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As advanced in medicine and technology as we are, we still don't have all the answers. More so when it comes to your mental health, which is not always cured by a pill.
Instead of using prescription drugs to numb certain parts of your brain, why not try other methods that you can benefit from. Whether it's meditation, exercise, travel, health journals, or as we are going to talk about, crystal healing.
Since ancient times, crystals are believed to contain healing properties that purify and cleanse certain energies in your body as well as the surrounding environment.
Think of these crystal gemstones like a spiritual air purifier system. It gets to a certain point that the "filter" becomes full and you need to either replace it or empty out all the "bad stuff" it caught.
For practitioners of crystal healing, they cleanse the crystal in order to work at their maximum potential.
Here is how to cleanse your crystal:
Bury your stone in sea salt overnight, so the salt can absorb all the impurities locked within the crystal. Another method you can use is to pass your crystals through sage or smudge stick smoke to release pent-up vibrations.
There are a few methods to recharge your crystal gemstones. The easiest way to leave the gemstone on your balcony or backyard where it has direct sun or moonlight. Another way is to bury it in the ground and let the Earth's healing powers restore the crystal. This should take a day or two to complete.
Nature's way of wirelessly charging your stones.
Practitioners often wear these gemstones as a piece of jewelry whether they are bracelets or necklaces or simply leaving on in your pocket. It is believed that direct contact with the skin brings the crystal to full power. If you do yoga or meditation, placing the crystals over major chakra points is another popular method of crystal healing.
Here are some of our favorite positivity crystals that are also fashionable:
This shiny deep water blue stone expresses confidence in the carrier. Sodalite brings out a person's self-worth, self-acceptance, and self-esteem. It promotes intuition and confidence in one's judgment. The stone is also terrific in achieving emotional balance. So if you are in a position of leadership in any sort of way, this is the stone you want to have on you.
During your private moments, use this to meditate as it supposed to stimulate the third eye and help you find what you are looking for within. Wearers of this stone tend to be more logical and have a greater intuition rather than impulsive. Laguna bluestone can be very helpful in facilitating a career advancement
The physical strength this stone brings helps with easing anxiety, panic attacks, mental confusion, and fears.
This pink glossy stone is one of the most popular stones, and I'm sure as you can guess, it is known as the love stone! Pink rose quartz is the crystal of universal love and marriage. When you wear this stone, it helps you find a sense of self-worth and opens your heart to compassion. This gemstone will help you balance your emotions, which lowers stress and brings you peace. Rose quartz has a soothing energy that fosters forgiveness, empathy, and love. This is really a heart energizing stone as it clears out anger, jealousy, resentment, and brings out the positive healing emotions such as empathy, sensitivity, acceptance, and comfort.
Keep in mind, these are not meant to be used as a prescription, diagnosis, or treatment. This a spiritual and internal type of therapy that is part of a holistic healing approach.
Often times, people are depressed, unhappy because of the problems of love. Rose quartz can heal the heart and promote healthy romance in a relationship. It'll help open up your sight and mind in how you view people. And it will allow you to find how to love yourself as well.
You can trust this purple gemstone to brighten even your darkest moments. Amethyst is another powerful stone that brings balance to your life, especially during times of anxiety and sadness.
Amethyst posses one of the most powerful energies to rid your home of negative influences. Chinese have used this stone for centuries. You will often see Chinese offices and homes decorated with Amethyst stone designs to bring good fortune as well as clarity.
This purple gem is a natural stress reliever that encourages inner strength, intuition, and spirituality. It has the power to attract and harness positive energy to expel the negative charges in your home.
Here are a few areas Amethyst energy provides:
• Spiritual insight
• Enhanced Judgement
• Honesty
• Peace and calming effects
•Deep inner peace when meditating
• Internal comfort
• Aids in sleep and evokes intuition.
The amethyst is exceptionally powerful in removing negative energies. The protective powers of this crystal are believed to enhance intuition, inspire creativity, and help the users find peace and stability within.
This is why the Amethyst stone is on our top list of positivity energy gemstones.
Eye of the tiger. And just like the tiger, it has courage, strength, and confidence that radiates. This stone will equip you to deal with unexpected negative energy that may have ruined your day.
This stone brings at the "Alpha" in a person and commands authority.
