enter the spirit world, which offers guidance and information to bring back to the
physical world. Through soul retrieval, we can reclaim parts of our lost selves. A shaman will
enter the spirit world to recover parts of our soul that have wandered.
So, how can we heal and practice soul retrieval? Firstly, working with a trusted healer such
as a practicing shaman, can help guide us towards reconnecting with our soul. A therapist
with a respect for spiritual practices could also be a starting point. We can reconnect with ourselves by practicing meditation and mindfulness, tapping into our passions and interests. Life often takes us on twists and turns, it’s easy to stray from the path we expected – or wanted – it’s easy to lose ourselves in the journey of other people. By getting familiar with ourselves and doing things that make us feel authentic, we can reconnect with our truth.
Spirit guides – ancestors, angels, deities, animals – can support us through this journey. They offer wisdom, healing and unconditional love. Connecting with our spirit guides through meditation, visualisation, art, and ritual, can help us practice soul retrieval. Self-hypnosis is another method – using our imagination to develop intimate relationships with ourselves. These practices allow us to develop our intuition and psychic abilities, helping us to connect with our spirit world.
I am not a trained professional in mental health. If you are experiencing difficult emotions, or
feeling unable to cope, please speak to a mental health professional who can guide you.
Words by Madelaine Couch
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