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ยป Home ยป Starting The Journey

5 Types of Spiritual Healing (& What to Be Careful Of)

by Aletheia Luna ยท Updated: Apr 3, 2025 ยท 115 Comments

Ai generated image of a woman and a wolf in a forest within a ring of light symbolic of spiritual healing
Image of spiritual healing

At the roots of most chronic physical, mental, and emotional illnesses is a basic wound: a lurking spiritual malady.

The basic philosophy that accompanies most spiritual healing traditions is that when we are disconnected from the Divine, we are severed from true well-being.ย 

Since the Divine is the source of our energy (our life force), when we are alienated from it, we experience numerous illnesses that manifest in endless forms.


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The purpose of these illnesses is to help us reconnect with our Divine inner Center โ€“ to point the way back to Wholeness.

This is where spiritual healing comes into the picture:

It’s a path of healing; of reuniting us with our true Spiritual Nature.ย 

However, not all approaches to spiritual healing are healthy. In fact, it’s wise to practice discernment and caution here.

We need to look out for ourselves because we may be used by so-called spiritual healers and preyed upon by false ideas.

As a person who has a lot of experience with spiritual healing, who works in the spiritual field, and who has published numerous spiritual books on the topic of healing (for spiritual seekers, empaths, and old souls), I’ll share key advice in this article.

Table of contents

  • What is Spiritual Healing?
  • Spiritual Healing and Spiritual Awakening
  • 5 Types of Spiritual Healing
  • How Can I Heal My Soul?
  • The Dark Side of Spiritual Healing That No One Talks About
  • What is Authentic Spiritual Healing?
  • What I’ve Learned

What is Spiritual Healing?

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Spiritual healing is the practice (and experience) of restoring, harmonizing, and balancing our Spirit or Soul.


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Spiritual healing is also seen as a transcendental experience of reconnecting with our true nature. As author and teacher, Shakti Gawain writes:

Spiritual healing occurs as we begin to consciously reconnect with our essential being โ€“ the wise, loving, powerful, creative entity that we are at our core.

Spiritual Healing and Spiritual Awakening

Image of a purple candle burning symbolic of spiritual healing

For many people, spiritual healing is a crucial part of the spiritual wanderer’s journey of awakening.

By revealing and soothing the wounds that other modalities (such as psychology or nutrition) fail to heal, a doorway is opened to deeper inner spiritual alchemy. In other words, spiritual healing can offer us the chance to grow and transform in a way that no other path can.

Many sensitive and receptive beings, such as empaths, intuitives, and old souls, are drawn to spiritual healing. Some even become spiritual healers themselves. For many spiritual wanderers, spiritual healing becomes a regular part of their spiritual awakening path.

5 Types of Spiritual Healing

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There are many different approaches to spiritual healing.

For example, some new-age healing practitioners focus only on bringing balance to the etheric or non-physical energy field of the human body. Shamanic healers focus on restoring the spirit and curing soul loss. And other holistic healers focus on unifying the body, heart, mind, and spirit.

Even psychologists and therapists are starting to incorporate spiritual healing into their work such as those operating in the depth and transpersonal fields of psychology.

So in summary, there are five different types of spiritual healing:

  1. Physical healing (of the body)
  2. Emotional healing (of the heart)
  3. Mental healing (of the mind)
  4. Spiritual healing (of the spirit or soul)
  5. Holistic healing (of the body, heart, mind, and spirit)

The type of spiritual healing that you’ll need will depend on the following questions:

  • What is your main struggle in life right now?
  • Do you have more than one pressing issue?

Depending on your answers, you’ll be able to determine what type of spiritual healing modality you need. For instance, if you suffer from chronic pain (for which no other methods work) and also depression, you would need physical and mental healing โ€“ ideally, some kind of holistic healer would benefit you the most.

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If, on the other hand, you have one issue, like an unshakable sense of grief from a lost relationship, seek out a healer who specializes in emotional healing.

