I vividly remember the day two women I adored and trusted from two completely different circles of my life recommended I speak to a shaman.

“Her name is Shaman Rose,” they both told me in person and via email. She helped each of them move through grief after their respective mothers passed away.

“What does she do?” I asked.

“It’s hard to explain,” they both said. “She helps lift your energy and makes you feel better.”

So, in my earliest hour of grief, I called Shaman Rose while driving to my first meditation class ever. I was so desperate for support that I was willing to try everything and anything all at once.

When Shaman Rose picked up the phone, I whispered the words I could hardly believe, “My son passed away.”

“Pull over, I’ll help you right now,” she responded. “What happened?”

I parked my car and explained.

She promptly responded, “I’m going to energetically tap into your chakras and send them divine healing energy so they open and spin properly. This will help you move through your grief so you can help your family too.”

I asked her what a chakra was and learned for the first time in my life that according to Hinduism and various spiritual practices, we all have at least seven major centers in our bodies that vibrate at their own frequency and receive and distribute energy. They align along the center of the body, from the base of our pelvis up to the crown of our head.

We are all energy and “quite literally beings of light,” according to quantum physicist and best-selling author and speaker Dr. Joe Dispenza. This means that when negative emotions (which are also energy!) get stuck in our bodies, we also get stuck and can’t heal or evolve.

“In all likelihood, your chakras are shut down and closed,” Shaman Rose explained to me. “Stay in one spot for the next two hours. It’s too hard for me to track your energy and work on you if you are moving around.”

So, I went off to meditate while she did her thing, not understanding how anyone, shaman or otherwise, could infuse me with energy from a distance and keep track of my activity.

When she called me back later that evening, she explained the grave condition of my energy centers and what it took for her to activate them. She advised me to “grieve” and get the emotions out of my body. And she used her abilities to connect with the spirit world and deliver a few simple messages to benefit my family.

“You should feel a bit better now,” she said. “Call me when you need me again.”

For the next few weeks, I couldn’t deny feeling lighter, so much so that I recommended her to my very practical husband.

“What does she do?” he asked me.

“I have no idea,” I responded. “Something about getting our chakras spinning and delivering energy from the spirit world to help us heal.”

“Ah ha,” he said sarcastically. But given that he was suffering as much as I was, he added, “I’ll try it.”

A week later, he reported back.

“I’m not sure what that shaman lady did, but she helped me. I feel a little lighter too. She also said I have the most white and gold light she’s ever seen.”

“Perfect,” I responded. I’m the open-minded one, and you’re the one who’s divinely blessed.

Given the compliment, I wasn’t totally surprised when six months later my husband asked me out of the blue, “Can I have that shaman’s contact information again? I need her again.” Grief can be ruthless.

After his second session, I asked, “How did it go today with Shaman Rose?”

“Well…” he said, squinting his eyes and tilting his head. “She had a hard time working on me this time.”

“Why?” I asked.

“She said she couldn’t find me.”

“Did you stay in one place for a few hours like she tells us to?”

“Nope,” he responded. “I figured that’s all bullshit. The minute I hung up with her, I drove forty minutes across town to a board meeting, then to lunch, and back to my office. I was out all day.”

“Oh my gosh!” I exclaimed. “You defied her instructions, and then she actually said she couldn’t track you?”

“Yep,” he said.

“She’s the real deal?” I asked.

“Maybe,” he responded, unwilling to commit.

To this day, I am forever grateful to Shaman Rose. She was the first alternative healer on this journey of mine to teach me about the power of energy and the ways in which we impact each other with it. She was also one of the first to show me what true service looks like–  hearing my story and working on my family and me without even worrying about whether or not we’d ever pay (of course, I did). For the rest of this lifetime, she has given my husband and me a reason to laugh: every time I point out when my husband does something dumb, he reminds me with a sly “Ahem…white and gold!”

And for you, dear reader, if a verified shaman drops into your life, open your mind to the possibilities…of opening your chakras!