The Skeptical Shaman

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with Holly Brodt, retired St. Paul police officer, devout Buddhist, and meditation coach extraordinaire.

Holly was already a Buddhist when she became a St. Paul police officer, using her spiritual toolkit— and her warrior medicine, intuition, and empathy— to not only keep the streets safe, but to support and assist all stakeholders in recovering from trauma, healing their wounds, and pulling out of negative spirals.

Holly has worked directly with police unions, EMTs and more to help them recover from trauma and build resiliency among their ranks. The primary focus of her recent work with P.O.W.E.R. Resiliency Education was to use the tips and tricks from Buddhists (and modern science) to undertake adrenal fatigue and recover from traumatic experiences.

Holly is a very funny and dynamic woman that defies definition, further proving that all of the good (and true) stuff lies in the messy middle of real life— not in tribal, flattened stereotypes. Holly truly has a wise heart, and in this episode she shares her unique perspective and insights with all of us.

And, as per usual, we pull a card from our TOTEM Tarot Deck to sum up our discussion— and, as per usual, it was wildly on point!

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with Summer Sanders, owner of Sabai Studio in Chicago's West Loop neighborhood. Summer is a physical therapist, reiki practitioner, Feng Shui consultant and much, much more.

In this episode, we explore the dynamic and magical world of Feng Shui: the system of laws that govern spatial arrangement and orientation in relation to the flow of energy (qi). While Feng Shui is an ancient Chinese practice-- much like acupuncture and Chinese medicine-- it's inherently useful for the unique challenges of our modern world, offering energetic relief from frustration, stagnation and even basic b*tch burnout.

We dig into the bagua map that governs the quadrants of our homes, offices, and yes-- even energy bodies, as well as what every listener can do "on day one" to shift their own energies in the direction of their dreams. With Feng Shui, little adjustments can generate big changes-- and even wholesale transformations-- so proceed intentionally!

And, of course, we pull a card from our TOTEM Tarot Deck, revealing the unique presence of Feng Shui in the realm of tarot.

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
Summer's website: https://sabaistudio.org

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman Podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) talks to Whitney Abke, host of the Soul-ish Podcast, about navigating the odd twists and turns that come with a real deal, bonafide spiritual journey-- and, in this case, one that started out in hardcore Christianity.

Whitney grew up as a non-denominational Christian pastor’s daughter, even attending seminary and becoming a licensed pastor before some "heretical" skepticism set in: specifically, Whitney started to struggle with the obvious disparity between how men and women were being treated in her faith.  Her insistence on asking the tough questions resulted in her church refusing to ordain her-- a hard realization after growing up in the faith and wanting to be of service.

While she still served as a volunteer in several church ministries for over two decades, it never quite felt in alignment again. In the intervening years, her spiritual journey has urged her to unbox and explore beliefs about herself, God, and her purpose, ultimately bringing her to the waters of the Woo-- and the radical self-acceptance that comes from not trying to fit into the prescribed box of organized religion.

If well-behaved women seldom make history, then it's a natural conclusion to assume the witchy ones go down in the history books! To that end, we talk Old Testament, Red Tents, and looking for love in the wild!

Of course, we conclude our discussion with a card pull from The Skeptical Shaman's sponsor: The TOTEM Tarot Deck. Stay tuned for it-- it's a goodie;)

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
Whitney's Links: https://linktr.ee/whitneyabke
The Soul-Ish Podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/the-soulish-podcast

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this very special GROUP episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) facilitates an illuminating discussion with three of her incredible TOTEM Spiritual Transformation Coaching clients-- and artists and spiritual practitioners in their own right:

- Abigail Kochunas of Sacred Healing Art LA
- Karen Cadiero-Kaplan of Wisdom Collective
- Laura Oxendine of Thrown Light

This episode came together after a rather spontaneous-- and informal-- Ted Talk all about spirituality and spiritual growth from an authentic, human-scaled perspective. When we do long-form shamanic work-- like in the TOTEM Coaching Program-- there are all kinds of game-changing flashes of insight, shifted paradigms, and even some real-deal surprises. These bonafide proofs are often lost in the noise of the spiritual development space of Canva templates and reductionist life coaching crap, remaining untold stories of legitimate, game-changing interactions with the realm of spirit.

That is, they were untold stories-- until now.

The upshot of these spiritual experiences? You don't always get what you thought you wanted, but you always get what you actually need. These ladies share some incredible anecdotes about their recent (and ongoing) "spiritual scavenger hunts", revealing how they followed the bread crumb trail to greater personal, professional and artistic inspiration and expansion. They all make one simple, actionable recommendation that listeners can put into effect immediately to set them up for spiritual development success.

