Shamanic Healer
Anahata Ananda blends the compassion and tenderness with wisdom and strength to guide profound journeys of core healing and spiritual awakening. As a Certified High-Performance Coach, Shamanic Healer and Soul Guide, Anahata has guided thousands of individuals through core life shifts, helping them to turn their life around and manifest the life of their dreams. Anahata is the host of the Shamangelic Healing Podcast. She is the founder of Shamangelic Healing, based in Sedona Arizona, where she offers high-performance coaching, inspirational workshops, group retreats, private healing sessions, and online courses.
Maria Marlowe: [00:00:33] Welcome back to the Happier and Healthier podcast. Today’s guest is Anahata Ananda, a spiritual healer and shaman who’s here on the show today to share her tips for healing old emotional wounds and getting past old traumas. I’ve been coaching people in terms of nutrition and health for the past seven years. And as important as food and exercise and all these physical things are, our emotional health is even more important. If you’ve been listening to recent episodes, particularly the ones on auto immune disease, you’ll hear that some believe there’s actually a connection between autoimmunity and childhood trauma. And we also know that there are conditions like broken heart syndrome where a spouse of someone who recently died will actually die soon after from a broken heart. And we do know that our emotions can affect our physical health. They can also affect our thoughts. They can affect our action. They can affect our habits. So it is really important that whenever we do experience these types of events where we’re full of grief or anxiety or pain or trauma, it is important that we process them, because if we never fully process them, they really just they stay in our body, they stay in our mind, and then they shape our physical health and our entire life sometimes without you even realizing it.
Maria Marlowe: [00:02:05] So it’s really important that where monitoring our emotional and spiritual health and making sure that we’re processing all of the grief and emotions that we have. The truth is there’s no such thing as a life without grief and trauma. We all go through it at different periods. We seem to be collectively going through it right now with this global coronavirus pandemic. And so it’s really important to have these tools that we’re going to talk about today to make sure that you’re constantly processing and dealing with grief and and any sort of challenging times. So on a hot day, we’ll be sharing some great tips. I think you’ll really enjoy her motherly energy. It’s just really calming. And I’ve just loved speaking to her. She is the founder of Shamangelic Healing, which is based in Sedona, Arizona. And she is also the host of the Shamangelic Healing podcast.
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Maria Marlowe: [00:05:07] Anahata, thank you so much for being here.
Anahata Ananda: [00:05:09] Oh, beautiful sister. It’s an honor to connect. And I’m so grateful and appreciative of the work that you’re doing in this field of health and wellness. And thank you for being, you know, really a beacon of light in this area to help people with their healing. Thank you.
Maria Marlowe: [00:05:27] Oh, I’d love to hear a little bit about your story. How did you become a shaman and a healer? How does that happen?
Anahata Ananda: [00:05:35] Well, I’m it’s really more as a consequence of my own dark night of the soul. And, you know, not feeling equipped to navigate the challenges in my life. And things just kept things where just I was just having a big, massive meltdown in all areas, health problems, relationship troubles and, you know, not really navigating my emotions well. And on the outside, everything looked great. And on the inside, things were crumbling. And so I kind of drove into at the time traditional modalities of counseling and things like that at the time was really falling short for me and for my marriage at the time. And what I was drawn to do is go far out and some, you know, alternative modalities to really help me get at some of the deeper wounds that were there. And so I sought out a shamanic healer. And wow, it was amazing because all of this deep, dark stuff, anger, rage, sadness, grief, frustration was finally given a space to express in a safe way. And I kind of drove into the you know, it was helping me so much. And I was learning so much that I decided to go and study that modality as well.
Anahata Ananda: [00:06:56] And it kind of that whole dark night of the soul, you know, my whole rock bottom life falling apart was what catalyzed me to really learn new tools, go through my healing process, and also reach for spirituality and personal development in ways in which I hadn’t I had had really been just kind of navigating solo without any spiritual guidance. And I really had my soul was hungry and this whole catalyst was perfect. Everything that happened for me and not to me is what awoke me. And it also catalyzed learning all kinds of modalities, tools and resources to help me live a more thriving life. And so in addition to shamanism, I also delve into learning many different spiritual practices, different healing modalities, emotional clearing, meditation, chakra balancing, yoga, fitness, health, cleansing, fasting. And I just was kind of this hungry caterpillar that was really diving into all of these resources so that I could emerge from the cocoon and birth a new set of wings. So I don’t know if that makes any sense.