Common types of spiritual healing include chakra healing, crystal/herbal remedies, breathwork, reiki, traditional medicine (ayurveda, Chinese medicine), aromatherapy, meditation/visualization techniques, and so on.

But what about soul healing?

What does that mean? And does it apply to you?

(By the way, here’s a video we made on the topic of spiritual healing a while ago โ€“ it provides some unique food for thought!)

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How Can I Heal My Soul?

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If you’re interested in spiritual healing, you likely feel that somethingย fundamentalย is missing from your life.

Some people are able to verbalize this feeling, while others just feel a stark, bone-chilling absence of something vital. When a person is able to pinpoint what’s wrong, usually they discover that it’s rooted in the soul.

“I’m a lost soul,” they might think, or, “My soul is broken.”

But this is a fundamental misunderstanding. Yes, something is certainly wrong, but it’s not that the soul is broken (which is impossible from an objective standpoint), it’s that they’ve lost touchย with their soul.

In other words, they are living in a lifeless, colorless world that lacks the joy and succulence that the soul brings.

So the question isn’t how to “heal” your soul (because the soul is Divine and incapable of being fractured โ€“ you can experience this while meditating), but how to findย your soul.

Mature spiritual healers (i.e., those who understand the nature of the soul) and spiritual healing resources out there (such as this website) will recommend a host of different methods. Some of them include:

  • Self-love and self-care practices
  • Inner child work
  • Shadow work
  • Soul retrieval
  • Solitude and introspection
  • Meditation and mindfulness exercises
  • Connecting with spirit animals and spirit guides
  • Spending time in nature (ecotherapy)

Click on any of the above links to get further guidance if you’d like a place to start with your spiritual healing.

I also highly recommend that you check out our article on Soul Work, which goes into great depth on ways of reconnecting with the soul.

It’s important to be educated and use spiritual discernment here. Not all spiritual healing modalities are equal. Not all healers or teachers are in it forย yourย best interest. And sometimes, our motivations for spiritual healing are wrong. I’ll explain why next.


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The Dark Side of Spiritual Healing That No One Talks About

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Thereโ€™s a reason why no one talks about the dark side of spiritual healing.

First, most people arenโ€™t evenย awareย that thereโ€™s a dark side. Second, if theyย areย aware, they’re uncomfortable facing or confronting it, typically out of fear or a sense of embarrassment.

Hereโ€™s where I come in: your friendly neighborhood shadow worker. I will help to outline exactly how seeking spiritual healing can be self-destructive and why.

Sounds paradoxical, doesnโ€™t it? Well hereโ€™s the thing: it is! Spiritual healing can feel like an enigma wrapped in a riddle, and Iโ€™ll explain why.

To be as short and succinct as possible, there are two dark twins of spiritual healing:

Issue 1: Spiritualized Resistance

The first dark twin is what I call spiritualized resistance.

What does spiritualized resistance mean? Basically, it means that sometimes we can use spiritual healing as an excuse to โ€œget rid ofโ€ certain feelings, memories, and experiences that weโ€™ve had.

Whatโ€™s wrong with trying to banish or get rid of what we go through? Itโ€™s a form of resistance. And resistance leads to tremendous suffering. Iโ€™m talking about anxiety, depression, anger, resentment, bitterness, the whole shebang.

I believe that everyone in the spiritual community needs to understand that trying to โ€œhealโ€ is not always about healing. In fact, often, healing is used as an excuse to deny, suppress, disown, or reject what weโ€™re going through.

It is completely understandable to want to try to get rid of our suffering โ€“ particularly if we’re exhausted and deeply wounded.

But hereโ€™s the thing: desperately trying to heal can actually exacerbate your unhappiness and deepen your resistance to whatโ€™s happening, thereby preventing you from actually healing!

I will repeat that sentence again (read it slowly): desperately trying to heal can intensify your unhappiness and deepen your resistance to whatโ€™s happening, thereby preventing you from actually healing!

