Hello my dear readers. These past few weeks have difficult, emotion filled and chaotic. I have found myself struggling to even want to get up each day as I am overwhelmed with everything that is bombarding me. We have many different issues coming to a head currently, and it can wear on empaths and sensitives at this time. I feel it is necessary to share some tips to help minimize the psychic, emotional, mental and physical drain that sensitive individuals may be dealing with at this or any difficult time.
There are many different techniques that we can work with in order to help us maintain our emotiona, mental, psychic and physical balance when we are surrounded by turmoil and chaos. It is hard to know where to begin, but I will start with the mundane and work towards the more magical techniques that we can use… I will warn this may end up being a long post so let’s dig in.
1. Get enough rest- For anyone that is an insominac, like myself, you may find that you are struggling to get enough sleep and you may be incensed with this as a suggest- I have found myself responding many times with ” you say that like it is easy” or ” Do you really think I don’t want to sleep I am just unable to- trust me I try!” But it is true that getting enough rest can help you to be energized enough to filter out those energies that are draining you. So let’s look at a couple things that you can do to help facilitate getting enough rest. I am not a medical professional but I will share some of the behavioral techniques that my doctor had suggested to me in order to manage my insomnia, I have worked with many of these and have had success with them so I share them here. Stick to a routine- I know that is difficult sometimes especially with all of different ways life has changed, but structure and a set routine (be it how you get ready for bed or the time you go to bed) helps signal to your brain it is now time to sleep. Another way that you can help ensure that falling asleep is easier, is to not use your bed for anything except sleep and sexual intercourse (these words are directly from my doctor , again this is a behavior modification that can help you to fall asleep easier. Another way that can help you to get sleep more easily is also another method to helping you to stay centered and that is exercise, so I will discuss this options benefits in its own catergory. You can also cut down on caffine, and electronic use about an hour before bedtime, both of these can stimulate your mind and keep it racing. The final method that I will metion here is another technique to keep yourself centered as well and will be discussed as its own topic, and that is writing in a journal.
2. Get Exercise- Exercise helps to wear off excess energy, as well as helping to create a more solid connection between mind and body. It can help to ground and center yourself and allows you to focus and sometimes can help you to create a still place within your mind as you focus on the physical movement. Exercise can be used as a devotional work or act, or even meditation. This can also help you get some more rest. Vigorous exercise may be difficult for some peole due to physical constraints, please don’t push yourself hard enough to injure yourself. There are gentle exercises (and honestly these are my favorites as they also allow for the exercise to be a meditative experience as well) such as Yoga or Tai Chi.
3. Drink Plenty of Water- Yes I know we have seen this before but drinking plenty of water is cleansing, it helps to remove toxins from the system. And since this is talking about water I will address bathing and showering as well as Water is just an amazing cleanser and it can work for excess and chaotic energy as well.
4. Clean- now this may seem counter intuitive, but cleaning your external enviroment can help to quiet a chaotic mind and psyche; when we are surrounded by clutter energy cannot flow, energy gets bottled up in the house and begins to effect us as well. Whenever, I am feeling scattered or aggitated I tend to start cleaning my house, it helps me to work out the frustration as well as free up blocked in energy so that it may be grounded and no longer an influence on myself. Cleaning can be an amazing and powerful form of sympathetic magic.
5.Be more conscious of your dietary habits- Everything has energy and when we eat we take that energy into ourselves, so it is important to energetically assess the food we are putting into ourselves, especially at times like these. Begin to pay attention to how certain foods make you feel energetically or emotionally. I find when I eat sugary foods I feel denser, heavier and more sluggish after the initial sugar rush- therefore when I am beginning to feel depression I tend to lay off sugary foods. When I eat vegetables and more balanced meals I feel centered, grounded and a little lighter. Eating seasonally can help you to align with the energies of the natural world around you and can help you be more centered.
6. Journaling- Keeping a journal can assist you in processing what you are experiencing, as well as getting it outside of yourself. It can help you notice patterns and help you create a record of anything that may come up, sometimes when we are experiencing an influx of energy or psychic overload we may miss out on important insights because we are unable to process them when we are overloaded, writing down what comes up can allow us to take time to review it later.
