I have talked in previous posts about sound healing. Sound healing tools like singing bowls and tuning forks have gained in popularity lately, partly due to more research being done on their healing properties becoming more readily accessible to the public. There are many books on this topic, from basics like Sound Healing for Beginners by Joshua Goldman and Alec W. Sims (filled with plenty of research backed information), to Tuning the Human Biofuels by Eileen Day McKusick. These are just two good examples, there are so many more.
 
I want to preface this blog post by saying that it is NEVER ok to place a vibrating tuning fork, singing bowls, tingsha, or any other vibration tool next to your ear. Even when you cannot hear it, it can still cause damage to your ear and possibly cause hearing damage and/or loss. I have seen several videos lately with people talking about/showcasing tuning forks where they do this. I cannot stress enough how dangerous this is.
 
I would also like to point out the difference between weighted and non-weighted tuning forks. The weighted tuning forks have knobs at the end of the forks. These ones are pressed against the relevant body parts (on chakras or acupressure points, meridians, above organs, etc..) to facilitate healing. The non-weighted forks are used within the body’s aura/energetic field. They can also be placed above or near the relevant chakra, Meridian, etc..
 
Each tuning fork/singing bowl/etc.. has it’s own frequency, and therefore, its own healing properties. There are many to choose from for varying purposes. One can purchase individual vibrational instruments, or complete sets, such as Chakra sets or the Solfeggio set. While many of the available frequencies focus on healing particular physical or energetic issues, there are some that are used for more general tasks like aligning oneself with certain states or cleansing/clearing.
 
One such frequency is the Ohm frequency 136.1Hz. This one is considered Earth’s orbital frequency and aligns one with the natural cosmic vibration, creating a universal connection. This one resonates at the vibration that occurs when ohm is chanted during meditation. There are actually three Ohm frequencies., this first one being the mid-ohm. The other two are the low-ohm (68.05Hz) associated with deep grounding, emotional release, and facilitates the opening of energetic pathways. The third one is high-ohm (272.2Hz), that is associated with aligning one with their highest potential, bringing in clarity and purpose, facilitating a connection with one’s highest self, and clearing karmic imprints, blockages, and energetic debris (to name a few things).
 
Energetic clearing is another use for these frequency tools. Whether that is clearing a physical space, a person, or an object there are a few options. 417Hz is generally used to clear negative energies, either past or present, and undo negative situations. 741Hz is often used to remove both emotional or physical toxins. 963Hz is associated with purifying a physical space or body, the spiritual body, and to attract positive energy. If you are looking to specifically cleanse a crystal, there is a 4096Hz crystal tuner made for the job. It is also used to enhance the energetic properties of said crystals. While this is its main job, it is also associated with rebalancing chakras and creating a connection between Earth and higher spiritual realms, which is why it is also referred to as the Earth Angel Frequency.
 
While there are many more frequency tools/tuners available for purchase, there are just too many to talk about in one blog post. You can find them in many metaphysical shops as well as online. The frequency Hz is usually stamped into the Y junction on a tuning fork. Singing bowls may be labeled according to either Hz or corresponding Chakra (quite popular), but are not usually stamped as such. Tingshas are not usually standardized to one frequency, though some modern ones may be attuned to certain frequencies like 528Hz. Whatever the type of healing you are searching for, there is a frequency and a tool for that.
 
Have you ever used a singing bowl or a tuning fork? Have you participated in a sound bath or had a healing done that incorporated one? (I do highly recommend experiencing this at least once, the results can be quite amazing).
Would you? I would love to know.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

We all dream. Even when we don’t remember them, we do. There are many theories as to why we dream. These theories range from dreams having no meaning or purpose at all, to working through our day or issues, to premonitions/messages. It is my opinion that dreams are both our subconscious working through things and one way it sends us messages. Our subconscious uses people, places, situations, and symbols that we are familiar with to accomplish this. That is why dreams, and their meanings, are so personal. While you can purchase books about, or look up online, basic dream interpretations, they may not be entirely accurate for you. Our own feelings and beliefs about the world around us and the things in it can be very different for every culture, and individual. An example of this would be a dream that takes place on the ocean. For some people this may be a place of calm and peacefulness, while for others the ocean may cause feelings of anxiety or fear. Your feelings/beliefs about something in general, as well as how they made you feel in the dream are important to its interpretation. I talked briefly about dream interpretations in a previous post called Dare to Dream. That said, the focus of this post will be on types of dreams, specifically realistic vs lucid dreams, with a bit about premonitions near the end.
 