It is important for us to understand that true spiritual healing is about facing, acknowledging, exploring, and integrating what we are going through. Itโ€™s not about trying to escape our reality!

Issue 2: Dark Spiritual Teachers

The second dark twin is perpetrated by spiritual โ€œhealersโ€ and practitioners who are aware โ€“ either on a conscious or unconscious level โ€“ of the first dark twin of spiritual healing.

These teachers are aware of the addictive quality of the push-and-pull game of eternal self-improvement and they use it for their own self-gain.

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I see this literally everywhere. Itโ€™s a sad thing to behold. Itโ€™s prevalent in people who believe they must pay big bucks to โ€œmanifest their desires,โ€ keep their vibration high, and basically accumulate more and be more (as if who they are and what they have isnโ€™t already enough).

But when does this getting and being more actually end? Itโ€™s an eternal cycle that leads to suffering (which I wrote about in my thought-provokingย self-improvement article).

Then, of course, you have the more sinister breed of spiritual teachers who appear divine and enlightened on the surface but are raging megalomaniacs underneath.

A true spiritual teacher will always give your power back to you, but a false spiritual teacher will not only parade around wearing your codependency like a crown but will also actively encourage it.

They will purport to have the power to โ€œhealโ€ all your issues and provide you with the โ€œone true pathโ€ towards enlightenment, illumination, self-realization, or Oneness.

And if you believe them, you’ll be ensnared in a dangerous web of believing that someone outside of you can offer you salvation. (Read more about dodgy spiritual guidance.)

What is Authentic Spiritual Healing?

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Healing doesn’t mean the damage never existed. It means the damage no longer controls our lives.

โ€“ Akshay Dubey

I hope that during the course of this article, I have communicated myself clearly. Spiritual healing itself isnโ€™t to blame; it is our mental approach to spiritual healing that’s the issue.

When spiritual healing is used as a way to avoid, deny, suppress, and disown our issues through โ€œspiritualized resistanceโ€ we are abusing its potential. And when spiritual healing is used as a dangling carrot by unethical and unwise spiritual teachers, then it is being desecrated.

So what is authentic spiritual healing?

True spiritual healing is about facing, acknowledging, exploring, and integrating what we are going through. Itโ€™s not about trying to escape our reality! Itโ€™s really as simple as that.

Just think of it this way: if you had a blistering sore oozing blood and puss โ€ฆ would you really achieve much by covering your eyes and pretending to ignore it or “manifesting” it into oblivion? No. The pain and infection would still be there.

Would you really heal by pretending that sore wasnโ€™t yours or byย making it someone elseโ€™s responsibility to look after? No. You’d still carry that sore with you everywhere. It wouldn’t go away any time soon.

The only way to heal that blistering sore is to face it, accept it, and find ways of alleviating your suffering โ€“ not as a way of trying to escape your reality โ€“ but as a form of self-love. This, to me, is true spiritual healing.

So when it comes to spiritual healing, please be mindful of these traps and practice healthy caution. Critical thinking skills and radical self-honesty are so vital in this day and age.

What I’ve Learned

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Iโ€™ve been guilty of using spiritual healing as a way to try and escape my suffering before.

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As a person who has wrestled with anxiety for years, I have often fallen into the trap of trying to spiritually bypass my suffering through fluffy feel-good thinking or methods that promise to instantly โ€œget ridโ€ of anxiety.

But folks, I’m here to tell you that it doesnโ€™t work. Trying to put a band-aid on a festering sore will only make it worse.

Resisting your reality, even in a โ€œspiritualโ€ way, will only serve to deepen your suffering. The only way out is through. You need to go to the core and roots of your issues in order to heal them.

Please reflect on what I have written in this articleย because it might save you years of pointless struggle.

Love and peace to all.

Further reading and helpful resources:

  • Are You Addicted to Spiritual Escapism?
  • Traps & Pitfalls on the Spiritual Wanderer’s Path
  • Spiritual Awakening Bundle (for down-to-earth spiritual support)

What does spiritual healing mean to you? What struggles have you faced or “dark spiritual healers” have you come across? Tell me below!

