Whether you believe in the magical world of chakras or not, they’re still a good way to organize and take inventory of what’s going on int the mind, body and mother-lovin’ soul.
Over the course of the next several weeks I’ll be exploring each major chakra, explaining what they represent, what it looks like if they’re out of whack, and offer a few tricks to bring them back into balance.
And, of course, we’ll apply the five keys of Self Care Independence, so you can make the most of your chakra love.
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Welcome to the podcast, Unlocking Wellness! I'm Crystal McLain, Licensed Clinical Massage Therapist, and Self-Care Coach and I'm exploring ways to unlock our wellness barriers so we can create Self Care Independence, because we find our freedom when we’re living well.
Hello my friend, I hope you’re doing well, and if you’re not then I hope you find this episode insightful. AND, if you’d like to read along while you listen, I offer that feature at my website: crystalmclaincreative.com. You can find a direct link to this episode in the show notes below. And, if you want to make sure you never miss an episode, you can either sign up for my newsletter, or subscribe to my podcast wherever you like to listen most.
Also, if you’d like to support my mission to provide practical and affordable self care resources to the masses, you can join my friends over at Patreon and score some sweet perks to help you create Self Care Independence. Memberships start at just $5/month. Or, if you’d rather, you can just drop a little coin in my PayPal account. No amount is too small, and I greatly appreciate the exchange of love and support.
So, if you’re into it, I’ll leave links to all this stuff below in the show notes.
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Alright, let’s get to it.
So, there are 7 primary chakras, being the root, sacral, solar plexus, heart, throat, third eye, and crown. And it’s the root chakra that’s probably the most important one to wrangle back into balance FIRST, because it’s kind of the foundation. And when we have a strong, solid foundation, it’s easier to support the rest of the stuff that needs our TLC.
But we’re not gonna get into the root chakra today. No, sorry, friend. We’ll get to that next time. Promise. Instead, we’re going to learn what chakras actually are.
And the reason we’re learning about what they are before we start trying to wrangle them back into business, is because it’s important that we have a better understanding of something before we try bringing it into our lives, no matter what that thing may be.
When we have awareness, it’s easier to have an open mind (and, of course, mindset and awareness are the first two keys to creating Self Care Independence).
And when we’re open-minded and have awareness, it’s easier to find purpose and direction in our choices, which consequently makes finding authentic motivators easier, and leads us to taking action. Fundamental Self Care Independence stuff.
Anyway, let’s learn about chakras.
So, we’re gonna go way back to some basic science. Do you remember learning about atoms when you were a kid? Yeah, we’re going back that far…
Just in case you forgot, atoms are (almost) the smallest particle of everything in existence. You, me, a cheese burger, a fart, the moon, the ocean, and the fancy electronic gadget that’s delivering you this information, are all made of atoms. Everything everywhere is made of atoms. Different types of atoms, yes, but atoms nonetheless.
Well, the reason these atoms are able to bond together in the first place is because of something called, chemical energy.
And it’s this energy that bonds specific atoms together to create distinct molecules, and distinct molecules gather together to create specialized cells (at least when we're talking about living organisms). And these specialized cells then become really cool things like organs, blood, bones, and fat. And before you know it, bing-bang-boom, here you are; a living, breathing human.
And within this fancy human body of yours, the magical bits that are made from energetically fused specialized cells are then organized into several different systems that carry out specific functions. Like, your cardiovascular, respiratory, and digestive systems, just to name a few. But there’s one system in particular that’s in charge of operating ALL of the systems. And that would be the nervous system.
So, your brain, spinal cord, and a boat load of nerves communicate with your internal and external environment (inside and outside of your body), and they manipulate everything in your body including things like your heart rate, hormone production, body temperature, thoughts, feelings and behaviors.
And this communication happens by way electrical impulses. And the reason why any of this is happening, is because that is how the body maintains homeostasis, which really just means, healthy, balanced, and working just fine.
But, my friend, as you are painfully aware, shit ain’t always fine.
When we’re functioning at optimal capacity, all of this energy and electricity is flowing beautifully. Our systems are operating sufficiently, we’re free of disease and dysfunction, we feel capable in our endeavors, we’ve got plenty of juice to get us through the day, we sleep well at night, and we’re able to rise to life’s challenges.
