The workplace is often where we spend most of our adult life, many of us see our co-workers more frequently than our friends and family. Often disconnection within your office team can be more disruptive than frustrations at home. Thankfully there are amazing solutions to help deeper team relationships, which flow into our personal life too. Traditionally sales and productivity consultants have been hired for offices, but now there are so many other alternatives.


Enter Deborah Hanekamp, known as Mama Medicine, who spent eight years as a shaman’s apprentice in healing ceremonies with people one on one and in groups. Bringing Deborah into your workplace might sound a little woo-woo, but what if you could contribute to the healing of your entire staff which then resulted in massive shifts where there is currently struggle? In a team dynamic everyone’s as important as the next and its impossible to know everyone’s issues that could be preventing them from giving their best to the group, often they don’t even know if they even have a block or struggle. Imagine providing each with clarity, peace and passion, this is what Deborah can do.

Glowing skinned, almost angelic like, Debroah greeted me and we sat knees to knees talking about what I wanted to call in and release. She intuitively assured me the consciousness of the world wasn’t ready for a project I felt I had not put my all into yet, but that now it is, so everything is not late its just on time. She shared she had opened a yoga studio in Williamsburg herself years ago and it was simply too soon, now there are tons. It was some type of proof my brain needed. After establishing what I wanted to call in and release, after letting go of the punishing thinking I held from that project, we moved to the “ceremony” part of the session. ( Imagine if this was done with a team of people all working towards a common project and goal? Magical clarity can cause miracles. )


She used crystals to make a grid, saged the space and me, then explained how I should breath through the process and then she started to sing blessings and calling in spirit to communicate with me and for me. I felt as though I was floating and through my feet I felt a release of energy. She explained my three dads ( yes I know crazy ! ) are three lessons of the same to help me learn to speak up, own my voice, and love myself: all three of those men struggled there too. She offered that I could break that, transcend and be the first in generation who chooses differently and really does the work I am meant to do while here on earth. She suggested listening to my stomach the heart — the meeting place connecting the head to the stomach. The heart always knows. I said I don’t often hear heart and she said because I need to listen more and believe in myself. ( now maybe in the office setting everyone does not get quite so personal, but she can cater to the needs of the group and coach one on one if needed. )

Then she said there was a shark in the room, I said wolves are my spirit animal and she replied this is the wolf of the water. Loved that water wolf. That’s me. I felt so clear, child-like, happy and full of love. Now it’s time to take action from the place of love, joy and playfulness.

Rolled Mapacho

I immediately texted a friend struggling with some work issues that he had to go see her. She gave me a prescription for a bath with rose oil, fresh rosemary and Mapacho Tobacco. My homework, in addition to the bath, was honor my gut, whatever food it wants, maybe vegan sometimes, but allow cheese and fish occasionally, without making myself wrong for those cravings. Be more gentle with my “Self” and recognize how I feel in my stomach without labeling it bad or good, just see it’s there.

Another big message was less input and more output. Less reading and watching and more writing and putting out what is in me. As a writer who often does not own being a writer that was incredible insight and made me feel like there clearly is a soulful calling for me.

Deborah travels often, but her home base is New York, you can find her at MamaMedicne.com

Originally published at medium.com