Exploring Oracle Cards with Katya

What if a deck of cards could help you process trauma, rediscover yourself, and find clarity in the most chaotic moments of your life?
 
In this deeply moving conversation, host Sarah chats with Katya McEwen from My Divine Downloads about oracle cards - but this isn't your typical "how to read cards" episode. This is raw, honest, and profoundly human.
 
Katya's journey with oracle cards begins with a shocking incident when she was 19 that made her abandon cards entirely for 25 years. Fast forward to 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine - Katya, who is from Ukraine with family still there, found herself frozen in fear. None of her professional tools worked - not her mindset coaching certification, not her hypnosis training. That's when she turned back to oracle cards, and eventually created five decks in one month using AI imagery to process shadows she couldn't reach any other way.
 
This conversation goes deep into unexpected territory. You'll discover:
 • What oracle cards actually are and how they differ from tarot
 • Why Katya sees them as self-reflection tools rather than divination
 • The four questions to ask when pulling a card 
 • How to use cards without relying on guidebooks 
 • The powerful concept of "the card as mirror" 
 • Surprising connections between oracle cards, hypnosis, and visual anchors
 • How creating your own oracle deck can be transformational
 • Why "asking for a sign is already a sign"
 
Katya does a live card pull for what listeners need to hear right now, shares her journey from identity crisis to self-discovery through shadow work, and explains her philosophy that oracle cards don't tell you what to do - they reflect what's already inside you.
 
We also explore claircognizance (the gift of just knowing), how Katya combines oracle cards with AI imagery and hypnosis work, the importance of visual anchors, and her practice of asking "how do you want to feel today?" as a daily anchor.
 
This episode is for anyone who's ever felt drawn to oracle cards but wasn't sure where to start, anyone processing grief or trauma, creative souls looking for new tools, or simply curious about how self-reflection practices can support healing and transformation.
 
It's vulnerable, practical, and deeply inspiring. Katya's courage in sharing her story about war, identity crisis, and devastating loss while still showing up to help others is extraordinary.
 
Perfect for: Anyone interested in oracle cards, tarot, self-reflection tools, processing trauma or grief, creative healing practices, hypnosis, AI and creativity, shadow work, intuitive development, or simply hearing honest conversations about transformation.
 
Katya has a workshop on December 11th: Planning 2026 Using Oracle Cards: https://www.skool.com/oraclecardsclub/about

Her Oracle Cards Magic membership opens a few times a year (waitlist available): https://surrealartimages.com/oracle-cards-magic-stand-alone-sales-page

Free guide: 200 Ways to Use Oracle Cards in Your Business: https://katya-mcewen.kit.com/012777e58b
 

Thanks for listening.

Transcript

Exploring Oracle Cards with Katya

 [00:00:00] What if a deck of cards could help you process trauma, rediscover yourself, and find clarity in the most chaotic moments of your life? Welcome back to Exploring Ways To Wellness. I'm Sarah, and today I'm chatting with Katya McEwen about Oracle Cards and using them as tools for self-reflection and healing.

Katya's journey with Oracle cards begins with a shocking incident when she was 19. Leads through a 25 year gap where she couldn't touch cards at all, and eventually becomes the tool that helps her process the trauma of war, identity crisis, and unimaginable personal loss. We explore what oracle cards actually are, how they differ from tarot and [00:01:00] how to use them as mirrors for self-discovery rather than fortune telling tools, we'll also go into unexpected territory with the power of visual anchors, surprising connections, and why your interpretation matters more than the meaning in any guidebook.

You'll hear Katya do a live card pull and learn why the question you ask yourself matters more than the cards themselves. This conversation is raw, honest, and deeply human. Whether you've never touched an oracle card deck, or you have a whole collection, Katya's perspective will shift how you think about these tools and what they're really for.

Let's dive in.

Sarah: Welcome back to Exploring Ways To Wellness. I am thrilled to have Katya McEwen with me today. She's from My Divine Downloads [00:02:00] and I know Katya from, creating some cards I have then put onto Deckible and she's been an absolute 

wizz at all things cards, and it was the first way that I came into even knowing oracle cards existed. I'd obviously heard of tarot cards but had no idea what oracle cards were. And I have no doubt, I have a lot still to learn. So thank you so much Katya, for being with us this week. 

Katya: It's exciting to be here.

Thank you so much for having me. 

Sarah: Thank you so much for coming. I mean, the obvious first question is what on earth are oracle cards and how did you discover them? 