But, what if we’re not functioning at optimal capacity? Well, it means that there are variables that are keeping your energy from flowing as well as it could.
Remember, energy is how everything exists in your body, and electricity is how these things communicate with one another in order to keep you healthy.
(enter the chakras)
So, chakras, can be thought of as zones throughout the body where this energy is processed and transported. They’re connected to major nerve centers, and those nerves are connected to different organs and functions throughout the body and mind.
These seven major chakras are located at the base of the spine, about two inches below and about two inches above the navel, in the center of the chest where the sternum is, at the base of the neck, between the clavicles, between the eyebrows, and at the tippy top crown of the head.
And if your energy is all blocked and wonky, it will manifest as physical, emotional, psychological, spiritual or energetic dysfunction. Think of a pinched garden hose or a clogged drain. You’re not going to get the desired results if you don’t have the proper flow, right?
But, lucky for us, there are lots of things we can do to get our energy back in motion.
Now, this whole chakra system concept isn’t anything new, there’s documentation of it reaching as far back as 1500 BC in India. So, you know, it’s been around for a minute.
And since chakra balancing is now practiced all over the world, including right here in good ol’ America, there might be something here worth looking into, right?
Right.
So, let’s take a minute to understand a little more science before we learn a little more about chakras.
So, when life presents us with unsavory circumstances (or any circumstance, for that matter), the body receives this through different stimuli. And we take in this stimuli through our senses, sight, sound, taste, touch, smell, and our internal ‘gut’ sensations. Our sensory receptors then send this information to the brain through those electrical impulses I was talking about earlier. The brain then devises a plan for you based on the information it’s just received AND the information that’s stored in your subconscious. Your subconscious is where your thoughts, feelings and beliefs from PAST experiences are stored….along with a few other things.
So, depending on a boat load of variables, like how well you were nurtured, the traumas and dramas of your life, diet, exercise, social support systems, creative outlets, positive challenges, rest, and so-many-other-variables, your brain will deal with your circumstances in very specific ways. And the brain’s main objective, always, is keeping you safe.
But here’s the kicker, your subconscious brain isn’t always so helpful.
If you weren’t nurtured properly, or you’ve got a lot of drama in your life, or you eat like shit, or you compulsively workout, or have trust issues, or any other kick-in-the-shin kind of quirk, then your brain’s been programmed to keep you in an illusion of safety, that isn’t fully beneficial to your overall wellness.
This, my friend, is how we create energy blocks.
Alright, let’s bring back those chakras.
So, each chakra is assigned to specific body parts, functions, and feelings, and are uncannily related to specific experiences and circumstances. Seriously, it’s kinda crazy when you start learning about the relationships between the chakras and what’s going on with your meat suit. So weird.
And how we can bring back balance and increase our energetic flow is just as kooky…and amazing…and surprisingly easy.
So, each chakra has its own little equation for how it likes to be balanced, and there’s lots of things you can do to help them out. There’s super duper simple things like envisioning certain colors, or eating specific foods. Or you can use things like crystals, essential oils, massage, tapping, mantras, yoga. Seriously, there are so many things.
But, like any self care routine, it takes an open mind and focused intention for it to work.
But, seriously, I’m telling you, with enough practice this shit really doesworks…well, at least it is for me, and I’m a natural born skeptic. ...seriously, it's taken some work to get here...
Anyway, I’m wicked excited to wrap up this episode so I can start writing the next one and start building a guide that will help you figure out which of your chakras could use a little TLC, and give you some very practical and easy activities that will bring you back into balance.
Alright my friend, if want to make sure you never miss an episode, be sure to sign up for my newsletter AND I’ll let you know when the chakra guides are available in my shop. Or, if you want to help a girl out, and snag all of my guides for FREE (as well as some other perks), you can join my friends over at Patreon. For just $5/month you can support all the work that goes into creating this content and know that you’re helping to create Self Care Independence! You can find links to all the things in the show notes below.
I love you.
I appreciate you.
Thank you so much for being here.
I’ll see you soon.
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