Sandra Ingerman is one of the respected leaders of the neo-shamanic movement here in America that has brought traditional cross-cultural healing methods and beliefs to the Western world. She has been teaching workshops on shamanic healing practices for over 30 years. We met her in her home just outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico where she was just putting the final touches on her eighth book.
Sandra shared with us her own struggle with depression and how she used the methods derived from the beliefs and practices of traditional cultures to create her sense of well-being. Sandra says, that even though shamanism has been practiced in cultures that seem to have little in common with our modern society, the underlying philosophy is timeless for its relevance to humanity. She states “shamanism is a way of life”. It reminds us that everything is alive with energy and that we are all connected to and inseparable from a universal web of life. She believes that so much of the mental illness we see today largely comes from our disconnection from nature.
For Phil, his morning bike rides and hikes in the mountains help him remember the natural beauty in the Pacific Northwest. How do you stay connected to nature in your day to day?
