We caught up with the brilliant and insightful B. Raven Lee a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

B. Raven , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

I had been following a traditional approach to therapy until a crisis shattered my worldview. In the darkness of my despair, I was struggling to navigate being a single mother and working at two jobs as a therapist. A good friend invited me to a meditation gathering, and the spiritual teacher helped me to experience a presence filled with infinite love and light. In an instant, I witnessed the creation of our universe and understood the source of our human suffering. My despair not only dissolved, but for two weeks I was in this blissful state navigating effortlessly being a mother and a therapist.

Even as my stress reactions returned I was able to bring compassion and learned how to ride the internal chaos. Visions and spiritual encounters continue to expand my awareness and soothe my human struggles. Inspired to train as a Jungian analyst, I was completely thrown into a new door of my professional path when a series of dreams indicated I was to explore shamanism.

Fortunately I was guided by my Jungian analyst to receive these dream messages, which changed the trajectory of my journey, taking me to study and explore ancient shamanic traditions,

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

As a child growing up in a devout Catholic family in Hong Kong, I had the capacity to sense others’ suffering and sorrow. Lacking wisdom, I took on this suffering and felt compelled to alleviate the pain I witnessed. In 1971, I began my university studies in psychology in the United Kingdom. I pursued a master’s in clinical social work at the University of Southern California in 1975. However, without healing or an awareness of my own personal pain journey, I became lost in helping others. A crisis in 1985 shattered my naiveté. My husband, whom I thought was safe unlike my raging alcoholic father, was a depressed, controlling person. As I stood up to his abusive behavior, he suffered a psychotic breakdown and took his own life.

My crisis in 1985 was a turning point, a moment when everything I had learned to navigate life seemed to no longer work. But in the darkness of this crisis, I experienced spiritual awakenings and visions of cosmic consciousness that brought soothing and understanding to my trauma, shock, and despair. This was the beginning of a profound spiritual journey, guiding me to understand the importance of our human stories and how we become captured by our emotions and beliefs.
My journey led me to explore transpersonal realms, Jungian psychology, altered states healing, meditation, and Buddhism. In 1988, during my studies at the Jung Institute in Zurich, Switzerland, I was in a deep meditation when a book title accompanied by a message emerged. In 1999, Unbinding the Soul: Awakening through Crisis and Compassion became my doctoral dissertation. Immersed in neurobiology, quantum physics, and energy psychology, the book was published in 2015, integrating my personal narrative of awakening interwoven with information from science, physics, and psychology.

Since 1987, the heart of my professional endeavors shifted from traditional talk therapy to embracing spirituality, altered states, dream work, and mind-body healing. Trained in psychoneuroimmunology (mind-body connection) and innovative science-based modalities, I was called to ancient shamanism, which recognizes everything is energy, interconnected and inseparable from a greater presence. This spirit wisdom illuminates the invisible energy realm of our human wounds and ancestor’s stories, all of which are held in our body , emotions, and mind. In 2010, I was acknowledged as a shaman/medicine woman, who brings healing messages from the Source.

My approach to therapy and healing is deeply personal, honoring everyone’s unique journey. I support them in accessing their wiser aspects and becoming compassionate witnesses to reactions arising from fear, confusion, and a need for safety. With a unique ability to sense when a person’s suffering is entangled, I help to thaw, loosen, and dissolve traumatic memories held in the body, establishing a deep personal connection with my clients.

Expanding beyond individual healing, I have created and taught various programs internationally, including Shakti Reiki, Radiant Heart Transformation Path, and Raven’s Wings: Wisdom Path of Shamanic Healing. I am also a senior meditation teacher for The 3 Doors, an organization that integrates ancient Tibetan meditation and modern psychology to transform lives.

My passion regarding consciousness extends to nature and sacred lands. I have led pilgrimages to the sacred sites of Mary Magdalene in Southern France, as well as to Peru and Nepal. I am honored to perform rituals for marriage, birth, house blessing, and the profound journey of death and dying.

In ending, I wish to share a quote from William James, the founder of psychology in the mid-1850s. He wrote that “our normal, waking consciousness, is only one of many forms ……. if we apply the requisite stimulus to the mind, other potential forms of consciousness would appear.” I am grateful for my awakening journey through crisis that became the requisite stimulus and initiation for my growth. It is immensely joyful and humbling to share the healing power of consciousness with others captured by their suffering.

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Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Early in my profession as a therapist, I was working in a psychiatric hospital but sensed this was not my calling. It was a safe, secured position with good benefits and a monthly check. Especially as a single mother these were important concerns. However, I could not ignore a deeper desire to be in private practice.

My meditation practice and spiritual connection cultivated an inner resilience to embrace my anxiety and trusted the right decision. In 1988, three years after the life-transforming crisis, I took a risk and started my own practice and became a business owner. It began to thrive as I rode the uncertain times, created opportunities to be of service, and joined professional community. In 1990, I became the president of the Chinese American Women Organization in Los Angeles, and for many years I would bring my two children to events and guide them the importance to give back and help others.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

To be a therapist/healer in the helping profession, studies and training are essential to form a strong foundation in understanding the human psyche.

However, professional, intellectual knowledge can only deepen when we experience personally the various modalities and engage in our own inner journey to face our fears, anxiety, attachment to success and ways we learned to survive and cope.

In addition to personal exploration, it is vital to be open, humble and compassionate to not only ourselves but those we serve.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.integrativewisdompath.com., the 3doors.org
• Instagram: drravenlee
• Facebook: Raven Barbara Lee, Integrativewisdom path