Award-Winning Books on Shamanism and Jungian Concepts

What reviewers say about Change the Story of Your Health by Carl Greer, PhD, PsyD

“Whatever health situation you might be facing, Change the Story of Your Health can help identify your health story and uses journaling and expanded awareness practices to begin changing it, leading to better health and wellness. As a companion to his book Change Your Story, Change Your Life, Greer offers shamanic and Jungian techniques to gain insights and energies for changing a unsatisfying health story.

Besides journaling, he offers ways to dialog and interact with the earth, a river, wind, or fire. He also engages the chakras, dreams, symptoms, and the inner healer. Change the Story of Your Health is very much a workbook, not one to be read and set aside. It could be overwhelming due to the depth to which one could be led. However, it is the kind of book that could be life-changing and truly healing. This makes the risk of dipping in more than worth it.

—New Spirit Journal

“Greer (Change Your Story, Change Your Life) shares his knowledge of shamanic and Jungian healing techniques in straightforward terms that relate to being connected with spiritual and natural energy fields. Throughout the book, Greer encourages readers to write their own health stories in order to address elements of their lives that hinder a healthy lifestyle and impede transformation. He provides many exercises for connecting with energy fields and raising spiritual awareness, as well as stories of people he’s worked with who have undergone common and uncommon transformations.

In addition to meticulously delineating the contexts and origins of various patient ailments, Greer discusses the benefits he says are provided by Jungian and shamanic healing.

This book is not a quick read, nor is it intended to be; in order for one’s health story to be improved, the shamanic and Jungian techniques learned by reading this book are intended to be used together, which can take some time.

Greer is an encouraging guide, instructing readers to refrain from rushing and only continue through the exercises when ready. For those willing to listen, an abundance of help can be found here.”
—Publishers Weekly

A companion to his best-selling and multiple-award-winning Change Your Story, Change Your Life, the book teaches readers how to use shamanic and Jungian techniques to gain insights and energies for changing a dissatisfying health story. Many of the exercises involve shamanic journeying or working in and with nature: dialoguing and interacting with the earth, a river, the wind, or a fire. Others require engaging and working with the chakras, dreams, symptoms, or the inner healer.

No matter what your health concern, you will find in this book tools for writing and bringing to life a new health story.

“Readers seeking to explore new ways to develop inner calm, balance, self-love, and optimal physical health should find this approach refreshing and full of possibilities.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Change the Story of Your Health: Using Shamanic and Jungian Techniques for Healing discusses alternative medical traditions that inject spirituality into the overall fields of physical and mental health, and comes from a clinical psychologist and Jungian analyst who has used these techniques, in conjunction with Western medicine, to help his own physical ailments and those of his clients.

While a growing number of alternative medical books add a spiritual dimension, what is unusual in Change the Story of Your Health is its blend of specific Jungian techniques with shamanic approaches usually regulated to new age audiences; all this bundled with an attention to physical and personal health challenges that range from the effects of aging to sexuality and serious health ailments.

Chapters advocate a series of practices designed to manage and mitigate these various obstacles to mental and physical health, and so readers receive the tools and specific exercises to incorporate new lifestyles, exercise, meditation and reflective strategies into their overall health routines.

The focus is on identifying blocks to health, more fully understanding one’s current state of health and the keys to maintaining or improving it, and on applying journaling and dialoging techniques to expand self awareness and tap inner resources for healing.

An affinity for self-examination, self-directed exercises, and Jungian and shamanic approaches alike will be a prerequisite for successfully utilizing this book. Readers determined to take charge of their path towards optimal health will find Change the Story of Your Health contains a treasure trove of step-by-step processes designed to lend insights into and modifications of overall health and approaches to life.”
—California Book Watch

“For anyone looking for how to cope with health issues, including an accident or recent illness, Change the Story of Your Health is a valuable resource.

