Getting to Know Your Chakras
In your bod you have these awesome wheels of energy, the Chakras. The word "Chakra" comes from a Sanskrit root and means “wheel of life.” Chakras are energy centres strung from your ass to your head and correspond to endocrine glands controlling hormonal balance. We want the energy in these Chakras to be balanced. Believe me, the key word here is “balanced”—not too much energy, and not too little. Reiki works to keep the right amount of energy flowing so that the Chakras can do their thing.
Root Chakra:
This Chakra is located at the base of the spine, snuggly between the genitals and naval. We get our Root Chakra at birth. The health of our Root Chakra SERIOUSLY affects every other Chakra. Spiritual growth MUST, like totally has to, start with the Root. If your Root is fucked, you cannot be aligned. Your Root governs money, career, family—essentially EVERYTHING. The Root Chakra develops between ages three and five, and can continue to grow our entire lives. It’s strongly connected with your childhood past. This is why Buddhists and Asian cultures in general are so persistent about staying in the present. Living in the past does serious damage to our Root, throwing us deeply out of alignment. When we aren’t balanced, we are either too much or too little. Here are just a few examples: depression, suicidal tendencies, addiction, eating disorders, lack of confidence, greed, frustration, anxiety, living beyond your means, anger, inability to see yourself clearly, resisting change, codependency and lastly—my personal favourite—and the one I totally got sucked into for years: keeping up with the Jones.
Sacral Chakra
This one is located a couple of inches below the naval. The Sacral Chakra regulates sexual energy, sexual orientation, and—I personally love this—food. Who wants great food almost as much as a great orgasm, right? You get the addiction theme. The Sacral Chakra begins developing at about age one to age three, and is totally developed by about age eight. My husband calls it the "Magnet Chakra." I’m so into that because you know you’re good if you get along well with others. Do people gravitate towards you or veer away? Hmmmm. Are you flexible? Or do you try to control situations? This Chakra is super-magical, if healthy. It has purification power and cleansing power... hence the magnet. If out of balance... not so much. Then we get into explosive energy. Taking things personally, too self-involved, selfishness, inflexibility, an inability to nurture children or partners. Depending whether the energy is over- or under active-, it can result in zero sexual desire or unappeasable sexual appetite! Also kidney problems, UTI, ankle and leg issues, menstrual issues, muscle cramps and stiffness, lethargy, skin issues, constipation, allergies, and muscle cramps.
Solar Plexus Chakra
When I do energy work, this is the Chakra that I’m always the most drawn to. It develops between eighteen months and five years old. Yep, just when the core self, personality and ego are formed. I totally get those advertising campaigns saying that the first five years are the most important ones. Everything from why we have pink or blonde hair, to why you can’t leave the house without make up, to why you can't quit smoking, and why you are you: it’s here, in the Solar Plexus, located right in the centre of the body. When it's out of balance, low self-esteem might manifest as domineering and aggressive. Or in anger and rage. Helplessness. Other issues related to the Solar Plexus include being timid, irresponsible, passive, anxious, and fearful, along with digestive problems, constipation, irritability, fatigue, anger, diabetes, gallstones, and weight loss or gain.
Heart Chakra
Yum. Yes. This is all about inner peace, the ability to deeply love others as well as yourself. Empathy. The Heart Chakra develops between ages four and seven—damage during this time deeply affects our ability to relate to others and to express love. Reiki energy healing can help with that. This chakra is at the centre of the chest and is crucial for the energy work above and below it. Often there are blocks around the heart from past trauma that need to be broken up. When the Heart Chakra is not balanced, you may find difficulties in relationships, a lack of compassion (except for yourself), jealousy, financial and emotional insecurities, co-dependency, negativity, pessimism, shyness, loneliness, vengefulness, being judgy and possessive. Essentially you are suffocating people with your love. Or you are living in your ego and not your soul, and totally feeding the WRONG beast. If you don’t know what that means, you need to follow my social media. Heart problems, insomnia, and immune issues.
Throat Chakra
I’m not gonna lie: I’m a talker. It’s sort of a problem for me. It’s all over most of my website. I don’t want to disappoint anyone who pays for a live session so I never shut up. I’m REALLY REALLY REALLY working on this. For many years I didn’t speak my truth. I spoke all day, but not my truth. Now it’s like emotional vomit that just won't stop coming out of my mouth. I want everyone I’m working with to OPEN THEIR THROAT CHAKRA!!! It’s a game changer!!! When you speak your truth, things change. Since my husband is not a mind reader, he loves knowing REALLY how I feel and EXACTLY what I want. Guess what: it’s fucking liberating too. I don’t have any time for BS. So, back to the Throat Chakra. It manages personal communication and personal magnetism. Centre for dreaming and imagination. The throat chakra develops at age 12 and continues to grow into early adulthood. It can mature throughout life!!! How amazing is that? As someone who practices Shamanism, the dreaming component is so important. Be impeccable with your work in the waking world so you can transcend while dreaming! Ok.... I’ll shut up for now. If the Throat Chakra is out of balance, look for poor communication with others, arrogance, talking too much or too little, inability to express thoughts, dishonesty, lack of creativity, and restlessness. Of course, you won’t really say how you really feel.
Third-Eye Chakra
This is a powerful node between the eyes just above the brow area. It governs intuition, vision and dreams, and starts to develop at adolescence through early adulthood. If you have psychic gifts, it can be attuned as early as birth. Some people never develop this chakra. When the Third-Eye Chakra is open, you’ve got a great tribe. You know who's on the phone before it rings or that an old friend is in need of support. You can even find parking places! You vibe easily with others. Your intuition is on and functioning, but you get that you’re riding high and that you need grounding. Because, because. When the Third-Eye Chakra is unbalanced, it's associated with mania, lack of self-discipline, fear of success, self-sabotage, disrespect of authority, deflection, cyber-bullying, migraines, sinus issues, eye issues, poor memory and problems sleeping.
Crown Chakra
Talk about being at the top! The Crown Chakra at the top of your head connects to universal consciousness. Its development may begin in your mid-twenties, but alas, most data shows that many people don’t develop the Crown Chakra until the last few moments before death when they see “the light” or “flashback with clarity.” This chakra cannot fully develop until your nervous system can handle it. After you’ve established a steady meditation practice, begin with Crown Chakra mindfulness only a tiny bit at a time. I’m talking JUST a minute a week to stay balanced. When this baby is out of alignment, expect the worst: destructiveness of self and others, deep psychological issues, deficient energy, dissociation, extreme depression and anxiety, and cessation of any spirituality. We don't want that, now do we? You get the idea. If this Chakra is open, you SERIOUSLY SERIOUSLY ground.
If any of your chakras feel out of balance, check out my Spotify playlist with healing frequencies to help you achieve balance. I also offer distance Reiki with every spiritual advising appointment. Follow my social media for tips and tricks for the self healers.