Wholeness Healing Center

Book Review – Soul Retrieval

The book by Sandra Ingerman, Soul Retrieval: Mending the Fragmented Self, was gifted to me by a friend. As I facilitate soul retrievals in my hypnotherapy practice, I found the book quite interesting. If you are a believer in generational trauma, that much of what we carry happened long ago, and that we inordinately gave away or suffered a “soul loss” at some point in our lives, you might find this book interesting.

The book has an introduction, explaining briefly about the perceptions presented in the book. Part One, The Soul and Soul Loss, is comprised of three chapters. It is then followed by Part II, The Search, which has four chapters and is more about technique. Part III, Welcome Home: Healing Through Wholeness features four chapters which discuss the healing after a soul retrieval, the experiences and how best to move forward. The Epilogue further discusses the practices of shamanism, followed by an Appendix A, From a Shaman’s Perspective, and Appendix B, Shamanic Training and Workshops featured by the author.

The chapters have some stories, some interactive exercises and writing prompts, some history, and some relevant experiences. It also features pictures, poems, and quotes of others, as well as thought-provoking questions, adding to the depth of the perspective.

In the Introduction, the author writes; “The basis of this book is the concept of soul loss – losing crucial parts of ourselves that provide us with life and vitality. These parts get lost through trauma, and who has suffered the most trauma but the children who live inside us?” (Ingerman, p. 4) The book then addresses that journey through that loss to the retrieval of those parts, with integration back into self.

As a practitioner trained to facilitate soul retrievals, I found the book quite interesting. I could also relate to the book as reader, as human, as one who has experienced loss. For that reason, I can see many benefits of picking up this book, reading through it, taking what resonates with the reader, and embracing a new look at how a “Soul Retrieval” can aid in growth and healing.

Works Cited

Ingerman, Sandra. (1991) Soul retrieval: mending the fragmented self. Harper Collins Publishing, New York, NY.