Maria Marlowe: [00:08:11] Yeah. And here you are. Well, I’d love to talk a little bit more about the you mentioned the grief and the trauma in these repressed emotions. And I feel like a lot of us hold onto these these emotions and we don’t realize it. And then these emotions are trapped in our body. And then they also start influencing our life, our thoughts, our actions. And something interesting. I’ve had quite a few functional medicine doctors on here talking about autoimmune disease. And one of the factors that is involved in autoimmune, it seems to be trauma, especially childhood trauma that has just never been dealt with. So I’d love for you to speak a little bit more about that. What has been. Well, first of all, how is it possible that these emotions that are invisible, that have happened to us so long ago, why are they still affecting us today? And then what are some tools to start releasing some?
Anahata Ananda: [00:09:04] Thank you. And now we’re really getting at the root of the issues when we’re talking about healing. You know, a lot of modalities just go at the symptoms. Oh, you’re having inflammation or oh, you’re having a lowered immune system. And just look at the symptoms. And this is what’s so, you know, in the work that I do, I like to go deep and all the way to the core of saying, where did this happen in the first place? This addiction or this physical ailments is a consequence of something else. It’s the you know, it’s the period at the end of the sentence of like, what’s the beginning of this sentence? And, you know, most of us have some kind of childhood wounding.
Anahata Ananda: [00:09:48] You know, not all of us were raised in a peaceful environment, but with parents that knew exactly what they were doing. And they always stayed in the heart and never raised their voice or never had a drink or never raised their hands.
Anahata Ananda: [00:10:01] You know, as children were so sensitive. It’s so easy for us to take on our parents traumas or challenges. And we’re also quite susceptible to their emotional waves, their anger and their sadness and have been, you know, some of us on the receiving end of their traumas that had never been resolved. And then the pattern keeps continuing. And that’s one of the things about the pattern of of a trauma from the past. If it didn’t get healed or resolved at that time. Not only does it stay in the cellular body, so then it’s having a physical experience, but it also stays in the emotional body trapped there. And in the energetic body, because it wasn’t given a safe space to actually heal or be held or resolve or come back to center. Maybe there wasn’t time. Maybe the trauma kept repeating. And so one wound got added to another wound or there wasn’t the right environment to provide healing and space for that. And it’s likely that the parents didn’t have those tools.
Anahata Ananda: [00:11:10] And it’s not about judging our parents or our caregivers. It’s more just of dealing with the reality that maybe there was perhaps an imprint or a trauma that didn’t get resolved then. And so let’s take the example of someone who, you know, as a child, their parents, a parent, raise their voice a lot and was really angry. Maybe it’s moved into physical abuse beyond just anger. And so in that situation, the nervous system who were just talking physically, the nervous system of that child is in fight or flight.
Anahata Ananda: [00:11:49] And if the parent keeps yelling every day and we never know when they’re gonna go off the handle or we never know when, you know, what parents going to come home drunk or something like that, then the wound just keeps staying open. And the nervous system gets set at fight or flight, which doesn’t allow the body to come back and heal. And so when we have that situation, maybe there was never abuse, but you never know when dad was going to fly off the handle as an example. And so that fear and that anxiety in the body is one of those things that contributes to an immune system challenge later on in life, because the body since childhood has been in that traumatized situation and never knows when it’s going to be attacked again, even if it’s just yelling or physical.
Anahata Ananda: [00:12:42] And in that situation, the parents, mother or father, is not providing the safe space to say, hey, I’m sorry. It’s going to be okay. That won’t happen again. And let me let me go in honor that the child in that space so that they can come back to center again. And so the pattern just keeps repeating, even if even if the pattern stops happening, if that is what was normalized, then we’re going to keep seeking out and attracting that with a partner later in life because chaos is our normal. Getting yelled at is our normal. That’s what we expect. And that’s what we’ve woven in with love and family.