As mentioned above, some dreams are said to be about our subconscious working things out or sending our conscious mind messages. While our regular nightly dreams can fall into this category, so too can realistic or lucid dreams.
 
Regardless of the reason for the dream, some feel so real we feel that we are really there, and that things are really happening. Even when something seemingly unreal or bizarre is happening, we can just accept that it’s real anyway. Realistic dreams are immersive, in the dream you are a passive participant (not in control), and when you wake up it can feel like it actually happened, which can be rather disorienting for a few minutes. When studies have been done, little activity was detected in the prefrontal cortex of the brain (which is associated with logic and self-reflection). I often have this kind of dream, and have since I was a child. Sometimes they do become lucid.
 
During lucid dreams, however, more activity (than in realistic dreams) has been recorded in the prefrontal cortex. During a lucid dream the dreamer not only becomes aware that they are dreaming, but can then begin to control aspects of their dream and its narrative. It can still feel very real, like a realistic dream, but you are no longer just a passive participant. Lucid dreaming, while a fascinating field of study (I find), is difficult to actually study. Sometimes, once the dreamer becomes lucid, they will exit the dream rather quickly. Sometimes, frequent and practiced lucid dreamers in normal life, find difficulty becoming lucid in dreams once they are being studied. That said, some studies that have been conducted show that actions taken within lucid dreams have some waking world results. For example, performing exercise while lucid dreaming does raise heart rate, and actions practiced while dreaming lucidly have increased skill levels with that action while participants were awake. It has even been used, with limited success thus far, in therapies for things like PTSD. However, results are fairly split between whether lucid dreaming provides real improvement in a person’s mental health, or can be detrimental. They do believe, however, that studying lucid dreaming, when compared to regular/realistic dreaming, can improve our understanding of human consciousness. Which is fascinating in and of itself.
 
If you would like to learn more about lucid dreaming and how to do it there are plenty of instructional videos online. Llewellyn has even published an entire book called Llewellyn’s Complete Book of Lucid Dreaming by Clare R Johnson (which was an interesting read). You can begin your dream journey with journaling your dreams immediately upon waking. If you wait too long you can forget important details. Journaling also allows you to keep track of the types and themes of dreams/their messages so you can see patterns, and, if you journal about your day/life, what was happening before and after you had the dreams. This would be a good way to help determine if your dreams have a premonitory aspect as well.
 
A little side note on premonitions. This is not a skill that I personally have, however, I have known people that have premonitory dreams. This can seem, as any gift can, like a blessing or a curse, depending on the content. I have been told that often, especially when unpracticed, these dreams can be mere fragments, or jumbled pieces, and can make no sense to the dreamer until whatever it was happened. I understand how this could be really frustrating, and even scary. I would recommend, if you have such dreams (or think you do), you should try to find others who are more practiced with this skill to help guide you on how to develop it. I do believe that we have the skills we do for a reason, and to not develop or understand them can make them even more frightening or unruly. Our gifts (and our guides) can be persistent that way. Books are fantastic, but there is nothing quite like real world experience. Trust your instincts.
 
 
So, have you ever had a realistic or a lucid dream? Is this common practice for you? Do you remember your dreams? Do you want to? I would love to know your experiences.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The Importance of Numbers
 
Many people believe that numbers have meaning beyond their usual numerical values. Cultures around the globe have created entire belief systems around the significance of specific dates/times, assigned numerical values to words and letters, and even to character/personality traits for millennia. Different cultures consider different numbers to be lucky or unlucky, and can have very different meanings for numbers depending on their beliefs. Here in the west there are some basic generally agreed upon concepts we attribute to the numbers one through nine.
 
