Being Spiritual Sucks – It’s Not What People Think

So many people want to be ‘spiritual’. Workshops to learn how to be intuitive, psychic and spiritually connected are all over. Ceremonies that open people up are happening all the time. 

People want to feel less alone, get spiritual downloads and have the information they receive lead them to more love, money and purpose. 

But, honestly, this path is not all about bright lights, chubby angels and everything feeling good. 

When you are open to spirits, when you are open psychically to the world you are open to more than just the ‘good stuff’. 

The unseen world is massive. Psychic information is not always easy to process. 

People want to have spiritual connection… until they realize that part of the job description is sometimes helping suffering souls to the other side. 

And that sometimes means seeing and feeling the pain and torment of spirits that have been trapped and learning how to effectively help them leave this plane of existence. 

People want to be energy healers… until they realize that part of the job description is sometimes feeling in your body the pain of another person and being present to a person’s darkest moments. 

We have been sold a strange bill of goods. The new age has made it seem like this path is angel cards and unicorn farts. It isn’t.  

It is often deep trips to the underworld. 

It is meeting with guides that scare the shit out of us. 

It is removing hooks and cords and dark, sticky tar. 

It is being flooded by the intense pain of a being who has been murdered or witnessing the past life of someone tortured and abused. 

And being centered, grounded and present enough to stand in that and do the work that needs to be done. 

When you are tuned in this way you are a beacon for this work. You decide at a certain point to be okay with the weirdness of it all and commit to service. 

That service will not always look or feel ‘good’. 

You will confront the darkest parts of yourself as you are schooled by your guides into the layers of the underworld. 

Through that, you become strong, effective and a true light. 

This work is needed. Yet so many push it away, trying to be ‘normal’.

Fuck that. You can master this service which is often uncomfortable. You can be safe inside of it all. And, imagine what a human you will be at the end.

So, if your spiritual, energetic development feels like it sucks sometimes… that’s okay. 

Part of the path. 

And it is totally worth it. 

Aligned Practitioner

Aligned Practitioner is a business course for practitioners who are tired of business courses. And for those that know they need some coaching in business but want someone who really understands them

 

It is steeped in mission, alignment, values, ethics and integrity. It acknowledges the lifeforce energy of your practice and your service as something larger than you.

It begins with a deep anchoring into self, modality, resources and your unique soul’s codes and mission and builds with addressing money, structures, systems and building work that is meaningful and evolutionary.

 

Strategy is linked with energy work. Launches and programs are linked with intuitive development and creativity.

 

The mundane and the mystical live in you and your business.

 

Support to grow, evolve and come into yourself to the next level.

FREE Webinar: Elemental Alchemy

This webinar will be about developing a working understanding of the 5 Element theory and it’s relationship to the emotions and your core values and how to use the 5 elements to do deep inner work in a way that is not about going into the story and retraumatizing but on the energetic and physical levels for more freedom.

We can use ancient technology to master our energy, emotions and life.

If you have already registered for The Empath Misconception Webinar you can use that same link to join.

Or register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87610463613

Recorded.

FREE – Alchemized Empath Series

This series is a discussion about what it means to be an empath, stages of development and awareness, the healing journey and how to live as an empowered empath. A lot of that requires an awareness of the energy behind our experiences and how to work with it in an intelligent way. When we Alchemize our powerful feelings, we gain the ability to be present and aware of the world as powerful beings and incredibly intuitive and nurturing healers and guides.

You will receive a new video straight to your inbox every other day. If you miss one or signed up after the start date, prior videos will be just under the newest one. I kept these videos short and to the point so that you can keep up with the materials. I know we all have a lot going on right now.

By signing up for this series  you will also have access to 2 live webinars: Empath Misconception and Elemental Alchemy.

Here are release dates and topics of the video series:

JULY 29: Video 1 of Alchemized Empath Series: Phases of the Empath

This discussion goes into the different growth stages of the empath and how some people remain stuck in unconscious patterns while others rise to an empowered life of service and what you can be doing to thrive as an empath and sensitive person.