Anahata Ananda: [00:13:26] And so it creates a distortion in the field of what we think is normal and what we will be attracted to later in life. So with that, one of the things that we can do as adults and again, we probably weren’t modeled or provided the tools to say, hey, feel your emotions, get curious about what they’re bringing to the surface. And there’s intelligence with grief, there’s intelligence with anger, there is intelligence with resentment or sadness. And most of us were modeled and also reinforced don’t cry, don’t feel don’t talk about it. You know, stuff those feelings and stuff, those emotions. So there’s a secondary wounding there.
Anahata Ananda: [00:14:10] In addition to the initial trauma, there’s a secondary wounding that says my emotions don’t matter. It’s not safe for me to express myself. And so later in life that made that secondary wounding might also lead to I’m unworthy. It’s not safe for me to express. So I don’t speak my truth and insecurity and always seeking validation or permission from an external source, from parents, from peers. Am I doing it right? Do you like me? Those kinds of things are going to be a consequence of where it wasn’t safe to express similar judged or oppressed our feelings long ago, and that our parents didn’t know any better, or caregivers or coaches or teachers didn’t know any better. And we can be in this story. Well, they should have known better. And then and then we’re putting ourself in a trap. Because then that expectation that is unrealistic is holds us at a place of a victim. And I want to acknowledge for anyone listening or watching that has been on the receiving end of of intense trauma, physical, verbal, sexual. Whatever form that may take, I just first of all, just want to honor, you know, whatever has happened. So grateful that you are seeking out a solution and want to acknowledge that tender part of you that is still hurt.
Anahata Ananda: [00:15:43] And so the first step, Maria, is to really honor the emotions. If there’s sadness, if there’s anger, if there’s grief, if there’s fear. The first thing that we want to do is actually turn towards our inner child and hold her or him and provide the space that our parents or caregivers at the time could not provide. So that, you know, that might look like just journaling in a safe, quiet space to query what are you really feeling and what are you really angry about? Let’s go back to that situation and let’s bring that inner child. And let’s let her or him have a safe space to be held. And let’s just let that that part of us cry or yell or scream or, you know, punch a pillow or get the emotion out of whatever needs to be expressed. And I think that that’s the first step, is to just not stop the feelings and more, because then we are the oppressor. Later in life, when we stuff our feelings and instead of addressing them, we run or hide or blame or sedate, ignore or distract. Those tend to be the more socially acceptable ways of dealing with emotions like let’s just avoid them. Let’s ignore them. Let’s run from them. Let’s distract them. Let’s try to sedate them. And then we just continue the problem.
Anahata Ananda: [00:17:10] So in this in this opportunity to hold ourselves and to be gentle with with our inner child and give them space to throw their tantrum, to be sad, to be angry, to be hurt, that’s the beginning of the healing process is a safe space. And the second part is, you know, really deeply understanding what is the lesson or the teaching or the colonel or the insight that can be gleaned from that experience. And if someone was in an abusive environment, maybe the refrain is, hey, my body matters, my feelings matter. It’s not OK to hurt people. Maybe that’s the lesson that needs to be reframed. But at the time we learned that I don’t matter. People can use me as a doormat and my feelings aren’t important. And so the refrain that might still be happening in everyday life is we attract careers, relationships that reinforce that vibration. We want to go back and reframe that. It says, wait, my body is a temple or my feelings do matter or my voice is important. And so we want to reframe in that moment, what are we learning or unlearning that that imprint brought a distortion in how we saw ourselves or how we think that I’m not supported. Life is unsafe. People can’t be trusted because we might be so shut down from that that we stop trusting me, buddy, before we get onto the next steps, what’s coming up so far just in sharing that?
Maria Marlowe: [00:18:50] No, it’s interesting. You know, I think a lot of times when people seek a healer, they want them to give them some special tea or some special ritual or something, you know, more exotic to solve the problem. But you’re saying the first step is really journaling and just thinking about going back to that painful place whenever that may have been. And just thinking about it and feeling it, feeling the emotions that come up and releasing them, because maybe at the time you didn’t. So it’s just interesting that that’s your first, your step one.
