A Path of Healing, Teaching, and Soul Discovery

My Shamanic Story

When I first began my shamanic training 27 years ago, I had no idea it would lead me to Reiki. I was in my forties, searching for a deeper meaning to life, when serendipity led me to shamanic training with the LightSong School of Shamanic Training and my teacher Jan Engles-Smith. Jan taught core shamanism, which included learning Indigenous spiritual practices from around the world. The training was rigorous and extensive. I learned how to honor the teachings and practices of each culture from Celtic traditions to Lakota Sioux, to Tibetan and Nepali traditions, to 21st century practices here in my own culture. I learned which traditions required strict adherence to their practices and which ones invited integration with other modalities.

Shamanism was my first real taste of a practice that helped me find my inner truth and spiritual insights. I grew up Catholic but had left the church, looking for a spiritual path to connect with myself and build a personal relationship with God. I always felt a strong connection with Jesus, Mother Mary, Mary Magdalene, and various saints. They actually showed up in my shamanic journeys, along with other spirit guides. Shamanic practices really supported what I already believed and deepened my spiritual connection with the Earth.

My Horse Changed My Life

Three years into my journey, my five-year-old horse, Dakota, sustained a leg injury that resulted in permanent lameness. Having owned horses my entire life, Dakota was particularly special, a true dream horse. His injury was emotionally devastating for me. One day, I asked him what had happened, and he responded, “I went lame to deliver you to your power to heal.” He then showed me images of myself placing my hands on him. Despite this powerful message, I was resistant to the idea of Reiki and didn't believe in it, so I procrastinated.

One day, a woman entered my place of business, and said she was a psychic with a message from my horse. She said that Dakota had been trying to tell me something, and I hadn't listened. He urged me to act on his message, stating, “I needed to do what he was telling me because life was coming and I was going to need it!”

This time, I listened to him and received my first Reiki attunement within two weeks. I immediately felt a physical sensation, like an electric current, flowing from my forearms into my hands. I would often sit under our 300-year-old fir tree, attempting to discharge the excess energy into its roots. This was a life-changing experience that profoundly altered my belief system. I remember wondering, if someone could receive an energy like Reiki through a simple attunement, what else might be possible? What else is real? The Reiki energy felt familiar, gentle yet powerful, moving through my body like a truth I had always known.

At the time we lived on a small 30 acre farm in Oregon. The kids were in their early teens, my husband had a construction company and I was making my living as a fiber artist. My husband Robin decided to join me in shamanic training and Reiki, so our kids were raised and exposed to these traditions. Which is what eventually led my daughter Robyn to join me in practicing and teaching Reiki full time.

Robyn Joined Reiki Lifestyle

Robyn also grew up with horses, animals, and farm life, but she went a more athletic route. She moved to San Diego for college, where she played softball and got a business and accounting degree. She then started a personal journey to figure out her spiritual beliefs. After moving back to Oregon, she got married, worked in the corporate world, and later left to become an artist. Over ten years ago, I asked her to join me at Reiki Lifestyle, and she eventually said yes. She's been a full-time partner ever since, bringing her awesome perspective to our Reiki work.

We share a deep commitment to fostering wellness, in ourselves, our families, our communities, and the planet. We believe in the holistic benefits of Reiki energy practices for overall well-being.

Through our years of training in both Reiki and shamanism, we have discovered how these two practices complement each other for effective healing and how Reiki reveals our inherent wholeness. We now integrate Reiki energy with shamanic influences in our teaching.

Why We're Sharing This Four-Part Series

This blog is the first in a four part series. Over the coming weeks, Robyn and I will share how Reiki and shamanism have become fully integrated into our spiritual practices, personal lives, and professional teachings.

Each week, we'll explore a different theme related to this integration:

1. Reiki and Shamanism Together: Our personal stories and how these paths align.
2. Reiki Journeys and Shamanic Journeys: Understanding the similarities and differences.
3. Working with Spirit Guides and Spiritual Locations: How to access them using Reiki energy.
4. Reiki vs. Shamanism Practices and Techniques: Understanding their differences and similarities.

This series also serves as an introduction to how we combine Reiki and shamanism in our advanced Reiki training courses, Next Step Reiki and Explore the 12 Heavens classes. These programs are built upon the foundation of Reiki energy and the insights gained from years of shamanic training and practice. We've found that our students feel an inner calling to discover their own truth through this unique style of Reiki training.