Katya: That's a really loaded question. So I probably will start with how I discovered it and with how I experienced my own reading. So when I was 14, I started reading playing cards.

Not the oracle cards, not the tarot [00:03:00] cards. I didn't even know that Oracle or Tarot existed, but as a teenager it just, I just knew how to do it. Nobody taught me, just came to me and. I started doing readings for myself and friends, just like all teenagers do. We had a lot of fun and I've done it for about five years, and then when I was 19 in university, my best friend and I went to summer camp, student summer camp, and here is me and my friend and a lot of other friends.

Were about all of us. 19, 20. We are on a beach lying down on a blanket, and I'm just shuffling the cards and I'm doing the readings, right? So, and we're having tons of fun and we're laughing and suddenly we're taking turns as I'm doing readings for the people and for the friends. And suddenly I see the cards and I'm shuffling them through and I say, oh, that's stupid.

I seen something that I didn't really wanted to see or did not know how to [00:04:00] manage, did not know how to take responsibility, how to really mess, uh, give this message. And, but they insisted. They said, okay, well, what do you mean? And I said, well, it says that you're going to get hurt tonight. And it's pretty bad, but I'm like, don't worry about it.

You know, it's stupid. Uh, nevermind. And and actually at 11 o'clock at night, we got a knock at our cabin with my friend, said he was stabbed. He survived, but he was stabbed with a knife. And since then, I. Just couldn't take the card. I could not touch the cards anymore because as a teenager it was a huge responsibility.

Yes. And that shook me so much that I was like, oh my God, I don't know what I'm doing. Nobody taught me. I didn't have any mentors. And I really put the cards away and haven't touched them forward 25 years after that. Wow. So I wanted to give that story just to kind of [00:05:00] say that there is, there is a lot of power to what we're doing, but there is also a lot of responsibilities and it's important that we do take it very seriously.

And if we. Trying to use the cards as a divination tool, then we need to get right mentors, we need to get right teachers, we need to get right support, and most importantly, we need to understand how to give this message to other people. 

Sarah: Yes, 

Katya: one and the reason, again, I'm talking about it because Oracle cards and nothing like that, Oracle cards are not really divination tool to me.

Oracle cards a tool as a healing tool. It's truly self-reflection, healing tool for yourself and others. So I got reintroduced Oracle cards many, many years after that, and I just picked some in the store and started playing with them. And ever since I had this huge connection, I love animals. [00:06:00] My very first deck was, I actually have it here, um, that was my very first deck, it called Spirit the Spirit Animal, Oracle by Colette Baron-Reid.

Love loves this deck, and I love animals. I love imagery. I normally get really. Attracted to imagery and see like, you know, on the themes of the decks because they could be anything. They're so flexible 

Sarah: well, this is it, isn't it? Unlike a tarot deck, which is very defined in, in what's on the cards.

Could you explain a little bit about what the difference is between a tarot deck and an Oracle deck 

Katya: deck? Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, so with the tarot deck, you have a very structured approach. There is 78 cards always, and there is major arcana and minor arcana. And based on that, they are designed with symbols built in them.

And there is a certain [00:07:00] cards mean have certain meanings. Mm-hmm. And it also depends what cards they're surrounded with. Right. So it's a whole system. So when you look at the tarot, I like, you know, I learned tarot a little bit, but I don't really practice. Sometimes I like to use one of my decks, tarot decks.

That's as a favourite one. 

Sarah: Light Seers is Tarot Deck. I have that 

one myself. 

Beautiful. Yeah. 

Katya: It's a pocket one. I also travel with it. But I don't necessarily practice it. Probably like other tarot readers do. Mm-hmm. I think I use my tarot cards and readings same as Oracle, 

Sarah: right? 

Katya: I go by intuition.

I really go with a open mind of what is it my question is, and then based on what I'm seeing in the images and based what I'm comments through me and when I say comments through me, we all are intuitive. And we all have clairs, right? So we're all like, you know, it could [00:08:00] be either you know, you seeing something or like, you know, some people are very visual.

You literally see pictures. Some people can hear something, some people can know something, right? So there is a different clairs that you can use and develop to read the cards for yourself or others, right? So. And the difference again, between tarot and Oracle are very flexible. You can have a deck, like this deck has 68 cards, or you can have a deck, like my deck has 44 cards, right?

So you literally can, you can even have deck with 25 cards and you can create deck about anything. That's what is so beautiful, because like you right, Sarah, you created one for EFT, which is really cool. Yeah. Right. So you literally can create deck about anything. And to me it's all [00:09:00] about this transformation process.

