What are chakras anyway?

When exploring energy work, and even just walking around crystal shops, we eventually come upon the concept of chakras. We have the firm impression that chakras are important, and many a crystal sale has been based on someone telling us that this or that crystal would balance a chakra… But what are chakras anyway?

“Chakra” is a sanskrit word for “spinning wheel”. Although the New Age wave works mostly with the wisdom coming from India, other ancient cultures have been working with energy centres in the human body for thousands of years. The number and placement of these energy centres are somewhat different in each ancient tradition, but there are many similarities. There is a general agreement that there are points in the body where energy enters the physical body, where energy is stored, and where energy exits the body.

I find it very interesting that modern western medicine is now “discovering” energy centres in the body. Technology is truly fascinating! The use of electroencephalograms, MRIs, CTscans, etc. have helped establish the fact that humans have an electrical system. The nerves send electrical signals through the body and to the brain; the heart needs electrical input to pump; hormones are produced with electrical signals from the brain; muscle tension can be produced or relieved with electrical impulses… The body is 90% water, and water is an excellent conductor of electricity. Here’s an other interesting fact: each of the 7 major chakras line up with organs or glands in the body that regulate a physical or emotional aspect, and the hormones they produce correlate with the characteristics of the chakras, as observed by sages over thousands of years. For instance, the sacral chakra deals with creativity and emotional sensitivity. The associated gland? Gonads - testes and ovaries. I think we all know how the function of these glands can affect our emotional state…

Here is what Natalie Southgate, founder of Chakradance, writes about the importance of working with our chakras:

“When we make a commitment to create a balanced and healthy chakra system, we are making a commitment to holistic and ultimate health. Your chakra system holds within it your ancestral records, your relationship history, your beliefs about yourself and your power, and your connection to the Divine. The health of your chakras is therefore directly connected to your physical, mental and spiritual well-being. When we consciously work with our chakras, and choose to balance their energy and optimise their programming, we can literally change our own energy. When we are energetically healthy, we vibrate at a different frequency. This new frequency, or vibration, can attract to us wonderful new situations, opportunities and people.”

The chakras are storehouses of the symptoms of our day-to-day problems but they also hold the solutions. By working with each one, we activate those solutions. I’ve decided that over the next few months we will be exploring this wonderful world of energy centres together. I will share my knowledge and experience of the popular chakra system, and will share with you tips and techniques to feel and understand your energy centres. I will also share information on specific crystals, archetypes and essential oils that can help you on an energetic level. My intention is to empower you to make changes in the way you care for your body, mind and spirit so that you may experience increased wellness.

When we find the true rhythm and harmony that comes with balancing our chakras, life takes on its true colours! I am looking forward to exploring the world of chakras with you. If you have specific questions on the health of your chakras, or if you would like a chakra-specific Oracle Card Reading, click here to make an appointment!

Sending you blessings of Love!

3 Techniques I Use To Understand And Release Anxiety

I am so thrilled to have started a partnership with a local organization, where I will work with a group of women to help them through their experience of stress, anxiety and depression. I will be meeting with them once a month for the next 9 months. We’ll have quite a journey together, and I am happy and grateful for it!

My own experiences with anxiety and depression have brought me some wisdom on how to best deal with these feelings. These feelings have been present in my life as far as I can remember. I think I was about 7 the first time I imagined the need to take my brain out of my head and into a jar so that I could find some sleep. In High School, I buried myself in activities - I can count 13 club photos in one yearbook. My first burnout was at 18, and a full-blown panic attack in third year University. That powerful and frightening experience turned the ignition for my healing journey.

For me, talk therapy was not very helpful. I found that the therapists were always asking the same questions, even though they were taking copious notes. There were no breakthroughs, only the same conversations over and over again until I tired of repeating myself and stopped going. Maybe I was just too hurt and too closed to their method. Maybe I didn’t trust them enough because I felt the stigma of branding just walking into their office. I felt judged, assessed and boxed in one or two of their labels. Whatever the reason, it just never felt right for me.

What works for me, then and now, is what I teach my clients. It’s not about the one method so much as it is finding what works for you. And to find what works for you, you have to be willing to try different approaches. Seek help from licensed therapists, and explore “alternative” methods that are safe and healthy. Surround yourself with a team of people you trust and where you feel safe to explore your inner world. I can feel quite vulnerable and naked to my core when I open up about my inner world. That fear of being judged and ridiculed can be quite strong… but with my team of helpers I’ve learned to heal past that fear so that it doesn’t hold me back anymore. I wouldn’t be writing this article, contributing to my blog, or constantly learning new ways to help my clients if I would still be living in fear.