Jade is a stone of fortune. This stone stabilizes the wearer to be more patient, open to new ideas giving them the emotional calm in making proper decisions. And because it has such strong forces to bring mental clarity, your body will also feel detoxified.
Citrine is another fortune stone, especially in Chinese culture. It's known as the merchant's stone.
The color itself reflects and retracts bright lights bringing joy and happiness to the wearer. Think of how children are with their carefree attitudes in life. This is the kind of energy citrine shares.
You will possess that kind of unlimited energy to conquer the world, but also bring in positivity wherever you go like a ray of light.
Black onyx is more of a protective stone, rather than a source of positive energy. This mysterious stone acts as a shield to help the wearer retrieve their inner strength and protects the negative influences surrounding the environment.
This stone absorbs negative energy and seals it, which is why you need to cleanse this stone regularly. It's also able to transfer the negative energy into lucky, fruitful energy that turns the situation around for the better.
Throughout the world, wherever you look, in whichever time period, you will notice that every culture had crystals around. Gemstones were worn as protective amulets, and in later times as society progressed they were even worn as a form of expensive jewelry meant to show off the status of an individual.
https://www.mikolmarmi.com/collections/bracelets are great items as decorative pieces in the home as well as fashionable jewelry. The stone itself carries a natural beauty, but it depends on the designer of the item as well as the decorator to bring out its full potential.
What kind of crystals make you feel good? Comment and share it with us!
Guest post by WuwuLife
The quality and intensity of lighting in a house have a significant effect on people’s social and health lives. That is why it is helpful to have sufficient lighting in your home at all times.
Building experts argue that the best indoor lighting system should be a combination of natural and artificial lighting and, as much as possible, the artificial lighting should be adjustable both in intensity and position. That way, a house occupant is able to control the amount and intensity of the light in the house depending on the time of day and individual preferences. Being able to adjust the position of the lighting source (either closer or further away from the user) is also important for the wellbeing of every occupant in the home.
This post explores 6 ways through which house lighting affects our daily lives and our general wellbeing. Please read on to understand why you should make your house lighting appealing and comfortable for all occupants.
Bright lighting can significantly improve your focus and alertness. This explains why you are able to get more done when working in open spaces than when confined in a dark room. Being alert and focused is essential to your mental health.
Sleeping in a dimly lit room as opposed to a totally dark setting will greatly improve the quality of your sleep. This may be due to the fact that darkness breeds fear and insecurities. Everyone will agree that sleeping in the dark can be terrifying and uncomfortable. Too much lighting, on the other hand, will interfere with your sleep as it is hard to sleep in a highly illuminated environment. That is why you need to invest in enough dim lights for your bedroom. Also, in order to get a good night sleep and enhance the quality of sleep, install some soundproofing materials in your room so that no noise disturbances occur during the night. If you live in a busy and dynamic area, which boasts a lot of nightlife noise, then these soundproof materials will stop the noise to a considerable extent and allow you to have a quiet room.
Moderate lighting enhances concentration in a classroom, library, offices, and even at home. Proper morning lighting, for example, can help you to have maximum productivity throughout the day. Because your day starts in the house, you should ensure that your next home remodeling project maximizes the amount of natural light.
Away from home, rooms that are meant for optimal productivity such as in schools, hospitals, and offices should be well lit to enable all workers- as well as learners- to achieve maximum productivity. Personalized lighting options also increases productivity as people feel more in control of their work. In such cases, if the room does not have enough natural lightning, then some immediate renovation is needed in your exteriors to let natural light enter. Make sure to hire a siding contractor to open a window that allows the natural light to penetrate in the room.
It is important to note the health hazards that could emanate from a poorly controlled lighting system. Artificial lighting, in particular, has many negative effects to our wellbeing when uncontrolled. For starters, too much artificial light may cause eye damage in the long run. Sitting in front of your computer or the TV for hours on end could also cause headaches, fatigue and stress. On the other hand, dim lighting can cause frustrations especially when a reader is forced to strain their eyes for long. Excessive stress and frustrations can easily cause depression.
Lack of natural sunlight can have adverse effects on the human body and mind. One such effect is a condition known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). In respect to that, therefore, it is advisable to have a designated “basking” area in the house (the balcony, maybe) where you go to expose your body to direct sunlight. This is particularly relevant for people who work indoors all day long and the city dwellers who live in small apartments.