As a Jungian analyst, Carl Greer guides us how to unfold the power of our health story through journaling and expanded-awareness practices to contact our ‘inner healer.’ He also recommends shamanic journeying, working with nature, dreams, and the chakras.

In the chapter ‘Consciousness, Energy and the Body,’ he writes about the emotional stressors such as thoughts that trigger fear, anger, tension, and emotional problems that disturb the physical body that can be helped through shamanic practices. He encourages readers to ‘write out the story of your health’ which includes good habits, challenges, connections, partnering, family history, stress, goals, themes and concerns about mortality, and how to ‘revise the story’ as time passes, the body ages, or new health issues arise. He recommends using the expanded-awareness practice of dialoging.”
—Light of Consciousness

“(Change the Story of Your Health) offers a unique approach to self-exploration and healing. Drawing from traditional Shamanism and Jungian principles, Greer captures the essence of connecting with nature and tapping into a greater spiritual awareness. Written in an informative yet accessible way, he reveals what he has learned on his health journey in the hopes that it will inspire and motivate others.

Whether you’re looking to maintain wellness as you age, manage a chronic illness or simply improve your overall well being, this book will guide you every step of the way. As a clinical psychologist, Jungian analyst and shamanic practitioner, Greer provides a fresh perspective on Shamanism and Jung’s ancient wisdom, and gives the reader practical tools they can apply to their everyday lives.”
—Rose Caiola, Rewire Me magazine

“In Change the Story of Your Health, clinical psychologist Carl Greer explains how to create a transformative health story using shamanic and Jungian techniques. The unconscious power of stories unlocks opportunities for healing as well as improved vitality, confidence, and stamina. ‘Always remember that you are the storyteller,’ writes Greer, ‘and you do not have to live according to the dictates of a story written for you by your DNA, your past experiences and actions, or your cultural conditioning.’

Greer recommends writing the story of your health by focusing on four health chapters or themes: eating, drinking, and weight; movement and exercise; sexuality, body image, and body acceptance; and symptom management for chronic health conditions. For each chapter, he poses a page-plus of questions to expand thinking about the theme.

Next, the deep work begins. Exercises based on shamanic and Jungian archetypes are described to encourage greater health insights. These include working with elements in nature; dialoguing with figures, symbols, and spirit animals; and dream work. Preparation is discussed, and journaling afterward to bring the story to life is recommended.

Despite its use of alternative techniques, the book is practical, and is presented in a straightforward manner. Mini case studies show others’ experiences with the energy exercises, and the changes they made as a result. Greer makes clear that the intention of this work is to complement and enhance, not replace, western medicine. He recommends that clients check with a medical doctor as symptoms are uncovered, and he relates some of his own health challenges. Learning about the latest research, assistive devices, and medical interventions is encouraged.

The work described here will take time, but anyone interested in improving health challenges or who is curious about alternative healing techniques will find this to be an insightful guide.”

—Karen Ackland, Foreword Reviews

“As a physician I know all too well that many patients have health concerns due to inner factors that have not been addressed by conventional Western medicine. In Change the Story of Your Health, Dr. Greer presents insightful self-healing measures from alternative medical traditions that will truly transform your personal health and well-being.”

—Susan F. Reynolds, MD, PhD, President and CEO, The Institute for Medical Leadership

Book Contents for Change the Story of Your Health:

Using Shamanic and Jungian Techniques for Healing

Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1: Your Health Has a Story, and You Are the Storyteller
Chapter 2: Consciousness, Energy, and the Body
Chapter 3: What Is the Current Story of Your Health?
Chapter 4: Expanded-Awareness Practices for Gaining Insights and Energy
Chapter 5: Write a New Story of Your Health
Chapter 6: Nature’s Healing Effects
Chapter 7: Working with the Healing Elements of Nature
Chapter 8: Revising the Story of Your Health
Chapter 9: Healing Partnerships and Communities
Afterward
End Notes
Bibliography
Available as an audio book from Tantor Audio, narrated by Paul Brion