JULY 31: VIDEO 2: Awareness, Consciousness and Shutting Down

This video explains how and why empaths and sensitives shut down and why this is important. This video will discuss how we can connect to a higher awareness around our gifts and sensitivities and what we are doing instead of shutting down, numbing out or running away.

AUG 2: VIDEO 3: Poisoning the Empath: Repression, Judgement and Shame

Over time, repressed, unrepresented, unmoved emotions build up in the body and the field of the person. The sensitivity does not go away but it is masked and shut down.

Stories about what it means to feel these emotions are created and fed, shame is felt, more shut down happens and one often tries to cope in any way possible which in the long run simply does not work. In fact, this often leads to illness, depression and overwhelm.

AUG 4th: VIDEO 4: Emotional Contagion and the Empath

Most empaths when they are suffering are being affected by emotional contagion.

In this video I explain how emotional energy is being released by others and resonating with, attaching to and effecting the empath.

Thurs Aug 6th at 12pm pst: Webinar: Empath Misconception:

The misconceptions about being an empath that I am ready to tear apart so that we can create from a new, empowered place.

The energetic realities behind what we are experiencing.

The tools I have used for myself and my clients to go from overwhelmed and ‘too sensitive’ to a mastery of these abilities so that we can use them in our life and work in an effective way.

Thurs Aug 13 at 12pm pst: Webinar: Elemental Alchemy: This webinar will be about developing a working understanding of the 5 Element theory and it’s relationship to the emotions and your core values and how to use the 5 elements to do deep inner work in a way that is not about going into the story and retraumatizing but on the energetic level for more freedom.

SIGN UP NOW:: https://katherinebird.com/empath-video-series/

 

Healer’s Process Retreat

Attend the in-person Retreat for the Healer’s Process and PRACTICE the exercises and concepts that will support your work in the world.

Solidify your I AM.. your authentic healership and gifts.

Share with others and receive powerful reflections on your work.

Receive guidance and support on your life, business and creations.

Move past the blocks keeping you from being fully expressed.

Work through the ‘Healer’s Process’ to bring healing, openness, guidance and clarity to your life and work.

Develop your energetic mastery and the tools you most need to focus on to bring stability along with expansion of your gifts.

Leave feeling grounded, seen, inspired and empowered.

The Healer’s Process Course

3 Month Intensive Course for Healers, Coaches, Therapists and all those called to the path. This program is for those that are looking for tools to work on themselves and for sharing with the world.

You will discover who you are as a healer, learn new ways to work on yourself and others.

Gain more power, confidence and clarity.

Multiple training and practice videos to support your journey.

How to understand yourself, your unique gifts and move past the stickiest blocks to your greatness.

How to build your field, have better boundaries and work with energy in an intelligent way.

How to stop taking on energy from others and be willing to do deeper, more Shamanic, energetically intensive work without fear.

Cleansing and purification, what it is, why it is important and what you most need to know.

How to create a safe and sacred container for your work.

How to integrate healing into your life, business or coaching practice.

How to use certain systems in healing to get the best results. This is everything around the modalities and trainings that you wish that you had been taught but that really is not being touched on in most trainings.

This is the information that you have been waiting for.

See the link for more info.

 

What Does It Mean To Be Healed?

I am going to break down some considerations of what it means to be healed and some questions and practices that you can engage with right away to support your own path to understanding what it means to be healed.

Have you ever sat in the painful inquiry, “How can I have done so much work and still not be healed?!”

Have you had clients who struggle with the fact that they are still dealing with certain issues even after what feels like ‘forever’ processing them?

Have you ever doubted yourself, your tools or your own commitment to your work because of your own or other’s inability to move past a certain point?

I think that this is almost a more complicated topic in my work because most of the people that I serve are in some way a healer or coach or one focused on healing for many years for themselves and their clients.

Often anything less than complete reduction in all symptoms and a total and complete shift to a fully whole and functioning life in every aspect is seen as some sort of failure.

I see that people discount or even forget how much progress that they have made. There is little celebration of small victories.

The focus is primarily on what is not working, what is still the sticking point or the pain and the transformations, realizations and expansion are forgotten.

