Shannon Sloan-Spice, PhD
I am an Afro-indigenous and European woman who grew up inthe liminal reality of belonging to everyone and no one at the same time. Because of this experience of colorism and being multi-racial, I often sought peace and solace in the natural world to make sense of the human one. I have long carried the wound of not fully feeling a part of this world, always reaching to connect to something beyond the veil, first through my imagination, then later, through prayer and song. As a child, I was deeply connected to the energy of my ancestral land in the Adirondacks,where we visited each summer, and growing up next to the incredible beauty of Lake Michigan, whose shore I never have had the heart to leave. My first childhood memory, around three years old, was when I returned from the mountains where I had been running barefoot and was punctured by a sharp stick. My grandfather applied poultice to help excess the embedded wood, a little at a time. A tingling sensation would occur, and a small sliver of wood seemed to“grow” out of the top of my foot, leaving me believing I was turning into a tree. I always felt that the trees were my kin: my friends, guardians, and dear companions. I had special spots where I could escape and know in my bones, thatI belonged to that forest, or particular grove.
This early childhood experience developed into a sensitivity and ability to connect to place and water. I always played and prayed along the shores of that great-grandmother. When my grandfather died when I was 8 years old, his spirit seemed to stay with me, like an invisible friend, until I was certain that he would always be with me. After that, intuition began to come to me through dreams, symbols, and signs.
This deep understanding of the more than human world, of land and water being ensouled, led me, at age 15, to be search for, become apprenticed to and adopted by a Potawatomi medicine man who taught me how to understand my gift to connect with Spirit and the natural world, and how to work with the healing medicine of stories. Through my craft of storytelling and an eventual career in the theatre, I realized, particularly through Greek Tragedy, that the archetypal world and the imaginal realm are as true as we are real, and I began understanding how one can work harmoniously with these creative and symbolic elements. I spent much of my teaching my career helping to support healing through creative practices, experiences, producing shows that guided others through their healing, while cultivating a deepening sense of self, soul, and understanding the call to one’s gifts, vocation, and purpose.
My doctoral studies were in Mythological Studies with an emphasis in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute, where I was able to delve even deeper into the power of the archetypal realm, one’s personal mythos, and study of sacred stories that speak to the art of living the Good Life. I was fortunate to work with the archives of Joseph Campbell, Jane Wheelright, and James Hillman. My dissertation on Sovereignty continued to help me develop a deep understanding of how the human psyche is woven and wedded to the landscape and how losing that connection can lead to unwellness. I have studied indigenous practices of building right relationship with self, community, and the natural world from several of my ancestral traditions. One of my greatest teachers was the Missouri River when I became a Standing Rock water protector in 2016, and discovered the that one must stand for what they love, not what they stand against.
I have made it my life’s mission to provide a fundamental sense of belonging as people move through transformation, spiritual crisis, and experiences of feeling “othered” to a place of acceptance and belonging by guiding them on the land, and through their creative processes. My experience as an artist, arts educator, cultural mythologist, wellness provider, death doula, and grief support guide all have helped me create a decolonized path toward healing. Since 2013, I have turned toward shamanic practices and practitioners to help continue to ground my journey. Since 2018, I have had the great honor to help co-facilitate an annual 3-day grief ritual from Burkina Faso. My lineage comes directly from the great Dagara teacher, Sobonfu Somé. The West has forgotten the power of community, of witnessing, and supporting one another through grief. Her life’s work was to remind us how to care for one another. Since 2020, I have blended my native spirituality with my Irish ancestry, becoming a practicing Druid, making several pilgrimages to Ireland to study Celtic spirituality, with some of the greatest teachers in this tradition like Eimer Burke, Deirdre Wadding, and Phillip Carr Gomm. Through the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, I participate in an affinity circle of psychologists, counselors, and wellness practitioners, who bring an animist and eco-therapeutic lens to mental health. Perhaps the most authentic thing to say is that in all my years of studying, I came into my deepest gifts as a spiritual helper through spiritual crisis. I suffered an intimate and prolonged experience with great grief and tragic losses, occurring in rapid succession one after the other between 2019 and 2025.
In 2024, I completed a four-year vison-quest commitment in my own act of moving through spiritual emergency to emergence. For four years, I fasted and prayed on the land, sitting with the question, “What is it to become a good elder?” Somehow my path led to becoming a death doula for the dying and supporting guide for the grieving. As a death doula, I help people navigate maintaining connection to the seasons and rhythms of life and death, helping people create personal rituals of healing around their loss.
I currently am a Spirituality provider for Milwaukee County’s Comprehensive CommunityServices program, serving people with mental health and AODA recovery challenges. I teach and have taught World Mythologies, Religion, Culture, and Alternate Realities, Native American Healing, The Healing Power of Creativity, and Environmental Humanities in Higher Education. I am a land steward of 40 beautiful and restored acres of forests and prairie with two other women. It is a place for homecoming, retreat, and refuge. As a trauma-informed care ambassador, eco-therapist and spiritual guide, I help people find their way back to center by connecting to nature-based practices. I love being able to guide healing work with creativity, personal ritual, building devotion to the land and water, building connection to the land guardians and ancestors, and supporting and nourishing your inner song and the unique gifts that you carry.
Highest academic qualification and granting institution:
M.A./Ph.D.Mythological Studies with an emphasis in Depth Psychology-- Pacifica GraduateInstitute, CA
Other Relevant Trainings:
· Certificate in Eco-psychology--PacificaGraduate Institute: Santa Barbara, CA, 2019
· Certificate in Trauma-Informed Learning--DePaul University, Chicago, IL, 2020.
· 200 hr Yoga Teacher and Social and Emotional Learning Advocate--Breathe for Change, Online, 09/2021.
· Ecotherapy Certificate Level One-Earthbody Institute 07/2022
· Ordained Minister-Universal Life Church 01/2016
Offering: one-on-one spiritual guidance and Spiritual Emergence group support
Fees:
I don’t charge for the support I offer. However, I will accept donations that feel like a fair exchange for you. I do understand that the act of reciprocity is a sacred and important exchange for people to participate in and I welcome whatever amount feels appropriate for you. I am a land steward of a beautiful nature refuge. If you are inclined to support my work with a monetary donation, please know that that your offering will be paid forward and dedicated to our land preservation efforts like prairie restoration, reforestation, and operational costs.
“Please contact me via my email if you'd like toconnect for a complimentary 15-20-minute phone consultation, to see if we'rethe right fit!”
Plan for a Support Group: TBA