ABOUT MELANIE

Melanie Ryan, LCSW, is an expert in holistic health, consciousness, and ancient wisdom traditions. She is the founder of The Golden Shadow Method, a path of spiritual transformation and healing that integrates depth psychology, shamanism, Buddhism, and natural medicine. Her work bridges the ancient and the modern—illuminating the original purpose of healing as a sacred, soulful act of awakening.

With decades of study in mysticism, metaphysics, and cross-cultural wisdom, Melanie has trained with elders, shamans, and spiritual masters across Guatemala, Greece, Bhutan, and the Scottish Highlands. She draws from a global “web of light,” preserving and sharing the timeless teachings of Earth Medicine and Spirit to help others reconnect to love, beauty, and the wisdom of the soul.

Melanie began her professional career after earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Hartford and a dual master’s degree in clinical social work and clinical research from Fordham University in New York. For over twenty years, she worked in hospitals and rehabilitation centers as a certified alcohol and substance abuse counselor (CASAC), serving individuals struggling with addiction, mental illness, and trauma. Disillusioned by a broken healthcare system, she turned toward ancient healing traditions to rediscover the true essence of medicine and the soul’s journey toward wholeness.

Rooted in the understanding that “to heal is to connect with the heart and soul,” Melanie’s teachings embody the original Greek meaning of psychology—the study of the soul. Through The Golden Shadow Method, she guides others to integrate light and shadow, awaken consciousness, and live in harmony with Spirit.

Melanie is trained in yoga, Reiki, past life regression therapy, naturopathic and Tibetan medicine, Jungian studies, and shamanic practices from diverse lineages. She has studied under renowned teachers including Dr. Edward Tick, Acharya Judy Lief, and Dr. Marizelle Arce, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, and continues her spiritual study in the Bön and Vajrayana Buddhist traditions. She is an authorized Buddhist teacher in the Shambhala lineage founded by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche.

In 2023, Melanie’s life was transformed by the sudden passing of her son, Justin Bodhi Steigmeier. His transition opened new depths of spiritual awakening, guiding her to study the mysteries of death, the afterlife, and the wisdom of heartbreak. Through this profound experience, Melanie continues to teach how grief can become a doorway to unconditional love and illumination.

Today, Melanie and her husband Andy Steigmeier live in the mountains of northern Georgia near Cherokee National Forest, where they lead retreats, healing workshops, and educational programs on spirituality, consciousness, and Earth wisdom. Together, they cultivate a life of simplicity, reverence, and devotion to the sacred unity of all beings.