Of course, we wrap our discussion with a card pull from our TOTEM Tarot Deck, revealing yet again that there is no such thing as coincidence when in the waters of Woo. And not even L. Ron Hubbard's ghost can stop us.

Want to learn more about the TOTEM Transformation Coaching Program and our next round of coaching work in January 2024? Book a free consultation here: https://calendly.com/rachel-1061/totem-spiritual-transformation-coaching-consultation

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
TOTEM Readings Substack (newsletter): https://totemrach.substack.com/
Karen's website: https://www.wisdomcollective.net/
Abigail's links: https://linktr.ee/sacredhealingart/
Laura's links: http://www.lauraoxendine.com

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) sits down with Casey Balsham, stand-up comedian and host of the Never Not Tired and Shady Shit podcasts.

Not only is Casey a new mother and busy, working comedian, she’s also obsessed with all things shady: serial killers, true crime, scam artists, cults and more! Rachel and Casey spill some major tea, digging into the scandal of “Scamanda”—and the podcast of the same name—and how covert narcissists and con artists are finding a warm, protective home within spiritual communities.

Rachel and Casey dig into the tangible red flags to keep an eye out for in a very, very shady world. Guess what? People actually fake cancer to raise money, get attention and garner sympathy, and oftentimes these cons are unbelievably elaborate and involve a spiritual dimension. Just when you think humans couldn’t get any worse…

In this podcast, we explore the potential, latent narcissism behind the archetype of the perpetual victim, especially when that victim overshares their “struggle” online. Many, many spiritual narcissists (and other species of exploitative psychos) will wrap themselves in sheep’s clothing to disarm and disorient you. Never forget: those big eyes and ears and teeth belong to a wolf, no matter how nice the sheep’s clothing is!

And, as per usual, we wrap our revelatory discussion with a card pull from the TOTEM Tarot Deck that threads the themes of our discussion together!

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
Casey's Links: https://linktr.ee/Casefaceb
Casey's IG: https://www.instagram.com/casefaceb/

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with Cardsy B, aka Rebecca Szymczak, the host of the Hex and the City podcast and author of The Saturn Diaries. Cardsy B is a working witch, tarot card reader, and intuitive coach that has published her own tarot deck-- a bit like our host here at The Skeptical Shaman.

In this episode, we explore the question: "What happens when the planets stop being polite, and start getting real?"

We go deep on the impact crater of our Saturn Return astrological phases, exploring the dark turns our lives can take as the planets wreak havoc. But it isn't all breakups and breakdowns-- sometimes, it's a really big breakthrough, and one that transforms our lives and sets us up for success long into the future.

The power of Cardsy's message lies in her "Zero F*cks" policy and radical honesty, laying bare her biggest struggles with a sense of humor, perspective and desire to help others avoid the pitfalls she stepped into along the way.

Of course, we satisfy the bloodthirsty, Sumerian gods-- *ahem*-- I mean our sponsor, the TOTEM Tarot Deck, by pulling a card to tie the whole damn dynamic chat together.

The upshot of this episode? Just because you're psychic and smart and powerful doesn't mean you're not a human having a human experience, so be kind and rewind!

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
Cardsy B's website: https://www.cardsyb.com
Cardsy B's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cardsyb/

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this very special Halloween-themed episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with Angela Gore—a real deal working archeologist that specializes in Beringian archaeology: the study of the earliest humans in North America.

In this episode, we pivot from the usual, cliché Halloween content, opting instead for a deeper dialogue around our connection to the dead—and what that means for the health of our modern culture. We discuss the Indonesian tradition of digging up their dead to invite them back into the world of the living, how ancient proto-Americans interred their loved ones beneath their homes, and how the Japanese honor and “keep the dead close”—all a stark contrast to our death-phobic modern cultural norms.

From an archeological and anthropological perspective—Angela’s academic wheelhouse—the dead are all around us all of time, their remains enriching the terroir and becoming a part of the nature all around us. From a shamanic perspective—the foundation of Rachel’s spiritual practice-- the dead are all around us all the time in spirit, ready to interact and affirm through dreams, mediumship appointments, and other signs and symbols.

Halloween, The Day of the Dead, Samhain, All Saints Day and more are all late-October/ early November holidays that share a critical theme: take advantage of the thinning of the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead to make contact with our dearly departed.

This episode is equal parts Discovery Channel and Beetlejuice, briding the realms of science and spirituality through the common ground of the dead.

Despite the macabre topic, we wrap our discussion with an unusually uplifting and positive tarot card pull from the TOTEM Tarot Deck. Just goes to show you: the realm of spirit is full of paradigm-shifting surprises, even when it’s from our tyrannical sponsor: The TOTEM Tarot Deck.