One: Newness, Movement, Creation
Two: Cooperation, Balance, Partnerships
Three: Communication, Curiosity, Abstract Ideas
Four: Stability, Efficiency, “tried and true” methodology
Five: Adventure, Plan Making, Experimentation
Six: Unconditional Love, Nurturing, Empathy
Seven: Wisdom, Awareness Seeking, Researching
Eight: Drive for Success, Balance, Good Business Sense
Nine: Completion (in a cyclical sense), Transition, Transformation
 
These numbers create a cycle of birth/creation, progress through periods of learning, growth, and development, and then “death”, which is where that cycle ends (lessons learned, things accomplished, or not), and a new one begins.
 
Using numerology (the use of numbers to determine divine/mystical relationships between numbers and events/characteristics), one attempts to learn about themselves and their life’s purpose/journey. This is done by adding the numbers in one’s birth date together (Life Path Number), or using the predetermined chart that assigns each letter of the alphabet a number (1 through 9) to calculate numbers such as a Destiny Number (using all the letters), or a Soul Urge Number (using only the vowels), just to name a few. Once you have these numbers you can look up online (there are many sites dedicated to this topic) or read about what each number means, the personality traits they display, and the impact they have on one’s life.  
 
Some significance is often place significance these numbers when they up show in repetitions. These repeating numbers, sometimes called angel numbers, are often thought of as messages from the universe, our guides, or angels. There are separate, yet similar meanings for repeating numbers depending on whom you see the messages coming from (the universe/one’s higher self vs directly from angels). You can easily find these meanings through Google. Here is a basic list:
 
000: (often found in Angel Numbers): The beginning steps into the unknown of your own spiritual journey
111: New beginnings (in tune with spiritual side)
222: Trust the process/surrender to the flow
333: Time for making essential changes
444: Release doubts and move forward with faith
555: Manifestation of major life changes
666: A need to get into better alignment with oneself/one’s purpose
777: Increased self awareness. A breakthrough is coming
888: Materialization of abundance
999: An end to something. A need to release control/accept reality
 
Other important repeating numbers are:
1010:A move toward a higher purpose
1111: What you think you become. We are all one
1212: Removal of obstacles. Luck in love
 
On a side note, there is a numerology system called the Chaldean Numerology System that excludes the number 9 from name calculations. This is because it is considered sacred; representing the name of God, as well as completion. This different chart significantly changes the number associated with your name from the other (more commonly used) system.
 
Numbers are considered in other divination systems as well. Tarot uses numbers in to show progression through the Major Arcana, and each of the numbered Minor Arcana cards is a numbered card as well. These range from 1 to 10, and each one has a basic numerological meaning regardless of suit, as well as showing the progression through “story” of or the flow through that suit. Using the numbers of the Major Arcana (adding to create a single digit when necessary) can also provide some deeper meaning to the cards. Numerological correspondences can also be applied to other divination practices (but are not limited to) using cards like oracle decks or playing cards, or other systems such as dice, astrology, tea leaf reading, and scrying.
 
On a (hopefully) positive note. I would like to point out that, generally speaking, 2025 was a 9 year (Note: This not a personal year number, where you add your Life Path Number to the year number). This makes it a year of endings. This could mean positive or negative things for people individually. If this past year has seemed particularly tough, just know that the coming year, 2026, is a 1 year. A year of new beginnings. I sincerely hope this new year brings the start of some very positive and fantastic things for everyone.
 
As you can see, numbers have played an important part in many different kinds of divination practices. Have you ever used numerology specifically? If you read cards or use other divination techniques, do you consider numbers to provide messages beyond times or dates? Do you consider any numbers more or less lucky for you? I would love to know.
 
 
 
 

Getting tattoos is both an ancient tradition (in some cultures) and a popular practice today. There are many reasons to get tattoos, which can vary from just liking the picture, to them having deep personal or spiritual meaning*. Regardless of the reasons you have gotten ink, or reasons you have not/would never, they are all valid.
That said, let’s look at some of the personal or spiritual reasons to sport some body art.
 
Ancient cultures, like the Greeks/Romans, Egyptians, Samoans, Japanese, and Native Americans, to name a few, have used tattoos to communicate a plethora of information. Tattoos have been used to display rather neutral forms of social status like family or tribal ties, achievements, or military rank. However, they have also been used to denote less desirable social situations, exact punishment, or exert control over others like slaves, criminals, and prisoners of war. An example of this today would be prison tattoos that represent the crime(s) one has committed.
 