So what are my best techniques?

1. Notice what’s going on inside… many of us have learned to hide our emotions. Other people’s feelings matter more than ours. After a lifetime of hiding my feelings behind work, community activities and people-pleasing hoopla, I realized that I was unable to recognize my own feelings. I spent almost a year learning about my emotional landscape, and my best tool was the sentence: “I feel ______.” When you can name it, you claim it - and you can work with it. 
2. Be curious about what’s behind the feeling… a feeling of anxiety is often a trigger, or a response to a physical situation or a thought pattern. There are often stories behind the feelings, like the need to please Mother, the need to belong, the need to be safe, the need to be loved - and the stories running in our minds can remind of times when these needs were not met, and part of the brain might be running statistics on the likelihood to be disappointed or hurt again. But until we know what story is running, it’s hard to change the channel. 
3. Body movement is imperative. Whether it’s a walk, a swim, yoga or a jog - the body needs to move! Anxiety and stress build up a lot of energy in the head and upper chest areas. We can feel constricted, choking or stiff. In these instances, the aura is shrinking in and offers no protection to external factors. It’s important to move and have some cardio activity to help release a build up of energy - and pump up endorphins and happy hormones through the body. Body activity truly cuts through the fog - plus it helps rebuild a healthy aura.

Chakradance is my favourite modality because it combines body movement, introspection, and divine communication. I have been able to move through rough patches and gain valuable insights. I feel so blessed to be able to share this gift with others, guiding them in their own journey. Every one of my students has lived a transformation, some big, some small… but a transformation nonetheless. I’m sure the women’s group participants will enjoy this journey too.

Do you need help exploring your emotional landscape? Talk to me.

Sending you blessings of Love!

A setback or an invitation to learn and grow?

The dust is settling from the kitchen reno: the new cupboards are ordered and I was able to clear a square foot of countertop where I can prepare basic meals. The menu is closer to the ready-made diet I favoured as a University student rather than the healthy gourmet I’ve become. Oh well - sometimes we need to take a step back to be ready to leap forward.

Life’s path is circular rather than linear. It winds up and down valleys, retraces its steps to gain better perspective and often moves in a spiral up and around a mountain instead of taking the most direct route. What feels like a setback is often part of this curvy journey. Stepping back allows for us to take stock of our strengths and of what still needs work. It helps us realize how far we’ve come. It helps us use tools and knowledge in a new way, for a new purpose.

In our fast-food, make-it-quick, I-want-it-now society, we often feel that a setback is a failure. We loose patience with the learning process. We want to know it, apply it, be proficient with it right away. This need to understand it all, and to “get it right” is a big source of stress, anger and frustration. We forget that some things take a lifetime (or more!) to truly understand. We also forget that there are many layers to understanding and that knowing with our heads or with logic is only a small piece of the puzzle.

I have been talking with a lot of people recently who are experiencing setbacks. It takes longer than they thought to reach their goals, and then they find out that they didn’t really like their chosen objective anyway - so what now? Others have a complete life or career do-over to deal with, and not always through conscious choice or decision. Many women feel sad, anxious and depressed because they are realizing that the life they have built for themselves is just not fulfilling - “was the last 15 years a lie? How do I deal with this?”, they ask.

If this sounds like you, I want you to take a look at my Programs. I teach from my own experience what works to get away from the drama of a setback. I help you gain a new perspective, so you can keep focusing on the moment and on the future your heart really wants to manifest. I help you get away from the superficial git-er-done-now and into the flow of your soul purpose. The process takes time - no fast-food about it! - but it’s well worth it. I know, because my clients tell me so, and not just out of politeness, teehee. I see the changes in their eyes and in their energy even before they become aware of it. I am so privileged to be a witness to such transformation, and I am happy, from the bottom of my heart, to be able to serve in this way.