Honoring the Sacred in Many Traditions

From the beginning, I was committed to honoring every tradition I studied. As I continued to study with Indigenous elders, I learned the importance of respect. In shamanic cultures, it is important that you always respect the practices according to the teachings of the tradition. Because I also used Reiki energy, I always asked if it was appropriate for me to include Reiki energy.

Different shamanic communities had varied responses to the integration of Reiki into their ceremonies. Some embraced it, while others requested that I keep my Reiki energy separate from their sacred spaces. I always respected their wishes. Many shamanic traditions encourage students to focus solely on the energies of that specific tradition. I learned to use Reiki in a way that supported me personally without infringing upon the spiritual framework of other traditions. My shamanic teacher, Jan Engels-Smith, actually encouraged me to specialize in Reiki and teach it as part of the shamanic training, leading to its integration into our practices and the LightSong curriculum.

Reiki Brings Ease, Clarity, and Discernment to Shamanic Practice

Shamanism taught me how to journey, how to listen, and how to work with guides and spiritual locations. But the practice can be demanding. Vision quests, sweat lodges, practicums and ceremonies often pushed me to my limits. I found that including Reiki brought flow, ease, to the practices.

One of the biggest changes was understanding that I could use Reiki energy to do any of the shamanic practices. In fact, I have thought of Reiki as another shamanic practice. It is still working with energy in the unseen spiritual realms for healing and well being. The practices and techniques are different but have the same results. For me, Reiki practices are so much more gentle, simple and effective.

While undergoing shamanic training, I also immersed myself in Reiki training. I discovered that Reiki's energy and practices resonated more deeply with me, particularly in how its life force energy facilitated the healing process in others without depleting my own. This distinction helped me to better understand and manage my empathic abilities, allowing me to discern between my own emotional experiences and those of others.

I also found that Reiki healing was not dependent on my relationship or skill with my spiritual guides. The Reiki attunement assures us that the enlightened consciousness of Reiki energy is always doing the healing work. In shamanism, skill with spirit guides is essential. It takes years of devoted practice to ensure the energy the practitioner is working with is an enlightened source.

While I continued in my shamanic work and teaching, I found that I was more drawn to Reiki as a practitioner and teacher. I spent years in training with the International Center for Reiki Training, founded by William Rand, and became a full time teacher and leader in that Reiki community and lineage.

Reiki and Shamanism Together in Teaching

When Robyn joined me, we were both guided to focus on Reiki, however, we naturally had a shamanic view point of how to work with it. The combination of the two is reflected in all of our Reiki work. Although Reiki practices are not dependent on working with spirit guides and doing Reiki journey’s to access spiritual realms and guides for the healing work, we found that so many people were having these kind of experiences during their Reiki sessions, that we decided to teach the “how to” in order to gain skill. So many of our Reiki students had that inner calling to know more, and to remember what we call our authentic truth. Reiki guides us to our inner awareness and expanded view of the world we live in.

Why This Integration Matters Now

In the world today, people are awakening quickly. They are looking for ways to reclaim their energy, their purpose, and their personal connection to the sacred. Reiki provides that connection. It is direct, conscious, and accessible. When combined with the wisdom of shamanic techniques, it becomes a complete system of spiritual empowerment.

This blog series is an invitation to explore that integration within your own practice. Whether you are trained in Reiki, shamanism, or both, this is a path that brings insight, healing, and connection to everyday life.

In our current classes, we combine the sacred tools of shamanic training with the consciousness and healing of Reiki energy. We use Reiki journey techniques to access spiritual realms and work with guides, the River of Life, the Field of Possibilities, and the Tree of Life. The structure comes from shamanism, but the energy is fully Reiki.

Join Us for the Journey Ahead

This is only the beginning. Over the next three weeks, we’ll go deeper into the techniques, teachings, and spiritual locations we use when combining Reiki and shamanism. We’ll also share how this approach lives in our advanced trainings and how you can apply it in your daily life and Reiki sessions.

If you’re ready to explore how Reiki and shamanism work together, we invite you to join us in our 2026 Next Step Reiki Training Level 1 and Explore the 12 Heavens classes. 

We also teach Reiki 1 & 2, Reiki Master, Karuna Reiki® Master, Animal Reiki 1 & 2, Animal Reiki Master Explore All Classes and Events at ReikiLifestyle.com