It is easy to focus on what is not working. It takes more effort to focus on what is working, what has progressed. Yet, this is where the full reprogramming occurs. This is the doorway in which we travel to full transformation.

This is a function of our brain and it’s wiring to focus on negativity because it is both an ancient orientation to stay safe and also a learned aspect of our being.

For example, if we can focus on danger and negativity, we will be more likely to get into shelter at dark avoiding predators. If we are able to focus fully on pain in our bodies, we will tend to treat it instead of letting it get infected.

And, as we grow we are taught that we must pay attention to what is wrong, the wrong answers on the test are marked in red and cause pain, shame and change. The right ones, we rarely think about again. In fact, a lot of people get shamed for getting things right when others struggle.

So, like I said, it takes a lot of conscious effort to recognize our progress and what we have done and take into account our process might be one that simply has some twists and turns as we learn, train and move through our emotions, energies and physical limitations.

Again, the question can be asked, “What does it mean to be healed?”

Honestly, this must be answered for each one of us as we go along and it will shift and change with the tides of your life.

Healed = Wholeness

You have probably heard that plenty of times.

If you want to see a cool video on healing, here is one from Chinese Medical Qi Gong Practitioners reducing a tumor in a patient. When I was shown this video, it was explained to me that they are chanting basically, “Already Done” and they are focused and imagining not that the patient is healing or the tumor is lessening but that it is “Already Done”. Full, complete, integrated and whole.

It is important for us as we go through our process to have this attitude. To see and imagine ourselves on a consistent basis as already whole, healed, complete and “Already Done.”

What might change if this was your mantra and meditation?

 

See if this practice helps:

Think of an issue that you have been dealing with.

First drop into your body. Feel yourself connected and receiving form the Earth and from Above.

Take some calming and deep breaths.

If this issue, pain, situation was completely healed, how would you feel?

What would you be doing?

Let the first things that come to you come out. Write them down. Imagine yourself feeling that way. Imagine yourself doing those things.

And, then… go do that. What will help you feel that way right now?

What can you do?

Before you start arguing with me about this one, just do the exercise.

And then.. you might argue.. “but, I have this pain, this issue so I can’t do the thing that I want”.

OK, maybe. Maybe your issue is that you broke your foot so you can’t go scuba diving like you want. But, maybe you can go to the seashore, you can go do something that will help sea life in some way, you can go float about in a bay.

You might be in really bad shape right now and all you can do is put on a recording of whales, lay in the bathtub and imagine to the very best of your ability that you are truly swimming about.

This will change your outlook. It will engage your muscles even through the power of imagination. The magical thing about us is that our brains don’t know the difference in what we are doing and what we are imagining. The imagination is a primary key into our healing.

All of the sudden more peace is found, more joy, more connection.

The body and soul start to heal themselves through this power of play and imagination instead of the ‘work’ that so many of us have become accustomed to as the path to healing.

Maybe you are depressed. If you consider, if you weren’t what would you be doing…and that might be making art. You might then come up with a lot of reasons why you can’t make art. Shift that to find some small way to engage with art. It might be just coloring, or building a beautiful altar or area in your home. It might be using materials from nature to make a mandala.

Because, what is healed? It is finding our way under the emotional, energetic issues that are holding us and manifesting in our bodies. It is finding a place of peace, joy and presence despite our issues, pain or struggles. It is moving forward, step by step acknowledging the profound shifts that we have already gone through, celebrating the small victories and leaning into the uncomfortable places.

I believe it is when we are able to be devoted to our practices, our intuition, our boundaries and our gifts. Because, you can go to one of those Medical Qi Gong Doctors, have them reduce your tumor, but if you are not making life changes, processing old emotions, coming into higher alignment with your truths and virtues, the healing has not really happened and disease will slowly come back.

We will all have pain, illness and struggle. Often, it is how we engage with these struggles that makes all the difference. They are our teachers. They ask us to show up brighter, more devoted, more caring and more compassionate to ourselves and others.

We are all healing, but we are also already whole. Be with your wholeness and allow it to inspire your actions.