Many tattoos done today are used to represent important events or achievements in our lives. Births, deaths, marriages, friendships and other relationships, personal victories or hardships, and many more. This types of body art both permanently reminds us of that even, and shows others that this event or achievement happened. They can make excellent conversation pieces too.
 
Some ink represents severe hardships. Things no one should have to go through, but, unfortunately, happen all too often. While they are often worn discretely, they have deep meaning. One such tattoo includes Medusa, who represents the struggle and strength of sexual assault victims. If you do not know her story, you should read it. She does make the perfect representative icon for this particular heinous act. Another is the semicolon tattoo, which is worn to support individuals who have battled (or are battling) mental health conditions like (but not limited to) depression, anxiety, and/or have done/contemplated self harm. These tattoos can be extremely empowering.
 
From a metaphysical point of view, tattoos can be used for ritual and even medicinal uses. Ritual tattoos can include (but are not limited to) protection symbols, elemental symbols, bind runes, symbols of fertility, health, or abundance, and more. This kind of body art could be used in actual ritual, on-the-go spells, or to deepen the connection between the bearer and that tattooed symbol/concept. Tattooing these symbols on the body can be helpful, however, one should activate them by imbuing them with energy/intent. I would especially advise this for protection symbols, particularly if one is going somewhere/doing something that might need enhanced spiritual protection, like ghost hunting (I am always surprised ghost hunters do not utilize this tool more often), or entering unavoidable toxic situations/dealing with unavoidable toxic people (especially helpful for mediums and empaths). Mediating on, or spending time activating/using them can help build a better connection to them; possibly making them easier to use when needed. This can also apply to tattoos that display our guides, totem animals, or animal guides. They can be a constant reminder that they are always with us, and help us connect with them quickly, especially in times of need. Not unlike wearing jewelry or carrying an object depicting them (carving, picture, etc..), except that it is always with us, no matter what, and cannot be lost. Tattoos that symbolize aspects of our culture, or cultures that we are drawn to, can help make us feel more connected to ourselves and our ancestors. (Cultures we are drawn to can be ones we experienced in a past life (if you believe in reincarnation), and so are still a part of us.)
Medical tattoos were once used to not just to bring health to the tattooed person, but also to show particular markers for health on the body like meridians or acupuncture/acupressure points. These last ones would be particularly helpful if you suffer from ailments whose symptoms could be alleviated by applying pressure to those points.
 
To recap, any kind of body art, permanent or not, can communicate many different concepts, ideas, or information, be used in ritual, or healing, and empower us. It can connect us with our ancestors, our culture, or our guides. They can have deep meaning, or just something we think is very cool. Though, given my own spiritual beliefs, I would question why I thought it was so “cool” that I wanted it to be permanently placed on my body. What connections could be made about that? Is there a deeper meaning to my attraction to it? That is just me though.
 
So, do you have any body art? If not, would you? Would/did you choose something significant to you personally or spiritually? I would love to know.
 
 
*I am aware that placement of a tattoo on the body can also have significance. I chose not to cover that into this post.
 
 
 
 

Catching Dreams
 
You would probably be hard pressed to find someone these days who hasn’t seen or heard of a dreamcatcher. They are beautiful works of art with great purpose and rich history. You can purchase them fully made, or even purchase kits to make them yourself. I was lucky enough to be gifted a beautiful one by a Native American friend when I was 16, and still have it today. While we may know the basic meaning of them, there is so much more to them we may not be aware of.
 
There are two tribes that are often associated with the origins of them. Both of these tribes had deities based on the spider who was part of the creation story of the dreamcatcher.
One was the Lakota. Their (male) spider deity was Iktomi, who was known as a trickster, shape-shifter, and provider of lessons. Surprisingly, given this, their belief about the function of the dreamcatcher was actually the opposite of what you might think. They believed that the web actually trapped good ideas so they would not be forgotten; letting the bad ones pass through the center without harm to anyone.
 
The Second is the Ojibwe tribe. Their spider deity, Asibkaashi (Spider Woman), was considered a protector. Their beliefs surrounding the function of the dreamcatcher is the one we are most familiar with today. They trapped the bad dreams in the web to be destroyed in the morning sunlight, while the good ones were filtered down to the sleeping person. This is the meaning we will be working with in this post.
 
