The Energetic Dimension
As a psychodynamic counsellor, Reiki drum practitioner and someone with a keen interest in Shamanic practices, I loved this book. Ann M Drake writes in a very clear way, with a perspective that is both personal and professional, and uses lots of examples from her practice. She comes across as someone who cares about her clients and also sees them as a whole. The book is divided in four parts to help break down the different elements that the writer feels influences an individual.
The first part of the book looks at wholeness, with examples from a retreat that the author attended. She acknowledges from her own experiences that healing oneself is a continuing and never-ending process. People can always learn something about themselves and to this end it may be useful to use a variety of methods – for example, conventional talking therapies combined with soul retrieval. The book’s first part includes a chapter headed Reflections from the Red Garuda Retreat, in which the author describes her journey while at a retreat centre in the hills of southern Virginia. Although she thought she had done a lot of self-discovery to heal her childhood issues, these issues started to reappear and at this point she realised there is always something new that people can find out about themselves.
The other parts of the book look at “ancestral imprints”, “karmic imprints” and “cultural imprints”. These sections explore layers to individuals that I was previously unfamiliar with and here I found the examples from her practice and her life particularly interesting.
I found this book really interesting and a pleasure to read. I was excited to read that Ann M Drake runs shamanic training sessions – only to find that these are in America! I can only hope that she will start some online training.
Book Details: Ann M Drake. The Energetic Dimension. O Books (29 Nov. 2019). ISBN: 978-1789041378
Review Details: The Energetic Dimension was reviewed by Karon Lyne for Indie Shaman magazine and this review was published in Issue 44.
