who i am + how i work

about my journey

pam painter (she/her)
shamanic intuitive,
somatic guide,
soul collaborator

It begins at the beginning.

As the offspring of an artist and a scientist and granddaughter of wanderers and homemakers, whistlers and athletes, my life formed itself by their will and longings. The breath of my being expanded and contracted in the company of what was less easily beheld by most - those places where the will and the longing are born in hollows of trees and the ever-changing landscape of imagination; in the fiery forge of passion, laughter and the currents of the deep rivers that defined our towns.

Having walked a far piece down the road of conscious healing and honing, I can say with joy, I am because they are. But that wasn’t always so.

Curious, creative, wild and utterly ragged is how my heart beat in my chest; the internal pulse of my defining features well into my lived life. From the outside maybe I appeared proud, willful, artistic and emotional. And I was. And to this day I hope for thoughtful and caring in that mix. Because I was, mostly. And then came partnering and motherhood. And more.

Decades later, I smile. Myself is more fully known now - what couldn’t be seen then, has now crested. Neuro-spicy, a little bit goofy and hopelessly in love with the Great Mystery, my creative and mystical heart now understood within as the spiraling shape of service and presence and play; a mind wide open with pathways and possibility. And I’m nowhere near done healing and honing. And the honor of sharing is my nature.

Having walked a far piece down the road of conscious aging, I can say with joy, I am because WE are. And that is surely so.

Let us come together at the feast of life.

the hollow bone

The otherworlds within and without have always been known to me. Recognition of energy patterns, inherent understanding of hidden things, dimensional relationships with humans and compassionate more-than-humans, deep perceiving of a life and the ability to spark the awakening of deeper layers of the self are all part of my medicine, which is to say, my gifts. They have been honed and tended with discipline and care through a spiritual calling and bubbling wonder. And some really, really amazing teachers. It’s a lifelong practice. The honing process means being in service and continuous conscious embodiment. In spiritual animism/shamanism, this opening of self-study and self-in-service is the practice of becoming “the hollow bone”. My personal interpretation of this is the act of becoming a sovereign conduit for the Mystery through intended availability for listening, learning, witnessing and action with as much neutrality as possible. It benefits all beings because everything is the Mystery and the Mystery is everything. We are an ecosystem together and I care deeply about the health and wellbeing of all of the parts of the whole. My hand extends to you from this heart place.

soul collaborator

At the root of the root, we sit together as real humans being. I welcome you as you truly are to my proverbial kitchen table where we can talk about what matters most to you and maybe even have a good belly laugh. Your sovereignty is the lens through which all that is to be seen is held. We begin and end there, always with integrity - honesty, informed consent, respect and clear communication - good bones for any relationship. I look to your inherent wholeness to understand the path and my part to play as you traverse it. In this holistic model, pathology and compartmentalization are asked to step aside so we can see a fuller story around your will and longing - be it healing, moving old patterns, finding alignment with a vision and/or values you hold for yourself, exploring your belonging and roles, desire to know a broader picture about yourself and/or your life or an aspect of it - together we form the inquiry, the question, the presence then we watch what unravels and weaves itself into being.

My personal work and study of animistic and ancestral wisdom ways exist as a soul calling and a chosen seat at the crossroads of insight and wonder, practicality and possibility, of harmonizing and potentiating, of presence and play.

My studies and experiences have been many - exploring these ways, developing skill and my medicine (gifts), reflecting on ethical expression, and frolicking in the field of dreaming - my own dreams and the dreams of my ancestors. Bringing it through in service as a relational art and skill, creatively and in integrity, is my great joy.

Most of the time (unless specifically requested) these ways will weave,
intersect and synthesize in a session based on what is most aligned with the ripest inquiry, focus or issue brought to the table.

  • The Art and Practice of Shamanic Healing, A Three-Year Professional Training and Initiation through The Shamanic Healing Arts Institute with Julie M. Kramer


    Volva, Vala, Norn 1, a 9-month training with Betsy BergstromStudy and practice of the Norse animist spirit tradition co-mingled with mediumship, divination, prophesy, healing and the shifting of destiny paths

    Volva, Vala, Norn 2, a 9-month training with Betsy Bergstrom; a lengthy deep dive into Rune Magic as embodiments of powerful natural forces

    Additional trainings with Betsy Bergstrom:

    • Rune Magic
    • Advanced Unraveling - Oaths and Complex Binding Agreements
    • Curse and Thought-form Unravelling
    • Energy Hygiene; Energy Hygiene II, groups
    •Mediumship with Spirit; Mediumship with the Dead


    Intuitive Development Training with Stacia Synnesvedt; Graduate Level Intuitive Development Training; Trance Mediumship Preparation; Mentorship


    200-hour Foundational Yoga Teacher Training with Anna Ferguson (Gratitude in Motion)

    300-hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training with Becky Morrissey and Lila Lolling (Sangha Yoga/Red Lotus Apsara Yoga School) – Focus on functional and somatic movement and Yoga philosophy

    300-hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training with EmbodiYoga® with Lisa Clark – EmbodiYoga® is built on the foundations of Hatha yoga, functional and embodied anatomy, somatic inquiry and experiencing, embryology, human developmental movment.

    Courses with Becky Morrissey, Red Lotus Apsara: Foundations of EmbodiYoga®, EmbodiYoga® Therapeutics, Trauma Sensitive Yoga, Tantra, Pranayama

    Courses with Lila Saraswati Lolling, Saraswati Yoga School: Extensive Vedanta yoga philosophy and Tantrik subtle anatomy studies

    Courses with Prem Sadasivananda, Vidya Samyoga

    Course with Katy Stahl, Shanti Mom Pregnancy Yoga

    Additional classes, groups, courses and intensives:
    Body-Mind Centering with Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, Anatomy Trains, classes and workshops with many notable yoga teachers, Courting the World Soul with Sharon Blackie, Non-Violent Communication, Grounded and Uprooted for white folks through Building Bridges Denver,  Embodied Activism through Embodied Philosophy, Emotional Polarity Technique Core Training

    Reiki 1, 2 and Master level in the Usui Tradition with Katy Stahl