Good lighting keeps your emotions in check. Everything feels stable and relaxed. Your spirits are always high. All these are ingredients for a happy and stress-free life. You probably have noted that light from the window has a unique calming effect.
Darkness in a home, on the other hand, may trigger emotions of fear, making you constantly defensive. Living with the fear that something bad will happen any minute makes people pick fights easily and be unnecessarily rude and aggressive. Emotional instability can significantly hurt your social life.
Multiple types of research have shown that light actually affects our eating behavior and patterns in more ways than one. Dim lighting, for example, may slow down your feeding rate or reduce your normal food intake. On the flipside, people will tend to eat more when in a sufficiently illuminated room.
Conclusion
The main takeaway from this post is that good indoor lighting is vital to your happiness, body comfort, and general health. Don’t leave your wellbeing or that of your loved ones to fate. Ensure that your home is well lit both artificially and naturally.
Guest post by:
Technology has transformed our lives mostly for the better. But there are still benefits to occasionally revert back to a trusty notebook. Let's take a look at 5 solid reasons to use a physical paper notebook:
My iPhone has become my life! And I'm sure many of you are relying heavily on your smartphones for work and personal life.
Studies have shown that overusing your smartphone is not only damaging to your vision, but it also leads to sleep issues, anxiety, decreased productivity and many other issues. Instead of having the habit of checking your iPhone for new notifications every few minutes. It is suggested to take a break and focus on other activities. Using a paper notebook forces you to use other parts of your brain and also forcing you to disconnect from your phone.
Here are 7 reasons why writing benefits the brain. If you don't' know where to start, you can always begin with using a notebook as a planner or organizer. Slowly write down little thoughts, ideas or daily activities just to build up those good habits. Over time, it will trigger the creative areas of your brain where information flow will become more natural.
The important part is starting and setting a daily routine to build up those good habits. Think of it like going to the gym to work out your muscles. Your brain is the same, it needs to be worked out and it needs a consistent schedule to get "fit".
Having a notebook around is a great way to maintain those writing skills. Studies have shown that writing by hand improves memory, stronger ability to process information and think faster compared to typing.
It'll feel uncomfortable at first, but there are huge benefits to writing. Jotting down your thoughts or small notes in your notebook is a great way to reinvigorate parts of your brain that haven't been used in a while when you use technology.
Technology has simplified our lives in many ways, it also has simplified our thinking, making it very easy and accessible. Depending on your age, if you remember your mother telling you watching Tv makes you dumb. Although not entirely true, the reason behind it is because it's a brainless activity. In order for your brain to grow, you not only need new information, but to actually think and solve problems. To give it a bit of a challenge.
If you want to learn more about important tips to start journaling, you can read more here.
One of the most practical reasons I carry a notebook around is to use it as a memory aid. It's the perfect place to jot down something and refer back to it later. Yes, you can do the same on your iPhone. But for the creative souls, there is just something missing on a digital app compared to a paper notebook. The creativity flows onto the paper with words, diagrams, and drawings that bring together this creative unity.
Keeping a journal has shown to combat mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. It allows people an avenue to express their inner thoughts, fears, desires freely. On top of that, it helps the individual identify any negative thought patterns and so they can track their progress. You can see how you were feeling in the past and revert back to your memories through this journaling technique to reflect. It may be troublesome at first carrying a notebook around and physically writing. The best method is to dedicate 15 minutes of your day to writing. It's always about building proper habits or "rituals".
If you can properly document your life activities, thoughts, emotions, and ideas into a journal. This notebook will act as a time machine that you can always revert back to. It provides easy access to a certain time period of your life. You will find a deeper connection to this memory after seeing how you were writing at that moment, and reflecting on how you were feeling. These emotions are harder to arouse with a digital print. Give it a try for a couple months and see where this journey takes you.
Natural stones and crystals are beautiful shiny objects that appeal to the eye. But the truth is that they do so much more than look amazing! 2018 has been quite the wellness trend. But it has actually been around us for thousands of years.
If you pay attention to yoga studios, spiritual shops, you will always notice some crystals around.
In the spiritual world, every rock, tree, and creature carries their own spirit that we can all channel. Since it's available, why not tap into this magical power and improve your feng shui?
Since ancient times, crystal therapy has been around to help heal us because of the natural properties it posses. Each stone has a different power and meaning that is considered sacred.
