During a time of trauma or great discomfort, a piece of our soul may disassociate as a survival mechanism. In most cases once the trauma ends, the soul essence comes back on its own. When it doesn’t, we are said to have soul loss.

Core soul loss happens most often as an infant or young child, although situational soul loss can happen at any age. Any situation that feels uncomfortable can cause soul loss, even something we might not consider traumatic. For example, having a sudden realization as a toddler that we don’t fit in our family may trigger soul loss.

Common causes of soul loss include:

• abuse – physical, verbal, emotional, sexual
• rape or incest
• violence, including military service during wartime
• loss of a loved one through death, divorce, miscarriage, abandonment or break-up of a relationship
• neglect
• major illness
• surgery and anesthesia
• serious accidents

The part of our soul that goes missing takes vital life force essence with it when it leaves, along with related skills and gifts and abilities. For example, the soul piece of an abused child may take its ability to feel safe, to trust, and to speak its truth. Years later, we still feel the loss of our soul piece. We may make statements such as, “I feel like a part of me is missing” or “I used to be so carefree as a child – I don’t know where that went” or “I feel like I have a hole in my heart.”

On some level, we feel less than whole and reach out to comfort ourselves. We may attempt to compensate by looking for love in a series of unhealthy relationships or by using an addiction to fill the hole. Over time, illness and depression may result.

Common signs of soul loss include:

• an overall loss of joy or vitality
• chronic depression
• being out of our body frequently
• being “accident prone”
• addictions to drugs, food, alcohol, cigarettes, sex, shopping, TV, gambling
• repetitive unhealthy behaviors such as self-sabotaging or staying in unhealthy relationships
• feeling different after an accident or surgery
• chronic illness or a weakened immune system
• memory gaps from blocking out traumas
• looking outside ourselves to other people to fill the emptiness
• living in the past, including being unable to let a loved one go after a period of mourning

A shamanic healing technique called soul retrieval reunites us with our missing soul piece so we can be in our wholeness again. Because soul retrieval happens on the energetic level, it cuts through years of blocked energy to bring about movement and transformation.

Holding a client’s healing intent, the shamanic practitioner journeys into the spirit realm and tracks the missing soul piece. Soul pieces are often seen as the age they left. A child’s five-year-old soul piece may be found hiding in the closet of their childhood bedroom, on their birth star with a guardian spirit, or being comforted by Mother Earth.

The shamanic practitioner, guided by their helping spirits, then does healing work for the soul piece. When the soul piece is ready to return, the practitioner pulls it down into physical reality and blows it into the client’s heart and crown. The client may feel the essence return as a warm, tingly feeling or notice feeling more themselves.

In the first few days after a soul retrieval, any number of emotions may arise – from pure joy that we are now fully home to a feeling of tenderness and vulnerability. The more we slow down and care for ourselves during this time, the smoother the integration. Going for walks in nature, journaling with our soul piece, playing like a child, and meditating help honor the process.

Some soul pieces are eager to come back. As we walk our healing path, they draw closer to us, magnetized by the work we’ve done. Some soul pieces are more reticent. They want a reassurance that they will be cared for and loved. They may ask something of us in order to stay. For instance, a returning soul piece that left because its truth was stifled may ask us to begin speaking up. Making space for our returned soul essence to share its wisdom and gradually adapting to being fully whole again are key parts of the integration work after soul retrieval.