So when I said that I picked this card this once, many, many years ago after I had this interesting experience, let's put it in when I was 19. Then ever since I did get the deck and start just playing for with myself and began playing, right, playfulness and creativity, then I had this idea in my head that I want to design one for myself.

And that idea never really got out of my head. And I pressed it with designers. I, you know, tried to do it myself in Canada, in so many, many different ways. And. Pricing was even worked with artists, but it never, I could never bring my vision to life. Mm-hmm. So when war in Ukraine actually started in 2022, like my life turned upside down and I needed to find an [00:10:00] outlet to, initially just to distract myself.

Sarah: Just to make it clear for listeners, you are from Ukraine, aren't you? 

Katya: Yeah, I am from Ukraine. I still have family in Ukraine. And so when the war started, it was, I just can't even explain. I am certified mindset coach. I'm certified hypnotist. I can use, I, I use all of my tools and nothing was working.

So I kind of went to two things, Oracle cards. And also at that time I've seen one of my mentors started to teach in AI imagery. And I'm like, okay, that would be perfect distraction, 

Sarah: right? 

Katya: And this is how I started with AI imagery, and this is where the connection with imagery and cards is as well, because it was a perfect distraction for me at first.

[00:11:00] Then as I was starting creating images, I had the purpose and I'm like, okay, I might want to create images for this modern goddess of protection for Ukraine. The name is Berehynia. And I started creating, my goal was to create 55, and then when I created and I'm like, oh, I can fundraise money with that. Oh, this is cool.

Like so, so I slowly started to come out of that big fog. That really enveloped me, right? So because I was just frozen in fear for my brother, for my nephews, for, I was just frozen in fear for my back country. And slowly I started to realise I'm coming out of this fog. And then eventually, and I don't know how that happened.

As I was playing with cards, I'm like, oh, this is interesting. Maybe I can create my own deck. Yeah. And that's what happened. And then I created five in one month. One 

Sarah: [00:12:00] Wow. That's prolific. 

Katya: But what was happening as I was creating images, I was processing some of the stuff and shifting some of the stuff that I couldn't do it with other tools. So not only just playing with Oracle cards, but creating your Oracle cards like your own.

Will be very, very transformational. Even if you create just for yourself or for us or whatever way, it could be your passion project or it could be your profit project as well. 

Sarah: That's fascinating. So there's sort of two areas there that have helped with your wellness over recent period in, in terms of with Oracle cards.

There's both the creation process itself, which is distracted and helped you to process, but also. The messages that are on the Oracle cards that you, you have and how you've interpreted the cards that you're pulling? 

Katya: Yes. So my deck is all [00:13:00] actually, it's, um, gentle shadow work and there's a lot of messages that I was going through and kind of processing some of my own shadows, like some of the examples I can give you.

At the beginning of the war, I had a huge identity crisis. Okay. And I am born in Russia, in Siberia. I grew up in Ukraine. I still have family in Russia. So, um, and that combination, like on its own, I was literally ashamed to say that I was born in Russia. Because of everything that was going on. So there is a huge identity crisis.

Huge. And through the shadow work, my own shadow work and cards, this is how cards were created. I used animals for that because as I said, my first deck was animals. Right. So it's like kind of this circle like, you know, we're coming back to that. 

Sarah: Beautiful. 

Katya: And I use, yeah, and I use [00:14:00] animals for processing different things.

And I connected a lot with animals as well and animal guides. And through that processing the deck was born. But also it allowed me to come back to myself as much as I could be and not just functioning as a shadow. So through processing of the shadows, I actually came out as a shadow. So yes. So Oracle cards could be incredible tool for people as a self-discovery.

Yeah. 

Sarah: Yeah. How would a session look if somebody has bought themselves an Oracle deck? Online? They've probably done it because they're attracted to the images in some way, or attracted to the theme in some way. So they've got their Oracle deck. What, what would someone do? What would a session look like?

Katya: Well, it can look very different for different people in [00:15:00] different sessions. And that's another thing I love about Oracle cards because it's so flexible, right? Yeah, so, so for example. You can do different spreads. They call them spreads. Same like tarot. You can use the spreads, right? So some are very well known.

Spreads are mind, body, soul, right? So people can literally say that the card number one that I'm going to draw is going to about my mind, right? The second one is going to be about my body, and next one is going to be about my soul. There is so many spreads you can create and so many spreads you can use.