The belief is that our body has a natural flow of energy going through in various patterns and densities. Chakra which simply means the energy the is center to the human body.
There are seven major chakras that run from the base of the spine to the top of the head, called the root, the sacral, the solar plexus, the heart, the throat, the third eye, and the crown
Another term you will often hear is "aura". This is an energy that emits or radiate out of your body like a protective layer that filters harmful energies. When you have a weird vibe about someone or a place, that would be negative aura you are feeling.
And if you stay around these places or people too long, your positive energy could be drained.
Negative feelings arouse stress, anxiety, and uneasiness. This can be anything from a headache to a fairly serious illness over time.
This is why crystals are important. They can help rebalance the chakras and cleanse the aura. Each chakra regulates physical vitality and emotions so once it is balanced a person will improve their health and experience more harmony.
Crystals are formed through millions of years from combining nature's richest minerals and energy. Therefore the crystal's energy pattern cannot be disrupted. This is why people use it to retune their original organic pattern of energy.
Although crystals appear to be inert objects, they are conduits of energy which is why they are often used for home decor use to adjust the energy in our house. Through modern technology, they are now used in watches, some medical devices, notebooks, iPhone cases, jewelry, bracelets, wallets, purses and many more!
Natural stone and crystals are formed typically through a blend of pressure, chemicals, and temperatures to create each specific type of stone.
Amethyst – assists with psychic abilities, calms, and promotes calm, balance, and peace.
Citrine – promotes success, abundance, and mental clarity.
Rose Quartz – enhances love, communication, and truthfulness. Perfect for the heart chakra.
Emerald Jade – assists with love, fidelity, generosity, and abundance.
Kunzite – removes stress, helps heal a broken heart, and promotes loyalty.
Quartz – enhances personal power, protection, and restores balance and energy.
Ruby – promotes happiness, prosperity, devotion, and integrity.
Now that you know our bodies possess natural energetic patterns. As mentioned earlier, these energetic patterns could be distributed by people, places, work, stress, unaccounted situations, major events and so on.
Aren't their days you just feel down or can't shake off a low energy feel? Sometimes it lasts days, weeks or months. When this happens, you need to not only correct your thoughts, focus but also restore balance to your energy. This is when people fall to crystal healing to absorb unwanted energies, which has a profound effect on the body.
But your mind has to be aligned as well. You need to be receptive to these energies and open yourself up so there can be a natural wavelength, frequency, and harmony with mother nature.
Stones can help heal trauma, past life wounds, manage stress, and so much more.
In a traditional Inipi ceremony or sweat ceremony, stones were used in a lodge to produce steam. The sacred stones were heated with sacred fire and brought into the lodge seven at a time.
They are then blessed with healing herbs during the sweating time. These rituals had profound healing and lasted for centuries.
Three of the most common crystals are clear quartz, rose quartz and amethyst.
Clear quartz is the master healer or cleanser. It draws off negative energy of all kinds and can also be used to cleanse other crystals.
Rose quartz is the love stone, it connects to the heart chakra and so restores trust and harmony in relationships. It can bring you feelings of peace and self-love.
Amethyst is good for clarity of mind and releasing stress. You can try meditating with amethyst if you have a hard time focusing.
Technology may make capturing life’s moments easier, but a selfie or a short video can never compare to putting a pen to a piece of paper and preserving those memories and ideas. Research has found that people best express their personalities through spoken or written language. Moreover, the study found that expressive writing can have mental and emotional healing benefits. It’s no wonder why there are still so many people who practice journaling to this day—not only is it a productive way to spend your free time, but it can also be a soothing way to record the thoughts and ideas that go through your mind.
If you have yet to start journaling, the first thing that you have to do is to pick out a journal that you’ll look forward to using every single day. Mikol’s Carrara White Marble notebook, which has fine paper and features front and back covers made of real marble stone, is one such quality journal that deserves your most precious thoughts. If you’re struggling to express yourself with words, don’t fret—there are other ways to interpret your thoughts on paper. Here are a few creative journaling tips to capture your best thoughts and ideas.
Draw in your journal
If you’re not great with words but are an absolute whiz at drawing or painting, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t do so whenever you’re journaling. Whether you’re still learning how to draw florals like roses or if you can already do lifelike illustrations, adding personal artwork to your journals can help you convey what you’re feeling while you’re recording your memories and ideas. Use colored pencils or fine-tipped markers to color your drawings. You can also use gel pens to add details to your work.
