Perched atop a steep drive on a heavily wooded lot is the mid-century home of Atousa Raissyan. Her living room is sparsely furnished, spanning the width of the house and flooded with green-filtered light pouring through expansive windows on three sides. The space radiates peace, even amongst scattered toys and other evidence of family life.
Atousa has lived in Potomac since 2004, and it was at about the same time she started looking into alternative healing. As an artist, she is naturally in touch with her environment and an observer of people. Her glossy prints on metal start with a photograph of nature, which she then manipulates with PhotoShop into riotous cascades of color. They give off a simultaneous vibe of psychedelic album covers from the 1960s and '70s and new age posters you might see in the waiting room of your favorite yoga studio.
Atousa’s philosophy comes straight from one of Gandhi’s most famous quotes, “The change begins with you.” Her path to healing work began with her desire to look within, to face whatever she needed to face in her own life and embrace the healing process. Atousa is a certified master of Reiki and also uses other modalities, particularly Shamanism, in her work.
“We need to first heal ourselves and change ourselves in order to change our surroundings,” she says. “If you want more love, you have to be more loving toward yourself. And if you want to be at peace within yourself, you need to work toward making your world more peaceful.
Shamans call to spiritual guides and use their knowledge to help guide others. Shamanism is a spiritual practice that dates back thousands of years in countries around the world and coexists with very different political, religious and cultural norms.
Once Atousa had studied these areas of interest, she began to practice her knowledge on friends and family. She discovered she had a talent for helping others.
“After I began my own work, I realized I was sensitive to others’ energies as well,” she says.
About two years ago, she opened her own practice in two cozy rooms in the lower level of her home and named it Soulystic. Her services include Reiki, sound healing, Jin Shin Jyutsu, EFT (tapping) and body movement as well as talking through mental and emotional choices. Fully admitting she is not a licensed therapist, Atousa and her clients feel she heals just as effectively with a different approach.
The sessions are tailored to an individual's need.
“I use my intuition and spiritual guidance to decide what's the best technique to use during each session,” she says. “In between sessions, I provide support and guidance via text messaging.”
Thus, the modern age mingles with ancient techniques to aid healing those who suffer in our broken world.
For more information, visit AtousaRaissyan.com.