If you are interested in this discussion of what is healing and how can we be of the highest service in healing, I hope you will join me for The Healer’s Masterclass Series starting Sept 12th. Sign Up For Free

Empath Misconception Webinar

Are you tired of being ‘taken out’ by your sensitivities?

Are you over the victim mentality that pervades a lot of training for empaths? Are you exhausted of trying to put up shields, escape from toxic people and protect yourself?

Do you just want to live in the world, thrive and be of high service?

Discover the false stories you have been fed about being an empath and how to overcome the negative aspects of these gifts and thrive in the world.

You were meant for more than hiding. You are sensitive for a reason. Let’s unwind some of the old patterns holding you back and teach you the tools that you need to be an empowered empath!

In this webinar you will gain a deeper understanding of what is happening in your system, the societal changes that are occurring and the technology that is required for you to live in a whole new way.

By registering for this webinar you can also attend with the same link Elemental Alchemy on August 13th

Register Now!  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87610463613

Thursday August 6th at 12pm PST

Recorded

katherine bird, healer, shaman, masterclass

FREE Masterclass: The Wounded Healer: Own Your Purpose, Confidence and Value

The Wounded Healer Archetype must be understood and fully integrated in order to do powerful healing work. In this free master class, I will be breaking down the Wounded Healer, the shadows and the light. You will discover how integrating this aspect of self can open the doors to understanding more about your purpose in life and how your healing work is to be expressed.You will learn ways that the Wounded Healer sabotage us and also how to leverage all aspects of your life into a thriving career
You will receive important inner shifts to step into new levels of confidence and power. Even if you see yourself as a Wounded Healer, you are still important and vital. We need you to own your skills, your value and claim your confidence.Who it’s for: Healers, Coaches, Therapists, Body Workers, Reiki Masters, Channels, Shamans, and Empaths.

Price: Free
Tuesday, May 29th, 2018
2:30 -3:30 PST

“You’re Not the Boss of Me!” How to Trust Your Own Instincts on Your Spiritual Path

Awakening and healing are a lot like having a baby.  Everyone wants to tell you exactly how to do it, yet you really have to listen to yourself, take what others say with some skepticism and spaciousness and allow the emerging being within you do its thing, have its experience and guide you.  It might be fast, slow, painful, orgasmic or somehow all of the above and definitely messy, but it is yours.  A helping hand, a few guiding words of encouragement, some valuable techniques can be extremely helpful.  Occasionally you will need a radical intervention.  Sometimes those interventions are too soon, unnecessary or poorly executed.

There is no one way to do this.  To awaken, to heal is a path all your own.  It often requires more patience, love compassion and space than we have ever given to anything before.

Do not let others dictate your path of awakening and healing.

Many times I have had teachers and mentors who so enthusiastically evangelized their method, process or system above all others as the right, best, fastest way to heal or grow that I have seen myself in my desire to be the best (I know, so much ego), to get it right, to master it, show up, commit, fully understand the methodology, the tradition or system to my eventual detriment.

Parts of the teachings and concepts have been valuable tools or information, yet in my persistent passionate participation, I have often found myself in pain, exhaustion, injury, disillusionment, and suffering.  Occasionally veering wildly off course or finding myself heavily invested in something that I really just want to get out of at all costs.

I know a lot of this speaks to one of my life lessons not to push so hard, slow down, trust and listen to myself and my guides and stand for myself no matter what.  This also requires me to confront my shadow of wanting to be seen and appreciated in my proficiency and study.

I have always liked to experience things fully.  I have operated full force under the banner of ‘go hard or go home’, I suppose drawing for my fairly hardcore Texas upbringing in a highly competitive sports home.  I have always pushed myself to my limits and often overdone life to my detriment.  In my 20’s this looked like putting myself in danger with drugs, alcohol, and sex while working so hard as an actor, taking on roles in which my physical body was risked doing stunts and fight scenes and doing ‘research’ which actually put my life in danger.  Some of these jobs left me with lifelong injuries and pain.

Once I started on my own path of healing and awakening, it often meant overdoing it in other’s modalities and practices, pushing my spiritual and physical limits in other ways.  It is not that I didn’t get a lot out of these experiences and teachings, but in some cases, I simply exhausted my body and created energetic deviations in my system in pursuit of mastery at other’s teachings.

