Inner Wisdom

Someone who feels drained after every conversation, who replays the discussions in their mind hours after they've ended and can no longer distinguish between their own feelings and what they've absorbed from others: this is the client described, article after article, by the Inner Wisdom blog. The practice is run by a single person, Sarah, who works from a practice in the Gallatin Valley, on the outskirts of Bozeman, Montana, from Monday to Friday between 9 am and 4 pm, and also sees clients remotely, via telephone, Zoom or actual remote healing. The area she serves in person covers Bozeman, Belgrade, Four Corners, Manhattan and Three Forks.

The blog posts frequently and focuses on a single topic: why we replay conversations in our heads, why we carry other people's emotions, why we feel drained around certain people, and what the signs of an energy imbalance are. One maintenance detail that's been overlooked: on the blog's homepage, the 'Read More' buttons for several articles link to the same text about the signs of imbalance, regardless of the title. Also featured there is an announcement for a monthly segment on the online programme "News for the Soul", and a questionnaire entitled 'Why Do I Feel Drained or Overwhelmed?' serves as a gateway, promising a few somatic practices to be sent upon completion.

The new pages speak the language of nervous system regulation: overstimulation and tension held in the body. The old pages, still indexed by search engines, speak of spiritual healing and soul coaching, with passages about the gates of pain through which one reaches joy. Both layers stem from the same training: the old page about the practitioner and her LinkedIn profile show a certificate in 'The Art of Human Energetics', a programme based on Brennan Healing Sciences, from which terms such as 'hara' and 'core star' – used on the Inner Wisdom website – originate. The list of techniques on the healing page includes aura and chakra balancing, support for organs and the spine, hara alignment, past lives and energy cords; thus, the somatic focus on the surface does not alter the esoteric nature of the offering.

The group workshop 'The Art of Human Energetics', held on Saturday between 12 and 3 pm at the Inner Wisdom centre, bears the very name of the programme in which Sarah trained. The advertised programme: the chakras and the energy field, the five basic movements of energy (push, pull, stop, allow, neutral), tracing energy within one's own body and, if time permits, a healing demonstration in front of the group. The workshop page does not display a price, unlike all the pages for individual sessions, and for private groups the same introductory call is required as for new clients.

Individual sessions and the Inner Alignment Series

Inner Wisdom's paid offering comprises four formats, all preceded by a free discovery call, the duration of which varies by page: 30 minutes on the services page, and between 20 and 30 minutes on the homepage. The intuitive energy healing session lasts 60 minutes and costs $125; integrative coaching has exactly the same duration and price; the Healing + Integration format lasts 90 minutes, costs $150 and includes a 20- to 30-minute integration call the following day, whilst the series of sessions, described below, start from $580. Prices are clearly displayed on each service page, with a single rate regardless of whether the session takes place in the practice or remotely.

The description of the in-person session is straightforward: the client lies fully clothed on a massage table; the practitioner begins at the soles of the feet, with her hands on or just above the body, then moves on to what the website calls the field surrounding the body. Remotely, the process is the same, minus the massage table: a brief discussion, then the client relaxes at home whilst Sarah works on their energy field from a distance. Inner Wisdom claims that the remote version is just as effective as the in-person one, a claim that nobody can measure, but which at least sits alongside the disclaimer at the bottom of the page: nothing here replaces conventional medical treatment.

The Inner Alignment Series comes in four distinct stages: Reclaim (4 sessions, $580), Restore (8 sessions, $1,120), Rise (12 sessions, $1,620) and Embody (16 sessions, $2,080), each with the option to pay in two to four instalments. Inner Wisdom recommends a weekly or fortnightly schedule, allows for a mix of in-person and remote sessions throughout the series, and does not require any prior experience with energy work.

This is where the only figure that gives pause for thought comes in, and I've checked it twice: 580 divided by 4 equals 145 dollars per session, whilst 2,080 divided by 16 equals 130. Both are above the $125 rate for a single 60-minute session, although the FAQs on the homepage promise discounts for series. The maths only adds up if the sessions in the package are the 90-minute 'integration' format, priced at $150, in which case the discount is between 3 and 13 per cent; the package page states that each session combines energy healing with coaching, but does not specify the duration anywhere. A client signing up for 16 sessions would be well advised to clarify this during the discovery call, before paying the first instalment of $520.

External certifications and reviews

Sarah presents herself as a Certified Master Healer, Reiki Master, Integrative Life Coach and Spiritual Coach. The institution that awarded the title of Master Healer is not named on the current Inner Wisdom website; the old version of her profile states that she obtained a certificate in The Art of Human Energetics and is currently undertaking the advanced studies component of the same programme, which leaves the title without a named issuing institution. In her favour is the provider badge issued by the Energy Medicine Professional Association, which appears at the bottom of all pages, and the fact that her LinkedIn profile confirms her Brennan training.

Outside the website, there is little evidence. Inner Wisdom Energy Healing has a profile on the Better Business Bureau, which lists the firm as a single-member limited liability company, but without a rating—as the BBB does not assess this type of service—and with no visible reviews. Searches for the name of the practice do not reveal any Google reviews, a Yelp page, a Trustpilot profile or a Facebook page.

Anyone looking for a price benchmark will find one in the same town: Marissa Allen Energy Healing, also in Bozeman, charges $175 for 60 minutes and $225 for 90, so Inner Wisdom is between 50 and 75 dollars cheaper per session, with a free pre-session call and a follow-up call included in the 90-minute package.