Make a collage
If you’re fond of making collages, then try cutting and pasting pictures from glossy magazines into your journals. Doing so can help you show your future self whatever it is that you’re into at the moment. Whether it’s new food recipes that you’re currently obsessed with, photography techniques that you have to try, or even if it’s just pictures of your favorite singers or actors, making a collage reminds your future self of the things that captured your attention at a certain point in time.
Make it your own
Some people tend to treat their journals as precious items, refusing to let anything mark the pages. As a result, these journals may fail to capture true memories and ideas, which is a shame because that’s what journaling is all about! Don’t be afraid to make your journal your own—put stickers on it, paste ticket stubs and pictures on it, press real flowers on the pages. Don’t panic if you accidentally drop a tiny bit of coffee on one of the pages. Instead, make it part of your artwork and document what happened the day of the accidental coffee splotch.
The best thing about journaling is that the most spontaneous and random things that you add to the pages of your blank notebook or journal may be the best things that you can have on it. Try these tips to capture your best thoughts and ideas on paper in creative ways.
Freelance Writer: Jane Sandwood
Many who don't understand meditation maybe think it's mumbo jumbo. But meditation comes in many forms, and not just what you see with monks sitting still. Entrepreneurs, athletes, actors do it all the time. When you clear your mind, visualize your success, your performance, gathering your thoughts, etc. are all forms of meditation.
How does meditation help you perform better in life?
It helps you be more focused, calm, peaceful so you aren't interrupted by any emotional fluctuations. More importantly, you can learn how to gain more control over your mind and master the art of living in the present.
In 2011, a Harvard research found that meditation can help increase the density of gray matter in the hippocampus of our brains. That part of the brain is associated with the ability of learning, self-awareness, compassion, memory and introspection.
Through mental restructuring of our brains can improve our mental health and sharpen our minds.
The most exciting part is this transformation can be done in only 8 weeks! This number came from an actual study group.
Here's a shortcut to making meditation a daily habit:
Complete silence is the ideal environment for meditation, but not necessarily a must. Every person is different, so finding what works for you is most important.
Some people find playing light music can relieve stress and help you relax more. Studies have shown that white noise can help lower our stress levels and increase concentration, especially amongst people who are easily distracted.
The most popular position you see traditionally is the quarter lotus, where you sit on the floor cross-legged and rest your hands on your lap. Then straighten out your back throughout the process without slouching.
In Chinese martial arts, it's done through a "horse stance" where they train the legs, but at the same time relaxation of the entire body and mind.
But please be reminded that if you choose to meditate while lying down, you should keep yourself awake throughout the process.
Just like sports, finding the right breathing pattern and tempo is very important in meditation as it can help with relaxation and concentration.
Softly close your eyes and inhale slow and deep with your nose, and exhale from your mouth. You will know you are doing it right if you feel your diaphragm expanding and stretched.
Because deep breathing is not normal for most people, it will feel a bit mechanical at first. The discomfort will fade as you practice more.
Be sure to aim for longer exhalation than inhalation. And if this is a more difficult task, time yourself in the beginning. 3 seconds in and 7 seconds breathing out.
As a beginning, it's very hard to get your mind focused in a meditative state. It's especially hard to build a habit of meditation.
Atlas start off with 10 ~ 15 minutes a day. If it's too short, you may not be able to zone in and get into your thoughts.
Having a timer really helps, so you don't keep thinking how much time you have left.
Remember, the ultimate goal of meditation is to understand yourself more to allow greater control of your mind.
Meditation is very boring, especially for our fast paced society. Beginners often find themselves lost without proper guidance.
Having a mentor or experienced friend really helps this process. And if you can't find anyone, not to worry! There are plenty of audio guides available for free online which provide a step by step instruction into your first meditative journey.
By zoning in on what the instructors has to say, you can shut out any other mental distractions and focus in on those simple instructions.
1. Music
As mentioned, helps ease the mind
2. Prayer bead necklaces
Helps focus when counting the beads.
For more of a spiritual matter, it brings an energy that circulates the body for calming and relaxing effects.
4 Incense
Sight, sensory, smell are all distractions to us. Having a comfort of smell may ease your body into comfort.
5. Nature
Nature has always been a relaxing place for most people.