But for me, what I love doing in the morning, it's one of my kind of ritual of getting grounded and getting centred, and a lot of times I will just grab one card, depending on the question. To get a really good reading for yourself or others, we need to start with good questions, [00:16:00] 

Sarah: right?

Yes. That's really important. Yeah. 

Katya: So asking yourself, well first of all, need to ground. We need to connect. We need to cleanse ourself, cleanse our space, whatever way it looks like for you. All of that is part of the ritual when you are actually grounding and centering so you can receive the message because messages are always around us.

Yeah, but are we open to listen and receive them, 

Sarah: right? Yeah. 

Katya: Or we are we running like chicken with no heads, right? So because it just, we're so busy, we don't take five minutes to stop. So in the morning or any, at any point in time, any point in your day, just sit down, centre yourself. Grab, you know, ask the question.

Whatever question could be, the great questions to ask would be open-ended and not close-ended. And the reason I always say that is [00:17:00] because when you ask close-ended questions that yes and no answer, you limiting yourself from what the universe actually has, like in store for you. 

Sarah: Yeah, 

Katya: I have to say this, or something better.

So even when I set the goals, it's this or something better. And so going back to how it looks for me, I would just grab a card. So I'm going to grab my deck here. And the process of shuffling the deck itself is very common. It's very peaceful, right? Yeah. So as you shuffle in the cards, right? So it's very peaceful and I would just centre, I would not be talking obviously when I do that, but I would be mentally asking the question, right?

So I can ask the question right now and I can say, well, what do the audience need to hear right now in this moment? Okay, [00:18:00] 

Sarah: perfect. Yeah. 

Katya: And we are going to grab the cards and sometimes something will jump out and sometimes not, and I'll just shuffle it and I'm going to, I know it's not very convenient for me to shuffle this way, but I can show you that I'm shuffling.

Okay. And I'm going to grab the card and that's the one with the typo. This is my prototype, so, uh, that's funny. So. But it's a perfect card. What is that the audience need to hear right now or need to know in this moment? And this is a this one 

Sarah: is, so for, so for people just listening, um, there's a, a beautiful bird I can see on the card with colourful feathers or it's an eagle.

Katya: It's an eagle 

Sarah: on the card with ascension. 

Katya: Yeah. And the, it's ascension. So what do we need to know from in this moment? So to me, if we're talking about Oracle cards and how to use it for your wellbeing, [00:19:00] that to me this card really indicates when we using anything for self discovery. We are growing and changing and ascending and shifting into that next version of yourself, that whatever that you desire have requires, right?

So to me, what I believe from this card, or what I'm hearing right now is that what audience need to know is that find your own way for self-discovery. It does not need to look like anybody else's. 

Sarah: Yeah. 

Katya: If you've been drawn to use the cards, tarot, lenormand, oracle, anything, playing cards for self-discovery, do it. 

Sarah: Yeah.

Katya: There is no right and wrong way. Finds a way to ascend your own way. 

Sarah: That's really interesting. So [00:20:00] it's sort of freeing yourself. From it having to be a defined way of interpreting something from the image, from the words. They often come with little guidebooks, but actually what you are saying is you don't necessarily need to be referring to what the person who's created the cards is saying that card means or could mean this for you. Literally all you need to do is ask a question draw the card. And then feel into what that could mean for you and how that guides you from a sort of intuitive level as opposed to a necessarily a having to put some sort of boundaries or pre-prescribed definition to it.

Katya: Absolutely. And what I also recommend, if you just starting. Nothing wrong. You can read the book. When I started, when I just got this uh, deck, the very first deck, I was reading the book. And then when I realised a lot [00:21:00] of times I would just pick the card and I would have immediate hit, I call them immediate hit of something and I'm like, oh, that feels so good.

And I would look at the book and it doesn't match. And sometimes it would match and sometimes it's not. And I would keep a journal. Oracle cards journal where when you are picking the card and put in the meaning. So, and kind of going back and I started to realise that my messages, which were my own, were much more accurate than what was in a book.

Sarah: Okay. 

Katya: What I say to people when you start actually just done workshop on how to read Oracle cards without guidebook this week on Tuesday. 

Sarah: Oh, perfect. 

Katya: Yeah. So, um, what I always tell to people, ask four questions. What do you see? So as soon as you pick up the card, right, so we looked at the ascension card.

So what is that, that the first thing like, you know, came to your mind? It could be colour of the feathers and the [00:22:00] bird, right? Or it could be a dream catcher in the background, or it could be just. beak of the, like, you know, this eagle, it could be any sense of what do you see and just draw it down. What do you see?

