Spiritual healers: scam or legit?

Who are these people, really, and what actually sets them apart from the endless sea of other "healers" out there? Does being a healer inherently require some kind of spiritual component, or does that imply that your typical MD is somehow devoid of spirit?

I’ve been wondering if spiritual healing is even a coherent concept. I’m not just talking about addressing mental or emotional struggles, but actual, physical, somatic issues too.

I was browsing online the other day when I stumbled upon this link, and the first thing that rubbed me the wrong way was how the author kept using the phrase "we healers"—which strikes me as pretty unspiritual, honestly. Even though they go through the motions of claiming they’re merely a "medium" or a "channel," you still get this lingering impression that they’re—whether they realize it or not—trying to take a slice of the credit for themselves.

And what happens when a spiritual healer, or any healer for that matter, neglects their own inner work? They all love to claim they're helping people, but is that actually the case every single time? There's also the question of "quality"—specifically regarding the energy they’re supposedly channeling or passing along. Is all this energy coming from one singular source regardless of the specific spiritual technique used, or is there plenty of room here for some very convincing scams?😁

Take this one individual, for instance, who brands himself as a bioenergetic specialist, a psychotherapist, a counselor, a visionary, and a teacher all at once; he’s advertising sixteen different roles and even runs his own wellness programs.😁
He goes on about "holistic healing," which he breaks down into four distinct layers of the human aura: bioenergy, emotions, thoughts, and spirit.
Now, sure, someone might walk away from a session with a miraculous recovery, deep spiritual peace, or a sense of total well-being, but it seems to me that this "holistic healer" definitely has his own version of well-being. Specifically, the material kind.😁

I can't help but feel that the actual quality of the energy we put out there depends almost entirely on our mental, physical, and spiritual alignment—which is why I truly believe that healers who are genuinely dedicated to their craft can achieve so much more than those "practical" businessmen just looking at the bottom line. That said, my take is that true, powerful healers are incredibly rare; though, granted, anyone can learn to facilitate healing to a certain extent (even I can soothe minor aches and pains, and my old man could too, in his own way). Most of these people charging premium rates for such services? They’re usually just charlatans preying on people's gullibility—or even worse, capitalizing on desperation and that deep, subconscious craving for relief. The human mind is an incredibly potent thing, and there are certain individuals who have mastered exactly which levers to pull and when—and they certainly make a killing doing it.

I actually stumbled upon a version of what I was trying to get at over on this thread on a different board.

Kanye West said:I went to see this psychic one day, and she basically summed everything up in a single sentence; she told me I was carrying around all this heavy, negative energy from my past, and that I really needed to close that chapter of my life before I could move forward, offering to help me out since she’s a spiritual healer (or some such title).

The girl turned down the treatment, obviously, and most of the issues she was dealing with have already passed. Honestly, you can't truly understand how low someone can sink unless you've been there yourself.
That said, if someone isn't particularly self-aware or just isn't sharp enough—and look, intelligence doesn't really matter when you're in a tailspin, we're all equally vulnerable then—or if they're just following a gut feeling that might be lying to them, they'd probably fall hook, line, and sinker for how convincing those spiritual healers can be, or just get caught up in the way they present the problem and offer an easy fix.
And there you have it: the spiritual healing industry. 🙄

And if you want to know just how much these entrepreneurs are pulling in... I heard a rumor about one "world-renowned" tarot reader who can charge upwards of $18,000 per session... though, naturally, she mostly caters to the crowd that can actually swing that kind of cash.

The world is absolutely crawling with these types of healers, spiritual gurus, life coaches, and other "fiscally enlightened" individuals. Honestly, that’s exactly why the whole movement feels so diluted. But hey, that’s how it’ll stay as long as there’s money to be made. As long as there are people with deep pockets, they'll keep trying to buy their way out of guilt, renovate their souls, and try to give their consciences a fresh coat of paint.

Yeah, and then they’ll spin this whole narrative about how they’re just out there helping people, guiding them back to the right path, or balancing their energies, and all that other nonsense.
The truth is, they aren't helping anyone or fixing anything except for their own bank accounts.
It really doesn't matter what kind of lofty promises they're ready to make, or how much we might be tempted to believe them. 🙄

When you're desperate or dealing with a serious illness, you're in an incredibly vulnerable spot. You have to take that into account, because honestly, who's to say we wouldn't be just as susceptible if we were in their shoes?

Most spiritual and energy healers are really just working overtime to heal their bank accounts. Or better yet, they’re trying to find ways to dodge taxes and stay off the IRS radar. They claim to balance the wealth gap by taking from the rich and giving to the poor—which usually just means giving to themselves.