Three paths to inner transformation โ€“ hereโ€™s how I can help you go deeper:

1. The Spiritual Wanderer Course: Are you feeling lost, adrift, and unsure of your life's purpose? Gain clarity, focus, and direction on your inner path by uncovering the five archetypes of awakening within you. Learn how to navigate the highs and lows of your inner journey and chart your unique path with 3+ hours of audio-visual content, workbooks, meditations, and a premium test.

2. Shadow & Light Membership: Do you crave consistent support on your spiritual quest? Receive weekly intuitive guidance and learn to embrace your whole self, including your shadow side. Cultivate deeper self-love with our affordable, personalized support.

3. Spiritual Awakening Bundle: Ready to embark on a profound soul-searching adventure? Dive into our collection of essential transformative resources! Explore five illuminating eBooks and seven in-depth journals, plus unlock two special bonuses to empower your spiritual growth.

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About Aletheia Luna

Aletheia Luna is a prolific psychospiritual writer, author, educator, and intuitive guide whose work has touched the lives of millions worldwide. As a survivor of fundamentalist religious abuse, her mission is to help others find love, strength, and inner light in even the darkest places. She is the author of hundreds of popular articles, as well as numerous books and journals on the topics of Self-Love, Spiritual Awakening, and more. [Read More]

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  1. K says

    October 12, 2018 at 5:24 am

    Emotions can be suppressed from an early age, particularly when a child senses a part of their energy within, their own spiritual make up, however that feels for them, they can learn to feel deep shame for their unique sensitivities if they do not have the empathic support around them. The words, light and dark, have such many interpretations in the spiritual arena they can play into the psyche and energy of those who have experienced suppression for most of their life, if they choose to open up to their spiritual energy, many perhaps not ready or grounded to deal and cope with what many label as dark and light. Repression is not always understood, can be generalized and is such a unique experience, emotions that have been stifled, hidden, denied, shamed, numbed down. Many as adults can be vulnerable to opening up what they have deeply hidden for most of their life, that it is imperative they tread slowly and with the right professional support if they choose to, if they decide to open up to such energies and suppressed emotions, it can be no walk in the park. Many sensitives can feel ashamed to like their fluffy side of spiritual, even feeling they may be mocked, their innocence, ( such an important part of a sensitive), as equally learning to feel and open up to their inner wounds and hurts, even perhaps in the thinking they have to eradicate their egos, what many can name as dark but I do not believe they have to deny their ego at all. It can feel quite an extreme of feelings and emotions during their healing process, that it can be almost too much to say our past and present issues as either light or dark, and instead it is about a unique healing and opening up for the individual that can take time and heart to process their own spirituality without feeling we are either revealing our dark or light side. I feel it is important for those who have repressed emotions to tread carefully when opening up to the mix of energies in spiritual healing, writing and to learn to ground and balance first before anything else. Sometimes we do not know what we may open up in the healing process, our wounded, abused, hidden innocence needs time to express our self while staying kind to our mental mind, the delicate force that requires soft nurturing and equal rest of our often heavy emotions.
    Thanks
    K

    Reply
  2. Ayesha Ebrahim says

    September 14, 2018 at 7:49 pm

    Thank you so much for this article.
    I am a natural born optimist, always have been, but I’ve also learned that when I’m down, I need to examine my inner self. I give myself permission to be human, and to feel, I mean, REALLY feel.
    If I’m upset about something, I allow myself to be upset, I examine why I am upset, why have I allowed it to affect me this way, what am I doing to attract such behaviour /occurences etc. in my life and what I can do within myself to change either the event, or the affect it has on me.
    If I need to cry, I cry, or rant, or beat myself up, and in order to not let it take over my world, I set a time frame. For example, I can wallow, immerse myself completely in this experience, but by Monday, Tuesday or whichever day, I’ll pick myself up, dust myself off, forgive the person, event, myself and carry the lesson learned as part of my human experience.
    I find this helps me face the dark without letting it take over, and when I’ve shared it with others, they’ve also come back and thanked me.
    I hope my post helps others too.