In one workshop weekend learning a meditation and mantra practice, I met a woman who was exhibiting the most profound channeling I had ever witnessed.  This was early on for me and it was so touching and exciting to see someone so elegantly express what was still so chaotically expressing through me.  She gave me some of the best advice that I have, at times, forgotten:

“Sure, take classes and learn from others, but do not let them train out of you what you already are.”

The longer I guide the less I desire to speak in absolutes, to create the conditions in which someone does not feel the freedom to be completely authentic and personally led and instead relying on others to know themselves and their own healing gifts.

I find myself feeling often more angered by the psychics, astrologers, and other seers and readers who tell people things they then hold onto so tightly that they can see no other way of being, who present information in a way that does not empower or leave room for personal exploration and growth.

I ask myself the question of how do I teach specific practices and systems and channel through messages while doing so in a way that actually encourages people to tap into their own inner knowing, guidance, and awareness. Because I know things, I bring things through and I am fucking certain about a lot of things (in the most humble way possible of course).

I also find myself desiring and actually allowing myself to have the simple pleasures that make life worth living instead of pushing myself to the limit to prove to others that their system, technique or lineage really works.

I just don’t have the time or the energy to do that shit anymore.  I will still study hard, give of myself and push myself toward growth, but I also hope to bathe myself in a deeper spring of compassion, ease and simplicity than ever before, to allow my unfolding and the unfolding of those I support to happen with a level of grace, radical self-preserving presence and inner guidance that I see is so often missing in many paths.

As healers and lightworkers, I believe we have a responsibility to share what we know, to develop and study systems that work and support people.  This has been my focus and commitment for many years.  Yet, I also see that these structures and systems must have room to breathe and grow for each one utilizing them.  The people that I work with have their own special skills, frequencies and lifetimes of training and personal development that simply needs to be activated and allowed to emerge.

In the end, I believe what we do with our lives should feel good.  It should feel supportive, nurturing and dare I say… kind.  There might be uncomfortable times of training, deep dives into the shadow, the very real experience of dealing with our sabotaging nature in relation to discipline and devotion, but the overall path that I want to choose is one of expansive presence to my own self and my own expression of magic.  This is what I am devoted to bringing out in others.

 

9 ways that you can follow your instincts on your spiritual path

  1. Listen to your body.  Not all bodies are meant to do the same things at the same rate of development.  I have met people who have blown out knees from a Yoga teacher standing on their legs and so many with other pulled muscles, torn tendons and injured joints from being pushed too far too fast or made to hold physical postures for extended periods of time.
  2. Feel into your past and your energy.  Especially in terms of adrenal fatigue.  It is real and those that come from high stress or trauma can be showing up with seriously depleted systems that need more rest and nurturing than some teachers suggest.  Rest is vital for this path.
  3. Drop the comparison game.  So many of us are in comparison and competition in everything that we do.  It is how we were taught to be as children.  Especially when we compare ourselves to those that have been on the path for a long time we risk hurting ourselves in some way.
  4. Trust your gut.  If something feels wrong, stop.  If you have come from an abusive past, acknowledge that you gut instinct might not always show up for you, in which case, even more self-inquiry and space might be needed for you to feel what is right for you.
  5. Be willing to ask questions and speak up for yourself.  If you are studying with someone that does not allow this, or puts you down, shames you or does this to others this is a huge red flag.
  6. Be willing to be alone.  The best way to get a good feel on if something is right is sometimes to take some space from it.  Be willing to slow down, be alone and listen deeply for your own internal guidance.
  7. If someone is claiming to have the only way, the only path step back… there are many ways to the top of the mountain.
  8. Remember that you are a sovereign being.  You hold the keys to your path.  Your teachers, guides and mentors should be ones who open handedly allow for that.
  9. You got this.  You are whole.  You are capable.  You are a gift to the world.  Shine your unique light and you will allow others to shine theirs.  In this, we all heal.

If this resonates with you, join me for my next free Masterclass: Join me for The Healers Masterclass.