Fierce Compassion and Shamanic Healing: A Therapist’s Journey in Bali

Don’t expect shamans to ask how you’re feeling. They’re not there for that.
They’re here to shift energy—to notice what’s stagnant and help it move.

Sometimes that happens in a single session. Sometimes it takes more.

This past Monday, the day after the new moon, I experienced a two-hour Balinese healing ceremony with a local priestess named Ibu Jero. The first hour was a mix of massage and energy healing. Then came the sound bath.

I’ve had many sound bath experiences, but none quite like this. Ibu placed singing bowls directly on my body and began to fiercely strike them. It wasn’t soft or sweet. There was no trauma-informed explanation, no quiet introduction. Just fierce compassion and deep resonance.

After my initial “What the hell did I sign up for?” moment, I started to smile. The sound of the gong felt like a brain cleanse—if the mind is a cave full of bats, the gong leaves no bats behind.

The Water Purification Ritual

Afterward, Ibu handed me a sarong and told me to meet her next to the temple for a melukat, a traditional Balinese water purification ritual. A stone basin filled with water and flower petals waited for me.

Ibu asked me to think about what I was ready to let go of.

She then began to throw water at me….like a deep soul cleanse. I couldn’t fight back. I could only surrender.

At times I couldn’t breathe. I swallowed water. I felt physically vulnerable...
And then with emotional vulnerability also arising, came the emotional release.

She looked at me, smiled and said, “Okay.” As if her work here was done. But that’s when more energy began to shift… and more water emerged, but this time in the form of tears.

I cried. She hugged me. And it was exactly what I needed:
To be held.
To be witnessed.
To be seen and supported.

I walked away from the session literally drenched, but feeling lighter.

A Holistic Approach to Emotional Health

As someone who walks this path alongside my clients, I’m reminded again of something I once heard:

The best teachers are still learning.
The best healers are still healing.

I’m not sharing this story to say everyone needs water thrown in their face.
I’m sharing it because I believe in a holistic and integrative approach to emotional health and healing.

Just like physical fitness involves strength training, rest days, and yoga, emotional healing also needs variety. Some days we talk it out. Some days we rest. Some days, we turn to ceremony, community, or ancestral practices.

In my work as a therapist and psychedelic integration guide, I draw from Internal Family Systems (IFS), Narrative Therapy, and mindfulness-based practices. But I also honor the healing that comes through energy work, somatic experiences, and ritual.

Healing is layered. Sometimes it’s messy and loud. Other times it can be still and quiet.

But it’s all part of this mysterious, beautiful journey we call life.