Then your next question, it could be, what do you feel?

And the next one is, what do you hear? If you hear something, if you don't, that's fine. 

Sarah: Yeah. 

Katya: And the last one is, what do you know? So those sort of like, what is that knowing that came to you immediately? Like when you look, when you see the Eagle, what is the first thought that came to you? To me it is eagle soaring, right?

So they have an incredible vision, like sight. They have like they fly really high, but they have a really great sight and vision and they can see from above so far they can find their prey and they can also [00:23:00] look at other things. Right? So what is that that, what is the knowing that come into you immediately and automatically?

Sarah: That's so interesting. 'cause it does mean it will relate to whatever that person needs to hear or needs to get from it. So for example, my initial reaction would be seeing a card like that and an eagle would be strength. 

Katya: Mm-hmm. 

Sarah: So, you know, maybe there's something in me that would be looking for a sign that said I could get strength for something.

So I, I guess that's where. You're not relying on the book, but you, you know, the book might give you ideas, as you say to begin with, but actually the power in an Oracle card is taking what is, it's very personal, the story that it, it takes and being open to interpret it in that way and take what you need from it in that way.

Katya: Absolutely 

Sarah: guess with a tarot [00:24:00] deck, people obvious often have a very kind of specific that, that tend to be connected to either fortune telling or something they have, a different connotations around them. Whereas an Oracle deck, there's such a variety for you to interpret the way that you want.

Katya: I like to say nothing has a meaning except the meaning would give it. 

And that's one of those things, like even with my tarot decks that I showed, I do use it more like an Oracle deck. I will look at the card and this one Light Seers doesn't have like original symbols or original paintings. Right? Like of original tarot designs, and it gives me an opportunity to really lean into it.

Like into Oracle Deck as well, right? Yeah. So I don't use cards for divination even, so I had many instances where I predicted [00:25:00] something, and most of the time, actually two instances, there were not very pleasant instances and. It scared me a little bit, especially when I was 19, I literally abandoned it myself.

I'm like, I'm not touching it, I'm not doing it. I'm not looking at this. The recent and 

Sarah: understandable based on your experience. 

Katya: Yeah, but in the recent one it's actually I leaned into it and I allowed myself to go through the feelings and I allowed to go through a lot of things and I'm still going through a lot of things and grief and all of that stuff, so, and with my recent experience, it's actually was when my brother was, we were trying to bring him here to Canada from Ukraine. From war and unfortunately, he tragically passed on the way. And I was on a call with my teacher of tarot and I picked 10 of Swords. If somebody knows anything about [00:26:00] tarot I don't have original one here, but if you want to look it up, it's a card where the man is lying down was a sword in his back.

Sarah: Wow. 

Katya: So the way I interpreted it, and it was during this time when we were trying to bring him and the way I interpreted it, that he will make it through, because I did not really want it to see the true message. Right. So, yeah, and, but this time I really leaned into it and, um, because for some, at some point I was blaming myself for what if I could've stopped something. Right. So, and there is a lot of what ifs. 

Sarah: Yeah. 

Katya: And there's a lot of stuff that were not, they're not in our control. Yeah. They're simply not in our control 

Sarah: so I find that quite interesting. At what point do you take the message that you get from the card and it directs [00:27:00] your actions in terms of.

A fear of something happening because you've seen it in a card or a belief that it means, I dunno, you're gonna win the lottery. So you go and spend a lot of money on lottery tickets or something and what would your recommendations be for people in terms of using them for sort of healthy guidance as opposed to a nd a need to follow a certain path. 

Katya: That's a really great question, and to me, the answer will lie in. That's why I love using cards for my own personal use mostly, and every time that I notice, if I'm asking for somebody else. The messages are very different, right? So, and especially like in their situations and stuff like that.

And but I also choose what I do readings for. So I do readings for [00:28:00] others, but I choose what I do readings for and. At what point of time do we get addicted to get the message from the cards versus getting messages from ourselves? 

Sarah: Yes. 

Katya: If you using the Oracle cards, the ways that I am using them, you actually tuning in yourself.

I'm not going into the book and reading exactly what book is telling me the way I'm asking the question, and reflecting on that through the four, four questions on top of it, right? So what do I see? What do I hear? What do I feel? What do I know? It comes from inside of me because the card is there as a mirror

 That's a 

Sarah: great way of looking at 

it. 