Each part of the dreamcatcher has meaning and function. The ones listed below are from the Ojibwe tribe.*
The hoop represents the circle of life, and was originally made of red willow wood, though is made of a plethora of materials these days.
The web is a tribute to the aforementioned Spider Woman that was a protector. It serves to trap the dreams as a spider web traps its prey; the center of which is considered its heart. This was traditionally made of thread or wool.
The beads that are often included in the design have varied interpretations. Two of which are that a single bead represents the spider that weaved the web, and multiple beads represent multiple dreams trapped within the web.
Feathers are not just a beautiful decoration, they are the way in which the good dreams travel down to the sleeping person after being filtered through the web.
Gems, which have their own meanings/uses and provide their own vibrations, can be used to replace the beads within the web, or the feathers hanging below (especially when feathers are not attainable). How they are used is up to the artist.
Arrowheads. Now, these are used primarily in medicine web dreamcatchers, and are placed in a cross formation in the center of the web. They point in the four directions the wind blows, representing the four sacred winds, and provide protection from misfortune.
Even the number of  points within the web have meaning. These are:
5 Points: the stars above
6 Points: Eagle (the connection to Creator and all that is spiritual)
7 Points: Is a call out to the 7 Prophesies (7 phases in the life of the people. You can find more on this at HTTPS://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_fires_prophecy )
8 Points: represents Spider Woman
13 Points: represent the 13 moons
 
As you can see, there is much to learn/ know about dreamcatchers. This is just the a basic rundown. They are readily available for purchase in many beautiful forms, and colours, from a variety of vendors, some of which are owned/operated by Native Americans**, who make them themselves. While I do own more than one, my favourite is definitely the one that was made for me (that I mentioned earlier). My objective with this post is to educate, however, I am by no means an expert.
 
So…Do you own any dreamcatchers? Would you? If you do, do you believe that they work for you? Have you ever been given one, or given one to someone else? Do you think knowing more about these magical tools (of any kind) gives you more respect for them, or allows you to better utilize them? I would love to know.
 
*You can find more on this at HTTPS://purechakra.com/blogs/a-hippie-spirituality-blog/deciphering-dreamcatchers-and-their-legends-meanings?srsltid=AfmBOop3Und8N51qOdePc6mwgh6i1mLyPkZ9wC3fjwy
 
** quichua.ca (Ojibway owned an operated out of Ontario)
 Tsainkonativegifts.com (Squamish Nation)
wanuskewinggiftshop.com (First Nations, Metis, and Inuit artists across North America)
 
 
 
 

Magic in the Blood
 
Judging by the title you may have an idea what this post is about, but I hope I (pleasantly) surprise you.
I wrote a post when I first started this blog about Masaru Emoto and his experiments with water. How it crystalizes differently depending on the type of energy is directed at it. Positive messages/energies make beautiful crystaline structures, while negative ones make deformed misshapen ones. From a spiritual point of view, this can mean we can create and ingest these beautiful messages to be absorbed by our bodies. However, that isn’t the only way we can utilize this technique for better health (physically and spiritually), and for manifestation.
 
This concept, and the technique I am about to share, was presented in a video by awakenednowwhat on Facebook, and is what inspired this post. He explains the correlation between Masaru Emoto’s work and what he is proposing. How those energies we create through our thoughts and feelings every day affect our bodies, because we are made of water, more than 50%, in fact. He says that these energies are imprinted on and then transported through our bodies through our blood, and are then radiated outwards through our aura (an electromagnetic field). He suggests that we should talk to our blood, the same way that Masaru Emoto talked to water. In his video he gives you a place to start with this practice, but also states that you can change it and make it your own. There is no right or wrong way to do it, and no right or wrong message to work with. That said, for positive results one should keep the message in a positive format (do not use negatives like “not”, “no”, “don’t”, etc...). Provided below are the words he used, taken from his video verbatim. You should go and check out his other videos as well.
 
“For every blood cell that flows through my beating heart,
I open my sovereign spiritual self directly to Earth.
Each blood cell has a golden tube of protection around it.
My blood is no longer used as Karmic resolution.
My blood is no longer used to create violence.
I now empower and imprint abundance, love, and mystical experiences in my blood cells in motion.”
 