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with Tirrell Cherry, certified hypnotist, coach and the host of the Magic Meets Mind podcast.

Tirrell has had an extraordinary adventure through the world of new age coaching, recently taking a crucial break to reset, recalibrate, and get back to center. Why was this "retreat" for Tirrell so necessary to "move forward"?

Well, the coaching ecosystem is a strange place, wrought with unexpected hurdles, strange pressures to poke at latent pain, and majorly mixed messages-- not to mention the palpable presence of the unscrupulous used car salesmen archetype.

Tirrell found himself at a critical crossroads: How does a coach know if they're in alignment with their soul's purpose? When does a coach push to grow their business and when do they chill to get back to human-scaled, ethical basics? How do you know if you're acting out of sincerity and not scarcity?

It's really hard to hit "pause" on your business, and it's even harder to ask yourself the tough questions...but it's also TOTALLY necessary when operating as a spiritual practitioner in our modern world of woo.

And, as per usual, we wrap our revelatory discussion with a card pull from the TOTEM Tarot Deck. I would say it didn't disappoint, but when does it ever? Shout out to our tyrannical sponsors: The TOTEM Tarot Deck and TOTEM Readings.

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
Elisha’s IG: @tirrellcherry
Terrell's Website: https://tirrellcherry.life

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this episode of the Skeptical Shaman Podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) sits down with Kate Waldwick of Cronos Astrology to chat all things astrology…and SYSTEMS!!!

Kate is a pretty smart lady, especially when it comes to complex systems: their functionality, interdependencies, and behaviors. Not only is Kate an MIT grad and current high-level employee at a giant tech company, but she’s also an astrologer—a practice that leverages her systems thinking in fresh and innovative ways.

Kate’s differentiated approach to astrology is a fresh take on an old classic, and in this chat we explore our very modern and (very) dystopian landscape through the filter of the cosmic bodies and their movements. In this episode, we dig into how the stars and planets aligned during the French and American Revolutions…and how those very same objects are aligning right now.

Halfway through, we realize we’re saying “systems” so much that we really should have announced a drinking game at the outset of the interview, so if you’re listening during downtime, feel free to take a shot every time you hear the magic word: systems.

We wrap up our discussion with a card pull from the TOTEM Tarot Deck, further reinforcing the interconnected nature of our reality. You know: systems!

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website: https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
TOTEM Readings Substack: https://totemrach.substack.com
Kate’s IG: IG @cronos.astrology

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.

In this episode of the Skeptical Shaman Podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with Elisha Halpin, a nervous system-training coach that works with individuals wanting to get out of adrenal fatigue, effectively retraining their brains to not freak the f*ck out all the damn time.

Elisha calls herself an ‘awakened academic’, having extracted herself from the grind of higher education to work with clients to heal trauma through meditation, somatic therapy, and much, much more. She works with clients to achieve better nervous system regulation—no small feat in our nervous system-destroying world.

In this discussion, we explore the hyperstimulation of the simulacra in which we live: a world obsessed with the “viral”, the hyper-novel, and the increasingly depraved and intense as we hunt for the illusive brain chemicals that generate the happy feels.

 Long story short: there are no cheat codes are hacks to mental health or spiritual development, so stop treating this stuff like a vending machine. There is no short cut. 

The bottom line? Chasing the dragon of dopamine while fighting off the monster of cortisol is no way to go through life. Sometimes, we all just need to get back to the somatic and cerebral version of the missionary position. With socks on. And lights off.

I realize this is a daring and risqué metaphor, but it’s also apt.  I mean, if it ain't broke, don't fix it!

Join Elisha and I in our crusade to empower others to chop wood and carry water: i.e. embrace the meditation of the mundane and the recalibration to normal that our nervous systems are dying to experience again. All of life is sacred—not just the neon, smell-o-vision stuff!

We wrap up our discussion with a card pull from the TOTEM Tarot Deck, and it does not disappoint!

LINKS:
Rachel's Links: https://linktr.ee/totemrach
TOTEM Readings website (Rachel's practice): https://www.totemreadings.com
TOTEM Tarot Deck (card used in episode): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578980126?ref=myi_title_dp
TOTEM Readings Substack: https://totemrach.substack.com
Elisha’s IG: @elisha_halpin
Elisha’s Website: https://elishahalpin.com 

Please note: The views and opinions expressed on The Skeptical Shaman do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, protected class, group, club, organization, business individual, anyone or anything. And remember: sticks and stones may break our bones, but words—or discussions of religious or spiritual topics-- will never hurt us.