The Other Side of the Valley

The author was trained as a medical doctor and then became a chief executive in the NHS in her 30s. She is now a shamanic healer, trainer and therapist with a PhD in healing through altered states of consciousness, the theme of the journey described this book. It is quite a rollercoaster, taking in NLP, hypnosis, fire walking, plant medicine and shamanic practices using ASCs, with many subsections in the two main parts. She also has direct contact with traditional shamans, who have an important message for rampant Western consumerism and its impact on the environment. The author's journey also reflects one from rationality and the need for proof towards intuition and experience, even if these are not classically provable. In personal terms, experience trumps experiment any day. One striking experience is ostensibly initiating a healing process in her husband located in the UK when she was in an Ayahuasca session in Peru. Among indigenous cultures where she has worked, it is striking to note that they have no incidence of mental illness and degenerative disease. She concludes with some general observations on feeling and the importance of using the full spectrum of consciousness in the healing process.