Anahata Ananda: [00:19:28] Some people have trouble holding that space for themselves. And that’s what my healing practice is all about, is, no, I can’t provide a magic pill. What I can provide is the support and the guidance to kind of help people through that process if they’re not able to facilitate it for themselves. Eventually, we want to learn how to do that for ourselves so that we can be capable of as we navigate everyday life. And those things are more resolved that we’re able to practice that for ourself of witnessing when our emotional triggers coming up, getting curious about it and, you know, learning how to dissolve it, address it and heal it for ourselves as as we learn those skills that we really don’t know how to do that. And so sometimes there is seeking out a healer, a guide or a facilitator. And in my healing practice, one of the things like my shamangelic healing journey. That’s what one of the things that we’re going to do is the first part of that is, is, OK, let’s explore what is the. So that we can see where the wounding is, where the disempowerment is, and where the false beliefs are, where the energy is leaking. And that gives us that gives me a roadmap of then when I go into the healing room of how to support them in seeing a different perspective and also help them in being held in that process of sadness or anger, more frustration and hold a safe space if they aren’t capable of holding up for themselves.
Anahata Ananda: [00:21:04] And so sometimes we do need a little help and that doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with us if we don’t have that skill. And eventually we do want to know how to hold that space for ourselves.
Maria Marlowe: [00:21:15] I can imagine that definitely having someone to lead you through the process is helpful because for many of us, maybe that trauma, you know, we maybe remember some things, but there might be something that we have just pushed out of our mind and completely forgotten about. And it’s really deep in there. And we need a guide to help us get to that point and to remember and bring back to the surface and process that. So I can definitely understand not having a guide to help you could be important. And then also just having someone there to be there and feel that grief and pain with you. I had one doctor on who was talking about a grief ritual, which apparently in certain communities in Africa they have these grief rituals where they’ll just all get together and literally just cry and just hold each other and and sort of do. You don’t even have to talk about anything. You have to say why you’re crying, nothing like that. You’re just all releasing all this pent up sadness and grief and all of this.
Anahata Ananda: [00:22:16] You know, grief is a natural human emotion because we have losses in life, whether it’s we lost our childhood dog or somebody broke up with us or a friend’s moved away or or a loved one died, you know, or a chapter of your life is ending and, you know, grieving some aspect of our past that we can’t get back, even though it maybe it was wonderful times and we’re just breathing. Well, that chapter is closed. And and that’s an ending. And it’s normal and natural for us to grieve. And there is so much social shaming around that and stigma around. Don’t talk about death. And we don’t want to use the cancer word because it’s scary. And, you know, our culture very different than the one that you’re talking about, tends to run from emotions and avoid grief. And so then we just like you say, it gets pent up, it gets piled up over the years. And that’s why we want to be able to give our anger or our sadness or our frustration and audience and a release valve so that it doesn’t turn into a big volcano or it doesn’t get internalized into a cancer or some other ailment. So that’s that is really valuable to be able to create a space or seek out a space that can honor your emotions, where you can safely express without judgment, without somebody trying to rush you, shame you or guilt you for your feelings. And and that’s what this work is definitely about, is providing that safe space and perspective and tools to see it another way so that you can not just express it, but then you can learn from it and evolve beyond it. And those are the next steps.
Maria Marlowe: [00:24:09] Yeah, I can imagine a lot of times we remember something a certain way and we give a meaning to that situation. And then when you see someone else listens to the story, you’re like, Oh, actually, no, maybe, maybe you’re not the victim or you know, maybe you can look at it a different way. So I can imagine that’s very powerful.
Anahata Ananda: [00:24:28] That’s where this concept of everything has happened for you rather than to you allows us to move out of the victim. And that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen and that it was not okay. We start to look at it from a different perspective of say, well, my soul is in a classroom to learn about humanity. My soul is in a classroom to learn to evolve. So, yes, it’s likely that in my classroom I’m going to experience density, pain, wounding a breakup, heartbreak, disappointment, frustration, rejection, judgment. Of course, because we’re studying the human experience here as our soul comes down here to have the human experience. If we see everything as a lesson and something that is teaching us, then we have the opportunity to feel empowered even in our most challenging times. And and we can say, well, what about this trauma? Or what about that trauma? Who would ask for that? And you know, one of my clients, you know, has experienced in her class. Sexual assault in in a number of different ways. I mean, it could be more traumatic. What she has experienced and as a soul, she came here to support this issue and bring understanding about not only to the victim but also to the perpetrator. And the perpetrator is also the victim because they wouldn’t be making those choices if they hadn’t also been on the receiving end of some trauma, some abuse, some distortion around sexuality and their power. And so then we start to look at not just a rape or a sexual abuse. We start to look at what caused that and what caused that.