The more an "healer" advertises, the less they actually care about healing and the more they care about the cash. 🙄 👎

Real ones work incognito without all the hype, keeping things low-key because they don't give a damn about the money. Honestly, I doubt there’s a single decent, high-quality healer left in American culture. If one actually exists, they’re living in the shadows and staying far away from the spotlight.

Brian Doyle86 said:The more a self-proclaimed "healer" tries to sell themselves, the more they're just chasing a paycheck rather than actually trying to help anyone. 🙄 👎

Real ones—people who actually possess those abilities—work quietly, mostly incognito, without any of the fanfare or ego... they couldn't care less about the money. Honestly, I find it hard to believe there’s even one legitimate, high-quality healer left in American culture; if they do exist, they’re living in the shadows, completely off the grid.

I'm with you on this.

If there's someone out there who can actually do the work, they stay under the radar and operate discreetly, and that's fine by me. But if they can't, then all that talk about what they "have" is just something they're keeping to themselves.
By untouchable, I assume you mean they've found a way to protect themselves from the noise. Or am I off base?

Roger Hall15 said:If you have the option to live in the shadows and work incognito, do it. It’s fine. If not, just keep what you have to yourself.
Untouchable—I assume that means he found a way to protect himself. Or does it?

I was thinking more along the lines of being untouchable to all those opportunists and manipulators who would, God forbid, try to bleed him dry for cash or assets. That's why he stays both untouchable and invisible. 😉 🙂

The best defense against people like that is staying under the radar and keeping an incognito status. He plays it off like, "Oh, I'm just some spiritual guru," as if that's even possible. No, he'd rather just say, 😁 "I'm just your average housewife" 😳 (like a carpenter, a dentist, or a forum moderator 😁...)

Brian Doyle86 said:I was actually thinking more along the lines of him being untouchable to all those opportunists and manipulators who would, heaven forbid, try to use his influence to get their hands on money or other material assets. That’s why, for people like that, he stays out of reach and—more importantly—completely off the radar. 😉 🙂

The best defense against that kind of crowd is just staying under wraps and maintaining a total incognito status. It's about playing it cool, maybe acting like "Oh, I'm just some random guy" or "I'm just a local carpenter, a dentist, or a web moderator..." 😁 😳 😁 instead of pretending to be some big-shot spiritual guru or whatever.

Well, now we're on the same page. 😉
I actually had a sentence drafted up that was basically ready to tear him apart, but I decided to delete it because I didn't want anyone getting the wrong idea.
That's really what the protection is—staying completely out of reach from those manipulators and thieves who are always looking for an angle.
Essentially, he stays invisible. Which means he's protected. 🙂

Once we get this sorted, we can move on 🙂

A true spiritual healer is a rare breed. To heal anyone else, you have to clear out your own baggage first. Most people I know—and I've heard plenty about them—fail because they inevitably fall into an ego trip, acting like they're some kind of enlightened geniuses 🙄 . In my view, a real healer is humble and stays under the radar, focusing on helping others help themselves. They don't waste time on fools who would only end up making things worse. Nothing comes easy. And why should it...?

Brian Doyle86 said:With the caveat that you only help those who actually need it—not the fools who’ll just end up making things worse by accepting it.

You were probably just thinking about the people who actually ask for help.

Brian Doyle86 said:I’ve always felt that a genuine, unassuming spiritual healer focuses on helping people find the tools to heal themselves first and foremost. And honestly, they should only be working with those who actually need it—not with the fools who would just end up making things worse by trying too hard. There aren't any shortcuts in this life, and frankly, why would there be?

I haven't run into anyone quite like that yet, nor have I heard much about them, at least not in my circles. Though, I suppose there's a chance I might have brushed past someone and completely missed the signal without even realizing what was happening.
In my view, these are just regular, everyday Americans who don't look or act any differently than the rest of us. They just happen to know exactly who needs to know what, and they know precisely how to deliver that realization.
It sort of fits with the idea that healing is really more of an interaction between the healer and whoever happens to be in their orbit or caught in their wake.
The way it works, the healer and the person they're meant to impact simply gravitate toward one another, so there’s almost no room for error.

That said, these types are rare birds. 🙂

The vast majority of people claiming that title—regardless of how impressive their demonstrations might seem—are destined to go down with the ship along with the rest of us the moment they embark on an ego trip. As soon as they start thinking they're powerful, brilliant, or possess some special set of insights and abilities, they’ve already lost the plot. Instead, they stay entangled with people, essentially feeding off their desperation. 😢
You can find plenty of people like that if you look. In fact, it feels like there are more of them every single day. 🙄

Aeneas said:You were probably just thinking about people actually asking for help.

Even here, you need to filter them out.

Because some people only ask for help because they're lazy or bored.