Many of you wrote to express solidarity and offer gratitude for the practical steps I offered. Some shared that the article helped restore hope—especially for those feeling overwhelmed, frightened, or powerless amid current events. Several longtime Reiki practitioners told me they were reminded that their practice is not only something they offer outwardly, but a vital tool for stabilizing their own nervous systems and emotional bodies. I am grateful for all of the responses.

However, more than a dozen people chose to unsubscribe. I do my best to accept that with grace. Healing steps cannot be forced; they can only be offered.

One response caught me by surprise. The writer reflected back to me the many strands of my life—teaching, writing, offering Reiki and shamanic healing sessions, creating Sacred Rhythms, which she said was “very helpful to escape the nastiness of current events and come back to center within), collecting prayers from the Zoo Animal Ambassadors, etc. Reading it, I felt deeply seen, and also a bit overwhelmed. Not in a bad way, but in a sobering one. I don’t think I’ve ever stepped back and tried to take in all that I AM doing. I tend to focus on what I still want to accomplish.

It was a timely reminder for me. On January 9, my first book, Tails of a Healer, turned 17. Coincidentally, it was originally published on my birthday, so we celebrated together. This year, I turned 67. Normally, there is joy in that shared milestone, but this year, there was little celebration. There is simply too much happening.

Honestly, I would rather be watching the NFL Wild Card football games (on right now), rather than writing another serious letter. But this feels necessary.

When I was first attuned to Reiki, I asked to be the best healer I could be. At the time, I thought that meant helping others—especially animals. What I did not yet understand was that being a healer also means committing to your own inner work, again and again. At the time, I had no idea how much personal work I would need to do to live up to that request.

The murder of Renee Nicole Good, by someone acting under the authority of the federal government, triggered a deeper layer of that work for me.

The other night, I felt the onset of a panic attack, something that I had not experienced in years. With it came a memory.

Before Reiki entered my life, I struggled to find work during an economic recession. The only job available to me was at an industrial facility surrounded by barbed wire. The environment was openly misogynistic, racist, and hostile. Harassment escalated over time, culminating in a male coworker getting in my face and aggressively verbally attacking me while my boss stood by and did nothing.

I quit on the spot. I was so shaken that I went directly to my doctor because I was trembling so badly I could barely stand. I needed medical documentation to protect my unemployment claim, knowing my employer would contest it—which he did. I fought and won, with the full support of the unemployment office, but I felt unsafe enough not to pursue further legal action.

That was not the only time in my life that I have faced violence, verbal abuse, or intimidation from a man. I have done clearing work around these experiences over the years. But this week, the brutality inflicted on Renee Nicole Good and the final words the gunman directed at her (recognized by too many women), activated an old layer of fear that needed my immediate attention.

With the shamanic help of a Stone Person, I cleared what had been triggered. But the experience reminded me how easily collective violence can reopen personal history—especially when authority, uniforms, and unchecked power are involved.

I am sharing this to let anyone who needs to hear it know that you are not alone if your body reacts before your mind can catch up. The cumulative stress of the last year—on top of the stress of the last several years—is real.

The fear is not imagined. Minnesota (and other blue states) are currently experiencing the presence of federalized agents, and many people are frightened.

I try to keep my finger, shamanically speaking, on the pulse of our nation by reading on Threads. There, I follow a husband/wife couple who are military veterans. With unshed tears in his eyes, the husband said he was struggling to see any meaningful difference between ICE and ISIS. He said that ICE is operating like a government-sanctioned terrorist operation. When a combat veteran says something like that, we should all be paying attention.

At a recent candlelight vigil for Renee Nicole Good, Bishop Rob Hirschfeld of the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire said he has asked the diocese’s clergy to get their affairs in order, and to make sure their wills are written, “…because it may be that now is no longer the time for statements, but for us, with our bodies, to stand between the powers of this world and the most vulnerable.” That request was directed to the clergy—but it speaks volumes about the seriousness of this moment.

From my shamanic perspective, it is not a coincidence that Buddhist monks are currently involved in the Walk for Peace USA to our nation’s Capitol, accompanied by their canine companion, Aloka. They are expected to arrive around February 11. I am inspired by their actions each day, and pray for their mission and their safety.

Since I may not be sending another newsletter for a while, I want to share additional healing tips I believe can help at this time.

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Healing Action Resources 

• ReikiShamanic Tips for Challenging Times (free)

Created in the early days of COVID, this video series offers foundational practices for clearing accumulated stress and heavy energy, and for preventing overload from constant exposure to distressing news. The first two videos are especially useful right now. Click here.

• Reiki 2 Practitioners: Personal Clearing Work and Situations

A Reiki practitioner reached out, asking me to remind her how to clear her own energy field as a Reiki 2 practitioner. A challenging question, since she had not trained with me (these days, there can be significant variation in how Reiki is taught). I did my best to distill several weeks of training into a few points. I hope others find it helpful.

• When offering self-Reiki, use the Sei + Cho together (in that order) with each hand position, not only the emotional/spiritual hand position. This pairing supports emotional and spiritual clearing throughout the whole system.
• You can also use Sei + Cho to clear your external energy field—similar to energetic smudging—after exposure to triggering situations or heavy environments.
• If a current event triggers old material, you can send Reiki back to the point of origin of the issue without needing to know when it began.

Reiki and Healing for 100 Sled Dogs: This article offers an example of how to calm yourself first, then respond energetically to a situation that disturbs or overwhelms you. It’s a practical model you can adapt to current events or personal triggers.

• Establishing or Renewing Your Reiki Practice

Reiki Level 1 Class: Receiving a Reiki 1 attunement and developing a daily self-Reiki practice can be deeply calming and stabilizing—emotionally and physically. For those already attuned, another attunement can provide grounding and a renewed connection to the practice. I do have a Reiki 1 class starting January 14, and it is available worldwide. Click here to learn more.

• A Simple Shamanic Practice for the Collective

Article “My Country, ’Tis of Thee”: A gentle but powerful way to work shamanically with the collective field during this time of national distress. Click here to read.

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A reminder from Windwalker and All Our Relations: “Together we are strong. Together we can heal ourselves and this world.”

With gratitude and resolve,
Rose De Dan, Night Sky and Tamerlan, fosters Noctua and Sadiya