    Reply
  3. Crystal Lynn Rossi says

    June 24, 2018 at 4:29 am

    The reason I rarely talk about the dark side of spiritual healing is because others love to hear that there is a dark side but they do not want to hear the details . I am not speaking of just my personal experience, I see it daily when others are experiencing the darkness (that is the darkest and deepest place of sadness that we go to in order to find the roots of who we are both individually and collectively) …. I see it as people minimize , try to cheer up , point out that it could be worse or point out the good stuff that the teller โ€œshouldโ€ be focusing on or they just change th subject or completely ignore the person who is sharing details . I donโ€™t think that most โ€œspiritualโ€ donโ€™t know the darkness of spiritual healing – I think people know that the depth of that darkness is terrifying to others and that they can only speak of such things with people who are able to stand strong in their own energy
    To validate and empathize with the experience – most others will shut themselves off from anyone speaking in detail about such things.

    Reply
    • Aletheia Luna says

      July 19, 2018 at 12:46 pm

      What you say very much reflects this part of the article: “Thereโ€™s a reason why no one talks about the dark side of spiritual healing. Number one, most people arenโ€™t even aware that thereโ€™s a dark side. And if they are aware then number two: they are uncomfortable to face or confront it.” It’s true that not everyone is capable of facing the darkness, which is totally understandable. In this case, the best thing to do for them is to back away and develop the inner strength to, hopefully, face what must be faced in order to grow. We’re all at different levels and I think it’s important that we honor that, but at the same time, encourage each other to grow in the most authentic ways possible (with as little spiritual bypassing possible).

      Reply
  4. Rachel says

    June 19, 2018 at 3:14 pm

    Great article, thank you. I really like your comparison with the wound. I try to accept the wounds I have instead of pushing them away, but still have some trouble with going through them. It is like I am looking at the wound instead of putting the band aid over it, but I am looking with a confused look: what to do now?

    Reply
    • Aletheia Luna says

      July 19, 2018 at 12:49 pm

      Hi Rachel. :) The next step is to face what is there without dramatizing, pathologizing or obsessing over it. I compare it to a stream of water: just let it flow, let your energy flow. Do what needs to be done on both an intuitive and rational level to free up that frozen, stagnant or wounded energy. Often, all that needs to be done is to hold the suffering in awareness, face it, and feel it. That is obviously easier said than done, but it’s a process that many modalities (such as somatic experiencing for example) can help you work through. I hope that helps!

      Reply
  5. Mary says

    June 07, 2018 at 4:53 am

    Wow my comment got erased?

    Reply
  6. Alma Raven says

    May 31, 2018 at 7:07 pm

    Thank you. A very true article. “Positive thinking” for the mere sake of it is dangerous for sure. It truly is facing our problems that makes us stronger and gives us insight. If you refuse to fight your own battles because it is oh so scary you will never see what you could have gained for yourself. It is a convenient way of escaping who you are. Fire is needed, courage is needed, self love that is not fake is needed.

    Reply
  7. Arthoryum says

    May 31, 2018 at 12:40 pm

    I’m sorry for writing it like this, but… you & Sol SAVE MY SOUL, why… ?, because you NEVER judge me for anything… but my mind does it, like a FUCKIN’ demon telling me that i deserve death for… EVERYTHING, practically EVERYTHING… and making me run of, again, everything ’cause pure fear of being judge… ’cause, sadly, i think i could KILL if i’m being judge. No Fuckin’ One knows what i had to imagine as dark tought to escape of my own mind as a trial… what i had to while i was masturbating myself to… ESCAPE; like… a fathers that lost their children and, to, stay together, for example, they have to enjoy the death of their children, if not, they would commit suicide, having to found a life alone to FIGHT my Demons… i would FUCKIN’ KILL, IF I’M JUDGE.