Anahata Ananda: [00:26:18] And if we go all the way back, we start to look at, well, how can we start turning towards those abusers and look at where they need healing so that the pattern stops instead of just so instead of just putting them away and shaming them for their behavior is what caused this. And how can we help you heal so that we stop the pattern from happening and we learn how to keep that from happening in future young men or young women so that we break that pattern in society, not just shame one person for their behavior. So this woman is actually in prisons helping sex offenders rehabilitate and heal. That’s why her soul came here and had this experience. So now we see the bigger perspective of why she was experiencing now, because she wasn’t just studying sexual assault from, you know, in a Harvard classroom. That is a phD. But actually in the classroom of the physical experience and through her healing of her own experience and seeing that everybody here is a victim and needs compassion and healing and understanding that we can actually look at the core cause.
Anahata Ananda: [00:27:29] And so now we see her trauma from a bigger perspective and see, oh, she came here as a soul to deal and help humanity with this issue and start bringing greater awareness and help to stop the pattern from repeating. So that’s where we get to look at the deeper perspective once we’ve honored our emotions and we start to reframe, what am I learning from this experience? Then we start to look at what is the other perspective of why did I experience this with this other person? Is it? Am I here to learn compassion? Am I here to understand more about addiction and alcoholism? Am I here to learn more about forgiveness in that I too have hurt people, even though it might have not been in the same way that we’re actually not that different? Because I’ve hurt people with my words or I’ve hurt people with my judgments or my gossip or my insecurity or my dishonesty when I really get humble and honest with it. I also get to look at my shadow, too. And I get to respect and understand somebody else’s shadow and not from a place of judgment or a place of understanding and compassion. Can we start to realize that your pains are my pains and your shadow is a reflection of my shadow. And when we get to shift that perspective, we realize that humanity has this opportunity to grow and heal together.
Maria Marlowe: [00:29:05] So, you know, you’re talking a lot about self-awareness and becoming more self-aware. I’m curious in your practice where does movement and the physical body come in, because I know sometimes for some people to jump right in to the thinking about it or processing it or forgiving like all that stuff is hard initially. So maybe something more physical can kind of get you in that direction.
Anahata Ananda: [00:29:33] Yeah. You know, one of the modalities that I use is shamangelic breathwork where we allow the breath to kind of move through and be a broom. And so you’re not thinking about it. It’s not a process at all of, you know, doing the talking and giving it lip service. You’re allowing the energy and the emotion to move. And that might be physical. It might be emotional. You might shake it out. You might scream it out. You might cry it out, might swear it out. You might use your fists. And it gives a safe space for the physical, emotional and energetic body to express. And I think that’s really valuable that. And that’s why in my situation, talk therapy wasn’t getting very far because we were just talking about the tip of the iceberg.
Anahata Ananda: [00:30:19] And when I went to the shamanic healer, we were able to get out of the mind, not be talking about it, and actually go into kind of more of a trance state and allow the energy to move out. And different perspectives to be seen when we’re not in a mental limited capacity of just dialogue. And it can become multi-dimensional that way. We can be feeling it. It can be physical. It can be emotional, energetic and spiritual. So that’s why I really like this. What I call shamangelic breath work is because it allows the energy to move through and then we authentically get to move the body, the voice, the emotions in whatever way is authentic without inhibition, judgment and safe space. And that modality has proven to be one of my favorite tools to really help shift a lot of density out.
Anahata Ananda: [00:31:13] And so the first step that we have been talking about is, is kind of that release and we move out the density or the anger or the emotion and then we have this open, fertile space and literally put back into it. And that’s the exciting thing is then we get to open up to the divine, we get to open up to unconditional love, we get to bring in peace, we get to bring in healing and also a different perspective. So in this space, the shift that I get to witness in people when they have released what they needed to release.