Katya: The card doesn't tell me to do anything. 

Sarah: Yeah. 

Katya: What's coming up is already inside of me. It could be some shadows I'm working through, or it could be something else that I'm working through. Right. So it could be [00:29:00] completely something unrelated. I don't use cards to tell me what to do, and I think this is one of the biggest thing that people need to realise is as soon as we're going to look at the, as soon as I always say, asking for a sign is a sign.

Sarah: Okay. 

Katya: Okay. So paying attention to the signs is very different. 

Sarah: Yeah. 

Katya: Asking for a sign is already a sign because you probably know the answer inside of you and you're trying to get the confirmation. 

Sarah: Right. Okay. Yes. 

Katya: So, 

Sarah: and in, in that case you may be, you may be reaching for a, for an Oracle deck, hoping to see something.

Katya: Exactly. And another thing I always say. Sometimes you would draw the card and it brings you something in you and you are like, oh, let me draw. Draw another one. And you will either get the same one or you [00:30:00] will get something very similar. Because again, it's inside of you. What is that? That inside of you, you are connecting.

We're not using it for divination. 

Sarah: Yes, 

Katya: we are using it for self-reflection. But it's also very healing because you getting to know yourself so much better. 

Sarah: So, so that's, that's really interesting, isn't it? It it, this element of asking yourself the right questions that help you sort of unpeel those, those layers so that you can get to know yourself better.

Are there any things that you've found out about yourself that have surprised you as a result of using Oracle cards. 

Katya: One of the things that I always knew about myself, but it was a great confirmation. I don't think it was a surprise, but my highest clair is claircognizance, which means that I just know.

Sarah: Okay. 

Katya: And knowledge coming, like some people would say, well, how did you know that? Did you read a book about it? No, I [00:31:00] just knew it. It just came to me. So when I'm with a client, I just know exactly what the client needs in the moment when I'm working with them.

Sarah: Wow, that's powerful. 

Katya: So it could be either in just mindset coaching or in my hypnosis sessions, and hypnosis is very powerful to be so flexible to understand. Where are we going? Because there is a script with hypnosis, which is great, and you prepare them ahead of time. But what makes a really great hypnotist from the one who is following the script is the one who can realise that in this moment of whatever the client experiencing that there is, needs to be something moved in a different directions that you wrote the script.

Because we're shifting something particular, but the cards helped me to actually realise that it [00:32:00] is truly my gift of the claircognizance. Because every time I would pull the card and write my questions, you know, what do I see? What do I feel, what do I know, what do I hear? I would immediately know. 

And every time I would look at it, my knowing was more accurate than others. My other clairs is what I mean. 

Sarah: Yes. Yeah. 

Katya: Yeah. 

Sarah: That's really interesting. Have, so you've mentioned the hypnosis side that, that you've been doing there recently. Have you found your work with Oracle cards has opened up other areas for you or what.

What other complementary or alternative techniques do you use that, that you work with or aside from Oracle cards? 

Katya: My biggest philosophy is playing and really treating life as a game because it is, right? So it's a game and we, we we're [00:33:00] taking it way too serious. And to me, like playing with AI imagery, playing with cards, playing with creativity, creating something.

Creativity is our, you know, we are born with creativity. We are all creative. And then at some point of time. Some teacher might tell us, well, your picture is not really pretty. You will never be an artist or something like that. And it blocks us. But when we born, we are creative, we're playful. We, we are absolutely, you know, we're open to everything in this world.

And few things that I use as my own method, especially with hypnosis. I'm not a hypnotherapist, I'm hypnotist. I use visual anchors, and the way we create visual anchors we create it with AI because that's how. Is what helped me to take what out, what is in my head and put it in the image, right?

Right? So, so we can shift it. And also [00:34:00] shifting identity we use in the. A lot of visualization techniques on top of the hypnosis as well, so you can imagine yourself as you are already in your desired life.

Sarah: Beautiful. 

Katya: When people are in hypnosis, they might have very vivid imagery either visuals or just knowing. Could be either way. And what I do with all of my clients, I actually, right after the session, we talk through kind of what do they remember? Sometimes they don't remember everything, right? So, but they do remember a lot of things and they gain a lot of clarity.

And I always ask them, did you have anything like this vivid imagery? And if they did. If they're familiar with AI tools and if I know that they're using it, I actually will encourage them to create that visual anchor for them. 

Sarah: That's incredible that [00:35:00] that combination of using yes, hypnotism and AI. I hadn't even considered that the two would even be vaguely complimentary to each other.

