ABOUT River

My name is River Ying Dandelion, and I am a certified reiki energy healing practitioner, attuned to the highest level of Usui Reiki through the NYC POC Healing Circle, a collective that centers queer and trans people of color's well-being. Through this work, I specialize in helping clients move through anxiety, self-doubt, self-judgement, major life transitions, and/or personal inner transformations.

I am a queer and trans, Toisanese keeper of ancestral medicine through energy healing, teaching, writing poetry, and creating ceremony. As a former grassroots organizer, I am a politicized healer connected to the social movements of our times. I also am an abolitionist who provides anti-racist, gender-affirming care to my highest capacity.

I have devoted my life to fortifying intuition, self-love, self-trust, and claiming inner power. I am here to support you to move in the same, on your own unique journey. I, and my communities, thrive when you dream bigger and take concrete action to claim what your ancestors dreamed for you.

As a reiki practitioner, I am also an award-winning poet, youth educator, and ceremonialist. As a poet, I write to connect with the unseen and unspoken so we can feel and heal. As a ceremonialist, I create and plan ceremonies for people to honor the sacredness of their lives. This can revolve around themes such as gender affirmation, rebirth, love, or other major milestones and personal anniversaries. My interests, creative work, healing work, and scholarly work meld at the arts, education, healing, towards liberation. I have taught at non-profits and universities across the tri-state area and have performed my work internationally from the Dodge Poetry Festival to the University of Havana. Ready to work together? Check out my offerings below.

OFFERINGS

REIKI ENERGY HEALING

A holistic healing practice that supports healing on a physical, emotional, and spiritual level. A session includes a plática (heart-to-heart talk), meditation &/or body-based grounding practice, channeling of reiki energy, and a debrief with take-home guidance.

VIRTUAL

60 minutes $150 - $225 sliding scale

90 minutes $180 - $350 sliding scale

IN-PERSON

60 minutes $150 - $225 sliding scale

90 minutes $180 - $350 sliding scale

Spring Booking Special: Until 5/15/23, receive 15% off your first reiki energy healing session with me, when you book with code GRATITUDE15.

For TGNCI (Trans, Gender Non-Conforming, Intersex) BIPOC clients in need of greater reduced rates, contact me to inquire about availability.

CREATIVE WRITING SERVICES 1:1 COACHING

This 1:1 service supports you to deepen your creative practice &/or professional arts pursuits in the form of fellowships, residencies, job opportunities, publishing, etc. A session includes a plática (heart-to-heart talk), body-based grounding practices, writing prompts, and take-home guidance. Together, we work to get to the heart of what is holding you back in your creative practice so you can shine.

VIRTUAL

60 minutes $150 - $225 sliding scale

90 minutes $180 - $350 sliding scale

IN-PERSON

60 minutes $150 - $225 sliding scale

90 minutes $180 - $350 sliding scale

In addition to 1:1 coaching, I am available for group workshops, poetry readings & performances, keynotes, and panels. Sample workshops can be found on my website.

Spring Booking Special: Until 5/15/23, receive 15% off your first creative writing coaching session with me, when you book with code GRATITUDE15.

CEREMONIES

This is a personalized 1:1 service where I work with you over the course of several weeks or more to design, plan, and birth ceremonies that honor the sacredness of your life. Some examples of ceremonies include:
§ Gender affirmation ceremonies
§ Rebirth ceremonies
§ Love &/or marriage ceremonies (for couples)
§ Self-love anniversaries, e.g. T-versaries, gender affirming surgery anniversaries
§ Honoring other major milestones, e.g. parenthood, graduations

Please contact me directly about type of ceremony and timeline to inquire about pricing package.

Testimonials

Reiki Energy Healing

Reiki Energy Healing Sessions River has such a gentle perceptiveness that really encouraged me to lean into truth through our session. From when he sent me my prep information to when we wrapped up, my spirit felt deeply sheltered and honored in its needs. It can be so easy living in the world to be distracted and lose sight of the compass of our hearts, working with River restored my sight of myself and was so sharply clarifying. Furthermore, River's channeling and transference of reiki energy feels distinctly linked to his work as a writer. It's a poetic making of something saturated in the dynamism of his presence and dedicated assurance. — rhizophora X, Writer & Translator

My energy healing session with River felt like a pocket of time dedicated purely to breath. It was an opportunity to slow down and connect with the spiritual while being guided by River's deep sensitivity, presence, and practice. I felt a little intimated before stepping into the session, but those feelings quickly fell away as he created a space that was friendly, warm, and intentional. I left the healing session feeling at once light and grounded, with spiritual guideposts and symbols that I still think about today. — Philipe AbiYouness, Writer & Teaching Artist

My session with River was unlike any other reiki session I've had before. I love how interactive it was. It kept me focused and grounded in the present moment. I needed that intentionality in my healing. He heard what I needed and created the space for that in our session. It felt like a tremendous weight was lifted when we concluded. Many happy tears were shed. I would recommend River to anyone looking for a safe container for their healing work. — Candice M., Artist

Creative Writing Workshops & Ceremonies

River is a resolute protector of his community, and his care for those with whom he shares space permeates every part of that space. Before our writing workshop, I knew I loved to write, but I believed I was beholden to when inspiration struck- that I could not actually control when I created my best work. River, his workshop, and its members helped me see that my writing is part of me, and its potential to grow is as infinite as my own. I've started a small writing project, and though I've published very little, I've fallen in love with writing itself. Every day it feels less like a chore and more like self-care. — Isaiah G., Senior Product Manager

River's warmth and generosity— as a writer, mentor, and facilitator— have helped me cultivate a more loving relationship to both my writing and myself. I have come out of every workshop I've taken with River feeling affirmed in the ways in which I am still growing as writer and a person. The feeling of healing is sometimes hard to name for me-- but I can say that I've felt it through working with River, and that in his presence, I have written my way towards a sense of wholeness. — K.S., Youth Worker & Educator

River is an amazing teacher, leader, and facilitator. he helped foster such an earnest and comfortable environment and stewarded an amazing community among our cohort. The use of ritual, meditation, and intentional grounding in every session was so helpful in re-centering focus and creating a safe atmosphere. The weekly readings, discussion, and writing prompts were insightful and I always gleamed something novel from every session. We shared so many laughs together, we explored ourselves together, we wrote poetry together. Some of the writing prompts spurred ideas for me that brought forth so much magic. I would absolutely take a workshop with River again! <3 — Siddisse, Writer & Archivist