You can definitely change this last line to carry whatever message you want into yourself, and beyond.
 
This concept also suggests that the way we talk to and about ourselves daily would have the same affect, making the practice of positive self talk all the more important and impactful. There are many spiritual and psychology practitioners that promote the use of positive self talk. They talk about the ways it can retrain your brain to think happier, and help you be more self accepting, or how “like attracts like” so it will attract more positive things (and people) into you life. Even Masaru Emoto talks in his book (The Hidden Messages in Water) about how our bodies are mostly water, and the health benefits positive talk could provide for us and our bodies. However, this is the first time I have heard the suggestion to talk directly to your blood. Why not? Why not specifically address our blood, our vital fluid, about what we want? Why not set our intent directly into our physical essence? Would this allow our intent to better resonate through our aura, and perhaps with/to our Higher Self and the universe? Seems to me that the only way to now for sure would be to try.
 
While it may seem that positive self talk and talking to our blood are similar enough that they may have the same or similar outcome, I suggest that there is a bit of a difference. While Masaru Emoto’s work touts positive physical health benefits for the user, and even spiritual practitioners and psychologists can agree it has mental/emotional benefits as well, talking directly to one’s blood seems (to me) to take it a step further, or deeper, if you will. It feels more like talking “to” oneself on a more direct and deeper level, rather than talking “at” oneself. This is just my opinion of course. Whichever way you choose to do it, the personal benefits are worth the time.  
 
On a side note, talking to one’s blood and setting specific goals or intentions would also have an impact on one’s spiritual practice if you happen to use blood in your magical workings. How you talk to/treat your blood will affect how it affects your magical workings, just like any other tool. Depending on what you are using it for, you could set a specific intention daily up until the time of the spell work. Particularly if that work involves manifesting or attracting something positive to yourself, or the positive side of shadow work (like creating better habits or a more positive self perspective). While there are other uses for blood in magic, that is a topic for another post.
 
I do intend to continue using this to see what happens for myself. If you do try it, I would love to hear how it worked (or didn’t) for you. Would you directly address your blood in this manner? Do you believe it would have a different or more profound affect on you, or would you rather use Masaru Emoto’s technique? I would love to know.
 
 
 
 
 
 