But I can totally see from what you've said, 

Katya: how that could and what people see in when they in hypnotic state once they can actually, and some of my clients and I have this group programmes that I'm doing and some of them shared their imagery. It just absolutely incredible. And when. Visual anchors are so important and they're not talked about.

And actually, your cards, you're pulling up the cards. I have this card that I pulled yesterday and it's sitting on my desk. I didn't pull one today yet. So that's my visual anchor, 

Sarah: right? 

Katya: Right. So that's my visual anchor. It's right in front of me. So remember, and sometimes I do it in the morning and sometimes I do it during, during the day.

It's really depends on my [00:36:00] schedule. But when I am working at my desk, right, so, and I have a very busy business and things happen. You can be pulled in multiple direction and my visual anchor is right there. This is what I am. Anchoring to today based on that 

Sarah: question, was that anchoring you to a feeling or to a certain memory, 

or 

Katya: it could be anything.

It depends on what it is. If the, if we're talking about visual anchor in hypnosis, so let's say I've done a soul connection, soul purpose session yesterday was one of the clients, and for her specifically, she's seen something. There was a vivid imagery. For her, we wanted to anchor it. So she remembers every time she looks at this image, she remembers how she felt connecting with her soul, connecting with her purpose.

So anytime she looking at her visual, [00:37:00] her visual anchor, she will remember why she's here. So that's just an example for that. But for me, every day, right? So whatever it could be. Like for example, if we pulled, like say I would pull this card today, Ascension, right? So to me, I would just have it in front of me and as a reminder, and let's say I'm working with something and my tech doesn't work or something else coming on, right?

So instead of me getting into why me? What's going on just by looking at this card, I'm like, oh, okay. New level, new devil. I'm ascending right now. We're just going to go through that. Which is going to playfully go through that. Maybe I just need to stop and pause and let the tech do its own thing, or maybe I need to submit tech ticket and figure out that.

Yeah. So that anchors you for the whole day. So my whole philosophy, I have a [00:38:00] journal actually that is on Amazon, and my whole thing is about. How do you want to feel today? That's one of the questions I actually ask myself, and it has nothing to do with cards, but when I wake up in the morning, I ask myself, how do I want to feel today?

Sarah: Okay. 

Katya: And some days I want to feel on fire and just like, you know, and be there productive and whatever it could be. And some day I want to be very quiet and peaceful, and some days I want to be playful and some days I want to be something else, right? So some days I want to be, uh, connected, more connected, more connected to nature, or more connected to source, universe, whatever it is your feelings that you want to. And you can use that as an anchor too. Yes. 'cause if you really set your day for that, how do you want to feel then when you out of alignments throughout the day, you can remind myself, oh, interesting. I said that I really want to be playful and I'm being bitchy right now.

[00:39:00] Right. So 

Sarah: yeah. 

Katya: How can I turn it into the playfulness right now? Or whatever it could be. 

Sarah: I can see how that could be really powerful to set that sort of intention first thing in the morning. And then from there you are sort of directing yourself towards that intention. And if, as you say, if you go off your path, it's great to have some kind of visual anchor or something just to remind you of what your intention was and kind of gently steer yourself back on track.

Yeah. 

Katya: But there is other ways you can use cards as well. And I actually have free guides that I call 200 ways to use Oracle Cards in your business. So I'll be happy to share it with the audience as well if they want to download it. And it's absolutely free and you can just experiment and see. Which one you might apply and which one might align with you if you, if you are running of your businesses and one of the spreads, remember you said, well, how do you do that?

Like, I normally do one [00:40:00] card, but sometimes I would sit down and there is very intentional spreads that I do. My favourite one is super simple card number one. What do I think is happening? So the question is, what do I think is happening? Card number two, what is really happening? 

Sarah: Okay. 

Katya: And card number three, what is my next step?

That's all right. So, and it's all obviously specifically to whatever is that you asking, right? So what do you think is happening when it, you know, pertains to? What is really happening when it pertains to the same thing and what is my next step when it pertains to the thing? So that is very simple one that you can use any time and it's very eye-opening because our perception of what's what is happening is very different.

What is really happening? So yes, 

Sarah: it can often be the case. Yes. 

Katya: Yeah. So I love using that particular, we call them [00:41:00] spreads. So card number one, card number two, card number three, and you will pick the cards and you will just from any deck, right? So you can do it from any deck and some of the decks. If you don't own any deck you can also go to platforms like Deckable, where Sarah has her deck, for example.