7. Clearing- I mention this here, even though it may seem like common sense to most magical folks, but there are those that are just coming to the path that may not be aware of this technique, and two sometimes we may not think of the most obvious things when we are overwhelmed. You can clear your energy and enviroment of negativity by smudging (burning herbs in order to cause them to smoke and change the vibration of the energy around you), useing a singing bowl , a bell or a chime can clear an area as well.
8. Meditation- Again this helps to create a still place within yourself, to give yourself some space that isn’t bombarded.
Here are two meditations that might be helpful for you: Chakra Breathing (this helps to align and charge your chakras) Sit comfortably. Take a deep breath and begin to focus your attention on your root chakra. Here we will start breathing in a four count rythmic breathing: breathe in for four counts, hold for four counts, exhale for four counts and hold no breath for four counts… while thinking the following: Breathing in life force for Root Chakra (inhale), Storing life force for Root Chakra (hold), Circulating life force from Root Chakra,(exhale) Opening to life force for Root Chakra (hold no breath). You will continue this for each of the seven chakras.
I suggest making 3 full circuits (breathing for all seven chakras is a complete cicuit) before moving on to the final stage of this meditation. At this point you should feel yourself tingling or experience yourself feeling “bigger” than you usually do, at least that is the experience I have had when doing this meditation. (for those of you who are curious this is an adaptation of the prayer for alignment written about by T. Thorn Coyle) Once you feel like you have taken in enough life force, take a deep breath, tilt your head up and blow out, similiar to blowing out a candle, you may feel or hear a snap- this is your breath pulling your chakras into alignment. I end this meditation by placing my hands over my heart and my abdomen and affirming that I am in alignment.
This next meditation is one I use in my personal Reiki Practice, and can be used by others even if you are not attuned to Reiki energy, this can also be adapted for use as a way to Sheild yourself- I suggest trying different colors than the one suggested here and seeing what results you get.
Sit comfortably. Begin to pay attention to your breathing, don’t try to change it, simply pay attention to it, pay attention to the deepest place you take in breath to. Now deepen your breaths a little- this helps to center you as you focus your attention on the new place. Take a few deep breaths, filling your lungs. Now imagine a place high above you, somewhere up in the stars, this is the place of source. From this point a beam of violet light shines down and enters your crown, this light swirls into a cloud of violet light. This cloud of violet light moves down into your thrid eye and throughout each chakra and fills your entire body. Once you are radiating with this violet light imagine breathing it out into your aura and letting it swirl around inside the boundaries of your aura, strengthening it. Filling you and your aura with Universal life force and love. When you feel you have abosorbed enough you can let the image fade.
Personally, I do this as I fall asleep and honestly, I fall asleep as the violet light swirls throughout my aura and my being.
9. Prayer- while many pagans shy away from the idea of prayer, it is another very powerful tool in a spiritual person’s tool box. Prayer is talking to the Divine. It can be a source of comfort, and guidance (especially, after speaking) making regular time for prayer can be part of a routine that helps you to maintain a connection to the Divine, again this is also a place to air out what is bothering you and to get it off your mind. The Gods are listening, and honestly, when you take the time to listen and visit it builds a closer relationship.
10. Distancing- This one may not be popular but it does work- take a break and distance yourself from social media for a little while. Right now, we are bombarded with negative images and news currently, and with people voicing thier opinions in loud, angry, and unreasonable tones. Taking some space and distance from these things allows you some down time and a chance to recharge.
Finally, I urge to either continue or re-engage with any personal comforting routines or habits that you may have so long as they are not harming yourself and others. More than that I urge you to talk to someone if you are feeling completely overwhelmed, be self aware and reach out if you feel you need help. There are many resources out there and we don’t have to do this alone.
As we continue through this time of change I urge all of my readers to stay safe and do everything you can to take care of yourself. If you have any questions on any of the techniques please feel free to leave a comment.
Stay safe, and I hope y
The Frith Wytch 