The Fire Within

Who are you?

This is the question the third chakra often prompts us to answer. The third chakra, also known as the solar plexus, is about our relationship with our self - who we are in the universe, our belief in our self and our personal will in the outside world. It is where we take any criticism that comes our way and evaluate it. It is why we use the expression, "punched in the gut."  It is also where we come to really feel powerful in the choices we make and have confidence that we know what is right for ourselves. If we have a breakup or move houses or switch jobs, we will often find this chakra off. Or if we are even contemplating any of these changes we may find our third chakra off balance. The third chakra is also where all social movements start, many people have found with the change in presidency that their third chakra is activated. They feel fired up to stand up for what they believe it. The element associated with this chakra is fire.

Here's the breakdown on what the third chakra governs on the physical, psychological and spiritual levels. First though, where to find it - the third chakra is usually located below where your rib cage opens up.
 
Physical level: It governs the digestive system, pancreas, liver, gallbladder, adrenals and immune system. 
 
Psychological level: When it is in balance we are not easily manipulated or swayed to other's ways unless it aligns with our own. While outside approval is nice, when our third chakra is in balance, it is not necessary for us to act, we feel strong enough on our own. We are able to come from a place of strength and integrity.
 
Spiritual: This governs our ability to face life's obstacles with integrity. We know we can take risks and handle any situation we are faced with. When our solar plexus is open and in balance we can clearly hear intuitive information and act on it. 
 
If your solar plexus chakra is off you may experience the following:

• Difficulty feeling feelings
• Extreme highs and lows of emotions
• Low self worth 
• Workaholic tendencies
• Desire to control
• Addictive personality 
• Stomach ulcers
• Digestive problems
• Judgmental
• Need constant reassurance
• Overly concerned about what others think

Some suggestions for bringing your solar plexus back into balance:

• Visualize yellow light / fire coming out from your third chakra
• Yoga poses: plank, warrior III, bow, child's pose and cobra pose
• Breath of fire
• Affirmations: I determine to treat myself with respect and honor. I am my own person. I am open to receiving all life's good things. 
• Place hand on third chakra envision any criticisms bouncing off
• Essential oils; bergamont, ginger, black pepper, lemon, clove and wintergreen.

A friend shared this video with me and I felt like it's such a brilliant example of a healthy solar plexus ~ hope you enjoy this video and also can feel "Soy Yo" or "I'm me". 
 
Bringing our third chakra into balance will bring the sense of knowing who you are. Here’s to being you in your most powerful form.

The Sweetness of Life

Want to bring flow back into your life? 

Every year I send out yearly review forms to clients who have come to see me at least a few times. I enjoy looking back and seeing what patterns have been present over the year. This year I was struck by how many folks repeatedly had their 2nd chakra off. The sacral chakra is located below your belly button and is related to sexuality, creativity and life force. This chakra is where we move from the survival of the first chakra to the nourishment and pleasure of life. The chakra that adds the spice and passion to life. Sounds juicy right? This is the chakra you definitely would want to invite to this party called life, so let’s learn about it’s functions and how to bring it back into balance.

 
Here's the breakdown on what the second chakra governs on the physical, psychological and spiritual levels. First though, where to find it - the second chakra is usually located below your belly button, if you follow the crest of your hips over to your midsection you are at your 2nd chakra.
 
Physical level: It governs sexual organs, bladder, lower back, sexual desires and nourishment. Sexuality is life force and when this chakra is open we can feel our own sexual power. This also is about taking up energetic space and not taking up too little or too much.
 
Psychological level: When it is in balance we can ride our emotions and are able to nurture ourselves and others and hold healthy boundaries. We are able to express ourselves creatively, trust and find pleasure in life. This center is where we find our passion for our career and desire for another person. This chakra governs the understanding that in order to grow, we must be open to change.
 
Spiritual: This governs our ability to find everyday pleasures to enjoy. We are able to ride the wave of whatever comes our way. We understand that we can trust things to work out. We can freely give and receive pleasure. We understand that through our desires we expand.
 
If your sacral chakra is off you may experience the following:

• Sexual imbalance
• Infertility 
• Inability to sate oneself 
• Money problems
• Feeling like you don’t belong
• Feeling stuck
• Difficulty being emotionally sensitive to self
• Controlling 
• Feeling guilty for no reason
• Writers block
• Inflexibility

Some suggestions for bringing your sacral chakra back into balance:

• Make out with yourself or someone else - if you don't know what turns you on, it can be difficult to let someone else know
• Yoga poses: pelvic hip rock, leg lifts, pigeon pose, goddess pose
• Swimming
• Taking hot baths
• Alternate nostril breathing
• Affirmations: I create with love, I am open to the world and flow with the changes, I am worthy of love and sexual pleasures, I am creating a life free of stress and full of bliss
• Placing hand on second chakra and visualizing it filling with orange light
• Essential oils; jasmine, rose, sandalwood, rose, wild orange, lemon, tangerine

Here’s an example of a closed second chakra: You see a lovely dessert, it’s calling your name, it happens to be your favorite kind and you decide to indulge in it. You buy it and after you’ve had a few bites you start telling yourself, I shouldn’t be eating this, sugar is bad for me, I’m so overweight as it is, no one wants to be with me…then all of a sudden all the pleasure you initially had has now instantly vanished. You finish the dessert, but do not feel satiated, in fact you stopped the pleasure and now feel guilty. Had you allowed yourself to fully enjoy the experience without the judgment you might not have even needed to eat the whole dessert.
 
Bringing our second chakra into balance will bring the sweetness of life back. Here’s to the flow of creation and healthy 2nd chakras. If you'd like me to teach a class on this, contact me. 

In mid February I'll be offering a weekend of free 30 minute healing sessions for people who are new to my work and curious about what energy healing can offer them. I'll be sending out more details soon.

Take care,

Kim