Shamanic wRites: Shamanic Writing for Addiction Recovery
Audio exercise included
“We cannot solve problems with the same level of thinking that created them.”
Whether or not Albert Einstein actually said the above, it holds true for addiction:
Addiction is a cycle.
One aspect of that cycle lives in our thoughts.
We can’t solve the problem of addiction while caught in the thoughts that created it.
No matter what your “drug of choice,” a hallmark of addiction is thinking non-stop about that substance or behavior.
Justifying it. Getting it. Consuming it. Doing it. Covering it up. Dealing with consequences. Replaying dread, guilt, or shame.
No matter where we are in the addictive cycle of planning, acquisition, partaking, and aftermath, the thought loop and fixation’s the same. You are unique. Addiction is painfully predictable.
And, if you’ve ever been caught in an addictive cycle, you probably know you can’t “think” your way out of it—at least not through the same thinking and thoughts that got you there.
Shamanism & Addiction
One benefit of weaving shamanism into my own recovery, my work with clients, and the online Sober Shaman's Path of Recovery is that it offers a new way of thinking—and a way out.
This isn’t something esoteric or scary. It’s not even something you need to “believe in” or have a shaman do for you.
As a shamanic practitioner, I offer and teach practices that work for anyone—including practices you can learn to do on your own. Including practices you don’t even have to call “shamanism.”
The magic of these practices is that they shift your thinking and perspective. This “new thinking” offers knowledge and insight. It also helps guide you towards stepping out of—and breaking—painful cycles on repeat.
We’re talking addiction here, but this also applies more widely. Indeed, one of the foundational components of shamanism is to “solve problems by changing our level of thinking.”
I practice Core Shamanism and developed Medicine wRites based on this premise.
Shamanic wRites
Shamanic wRites is a shamanic writing practice done to the sound of a drum, which you’ll hear me play in today’s audio.
In this practice, I guide myself or clients in various ways. One of those ways is, to use shamanic language, called merging.
Merging is…
when a person who has entered a shamanic state of consciousness…
has met their helping and compassionate spirit in the realms of non-ordinary reality, and then…
takes this relationship a step further by merging with that spirit while, at the same time, remaining aware of their individual consciousness.
Whether or not you “believe” in merging is irrelevant. If it works better for you to call this “visualization,” that’s perfect.
When merged, one can (for example):
See through their spirit’s eyes
Feel what their spirit is feeling
Use their spirit’s body to do what it does (e.g., If the spirit’s an eagle, you can experience soaring through the sky; if the spirit’s a dolphin, you can experience swimming through the ocean.)
In the merged state, a shaman is doing the flying or swimming, etc., but in non-ordinary rather than ordinary reality—meaning, you won’t see me spreading my wings and jumping off cliffs!
I’m keeping things simple here, but more advanced practices include healing others while in a merged state.
Meanwhile, Shamanic wRites makes merging accessible to anyone—no hardcore shamanic training required. Once merged, we return to ordinary reality to perform the writing.
Merge & Learn
Here’s an example to help you experience what I mean and how it works.
Listen to this Shamanic wRites audio:
Follow along as it guides you to call upon and merge with your helping spirit.
Receive the prompt, return to ordinary reality, and write from this place. Put pen to paper, don’t stop, and don’t edit.
When you hear the “call back,” that’s your cue to release the merge and send the spirit back to non-ordinary reality with your thanks.
Read what you wrote. See what arises.
New Thinking = The Opposite of Addiction
In recovery, we’re often told what we “need to” or “should” do. Problem is, this often lands upon “the same level of thinking” creating and feeding the addiction. Bigger problem is, it doesn’t work!
Shamanic practices offer one way of changing our level of thinking…and acquiring new information, knowledge, and awareness.
This new thinking is the opposite of predictable and the opposite of addiction. It’s also known from a place of personal, felt experience—rather than being told you “should” or “need” to do something.
Then, back in ordinary reality, you get to integrate and act upon anything you discovered, learned, or even just asked.
Shamanic wRites supports this, as do other exercises and practices in the The Sober Shaman’s Path of Recovery.
Have questions? Want to share any insights from the above practice or hear how it went for me?
I’m happy to share but don’t want to influence your experience. I’ll be doing a follow-up next week to share what I wrote. If you don’t want to wait, email me at Randy@AlchemistRecovery.com.
Also feel free to ask questions or share in the comments!
Copywriting and editing by my wife and partner, Dr.
, who wrote most recently about alcohol and social media addiction at ).