Anahata Ananda: [00:31:52] Then there’s this openness that they can actually come to a place of of forgiveness and compassion when all maybe do the you to do a guided visualization to kind of bring in that person as a little child, perhaps, and their aggressor or their the villain in their story and bring them in as a little child, perhaps. And to just let them play outside together. And so that might be an easier for a to step in to seeing them as a child and being a child, then, you know, trying to go at forgiveness with your oppressor or victim, their villain in 3D in front of your face. Sometimes it’s really helpful to just do that in an energetic way is to is to see them in a different light and to be in a different place where you’re not a victim and they’re not the villain. But we bring a neutral ground so that we can have some healing and understanding the assaults at a different level, and that I facilitate all kinds of different guided visualizations which kind of help people shift their perspective and also get out of the victim and see how powerful and beautiful and valuable and worthy they are.
Anahata Ananda: [00:33:12] And when that has reestablished, then, you know, as we expand and awaken and it took me many, many years, I would say decades before I was able to forgive my father. And, you know, I was so attached to the story and the anger and the resentment. And, you know, it had been so long that I was harboring such resentment that it did start to cause health problems for me. And because that’s not our natural state is to hold such a dark heavy energy as resentment and anger. And so it will just begin to self erode ourselves. And that’s not our natural frequency or our natural frequency is grace and peace and harmony in our body, in our heart, in our emotions and with other people.
Anahata Ananda: [00:34:01] And so life experiences will keep repeating and getting louder to bring the invitation to look at those things to release, heal and forgive. And it might be awhile after the releasing before we can come to a place of forgiveness. And it’s optional. It doesn’t have to happen. It it is just a self loving act as well to not hold density or anger from the past or hold a closed heart towards somebody else, because the heart underneath the heart rate in that space is where the find this is, which is where our immune system is regulated right there in the sinus gland. And so when we have a closed heart, of course, we’re going to have immune disorders. Absolutely.
Maria Marlowe: [00:34:53] So for anyone listening who is maybe going through something traumatic right now, maybe a divorce or a diagnosis or maybe just the current state of things with all the grief and anxiety around this COVID-19 virus. Is there anything that they could do in the moment when they’re feeling all of that stress and anxiousness and grief come up in the moment? Is there one tip or technique something they could do?
Anahata Ananda: [00:35:18] Yes. This is so valuable and I appreciate you asking that, because even if it’s not a past trauma, we have them today going on. And so right now with what’s happening, our body is in that fight or flight. We don’t know if we’re gonna be safe. We don’t know what’s happening with the finances. We don’t know when, when or if we’re going back to work. And so there is a lot of disagrees and there can be relationship problems and diagnosis that can be happening any time. And so the first thing when we are in a trauma experience or in a trigger, we get to breathe. We get to calm our nervous system. That’s the first thing that we do is to stop the panic. And we do have control over that.
Anahata Ananda: [00:36:09] If we keep feeding the panic, the brain says I’m still in fight or flight. And it’s going to amplify all of the anxiety which is sending chemicals into the body, which doesn’t allow the body to heal. And it doesn’t allow us to calmly see a solution, because when we’re in fight or flight, literally, our brain goes into this very narrow focus point and it’s not able to see the bigger picture. And so in a place of panic or fear, we’re not going to see a solution. We’re not going to see a way out. We’re not going to stay positive and see creatively how we can get through this. And so the first thing people can do is close their eyes and just breathe and release the fear, calm the nervous system.
Anahata Ananda: [00:37:01] Maybe for some people, some relaxing music will help. Maybe for some people, being in nature will help. Maybe for some people, a bath will help. What ever personally will help you? Like exhale and calm. Whatever experience, whatever guided visualization, maybe you need to take in your mind’s eye, you need to take yourself to a beach or some place that helps you calm. Maybe you’re floating on clouds for that is for each person. It’s really valuable that we have a safe space in our mind that we can take us to that helps us relax and calm. I’m going to be OK. I’m going to be OK.
Anahata Ananda: [00:37:52] We want to have a mantra that tells our brain that we’re gonna be OK, because then we can calm ourselves. And when we’re moving out of fear or fight or flight, then we’re no longer in the sympathetic nervous system, which is going to trigger the body to go into fight or flight, which doesn’t allow the body to heal and actually suppresses the immune system, because in fight or flight, we’re just in survival. And we’re not digesting. We’re not focused on healing. We’re not focused on anything else. Cellular rejuvenation. And so it’s the most feeling thing that we can actually do for our body.