You can use it digitally. A very different experience. Like with Sarah's decks, you can actually hear her doing the tapping and affirmation as you tap in, so, which is really great. So it's a very different experience from the paper deck because you can't really press, you know, card 

mm-hmm. 

Katya: And make it make sound.

Not yet. Not yet. Technology is not there yet. Right? So technology is not there. Here, I guess 

Sarah: you can have the, uh, QR codes on them, can't you? Absolutely. Yeah. So you could, you could start to, uh, incorporate it in that way, but I just love the message of being able to sort of use them to direct your consciousness as well, or bring you, bring you to a state of being conscious of [00:42:00] what it is that you're doing, what your intention is and then helping that.

Yeah, 

Katya: bring 

Sarah: you to, to a, a greater sense of wellness in that you are feeling more confident in yourself, you're feeling more grounded, you're feeling like you have confidence in your direction, whether that's, you know, pulling it from the message that came, or actually 

Katya: from yourself 

Sarah: interpreting it from.

Katya: Yeah, 

Sarah: as a message that's coming from yourself. So I could talk to you all day about this, Katya,

Katya: I actually wanted to add something like really fun way to use cards in your business. I'm going to be doing workshop on December 11th about that. We're going to plan 2026 using Oracle card.

And it's a very cool way to do that because again, it's not what the card is telling you 'cause you already know what are your goals, kind of what do you want to achieve? What is that like kind of [00:43:00] overall. But we are going to look at what is the theme for the year going to be? What is like a break it down in quarters and just by pulling cards.

And 'cause again, it's like, what is that telling you? What is the intuition is telling you that this card is saying? 

Sarah: And we don't listen to ourselves, do we enough? Mm-hmm. We're just sort of, we're almost victims to circumstance as opposed to, uh, listening to, as you say, the things that deep down we already know, or deep down we know we want to get to.

So that sounds, that sounds like an incredible session. I, we'll definitely be looking into that. Okay. But yeah, as I say, we, I could talk all day about this Katya. I just wanted to bring us onto the fact that you have the wonderful Oracle Cards Magic membership that you, um, open at certain times of the year now.

Katya: Yes. 

Sarah: So, if any listeners are interested in creating their own Oracle [00:44:00] decks, then be sure to follow some of the links I'll have in the show notes so you can keep in touch with Katya and follow Katya. She has got, free group available as well. And then you can find out when her Oracle Cards Magic membership opens as well, which I would highly recommend.

There is no way I would've created a deck if it wasn't for Katya. It was the way she lays it out and everything is absolutely beautiful. And you will also meet some other incredible members in there that are so inspiring and have done some incredible things with Oracle decks. Yeah. But I certainly have learned so much from this session.

Katya, thank you so much for being such a fantastic guest

Katya: thank you so much for having me. And I just wanted to say that the links that Sarah will give you, there is a wait list. So when you like, you know, if you are interested, just join on a wait list. Sometimes we do openings, just a flash opening to wait list only, so [00:45:00] watch out for that as well.

But normally we open once or twice or three times a year, depending on a year. 

Sarah: Okay. Fantastic. Well, thank you Katya. I will be, uh, heading off to see what your things are that are coming up and otherwise I hope to see you again soon. 

Katya: Thank you. 

 Wow. That was profound Katya's story from the shocking incident at 19 that made her abandoned cards for 25 years to using them to process the trauma of war in Ukraine and the devastating loss of her brother that stays with you. A few key things. I loved how clear she was about the difference between using cards for divination versus self-reflection.

"The card is a mirror", she said. what comes up is already inside you. The four questions, when you pull a card, what do you see, [00:46:00] feel, hear, and know. They take you out of the guidebook and into your own intuition. The card doesn't tell you what to do.

It reflects back what you're already feeling, thinking, or avoiding. I love the live card pull. Ascension.. Find your own way for self-discovery. It doesn't need to look like anyone else's. And the unexpected connections. Oracle cards with hypnosis, AI imagery, visual anchors showed just how multifaceted transformation work can be.

If you are interested in Katya's Oracle Cards Magic membership or her December the 11th workshop on planning 2026 using Oracle Cards, all the links are in the show notes. I've created my own tapping decks through her programme so I can personally vouch for it.

Thank you Katya so much for today's raw, [00:47:00] honest vulnerability. Until next time, take care of yourselves. And remember, there are many paths to wellness and sometimes they're hidden in the questions we ask ourselves and having the courage to look at what's already inside us.