The next edition of the Czech Centre’s Women in Focus series takes a unique turn—this time delving into the deeply personal and spiritual. Juliet Vopěnka Navrátilová, author, shamanic practitioner, Blue Badge guide, and anthropology student, shares her transformative journey from illness and emotional struggle to healing and empowerment. Through sensitivity, ritual, and connection, she redefines what it means to thrive in today’s world.
About Juliet Vopěnka Navrátilová
Juliet left the Czech Republic at 19 and spent two decades in London after a few years in Berlin. Her lifelong sensitivity, once a burden, became a strength during a deep “alchemical journey of metamorphoses.” This is also the subtitle of her second book, Cesta (ne)mocné Londýňanky (The Journey of a Power(less) Londoner), which explores trauma, healing, and shamanic calling. Her London life included work in Wandsworth prison and as a Blue Badge guide. With degrees in Social and Medical Anthropology from Goldsmiths and UCL, her study focused on consciousness, ecofeminism, and ritual. Her first book, Myslet srdcem (Thinking with the Heart), became a Czech bestseller.
About the Theme of the Evening – An Empath’s Journey from Rags to Riches
In this edition of the Czech Centre’s Women in Focus series, Juliet Vopěnka Navrátilová offers a deeply personal and spiritual reflection on living with extreme sensitivity. Her “shamanic illness” became the turning point that redirected her path—from illness and emotional struggle to healing, empowerment, and purpose. In this context, “rags to riches” refers not to material wealth, but to emotional, mental, and spiritual abundance gained through self-understanding.
Through travels in Latin America and participation in shamanic ceremonies, Juliet came to see her empathic nature as a gift rather than a burden. Empaths—highly sensitive, neurodiverse individuals—often absorb others’ emotions unconsciously, leading to exhaustion and illness. By embracing her sensitivity, she now helps others reconnect with their intuition and inner power. As a shamanic practitioner, she also energetically cleanses homes and spaces. Her journey is one of transformation through ritual, awareness, and heart-centred connection.
www.thinkingwiththeheart.com
www.mysletsrdcem.cz
Juliet will be in conversation with Suzanne Edwards
Suzanne has been friends with Juliet for nearly 20 years. She is a published author of three books about spirituality, two of which are on the topic of shamanism. She is a spiritual teacher specialising in dream work and shamanic healing. She is currently researching the subject of ancient dream practices in different cultures including Egypt, Greece, Mexico, China and the Amazon. She is an empath living in London and has had a massage practice there for over 25 years.
Event took place on Tue 13 May 2025 at the Czech Centre at the Czech Embassy Cinema.
More information: https://london.czechcentres.cz/en/program/juliet-vopenka-navratilova
#womeninfocus #shamanic #healing