    A Gift… : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JQiEs32SqQ.

    PD: I NEVER TOUCHED A CHILD, so… WHY THE FUCK’ MY MIND IS JUDGING ME so EXTREMELY HARD… ??

    PD2: Forgive me for everything…

    Reply
  8. Bella says

    May 31, 2018 at 5:19 am

    Hi Luna & Sol thank u sooo much 4 your article i really needed that i knew i was on the right path by allowing myself to feel anger pain rage sadness for example when i feel anger i play angry rock metal music and punch things to get my anger out i also say what i want to do to get back at the people who hurtme and draw and write things like my feelings emotions down in my writing sketching pad including when i feel sad i will cry in my room or scream if im both sad and angry and i have to say the drawings i do are super dark for instance im on bed and dark shadow grim reaper type figures are touching and grabbing me in places they shouldn’t that points to me being sexually violently physically mentally verbally emotionally spiritually abused as a child pre teen teen and adult and im always weeping tears streaming down my face in my drawings and curled into a foetal position and sometimes im in a corner sitting hugging my knees or coverinng my little girl parts by putting my hands over them to protect them my favorite weepy songs for when im sad are lilium from elfen lied and come little children and also once upon a december by erutan music if anybody is sad please feel free 2 check out these awesome powerful songs on YouTube they have a great and beautiful contrast between being dark yet beautiful and hauntingly sad and for angry feeling songs check out if u wish 2 metallica enter sandman and iced earths song dracula just the sounds beats rhythm and lyrics really helps to bring out my creative side i mean u dont have 2 check them out just if u want 2 that’s all folks but they do on the upside bring out the creator in me i dunno if they would do that 4 anyone else just saying thats all u dont have 2 if you dont want 2 but just saying it helps me alot express my emotions and how i feel also as i think i mentioned punching something when angry and really getting all my rage out pretending that its the head of my abusers have a great day or evening guys depending on where ur and take care God bless u all love ya all and u especially Luna & Sol xxxx โ˜ŽโœŒ

    Reply
    • Aletheia says

      May 31, 2018 at 8:41 am

      Thank you for sharing here Bella. I think creative self-expression and catharsis is so powerful for trauma. They transform the darkness into something beautiful, and allow it to come out rather than be locked inside. This is very therapeutic. Sending lots of love and healing energy your way, Luna

      Reply
  9. Mo says

    May 31, 2018 at 3:25 am

    Dear Luna,
    Iโ€™ve often wanted to comment on blog posts such as this one, and others that deal with the intensity of suffering that comes along with Spiritual Awakening. I have some questions related to my own experience, but Iโ€™ve hesitated to ask in case it might be too … intense.

    Today I think Iโ€™ll try, and put it as concisely as possible.

    So, if โ€œsomeoneโ€ goes through a long and arduous awakening process, i.e., 12+ years of a continuous Dark Night experiene … and they know the pain and loss and stripping away of everything โ€” health, friends, dreams, identity, beliefs, illusions, etc โ€” had to mean something; it was all so ridiculously terrible it must be preparing the person for something… and so, the person hangs in there, believing and knowing sheโ€™s in a cocoon or on a journey, and one day would make it through …

    But things keep getting worse and worse. It begins affecting her life and family and finances. Trauma ensues as more and more blindfolds fall off, revealing unbearable truths she had hidden from herself for 50 years. Crises arise in all areas of her life and she cant stay on top of them. She feels trapped, alone, helpless, isolated – and all her efforts to find help end up hurting her. … so she loses that hope. And doesnt see any light at the end of the tunnel. She feels she got stuck, lost her way. And her only way to get free, she believes, is to โ€œend thingsโ€.

    Sorry this is too long already. I guess Iโ€™ll just ask:
    – Do people going through this process ever get to the point where they cant take the pain anymore?
    – If they try to end things by their own hand – and dont succeed – did they ruin everything?…did they blow their chance of ever finding that purpose they believed so strongly in? … eg, that all their suffering could be used for good one day; that they could help and heal others from all that they learned?
    – Does Spirit โ€œget madโ€ that they gave up? …

    What happens next, to a person such as this?

