About Barbara Mariano

I have led what I consider to be an extraordinary life. I spent my twenties raising my family as a conventional housewife. But, following a near-death experience, I realized that I could not be happy without sharing my intuitive gifts, which had been a large part of my reality since childhood. I began a serious meditation practice and studied a variety of disciplines to help me hone my skills into a useful, healing service.

In 1983, I began my Reiki journey, training with Beth Gray and Barbara West. I became Barbara’s assistant for several years, receiving an unbelievable apprenticeship in energetic healing and teaching skills. After becoming Reiki Master, I began taking students of my own. While teaching, I continued to learn, studying subjects such as Family Constellations counseling and The Work with Byron Katie to help me further assist my clients in their spiritual growth journies.

During this journey, a cat named Athena came into my life and changed everything. I had always had a special affinity for animals, but Athena taught me how to communicate in a clear and practical way. I knew I had found my calling. I am so pleased to say that I have since directly helped hundreds of animals.

I began teaching animal communication and energy healing for animals in the 2000s. I have led international animal intuition retreats, and I am a regular guest on television and radio shows. I even hosted my own television show, called Speaking of Animals. I very much enjoy engaging with live audiences and have appeared at a variety of public events.

I feel strongly about women’s issues, especially domestic violence, as well as animal welfare. I support several causes as a volunteer, donor, and speaker at charity events. I feel that women often need help finding their voices just as animals do. While I love an work with all genders, I am especially pleased to support women’s health and happiness. Stay tuned for new courses on the subject of what I consider to be true women’s liberation and my upcoming book that gives insight into my passion for both women and animals.

I have overcome incredible adversity in my life, and it has made me a leader. I have survived multiple near-death experiences, and it has made me loving. Empathy is my superpower. While I have been a master teacher for decades, it wasn’t until a violent attack that almost took my life at age 73, that I truly came into my “power years”. When I got out of the hospital after a random knife attack, my mind in a haze shock and depression, I was given an incredible gift - a trip to Findhorn, Scotland to study advanced animal communication with master teacher Anna Breytenbach. It was my dream come true, but at that moment I felt vulnerable and, for the first (and only) time in my life—old.

But I knew spirit was taking me to Scotland, so I got myself on the plane. In Scotland, split open as it were, I found my natural gifts being taken to an entirely new level. One night, Anna had us wander into the forest alone to find power places to meditate and tune into the earth. I was not happy about this assignment, given what I had just been through. “I’m too old for this!,” I protested internally. But that night, in 2015, I became the woman I am today, not only feeling stronger than ever in my life and working at a level I never expected to attain, but committed, with fierce love, to empowering those whose voices have remain unheard for far too long.