Case Studies
Case 2: Post-Traumatic Stress
G. was a lovely young girl, very bright and presented as a happy, balanced girl getting ready to enter into her teens. Yet despite what shows on the outside, within was a very different story.
G. was involved in a tragic accident several years earlier and although she had received much psychological support to help her come to terms with it and work through it, it had still left her with post-traumatic stress and in shamanic terms, it had left her with an imprint in her luminous energy field. G. was deeply scarred emotionally and psychologically, and was in need of soul retrieval for PTSD.
According to shamanic practice and my own experience, quite often when tragic or traumatic events occur in our lives, a part of us can split off and flee. It is these very parts, these aspects of ourselves that need to be recovered or retrieved, healed and reintegrated into ourselves.
PTSD was still very evident in G. The anxiety, the tears, the original wounding so easily revealed itself. It was time for G. to find the lost part of herself.
Prescription:
I prescribed for G. just the one shamanic healing session, which would commence with some informal psychological therapy. The session would begin with some brief therapy; we would look at how she was feeling and what difference there had been, if any, since we last talked. This would then be followed with a shamanic healing session and would finish with a brief look at what went on for her during the healing session to ensure she had some sort of understanding. Although I only suggested one session, G. knew the door was open if she wanted to come back for ongoing sessions. I suggested only one session because she was so young. I informed her mother that later on G. may require more sessions, but as she was at school, I felt more than one would be too much for her to deal with at once.
Session 1: Duration 2 Hours
As G. was so young, I decided to use a galvanic skin response (GSR) monitor. The monitor measures activity via sending out minute electrical impulses into your fingers (which are not detectable to the individual), which react with the minute changes in perspiration related to stress and anxiety. By using the GSR monitor, I was able to measure and direct the shamanic healing in correspondence with G.’s anxiety levels to affect a more comprehensive healing.
I was also aware that she would have limited experience at defining how she was feeling or what she was experiencing on a spiritual level, so through using the GSR monitor I was able to perform a healing session that was not only successful, but also required less participation from G. It permitted me to visually see when her anxiety was going up which then permitted me the opportunity to be able to elicit from her what was going on.
Traditionally, or at least within shamanism, soul retrieval is done by the shaman alone, which is fine, but I feel we also need to think about how effective that actually is. Sometimes people need to be part of their own healing, they need to be part of the experience, the journey. They sometimes need to be in control of claiming back parts of themselves. If soul retrieval is performed by an experienced shaman and with extreme caution, this does not pose a threat to the individual.
It is alright telling someone that you have retrieved a lost part of their soul, but if they have not experienced it, have not felt it, then the healing is purely based on what you have told them rather than any changes felt; so when the next wind comes along and they start to wonder or doubt whether you really did bring back a lost part of their soul, then the shadow self can kick in, with fear and doubt raising its ugly head. In time, they will probably undo all that was done. Not just because they didn’t believe but also because they will be replaying unhelpful, negative mind loops.
It is my experience that people need to personally experience and personally be part of their own healing journey and not just told they are healed. Being part of their own healing can be very empowering for them.
I guided and accompanied G. on her deep decent into the lower world, often known as the subconscious, where she needed to go in order to find her lost part. Although her decent into the lower world was relatively easy, it took quite a while before G. was ready to actually ‘meet’ that part of her, as it also meant she would momentarily relive what that part was feeling at the time, including fear, anxiety and trauma.
I spent much time preparing G. for this meeting, and waited until her anxiety levels had reached a certain low, which was then reflected on the GSR monitor. The Divine had already instructed me as to what level would be safe and productive in order to introduce her to her lost part. Had I introduced her too early, she was at risk of reliving all of the trauma without receiving the healing. NOT what we wanted!
With guidance, journeying and the use of much visionary, G. eventually was able to meet her lost part. As the shaman, I held the space for her to ensure she was safe. G. spent quite a while assisting that part to heal and building a relationship with it via direct dialogue and nurturing. ‘It’ needed to feel safe in order to agree to return with her. If it didn’t, it may not have come back with her and could have split off again at any time.
‘It’ did feel safe, and although very apprehensive, we were able to get that part back and reintegrate it into G. It then became a very integral part of G., which it needed to be. G. knew she was going to need to really look after and nurture the ‘returned part’ in order for it to complete its healing and become a fully healed and integrated part of her.
G.’s session was very intense but her understanding of what was happening was really good.
G. was given much reassurance that things would now be different. She could feel a difference and she reported feeling very different. G. was told she could ring me anytime if she needed someone to talk to, or some extra support. I also explained to G.’s mother what we had done and what we had accomplished. G.’s mother was very open and she was reminded to ring should she have any concerns.
I saw G. about a month later. She came into where I was working to say thanks for all my help. Since the shamanic healing session, G. had noticed a major shift in her emotions. She noticed she was much less stressed, able to manage her school work and not breaking down in tears.
We are The Quantum Warrior, The Master Architect of our life – Braveheart
