For a small and cozy city, Chiang Mai offers a surprisingly rich variety of holistic healers and therapists. With a wide range of healing modalities, often available at a fraction of the cost you'd pay in the West - Chiang Mai is a welcoming destination for those seeking support in their well-being and spiritual growth.
This page offers reviews and insights into both traditional and alternative therapies, counseling services, and healing practices available in Chiang Mai. Our goal is to help you find the right person at the right time to support your unique journey. You may also want to explore our guide on How to Choose a Healer.
Are you looking for someone to assist you in your healing process, or someone to guide you through it? While the difference may seem subtle, it’s an important distinction that can influence your entire healing experience.
A practitioner who assists you uses specific tools and techniques, often grounded in formal training, to support your healing. For example, a therapist or counselor may help someone process grief by inviting them to imagine a conversation with a lost loved one. This structured approach, backed by credentials, can offer a sense of safety and reliability.
In contrast, a healer who guides you doesn’t just use tools, they intuitively connect with your energy, emotions, and inner truth. Using the same grief example, a healer might also invite a conversation with the departed loved one, but they may simultaneously feel your grief and help you access emotions you might not even realize are there. They may also channel intuitive or psychic messages, helping you uncover deeper insights and resolution.
Healers often possess skills that set them apart from traditional therapists or counselors, such as deep empathy (feeling another’s emotions as their own) and intuitive or psychic abilities. While these gifts can be refined through practice, they are typically innate and not part of standard therapeutic training.The benefit of working with a healer is their freedom from structured, evidence-based approaches. They can work with a broader range of methods, like past life regression, for instance, allowing for a more flexible, personalized, and often more profound healing journey. Their ability to tune into your energy means they can guide you more deeply into your inner world, often accelerating the healing process.
In addition to internet searches and browsing Facebook pages and groups, the following resources can also support you in your search.
MeetUP website lists regular events held in Chiang Mai. Over the years various people have been running healing and therapy groups including EFT, Hypnosis, Grief Support Group, Singing HU and more. MeetUps come and go so check the website for the latest info.
Notice Boards Posters placed on notice boards in certain cafes and restaurants, such as Blue Diamond in the old city and Salad Concept, show who is in town and what is on offer.
Healing Festivals From time to time — especially during the high season — small alternative healing festivals are held in Chiang Mai or Pai. Keep an eye out for posters in cafes and restaurants, as well as announcements in local Facebook groups when you arrive.
Luxury Hotels and Resorts Hotels such as Dhara Devi, 4 Season and Anantara have a wellness programme and often host visiting healing practitioners, as do Tao Garden, Pavana which are wellness based resorts.
This is by no means an exhaustive list as people come and go but it is a good representation of what's available in Chiang Mai.
Acupuncture Needles placed into the body on energy lines to promote healing and release energetic blockages
Ajna Light A high intensity light is focused onto the forehead area, stimulating relaxation and a sense of deep meditation
CranioSacral Therapy Soft-touch techniques are used to release restrictions
Detox The removal of stored physical toxic material in the body, often accompanied with an emotional release
Divination Predicting events or reading character traits through classic tools such as astrology or tarot cards. Can be healing as it provides the recipient an opportunity to accept them self more deeply or gives them relieve from their fears. There are many Thai people giving tarot readings at temples, shopping centers and parks, but best to bring someone who can translate.
Energy Healing including Reiki Energy that provides rejuvenation and healing in the body, is channeled through the healer into the recipient.
Energy Healing using Crystals Healing energy sourced through the crystal is directed into the body
Drug Rehabilitation Centers High end resident programs designed to help people clear their addictions and remove their tendency to fall back on to their addictive patterns in times of great stress
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprogramming (EMDR) Uses eye movements to lighten the emotional charge connected to past traumatic events
Family Constellation The ancestral energy flow and blockages are investigated and removed
Human Design A blue print of the recipient is created, offering them strategies and techniques to enable them to better harness their uniqueness
A glimpse into the tranquil spaces where transformation begins.
Hypnosis A person is placed into deep relaxation allowing the therapist to access and heal dysfunctional aspects that is normally protected by the active mind
Laughter (Yoga) Prolonged laughter is used to enable a deep sense of relaxation and an overall feeling of well being
Massage Deep tissue massage or body work can release tensions and blocked emotions
Massage - Chi Nei Tsang A specialized abdominal message that stimulates the release of toxins and emotional blockages
Massage - Karsai A specialized massage on the genital area to help clear any physical and sexually orientated emotional difficulties
Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) A broad set of healing and performance based techniques that is able to be replicated
Past Life Regression A previous life is revisited to conduct a healing on the unresolved issues that are now being presented in the current life. Learn the benefits from a past life regression.
Releasing As the name suggests, the release of negative feelings, beliefs, thoughts and habits
Shamanism A psychic healer who uses tools and techniques based on ancient tribal knowledge and skills
Sound Healing Allows the body to resonate with the sound frequencies, to encourage rejuvenation and the releasing of negative material
Support Groups Various support groups are available in Chiang Mai, anything from men or women only groups, to sugar or alcohol addictions. Most organize themselves via Facebook or MeetUp.
Qi Gong Using breathing techniques, gentle movement and meditation to cleanse, strengthen and circulate life energy
Tai Chi A moving form of yoga and meditation combined, promoting peace and wellness
Yoga A hand few of teachers offer restoration yoga classes, to help those heal and rehabilitate from a physical injury
Yoga Tantra Group exercises are used to open hearts which encourage the healing of emotional wounds
The following is a list of self help approaches that are supported in Chiang Mai.
Chanting or Spiritual Singing The careful use of language repeated out aloud can trigger emotional releases and promote spiritual growth. Check MeetUp or Facebook groups to see if any chanting or singing groups are available in Chiang Mai.
Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Release emotions and physical pain by tapping points on the body while repeating key phrases. Download a shortened version of the EFT manual here. Check MeetUp to see if there is an EFT support group in Chiang Mai.
Exercise Exercise can promote the release of negative emotions and is scientifically shown to promote mental health. Chiang Mai hosts a number of gyms and sports arenas.
Flotation Tank The body is encouraged to completely relax by being suspended in water in a dark and quiet room, promoting wellness
Meditation A process of relaxing and focusing our awareness on self, allowing for unresolved material to be presented, acknowledged and healed. Wat Rampoeng in Chiang Mai and the Goenka Meditation Centre in Lamphun are great local meditation retreat options.
Tension Release Exercises (TRE) A set of movements designed to help one release tension and blocked emotions. Group classes available in Chiang Mai or go on YouTube.
Learn more options on how to help yourself here.
Whether you're just beginning to explore emotional healing or looking to deepen your inner work, we're here to walk beside you. Sessions are available in person or online — each one uniquely tailored to your energy, your story, and your next step.