I have talked in previous posts about meditation and mindfulness. I wanted to go a bit deeper into meditation itself. It has been kind of a hot topic for a few years, and while it has become quite popular, there are many misconceptions surrounding it. That said, let’s start with the basics.
There are many benefits to mediation. Most people are aware of the mental benefits of meditation like helping people have better focus and lengthen their attention span. Along with these basic benefits, it can also help achieve better quality sleep/sleep patterns, support emotional regulation, assist with managing symptoms of depression/anxiety/PTSD (alongside medical care), and even help with lessening carvings for those dealing with alcohol or food addictions.** In addition to providing these mental and emotional benefits, did you know that, physically speaking, studies* have shown that meditation can provide cardiovascular benefits by helping reduce stress and lowering blood pressure, and help improve the quality of life by assisting in pain reduction in people who suffer from chronic pain issues? This list is by no means comprehensive, however these are the ones that are most commonly cited by studies that have been done.
There are two main styles of meditation. Each with its own purpose. The first is the one you are most likely familiar with.
Focused Attention: When you focus your mind onto something. This could be a sound like the rhythmic sound of a bell or drum, something visual like a mandala or a candle flame, a thought like a mantra, a visualization (guided or not), or even just your breathing. The objective is to clear the mind of distractions. This type of meditation would be helpful to achieve any of the benefits listed above.
Open-Monitoring: When you consciously expand your awareness to focus on your environment, your train of thought, or your sense of self. The objective here is to experience these things with intention; fully, and in the moment. This type of mediation can bring up suppressed feelings, thoughts, or impulses. It is not about judgement, only awareness. This type of meditation would be excellent for shadow work, and would also be one I would choose to use to help break bad habits, limiting thoughts/beliefs, or supplement with along side medical treatment for alcohol or food addictions. Both of these types of meditation can be used alone or in conjunction with each other to achieve the above mentioned benefits.
While meditation seems quite common today, there are still some misconceptions about it. Ones that may be preventing people from even trying it. Here are some of the more popular ones I have found.
• It is a religious practice or witchcraft: This is not true. Anyone can practice meditation regardless of their religious beliefs. Cultures all over the world have practiced mediation in one form or another. Even focused/concentrated prayer could be considered a form of meditation, but, as mentioned in a previous post, one can be induced into a meditative state doing even the most innocuous tasks. If you have ever “zoned out” doing something like dishes, colouring/drawing, gardening, etc.. you have entered into a mild meditative state.
• If you don’t clear your mind, and keep it clear, you are doing it wrong: False. If given the space, your mind is likely to bring things up during meditation. The harder you work at thinking about “nothing” the harder it can seem to do so. Even if your objective is to reach that clear mind state, the process to get there is not so clear cut. The idea is to learn to let these thoughts or ideas come up, acknowledge them, and then let them pass; to not dwell on or continue to give them your time and energy. This is a learning process, and will take time. No judgement. This brings us to our next point…
• If I am not good at it right away, I never will be: Just like any other skill, it has to be practiced to be “mastered”. That said, you don’t have to be a “master” to benefit from meditation. It does not have to be an “all or nothing” situation.
• Meditation takes a long time. No. In fact, you can start seeing benefits of meditation just by doing it for 5 minutes a day to start with. The longer you practice, the better you will get at it, and you can increase the time you do it as you go. Starting with only 5 minutes a day is a good place to start.
One thing that can help with your meditation practice is breathing techniques. These have mental and physical benefits all on their own, but can also be a good focal point for you, especially when starting out. Here are a couple of techniques I use.
1. Box Breathing. This technique requires equally counting the duration of your breath during their whole cycle (in and out). It may benefit you to pinch your nose closed during the holds, but blocking your throat with your tongue is just as effective, and does not require you to use your hands. To start, breath in slowly for a count of 4. Then hold your breath for a count of 4. Next, slowly release your breath for a count of 4, and lastly, hold for a count of 4. Then repeat. You can do this as many times as you feel comfortable. 10 times is a good start count. This is a technique commonly given to people to help with anxiety. Another variation uses counts of 8 for in and out breaths and counts of 4 for the holds. Whichever you feel more comfortable with.
2. Alternate Nostril Breathing: This one also requires counting the breath, however you must use your fingers/thumb to cover the nostrils since you will be doing this one at a time. Start by closing your right nostril with your thumb/finger and breath in slowly and deeply for 8 seconds. Next, cover the other nostril (so both are closed) for 4 seconds, then unblock the right nostril and slowly release the breath over 8 seconds. Start your next inhale (through the left nostril) immediately and for 8 seconds, then hold for 4 seconds and repeat on other side. An alternate to this is to disregard the hold in between and start the next breath through the opposite nostril right away. Doing this for minimum of 5 minutes per day will be beneficial; working one’s way up to 10 to 15 minutes for full benefits. Adding a visualization of the breath/energy traveling up and down the body in conjunction with the breath (inhale or exhale) on the corresponding side of the body also provides benefits.
On a side note, our body actually, naturally, dominates with one nostril while breathing, and this alternates between our nostrils approximately every 90 minutes. This “feeds” our bodies and our brains in different ways. Something recently noted by psychologists is that breathing through the right side connects to our “logical” left, while breathing through the left connects with our “creative/intuitive” right side. This means that we can reduce anxiety by breathing through our left nostril only for approximately 3 minutes (this is how long it takes to override the dominance). This is because it affects your hypothalamus, which regulates your autonomic nervous system. It also means that our breathing can be affecting our mood at any given time of the day. If you want to learn more about this you can look up a content creator named Kyle Cox on Facebook. He has many useful videos covering neural reset techniques.
So, my question for today is, do you meditate? Have you done this for a long time, or are you just beginning? If you don’t meditate, would you start after reading this? While style do you practice?
*If you would like to read more about these studies you can go to HTTPS://www.healthline.com/nutrition/12-benefits-of-meditation#accessibility for more information and the links to the studies.
**This is not medical advice, and should not be used to replace it. Please seek or continue professional medical treatment for your mental and physical ailments.