The Skeptical Shaman

In this special Business of Woo-themed episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with friend of show Nichole Bigley (of A Psychic's Story) about the constantly shifting, evolving and demanding business and technology landscape in the Business of Woo. Nichole hosts the #1 Spiritual podcast in the world, which might give folks the impression she has a...

In this special Business of Woo-themed episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with friend of the show Colleen Soisson (of Feather Mountain Ayurveda) about the common misconception that business owners-- even those in the Business of Woo-- are rich.  The reality of the Business of Woo is oceans away from how it's perceived by clients and consumers,...

In this special Business of Woo-themed episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with writer and modern magician Marco Visconti (of the Magick Without Tears Substack) about the daily grind of being a Woo-baed business owner-- and, more specifically, content creator.  For Woo-based business owners, these are not the "before times"-- and, as Marco...

In this special, Business of Woo-themed episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) reconnects with the absolutely luminescent Yolanda Williams (of the Reiki Radio Podcast) to chat all things "Wusiness of Boo".  That's actually not a typo. Unfortunately, it's how Rachel pronounced "Business of Woo" before she could gather herself at...

Well, well, well...look what we have here! A sweet treat wrapped up in a bonus episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast featuring none other than the final boss of neurodivergence himself: Scott Horton! Scott is the Director of the Libertarian Institute, Editorial Director of Antiwar.com, and the host of the Scott Horton Show.  He’s the author of the 2024 book Provoked: How Washington Started the N...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with her second client EVER when she opened TOTEM Readings 15 years ago in Chicago: Laura Hunnewell. Not only is Laura a friend of TOTEM and The Skeptical Shaman-- as well as a super-talented Licensed Esthetician-- she is a serious survivor, spending the last several years navigating serious health issues...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) welcomes back fan favorite Allen Greenfield: famous ritual magician, Kabbalist, and former Thelemite, recently featured as a subject matter expert in Amazon's Hellier TV series. In a world of superficial spiritual LARPers, Allen Greenfield is a bonafide real deal-- a national treasure with all manner of arc...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with writer and modern magician Marco Visconti all about the life of Thelema founder Aleister Crowley-- as well as the spiritual system (and its many, many tributaries) he left behind. What is Thelema? What is the Book of the Law? From where do these cornerstones of occult studies spring? What is sex magic...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with Jade Kaskel of Reform Routine, a full-spectrum, supportive Woo-based business that helps focus navigate the trauma and clutter of life-- including physical clutter in their homes! Jade's unique perspective comes from a long and often challenging early life, starting with being raised as a Jehova...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with AJ Goodwin-- a TOTEM client and professional realtor and business mentor that has spent the last several months embracing her spiritual and personal growth, living in the "messy middle" of transformation! As a highly-driven, high-performing entrepreneur, AJ spent this Year of the Wood Snake...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with Madia Smith of CYGNUS Human Design and Hoof + Feather Co all about her love for all things bird. Since ancient times, birds have been crucial spiritual vectors, offering divinatory insights in Ancient Greece and Rome (under the formal name "ornithomancy"), shamanic "medicine" as a...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with Jennifer Eldon (of Jennirose Breathwork) about how breathing is so much more than an automatic body function. When done properly, breathing can actually unlock deep energetic and physical healing, necessary emotional releases, and even expansive spiritual and psychedelic experiences!  We live in toug...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats Jen Pahwa (of Hummingbird Hearings) all about Jen's strange (and strangely expansive) recent spiritual journey-- one that's taken her and her family (including several young children) all over the country! This episode is all about what happens when we start listening to spirit-- and just how dif...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with the totally awesome Kaity Craven of the Moonflower Moments YouTube Channel.  Kaity is the rare practitioner that actually makes quality tarot deck, oracle deck, and "how to" divinatory content on YouTube-- without making it all about herself, brand deals, or the overdone same old, same old...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with Lisa Amato, energy healer, reiki practitioner, and wounded healer of the highest order.  Why the wounded healer part? Well, Rachel and Lisa both have a history of early childhood trauma, and this episode they dig into the hairy details-- but also focus on the redemptive power of transmuting said woun...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with the *very beautiful* and *very soulful* Andrew Madsen: a 40-year old creative intuitive defiantly and intentionally embracing the slower paced liminal space "between opportunities".  How is he doing this, you might be wondering? Well, he's making friends with nocturnal animals in New Y...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with the illustrious Miguel Conner: host of the *very* popular Aeon Byte Gnostic Radio AND Gen Wasteland podcasts. He is the author of many books, including Voices of Gnosticism, Stargazer, Heretic, and The Executioner’s Daughter.  In this episode, Rachel and Miguel discuss his latest book, The Occult Elv...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with the incredible Vanessa Reiser: licensed clinical social worker, narcissistic abuse survivor and author of the incredible new book Narcissistic Abuse: A Therapist’s Guide to Identifying, Escaping, and Healing from Toxic and Manipulative People. Vanessa is the human embodiment of the phrase: "New...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with the lovely Mark Phillips of The Mind's Aye: medium, psychic, and avid student of all things Woo!  Not only does Mark have a beautiful Scottish brogue-- and the arcane abilities of mediumship and psychic communication-- but he has also been attending incredible classes and workshops at the real l...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with the incredible Cyndera Quackenbush of Story Through Stone Substack and the Archetypal Tarot podcast about the magic, wonder and spiritual power of stones. Cyndera is also the creator of the Story Through Stone Reflection Cards-- a new, 54-card deck featuring photographs of rare, billion year-old ston...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings), chats with Audrey Moore (of Audrey Ayurveda) all about how to leverage Ayurveda in this turbulent Wood Snake Year. While Audrey's client-facing Ayurvedic practice is relatively new-- as is her auspiciously timed snake-themed branding-- her knowledge of all things herbal, nutritional, and natural is anythin...

In this week's episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) digs deep with The Skeptic Metaphysicians, exploring their shared love of all things Woo AND skeptical! Like Scully and Mulder from the X-Files, The Skeptic Metaphysicians Will Rodriguez and Karen Endsley are caught between two worlds—the allure of life's mystical mysteries and the grounding for...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with a mysterious, underground figure whose nom de guerre shall henceforth be "Sam the Sky Guy." Why all of this cloak and dagger around a simple podcast guest's identity? Well, simply put, Sam has a real deal "big boy job" that would NOT appreciate his wading into the Woo in the b...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with Nicholas Pearson, crystal and plant medicine expert and author of Crystals for Psychic Self-Defense: 145 Gemstones for Banishing, Binding, and Magickal Protection; Crystal Basics Pocket Encyclopedia: The Energetic, Healing, and Spiritual Power of 450 Gemstones; Flower Essences from the Witch's Ga...

In this episode of The Skeptical Shaman podcast, host Rachel White (of TOTEM Readings) chats with previous guest and friend of the show, Natalie Fehlner of Sidhe AND the *new* podcast: Tales from the Truth Seekers. In this episode, Natalie shares her journey from spiritual awakening (see previous episode for more details on her awesome experience) to spiritual confusion to disillusionment to her r...