Ancient Wisdom for Modern Souls
Bringing Home the Parts of Yourself That Left
In shamanic traditions spanning every continent and every era of human history, there exists a common understanding: when a person experiences overwhelming trauma, a part of their essential self - their soul, their life force, their vital energy - can leave. This is not metaphor. It is a description of a real phenomenon that anyone who has experienced trauma will recognize: the sense of being "not all here," of having lost something essential, of going through life with a piece missing that you cannot quite name.
Susan Drury brings shamanic healing into her work as a trained practitioner who bridges the ancient and the modern with remarkable grace. In Elevating Your Origins to Love, she describes how shamanic practices - particularly soul retrieval - complement and deepen the neuroscience-based approaches that form the book's foundation. Where neuroscience explains how neural pathways are formed and can be rewired, shamanic healing addresses the energetic and spiritual dimensions of the same experience.
Soul retrieval is the shamanic practice of journeying to find and bring back the parts of a person's essential self that left during traumatic experiences. In Susan's practice, this might involve retrieving the part of a client that left during a difficult birth, a childhood abandonment, or a moment of overwhelming fear. When that part returns, clients often describe a feeling of coming home to themselves - a sense of completeness and vitality that they may not have felt since before the original trauma occurred.
Where Science and Spirit Converge
What is remarkable about Susan's approach is how naturally shamanic healing integrates with the neuroscience she presents in the book. The shamanic concept of soul loss maps precisely onto what psychology calls dissociation - the mind's protective mechanism of disconnecting from overwhelming experience. The shamanic practice of soul retrieval corresponds to what neuroscience describes as the reintegration of dissociated neural networks. The language is different. The understanding is the same.
"Shamanic healing taught me that the soul knows things the mind has forgotten. When I journey for a client, I am not making something up. I am following the thread of their own life force to the place where a part of them is waiting to come home."
Susan describes how shamanic healing works with the same energetic principles explored in the book's chapter on energy and matter. If everything is energy vibrating at different frequencies, then the parts of ourselves that left during trauma are not gone ... they are simply vibrating at a frequency that is no longer integrated with our current experience. Soul retrieval is the practice of finding that frequency, harmonizing with it, and bringing it back into resonance with the whole.
In the book, Susan shares stories from her practice - always with the client's permission - that illustrate the powerful impact of shamanic healing. A woman who had felt "hollow" since childhood discovers, through soul retrieval, that a part of her left during a moment of terror at age three. When that part returns, she feels a warmth and fullness in her chest that she cannot remember ever feeling before. A man who has struggled with chronic fatigue finds, through shamanic journey, that his vital energy was left behind in a hospital where he was separated from his mother at birth. These are not fairy tales. They are the lived experiences of real people whose lives were transformed by this ancient practice.
Understanding Shamanic Healing
Soul Loss and Retrieval
When overwhelming experiences cause a part of our essential self to leave, we may feel incomplete, disconnected, or 'not all here.' Soul retrieval is the ancient practice of journeying to find and bring back these lost parts, restoring a sense of wholeness and vitality.
Dissociation and Reintegration
What shamanism calls soul loss, psychology calls dissociation. What shamanism calls soul retrieval, neuroscience describes as the reintegration of dissociated neural networks. Susan bridges these perspectives, honouring both the scientific and the sacred.
Energy Harmonization
Shamanic healing works with the understanding that everything is energy. The parts of ourselves that left during trauma are not gone - they are vibrating at a different frequency. Healing involves finding that frequency and bringing it back into resonance with the whole.
About the Author
Susan Drury - Shamanic Practitioner
Susan Drury is a trained shamanic healer who integrates this ancient practice with cranial sacral therapy, homeopathy, the Present Child Method, neuroscience, and the Tao Te Ching. Based in Vancouver, BC, she has practiced shamanic healing for over two decades, bringing a grounded, compassionate approach to this powerful modality.
Experience shamanic healing through private sessions, or explore Susan's membership program and retreats.
Learn More About SusanFrequently Asked Questions
What is soul retrieval?
Soul retrieval is an ancient shamanic practice in which the healer journeys to find and bring back parts of a person's essential self that left during traumatic experiences. It addresses the sense of being 'not all here' that many trauma survivors describe.
Is shamanic healing compatible with other approaches?
Absolutely. Susan integrates shamanic healing with neuroscience, cranial sacral therapy, and other modalities. She finds that shamanic work addresses the energetic and spiritual dimensions of healing that complement the neurological and psychological approaches.
Do I need to believe in shamanism for it to work?
You need only an openness to the experience. Susan's approach is grounded and practical ... she does not require clients to adopt any particular belief system. Many people who are initially skeptical find the experience truly moving and life-changing.
Can shamanic healing be done remotely?
Yes. Shamanic journeying is not limited by physical distance. Susan offers remote sessions that are as effective as in-person work for this particular modality.
Come Home to Yourself
If you have ever felt that a part of you is missing - that something essential left and never came back - shamanic healing offers a way to restore what was lost. Let Susan guide you on the journey home to your whole self.