Bio & Training

I was born for my purpose. I have tried to leave it, but I have always been brought back to it. I was going to try to be an art teacher, but my first love's death brought me back to my purpose as did the death of my first child.

Here, in bullet points and simply put, is my life that was never really mine anyway. I belong to all of you. 

"What a long, strange trip it's been"

1. I was born with the gift of mediumship. I exist simultaneously in the Land of the Dead as well as the land of the living. I literally see both at the same time constantly. Two eyes in two different places. I've always existed half on this side and half on that side, just like my grandmother Earmadean. She also had a profound gift. She was my mentor and teacher since I was five years old and continues to help me with readings from the other side. She and I both would and will tell you openly that the gift comes from God and serves God, the presence of God has been with us since we were both born. I want to state that you cannot have an ego in this, and my grandma was one of the first ones to teach me that. Humility first. The gift is God's, not ours.

2. Raised in a historically documented "People of the Cures" Irish shamanic tradition that is at LEAST hundreds of years old. We know it's older but people have a hard time believing that when you tell them. The word "cures" denotes special gifts such as mine, it also includes dowsing which I also do as well as being able to cure specific illnesses as well as talk to animals such as the term "horse whispering". We even have a book in which my ancestor John writes down the symbols because he thought he might pass away even though normally we don't write them down but will wear them. The symbols have been viewed by various experts that believe the symbols are thousands of years old. Online I use the word "pictish" because these are the very symbols that would be tattooed on our bodies that the Romans saw and gave us our nicknames from. I was very fortunate to be raised in something like this. My grandparents could be harsh but very loving teachers, LOL! This would be the same grandmother that I have my gift from, btw. There are many articles about the "People of the Cures" online to look up, although we keep our traditions pretty quiet. From the age of 5 until forever.

3. Two very strong old-world witch teachers. When I say witch in this case I'm not talking about Wicca. I'm talking about the old fashioned witchcraft of various countries that includes psychic phenomenon as well as herbalism and various other skills used to find things for others or serve them in healing. The old country skills used in communities all over the world to help families talk to loved ones, dowse a new well or help a sick animal on the farm. Dolores Youngquist and George Shadwick. Dolores was of recent Peruvian descent and tradition and ran an amazing bookstore called Ra Enterprises in Davenport, IA. George was of recent Welsh descent and tradition and was a history teacher at WIU. I studied with these two whether I was at home in the Quad Cities or at WIUfor about 4 years each. 

4. Tarot: this is not part of our family tradition but I picked it up from my first partner who was also very gifted psychic named Ruth. She sadly passed away in college. We met because I went to her for a Tarot reading. On a Saturday night the line to see her was a mile long. She taught me what she knew, and after she passed I just kept reading her cards for people with the same results. I still use the same kind of cards. Dolores and George helped me hone my Tarot skills after her passing. I've been reading Tarot for people since 1989. That's 34 years.

5. Selena Fox: Selena is probably the most famous Wiccan since Gerald Gardner. She is basically Wicca in America. My teacher George knew about her and sent me to her when I needed a boost of direction before leaving college. She gave me a world of information in 3 hours that has been useful since then and I have never forgotten her kindness. For this reason I consider her one of my teachers but also a very good friend after hanging out with her and Dennis over many years at events. She runs Circle Sanctuary a non-profit out of Barneveld, Wisconsin and has achieved many amazing things for pagans and women all over the country through her work over the years! 

6. Sufi training for 9 years in selfless service. This is where all my training culminates. I wanted to go into service and believe it or not I decided to join the Franciscans through the diocese in the Quad Cities. There are definitely Catholics in the family (have you ever heard of Father McBrien? I'm related to him directly) and because it was the only avenue I thought I had to be able to do some selfless service training in my area. I felt I needed this as my grandmother had told me that at some point I needed to be trained in how to dissolve my ego in order to be more attuned to my gift and to also be more unified with the source of that gift, which many including myself would call the Divine or God. That didn't last long, LOL, and when I told her what I had done she laughed and told me that there was somebody that I would meet and they would become my teacher...who was not a Franciscan...but I was getting warm. She told me Carbondale was the place to go so there I went and I waited 2 years to meet him because Sufi masters and their students don't advertise. After I opened an art gallery next door to them, auspiciously by accident, I began to meet some of the students and they invited me to meet their teacher. Taking my vow to him is when my true test of my skills and my journey within and without began. He also took a vow to me that he would help me finish the training for my path.  Sufis are Mystics whose goal is to dissolve their egos and join directly with the Divine in order to be of service to humankind. They come in many varieties and originally they are a pre Judaic shamanic path and include many traditions depending on which branch you join. Ours included students from many paths, many of us taking various vows including myself. My teacher was Jewish but also had been part of a Ananda Marga for many years before becoming Sheikh Din Abdullah Dayemi of the Dayemi Tariqat. The Dayemi lineage is at least two or three thousand years old and includes the Mevlevi order of Rumi and the whirling dervishes. Our order tends to be very service based and with centers around the world. We would often serve the poor and the rest of the community through service projects, orphanages and farms as well as teaching people how to live sustainably including farming. We don't proselytize. Our particular group in Carbondale had about 45 people and would often serve hundreds of people every week through various programs not only in Carbondale but also in Bangladesh as well as other places in the world. Besides this there is intensive spiritual training that includes training in ancient meditation techniques, being spiritually present, techniques in spiritually based therapy and coaching including using heightened awareness and energy work used for healing as well as reaching different levels of consciousness. This work/training has foundation in dissolving our ego, direct Union with the divine through that dissolution and using that connection in order to be in complete selfless service to the community. Sheikh Din also trained me and how to do exorcisms of which I've done 7. I did the traditional 9 years of the most intensive and challenging training to help hone all my previous training from all my years past and Sufi training into a sharp yet surrendered point to be of utmost service to you and through you the Divine. 

7. Although we do extensive sound therapy training in Sufism, especially through the practice of Dhikr, I also have my certification from the Sound Healing Academy run by Tony Nec in the UK and offer sound healing on a weekly basis.

So that's my bio!  I have literally trained for 30 years and have been practicing my skills 46 years, 35 years professionally (as an adult) to be of service to YOU, my community. It's my pleasure to serve you! Even the ones who don't want to be bothered to read.😉❤️🙏

Thank you for reading all this BTW!

Chris (Isa)McBrien

303 South Main St. 

Galena, IL

My mediumship and psychic readings parlor is near you in historic Galena, Illinois! Located above the Galena Apothecary, across from the DeSoto House Hotel and right on Main Street near Vinny Vennuchi's Restaurant, Log Cabin Steakhouse and Fried Green Tomatoes right off IL Hwy 20 across from the Galena River and the beautiful historic Home of President and Civil War General Ulysses S Grant! 

Galena IL that is only 20 minutes from nearby Dubuque Iowa, an hour and a half from Davenport Bettendorf Moline and the rest of the Quad Cities as well as an hour and a half from Madison Wisconsin Mount Horeb and only a 35 minute drive from Platteville Wisconsin and Monroe Wisconsin and only an hour away from Rockford Illinois!