Erika Gagnon is a Canadian ceremonial leader, wisdom keeper, and healer who helps others remember how to heal themselves. She honors all of the ancestors of her multiracial heritage, but does not identify as First Nations. The wisdom and ceremonies she carries come from her 30-year walk on the Red Road and medicine path.
Erika has dedicated more than half of her life to working with Indigenous elders from North and South America in Mexico, Ecuador, Peru and the United States of America, and with their ancestral ceremonies, medicinal plants, and altars. She is honored to have received their blessings to continue their traditions with honor, dignity, and respect, and leads temazcal (sweat lodge), tobacco, water blessing, other healing ceremonies, and personal healing sessions.
Erika is often asked if she is a medicine woman or a shaman. Her reply? The term “medicine woman” is extremely overused, and “shaman” is a specific healing lineage from Mongolia and Siberia. She also believes that a healer does not heal others, but helps others remember how to heal themselves. She dedicates her life to helping others, and believes that individual healing can be the collective healing we need on this planet during these times.