Conversation about the Spirituality of Health and Wellness

Our life is a unique journey defined by our experiences, our views of the world, relationships with family, friends and peers, and self-awareness.

I was reminded of this just before New Year when I had the pleasure of sitting down for an hour with Shannon Collier of Holistic Helping Hand.  Shannon is a multi-dimensional wellness provider with formal training and expertise in massage therapy, Reiki and postpartum support.

She’ll soon return to school for pastoral training, giving Shannon a deeper background in spiritual and emotional counsel.

Shannon did not initially set out on such a giving path.  In fact, her educational background and initial career focus was in environmental geology.  After realizing a high stress, “always on” policy job was not her calling, Shannon demonstrated the courage to shift her life and reset expectations.

Here are a few wonderful quotes from my conversation with Shannon:

“Wellness training is a personal experience to achieve balance, focus and purpose.  You have to live it.  That’s the only way you can truly help others.”

“I am believer in divine timing.  Your body hurts or issues come up because it is trying to tell you something.  There are no coincidences in life.  Things happen for a reason.”

“Whatever we do in life, we are on the backs of others.”

“Reiki honors the root reality that we are all connected on a fundamental level.  We all share the human experience.  I tie the practice to the belief that each person deserves to be well.”

“Reiki subscribes to the belief in universal life force energy.  Our nervous system, heart and brain all have electricity.  Reiki harnesses this energy to smooth the static of a person’s electrical current.”

We then spent some time talking about the practice of self-hypnosis and its applications for health and wellness. I walked her through a basic hypnotic induction and then asked her how she would describe the experience.  Her answer was a true gem:

“Hypnosis helps make your conscious and subconscious mind align around a common purpose or meaning.”

I typically conclude my Hypnotic Experience show by taking volunteers through a visualization designed to inspire confidence and self-esteem.  I reinforce this feeling by explaining that everything in life becomes sweeter when you realize the person you are is the person you are suppose to be.

Shannon and I are right in-step on the philosophical and spiritual approaches to wellness.  I find that incredibly gratifying.