Anahata Ananda: [00:38:33] It’s the most immune supporting thing we can actually do for our body is to just self calm and just feel the layers of stress melting away. It’s going to be OK. Feel all of the anxiety just melting away so that you can come back to a calm, clear space. I’m gonna be OK. I’m gonna get through this. There is a way. There is a way. And I’m going to be OK.
Anahata Ananda: [00:39:05] And coming to the calm place is the first step. You know, because just the other day I was just waking in a funk with all of this stuff, and it’s not uncommon for the residual to kind of build up of this happening and that happening. So if we can just calm says, you know what, I’m not going to make any choices from a place of being in a funk. I’m going to get outside. I took a walk in nature. I did some meditation, I did some yoga. And then I came back and I was clearer and calmer and then able to come up with an idea to help me pivot a very creative solution to a financial challenge, something in my business that was frustrating me. Understandable right now. And we’re all going through that. And in that calm place, there were three different very creative and resourceful ideas that came and that helped me pivot.
Maria Marlowe: [00:39:58] And it all starts with breathing. I think breathing is something we often forget about because it’s so simple, but really it’s so, so profound. And I in particular, if you’re in a very stressful situation or fearful situation, I love the two four breath where you breathe in for two and then out for four or you breathe and three and out for six. And just having that longer exhale really helps to calm your nervous system even more.
Anahata Ananda: [00:40:26] Exactly. Because we want to get into that parasympathetic nervous system where the body heals itself. So if you are feeling something come up in the physical body. And if you are if you have just received a diagnosis like you said, this is my whole premise of shamangelic healing, is to help people with big correlations, whether that is a diagnosis, a divorce, whether it is this virus, whether it is a career shift or a loss of a loved one or a spiritual awakening, that is OK, I’m ready for the next step. I’m ready to shift out of this career or this life. That isn’t quite fitting. I’m ready to shift. Maybe it’s a spiritual awakening journey. And so in that process, there is going to be the need to just be calm. I’m going to get through this. And then in that place we can start to become creative about the solutions. The breathing is one hundred percent. Number one, the mindset is also right up there, very important because if we keep repeating mantras or statements that I can’t do it, this sucks. This is terrible. Then our body starts shutting down and so does our ability to see possibilities. And so keeping a positive mindset through any of those experiences, physical, mental, emotional, financial. Any of those experiences keeping a positive mindset.
Anahata Ananda: [00:41:56] That doesn’t mean la la la la la. I’m just a rainbow unicorn denying my emotions and the reality of what’s happening. That’s not what I’m saying either. But from that, hey, I’m gonna figure out something. I can get through this. Whatever it is, I’m gonna be okay. That’s faith and also positivity so that we can start to move in the right direction. If we stay and fight or flight, we’re literally paralyzed and not able to figure out which direction to run. And it might not be running at all. It might be like, I’m just gonna go sit in this cave and let this all pass. Maybe that’s my move and it’s gonna be OK. And, you know, all of these transformation, these big core life shifts that are happening, they’re happening for us. There’s something better on the other side. Those things that we’re letting go of are kind of like the caterpillar letting go of its dense body and following its intuition to go into this cocoon, which we’re all in right now, and let the transformation happen so that we can come out the other side and spread our wings and be free, which means we’ve got to look at the shackles and those things that have been holding us back that don’t fit who we’re becoming.
Anahata Ananda: [00:43:17] Maybe that’s a substance we’ve been intaking that really is not in alignment with a healthy body. Maybe it’s a thought or a pattern. Maybe it’s a core wound. Maybe it is a relationship with a career or a person that is really it’s served its cycle and we’re still holding on to it. And so we are going to be invited, as we completely are right now, to let go of those things that don’t align with us anymore. And that can be uncomfortable. And the opportunity to breathe and say, I trust that there’s something better that I’m moving towards. And, you know, being gentle and compassionate with yourself as you navigate the process of transformation.
Anahata Ananda: [00:44:01] And there are new tools because the tools that you might have had as a caterpillar are different than the butterfly that and some know how to fly. And we need a different physiology, a different anatomy, a different food source, a different awareness that I can fly. And so we’re also going to be learning new tools. And that’s one of the things that I love to do, is just teach people different tools around communication, around navigating their emotions, positive mindset, productivity, and having the tools to be able to feel empowered and free and thriving even in the presence of chaos.