    Reply
    • Aletheia says

      May 31, 2018 at 8:38 am

      Hi Mo, this is indeed heavy, but actually quite common. The Dark Night of the Soul, unlike popular thought, isn’t just a period of depression. It is a true spiritual crisis that has (often) nothing to do with chemical imbalances within the brain or warped mental outlooks.

      To answer your question, yes. It is possible that some find the pain too much to bear. Although teacher and philosopher Ken Wilber (you can look him up) has said that no one has ever been recorded committing suicide due to a dark night of the soul. While the experience feels like everything is being stripped away, at the same time, there’s a sense of merging into something greater (even if slightly). If a person does try to end things by their own hand, and don’t succeed, they have not ‘blown’ their chance. Why would this be the case? Sometimes, severe acts of self-destruction such as this ‘flick a switch’ and something within them changes (but on the other hand, sometimes nothing changes). There is no black or white here. I’ve heard, read, and listened to people who have tried committing suicide, and afterward have actually found their life purpose. Their suicide attempt signified the lowest point in their life, and from that something (sometimes) begins to grow.

      As for your last question, no. It is not my personal experience that Spirit “gets mad” that people give up. This perception seems to reflect a more Judeo-Christian mindset of the divine, in which some God figure is out there to punish us. During the satori/mystical experiences I’ve had, the Divine is complete openness, understanding, compassion, peace, love, etc. But that is not to say that the Divine isn’t forceful. It can and will be a no-nonsense teacher/force that can be stern but loving at the same time.

      If such a person is in a spiral of darkness, there are a few options. Reaching out to others is a must, particularly professional helpers in the transpersonal therapy field (who understand both the meeting point between spirituality and psychology). I’d encourage anyone who feels this way to just seek human contact. Talk to someone online if you have no close and trustworthy friends. There are many free counseling services online, and suicide hotlines/chats. Although they may not be able to fully understand the depths of your suffering, they can provide an outlet for self-expression and sometimes helpful tools. Human contact and feeling heard/seen by another, is like a salve for the soul. Taking plant medicine is also a powerful way to have a “breakthrough.” Normally I wouldn’t recommend mentally unfit people to take plant medicine (such as ayahuasca, psilocybin mushrooms, san pedro, lsd), but if I was personally considering suicide, I would make it my mission to go beyond my current mind/ego. And the easiest way to do that is through sacred plant medicine. Although it’s important to do research, get a sitter or legitimate shaman, and ensure that you’re not putting yourself in danger with the authorities. Some studies and many recorded experiences from others have shown how plant medicine can cure drug addiction, depression, and illnesses of the soul, also include the Dark Night of the Soul. I would supplement all of this with prayer and as much self-care as one can muster.

      I hope this helps. Let me know your thoughts.

      Reply
      • Mo says

        May 31, 2018 at 1:25 pm

        Dear Luna,
        Thank you so much for your kind, thoughtful and helpful response. I deeply appreciate the time and care you put into answering my questions.
        When I wrote the comment, in my striving to be concise and not overly dramatic, I ended up being overly vague and ambiguous instead – and I apologize. I hope its okay if I fill in some of the blanks I left you with …
        1. I should add that, in the midst of the suffering, pain, loss, grief, etc … a lot of amazing things were happening too. I called them โ€œmiracles and magicโ€ โ€” as if Spirit was constantly showing up for me in unexpected ways โ€” e.g., through animals and nature, the sky, synchronicities everywhere, and these amazing โ€˜journeysโ€™ – usually with animals – that happened when I meditated. (I didnt know what these events were so I just called them โ€œcool meditationsโ€ … until someone told me I was โ€œjourneyingโ€). It was pretty amazing.

