Alida Birch is a teacher of shamanism and spiritual healing in Eugene Oregon, offering introductory and advanced trainings in the shamanic journey, shamanic healing, and soul retrieval.. Trained in soul retrieval by Sandra Ingerman and certified in shamanic counseling by Michael Harner, Alida assists her clients to heal the past and to create a life of joy. She received her shamanic initiation in the 1980's, has facilitated thousands of soul retrievals, and has been training others for three decades. Her first book, The Co-Creation Handbook: A Shamanic Guide to Manifesting a Better World & a More Joyful Life, is now available as a paperback, e-book, and audiobook.
Chronic Illness
A WAKE-UP CALL
"All illness is homesickness" ~Diane Connelly
All illness has a spiritual identity. Alida identifies the spiritual nature of the illness, its location in the body and removes it and any blocks to the healing process. Alida then calls forth all her spirit helpers to provide information and directions for next steps. These may include shamanic counseling, soul retrieval, the retrieval of power, soul remembering, and referrals to other health practitioners and modalities. Alida is a firm believer in utilizing all available resources. She herself, is a cancer survivor and has great empathy and compassion for those confronted with chronic and life threatening illness.
An EXTRACTION might be recommended by my spirit helpers to mobilize both your body's and the universe's healing power for your benefit. Below is an article on extraction that was published in 1993.
Shamanic Extraction by Alida Birch © 1993
If a person has power loss or soul loss, a spiritual intrusion can come in to fill up the empty space and cause a physical illness or pain. An intrusion by definition means that it is inside the body. Shamans believe that illness originates on a spiritual level. From the shamanic perspective there is no differentiation between body, mind, and spirit.
There are three major ways for picking up an intrusion. The first is a negative thought form, such as anger, that a person has directed toward you. This thought form can crystallize in your body if you are not filled with power and your own vitality. This exchange of anger happens all the time in our society. In contrast, many shamanic cultures recognize the power of negative, unresolved feelings. They would not go into a gathering or a heated confrontation without first protecting themselves by gathering their power.
The second form of intrusion is self-created through unresolved grief, anger, sadness, and fear. If you don't have methods for processing and expressing those emotions, they can turn against you. Feelings have tremendous power and can be transformed into energy that will solidify in your body, manifesting as illness or causing pain. I think we have all experienced how our emotions can wear down our vital energy and leave us feeling depleted.
The third method of picking up an intrusion is by happenstance. If we have lost power and vitality, we are a void waiting to be filled up. A wandering intrusion may locate in this void and call it home.
A fourth method is by constantly lowering our life force through the use of alcohol and strong drugs. I am referring to the compulsive use of tobacco, cocaine, marijuana, heroin, among others. These substances have very powerful spirits and can cause an imbalance/intrusion.
Intrusions are not evil. They don't have a personality. They simply believe they are at home in your body and don't like to leave. When I remove intrusions, I do not try to kill or damage them, I simply move them on with great compassion. I ask that the intrusions be neutralized and that their power be used in a more constructive way.
The job of a shamanic practitioner is to remove the intrusion from the body and transform it into a form that is harmless. Frequently once the intrusion is removed, there is an empty space where it was. The shamanic practitioner may then do a soul retrieval or power retrieval to fill that space, protect the client from further intrusions, and restore the client to wholeness. Although I have seen miracles happen as a result of extraction and soul retrieval, I always encourage the people I work with to pursue the type of healing they are most comfortable with. If that means the client wants to combine orthodox medicine with shamanic healing, that is fine with me. Many MD's are opening their hearts to shamanism and support their patient's choice to seek out a shamanic practitioner.
Testimonial from Susan in Virginia: "Thank you so much for the priceless gift which you gave me! Your heart sings with God's Love and you are also very talented. The timing which I received your healing tape, brochure, and sacred feather couldn't have been better. You are a true blessing to this planet! (You are ) really helping me to recover from false beliefs. The details of (the) healing session ...were remarkable! My life has been Blessed in many ways through your work."