Maria Marlowe: [00:44:36] Yeah. So a few main takeaways that I got from our conversation is, one, we all go through grief and trauma and sadness so never feel alone when you’re going through these things, we all go through them and talking with someone or having someone to just discuss with or even maybe not even talk to you just to be there while you’re sad or why you’re not feeling good, that can help with healing. Also this message of to make your message, your message. And sometimes these traumatic experiences, they do, as you say, happened for us, not to us. And even when I think of myself, like I had all this trauma about sickness and, you know, poor health when I was growing up, which has made me very interested in nutrition and health and wanting to teach and share with people how to be healthy and avoid a lot of these chronic illnesses and diseases which are avoidable.
Maria Marlowe: [00:45:34] So, you know, there is whenever we’re going through this situation, it’s usually not fun. But if we can train our minds to look for. Always look for that silver lining, to always be positive, to always breathe and be calm. Like you said, when we’re calm, we’ll find the solutions. When we’re in fight or flight. We’re not going to find the solution. So it’s just it’s just a matter of training and it’s work. You know, it is work. We have to put in the work. We have to put in the effort to, you know, clean out all of these old emotions and things that are weighing us down. And then as new, these new negative things are gonna come into our life. It’s just a matter of constantly training yourself to deal with these things.
Anahata Ananda: [00:46:20] There’s a correlation between our traumas, our tests and our souls mission. There is a correlation. We’re in a classroom of our own creation. Every experience is like homework. And then we get tested and then we get to turn around and teach that. And so there is absolutely a correlation between every lesson, every trauma, every wonderful experience that has been preparing us right now for what we’re going through. And I don’t underestimate you. I don’t underestimate me. I don’t underestimate anyone listening or watching that you have the power and the ability to get through anything or it wouldn’t be showing up for you. And this is why we came. This is an exciting time. And we’re getting invited and ignited and inspired to get off the bench and in the game and bring our magical message, our gifts, our tools, our wisdom from our experience out to help others. And it’s an exciting time for us to be working together.
Anahata Ananda: [00:47:23] And thank you so much for everything that you’re doing in this space. And I want to acknowledge all of the lessons and the challenges that you have overcome and even the doubt of I don’t have anything to say or who’s going to listen to me or what can I do? And, you know, we all have different doubts to overcome, to really be of service. So thank you for facing all of your fears and overcoming those things. And it’s a continuing process. You know, but I want to acknowledge what you’ve done to be a beacon of light in this industry for sure.
Maria Marlowe: [00:47:56] Thank you so much. Well, one last question. I’d love to ask you that. I ask all my guests, if you have just one tip or piece of advice, you could leave our listeners on how they can live a happier and healthier life. What would that be?
Anahata Ananda: [00:48:10] It’s your birthright to be happy. It’s your birthright. You don’t owe anybody anything else in this space. You came here to thrive and be happy. It’s your birthright to be happy. And so I think that thriving and joy is a frequency now as we shift out of survival mode. We’re moving into this whole other level that as a human species, it’s OK for us to thrive and be joyful and happy. And, you know, you mentioned something else about, you know, how people can you know, what else people can do in this time and during that during this whole process of as we navigate in and out of quarantine, when when that opens the doors, as people are navigating these challenges, times like I shifted my whole practice that a lot of people come here in Sedona in person to see me. And so that was one of the pivots of shifting to say, OK, there’s online counseling and people need to talk through or be guided through a process. And so I think it’s important for people know that it’s okay to feel what you’re feeling and that you’re not alone and that it’s OK to ask for help. And there’s many resources out there. And so reach out to a book, an online course, a person, a counsellor, a friend, in whatever way to get the support, you need to turn back to this place of finding your joy and your happiness in your life.
Maria Marlowe: [00:49:39] Thank you. That’s very well said. And if you guys want more from Anahata, you can head to shamangelichealing.com. I will put the link in the show now. Thank you so much.
Anahata Ananda: [00:49:50] Thank you. And blessings on every step of your journey be filled with grace and ease.
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