        2. I longed to tell someone about all these things I was experiencing, someone who had these same experiences and could help me understand what it all meant โ€” and/or just marvel at the โ€œcoolnessโ€ of it, together. But I couldnt seem to find anyone to share this with. When Iโ€™d try to reach out to someone like a shamanic practitioner or spiritual coach, there wasnt this shared โ€œwonderโ€ I hoped for, or any help in explaining what this all meant. When Iโ€™d try to share an experience I had, the person would either say nothing, or just give a little laugh/grunt and change the subject. I thought perhaps theyโ€™d seen so much more, that my experiences were no big deal to them. Or that I shouldnt be sharing such things … like it was โ€œshamanically incorrectโ€ of me. Either way, I did get hurt by the people I turned to for help and understanding in many other ways as well.
        3. When things became so bad in my life โ€” when everything in my life was in a crisis state โ€” I tried going to therapists, psychiatrists, etc for help. But it was so strange. Not one of them seemed to believe me when Iโ€™d tell them all the areas of my life that were in disarray. They were dismissive and treated me as if I was just โ€œover-catastrophizingโ€ or exaggerating; as if it would be impossible for anyone to be in crisis in every area of their lives. But I was! I was telling the exact truth. But these professionals didnt take me seriously. (I did not go into the spiritual stuff at all with these people).
        Iโ€™ll try to pull this together soon โ€”
        4. So basically I had no one to turn to. I was in a toxic marriage (one of the many truths revealed). I had no friends, family support, money, or ability to work bc of chronic illness. I felt trapped; void of hope. I got mad at Spirit, because this โ€œprocessโ€ had been going on for 12 years, and kept getting worse with no end in sight. The miracles and magic were still amazing โ€” but those experiences werent helping me. I felt like I got stuck in the metamorphisis process, where the caterpillar turns to mush in the cocoon.
        5. It was two years ago when the trauma became too much for me. I donโ€™t like saying the โ€œsโ€ word, but yes, I tried that. I was in the hospital for a week and then intensive outpatient care.
        6. The thing that was so strange is, from the moment I woke up in the hospital – Spirit was gone. It was like this huge strange void. It stayed like that after I got home, and for nearly 2 years. Thats why I thought I must have blown it. Also โ€” it was like I had some sort of amnesia when it came to all the things I had experienced over the past decade, both good and bad.

        Itโ€™s only recently that things are starting to come back to me. I can feel Spirit with me again. I am getting reminders of the โ€œcool thingsโ€ I experienced. But I dont know anymore if my soul will ever find or live out its purpose. I wonder if I interrupted the process. But I didnt know what else to do.

        This is very long, and I am so sorry. This is what I tried to avoid earlier. But I just wanted to be sure you knew that I am okay now, as far as no longer needing to escape or end things. That already happened. However, I am still confused and feeling lost, and wondering what happened to me and why, and wondering if it was all for nothing?

        P.s. if this is too long to post, I understand! Thank you so much for your kindness and grace.

        know who to tell or how to explain it. Most people I knew wouldnt get it at all.

        Reply
  10. Sarah says

    May 30, 2018 at 3:09 am

    Thanks for yet another great article from you!
    The topic of this article made me wonder if you have any thoughts on/ experiences with practices such as ‘Emotional Freedom Technique (ENT)’, ‘Tapas Acupressure Technique (TAT)’ etc.?
    I have never tried these myself, but have heard about it from others. I’m not sure what to think about it, or if it is something I would want to try. Would be interesting to hear your thoughts on it, if you know about it :)

    And thanks again for your great work! I love each and every article you guys do – they are truly inspiring and thought provoking!

    Reply
    • Aletheia says

      May 31, 2018 at 8:16 am

      Hi Sarah. I’ve heard of EFT, but not too much about TAT. I’ve had experience with the meridian/chakra system, so EFT seems plausible (to me personally), but I’ve practiced it only a few times. However, I find other practices more helpful for stress relief and energy work (such as self-massage, breathwork, and yoga.

      I’m so glad you love what we put out there. Thank you for sharing that!

      Love, Luna

      Reply
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