Soul Retrieval

Now that you understand soul loss, let’s look how shamanic soul retrieval can restore your full self and those gifts and powers that were lost.

During the work of soul retrieval, the shamanic practitioner journeys to the spiritual realms of non-ordinary reality to find or call back the soul parts of the suffering human, restores those parts, and then acts to help those parts reintegrate with the soul. These returning soul parts often bring back with them gifts, talents and powers that the client may not have experienced since childhood. Sometimes, those returned powers are external, overt ones, like a love of painting, dancing or singing. Sometimes those powers are more subtle, like a deep connection to Spirit, or the earth, or to other human beings. And sometimes those returned powers are part of the core of who we are, part of the ways in which we sustain ourselves in our lives, connect to our life’s purpose, all the ways in which we are fully whole.

Each person’s experience of soul retrieval, and even each person’s experience of each individual act of retrieval, will be uniquely theirs. People sometimes feel profound restoration of energies during or after soul retrieval; others find they simply had a relaxing experience, and feel no differently. For some, a soul retrieval is felt very profoundly; for others, the effect is so subtle as to not be perceived. People experience the gamut of emotions and physical sensations during and after soul retrieval: happy/sad, heavy/light, taller/shorter, more grounded/more light, inspired/brought to quietness. And some experience no change in the way they feel. In the days and weeks following soul retrieval, experiences will also be unique to the individual and their lives. Some clients immediately integrate soul parts, and go on to live more fully. Others find they need additional work to complete their integration, or that they want to bring their integration to a deeper place before they feel content. Your path to full integration of your soul parts is yours alone; and you must allow that integration to unfold in the way that works for you.

What results can you expect from your soul retrieval? You should find that you become more fully present to yourself—in your body, in your life, in your relationships, in your spirituality. As you come more fully into yourself, you may begin to detect where you or your living are out of balance, where you are living the same patterns over and over, where you want to bring more vitality into your life. And you may find that you are now able to bring your own power to bear in creating changes in your life, or you may now understand what you must do to map out a path for those changes. A shamanic healing unfolds over time; you will note effects of that healing occurring even two years after the event.

I am often asked whether a single soul retrieval experience can restore all the essence a person has lost over time. The answer is: sometimes. Sometimes a client receives a few soul parts in a session, and then find they are healed to a degree that satisfies them. Others receive soul parts during a session, and then find at some point that they sense there is more to be returned, and so benefit from additional soul retrieval sessions. Your response, and your needs, will be unique to you and your life path. And each response is appropriate.