by Diana Winingder



Ho Shin is an ancient Japanese healing art that involves the removal of the bee stinger and careful placement along the same meridian points used in Acupuncture and other Eastern medicine. I have known Voyce for years. She is a family friend and the one who taught me Reiki, an energy healing method. But her soothing voice and gentle hands were not enough to convince me of my comfort and safety. I was just looking for a place to spend the night and I found myself a victim of an unusual healing practice.

Voyce is the only Ho Shin practitioner in the United States that she knows of. Bee sting therapy is widely practiced around the world. Bee sting therapy is the placement of the whole bee on the skin; Ho Shin involves the removal of the stinger which is far less painful. The Mayas in the Americas have been using bee sting therapy since 3,000 BC. Ho Shin Do means in Japanese “the way of the bee” and is defined by the science or method of vibration. The way it works is a small dose of venom activates the body’s own immune system to coordinate with the meridian points where the venom is placed.

After a heart attack in 1994, Voyce traveled to Australia and Japan to give several speeches. On a trip to a monastery in Japan she aggravated a reoccurring leg injury. When she couldn’t walk up the stairs of the temple her guide suggested she visit one of their healers, as long as she didn’t mind getting stung by bees. This seemed like a strange suggestion yet she did not have any other options. She received a Ho Shin treatment on her knee and the next day she could walk without pain. Her healer, Tadako Endo Samo became her teacher. She returned to Japan to complete a three year apprenticeship period that included morning class, afternoon clinical work, evening discussion, and testing in Japanese. She was the first foreigner to learn Ho Shin.

While I was lying on the table I looked around her room. Hanging on the wall were various diplomas written both in English and Japanese characters. The bees were in a small plastic box near my head and they did not sound happy. The buzzing seemed to come in waves, as soon as one started they all picked up in sync. I tried to sympathize with them but could not take my mind off my own fate. I wondered if anyone was going to benefit from this healing adventure. The bees die as soon as the stinger is removed, I was going to be left with painful red splotches, and Voyce would have to listen to me complain about the pain. Voyce began the treatment by lighting a smudge of sweet grass and fanning me with a Native American fan. She then read my pulses, which is typical of Eastern medicine. My kidneys were sending the wrong signal so that is where she focused her healing powers.

She put her hands on my head to begin with a Reiki treatment and I instantly knew I was in the right place at the right time. Even though I myself have been trained to do Reiki I have no doubt that this feels much better than anything my hands can produce. Reiki is an Eastern healing technique that helps balance the energy in the body. It is thought that if there is pain or illness then the energy is not flowing through the body as it should. Reiki removes these “blockages” because the practitioner’s hands are able to move the energy as if they are magnets. This is not anything magical or spiritual, it is very similar to massage. It is as relaxing as getting a message without the painful manipulation of the muscles. To be certified in Reiki it takes about three days of class with a Reiki Master like Voyce.

Her hands were warm and reassuring. She put her hands gently over my eyes and it felt so good I never wanted to open them again. She rocked my head to relax my body and I was in such a calm state that the fear of bees had temporarily dissipated. Then I heard the bees beginning their rebellious surge of activity. They knew something was up. Voyce removed her hands and I simultaneously started to stiffen my body in preparation for the dreaded sting. She opened the clear plastic box and removed one of the unfortunate victims. With tweezers and a steady hand she removed the stinger. Digging my fingernails in my palms I held my breadth. She casually explained what she was going to do. First she was going to do a test sting to make sure I did not have an allergic reaction to bee venom. On each side of my stomach she taped the stinger in the skin. I waited for the pain but to be honest it didn’t feel like much. If anything it just slightly itched. We chatted for a minute or two while the red circle grew slightly bigger.

I thought it was bad news that I was not allergic to bee venom. I assumed that since this was a test it was not going to have the same potency that the actual treatment would have. Since my kidney is what needed attention, she began by placing the stingers on reflexology points on my feet that coordinate with the kidney organs. Nothing. It didn’t hurt at all. I cannot explain why but it actually felt good. She then put a few stingers in my knees, another meridian place that coordinates with the kidneys. I do not even know what my kidneys do but I am convinced they feel better. The final bee sting was at the top of my head. This would help with clarity of thought and decision making, something I could use. For this final sting she left the stinger in a bit longer than in the other positions. I recognized that pain could be associated with this sensation but I did not experience pain at all. I felt a warmth traveling around my head and down my jaw. This was definitely something I could get used to.

In addition to being a healer, Voyce is also a bee keeper. She has her own bee hives in her back yard. She moved to Santa Fe a year ago and brought one hive from Louisiana and bought a native New Mexican hive. There are about 20,000-50,000 bees in each hive. The bees that she uses for Ho Shin are bees that have left the hive in order to protect it. These bees are on their last few days to live. Honeybees live about 4-6 weeks on average but in the winter they can live longer because they do not work as hard producing honey. They make honey by collecting nectar and fanning it vigorously their wings until it thickens. The queen bee lives 4-6 years and lays about 2,000 eggs per day.

I had the opportunity to go with Voyce to collect her bees. They usually live in her box for up to ten days with enough honey. She put on her white cotton jumpsuit, mesh helmet, boots, and rubber gloves. I cautiously followed her through the New Mexican landscape to her hives. From a safe distance I watched as she carefully removed a panel of wood, tapped the box to “wake them up”, and began to catch her bees. The longer we stood there the more bees ventured out into the crisp, cool air. She explained that the bees are more aggressive when it is cold, and I took a cautious step back. I had already been stung, I felt a lot braver, and had a stronger appreciation for these little pests. I still was not going to trust them completely.

“The more I work with bees the more in awe I am of what the bees do for humanity.” She explained that in addition to cross-pollinating our fruits and vegetables they provide many foods for us from their direct efforts. They create honey as a source of food for themselves. Honey has been used across they world for thousands of years as a sweat additive with incredible assets. Pollen, Propolis, and Royal Jelly are three other bee products that have amazing healing properties.

Bee venom has at least seventy components that allow it to have healing effects in the human body. Hyaluronidase helps make cell tissue permeable. Phospholipase is an emulsifier that detoxifies cells. Apamin helps with damaged nerve receptors. Melittin creates a histamine reaction that has anti-inflammatory effects. Most of her clients have degenerative diseases such as MS, arthritis, fibromyalgia, scatia, lupus, and gout. It is also highly effective on chronic illness and pain, allergies, and boosting short term memory.

Voyce calls her healing technique the “Wing Touch Healing Art System”. She has incorporated Ho Shin with other healing techniques from around the world. She combines Native American fanning, Reiki, and Ho Shin. As I look around the room the corners have little shrines filled with different sacred symbols. There are artistic shrines from Peru, Indian drums, Tibetan Buddhas, and her own Japanese art. Each shrine has one thing in common; there are bees in every one. She thanks the bees for their sacrifices and gifts. Hanging on the wall is an atlas of Acupuncture. Her many book shelves are filled with poetry, philosophy, and human anatomy. The massage table is in the center of the room and I yearn to be back on it as I say good bye to a true healer and friend.