Just as I know that the kitchen will be gorgeous when it’s done, with its splash of red and double the original space to cook and bake delicious meals and treats, I also have faith that this spiritual reno we are going through will have results beyond our expectations. I can see beyond the mess. It’s important, when we feel a setback, to get the tools we need to refocus, to learn the lessons, and get our sense of direction. When we’re done reacting and fretting and cursing… it’s easier to stay centred and plan the way forward toward what we really want.

Do you need help seeing beyond the mess? Talk to me.

Sending you blessings of Love!

Take a look at my Programs

I’ve been talking a many people lately who are experiencing a surge in anxiety, stress and depression. They find it difficult to see beyond the hurt and the sadness. For just too many, the dust is not settling easily, and the constant emotional agitation keeps the dust flying in a downward spiral of yuck.

Because of this general unease I’m sensing, I want to take some time this week to talk to you about my Programs. I know they can help you, whether the dust is settling for you and you feel ready to move forward on your spiritual path, or whether you feel stuck in the yuck. Take a look at what I offer, and feel if any of these can be used as a walking stick on your journey. The techniques I teach and the coaching I offer help my clients find a sense of inner peace.

One-on-one Program

I have experienced first-hand what damage anxiety and depression can do, and I found that meditation and connecting with Spirit/Source/Angels is key to changing those thoughts and emotions that keep us stuck. If you feel, like many others, that you’d like to roll up in a ball and disappear for a while… honour the feeling, but don’t stay stuck there. Reach out! Find the help you need. This 6-month Program reconnects you with your ability to take clear action steps to reach your goals and objectives. It’s been life-changing for my clients, and as their self-confidence and overall wellbeing increased they have noticed positive ripple effects in their relationships at home and at work.

For the duration of this Program, we meet twice a month either in person, through Skype or over the phone. I tap into what your Soul needs in the moment and we allow for Spirit to lead the session. You receive live Readings every month, and you get coached on what your soul really needs. You also receive email support throughout the Program.

This Program can start anytime following our initial conversation; there are no set intake dates.


Intuition Development Program

This is a 6-month group program. I teach techniques to connect to true Source energy, and we learn to make peace with and to develop intuitive gifts. This Program will provide you with all the basics you need to heal yourself, and you’ll learn techniques - and the ethics - to offer healing to people, pets and the environment. I’ll let my graduate students speak on this one:

“I recommend this Program because it will help you look within at what you may or may not know about yourself. Jaz is an amazing person, coach and facilitator. She is very knowledgable and understands what each person in the class needs to help them grow. I highly recommend her courses to anyone searching for more in life." -- Pat K.

"I loved this Program, and I am a better person because of it. Jaz works with you over time to ensure you understand the concepts and you work hands on. With practice, you gain confidence in this field and in your life." Shirley G.

"This Program helped with inner peace. It showed me how to bring out my gifts. It helped me make life changes, and I learned a lot." Shirley H.

The next intake for this wonder-full Program starts the weekend of September 27-28.

I'm quite excited that this Program will soon be available online!  I'm looking into possible technology that can bring us together.  I know many of you would love to take this Program and reconnect to your Inner Lightworker, but you live too far away to take this Program in person.  Stay tuned!  I'm real close to being ready for the online launch!  Let me know if you're interested!

September is such a good time to start a new routine, now that the kids are back in school and that the weather is cooler. It’s time to go within to find answers to your questions. It’s time to journey some more, away from the stuck zone. Are you ready?

Contact me to learn more about my Programs, and to register for Fall sessions.

The kitchen reno of Awakening

Denise Linn
"Soul CoachingOracle Cards"

For a moment, standing here in the midst of my kitchen reno, I feel like the Grinch who stole Christmas. It comes with boxes and labels and strings. It comes with dust and odours and furnishings. And oh the noise, noise, noise, NOISE! I'm loosing my poise, poise, poise, POISE! OK, so I'm no Dr. Seuss, but like the Grinch, I feel it would be easy for my heart to become two sizes too small.

I've been talking to several beautiful souls this past week, and I realize there are many of us feeling the same way. Stalled. Angry. And that feeling that's hard to put into words but that is between the "oh no you didn't" and "fine, what now?". There's a bit of "are you really listening, God, or are you just toying with me?" thrown in the mix too. It's quite the recipe we're mixing.

And then comes the aha moment.

We're undergoing a spiritual reno at the moment, and we're deep in the messy part of deconstruction and making choices for the outcome. 

From this point on, would you like your life to have a pop of colour? To have easy glides? Would you like to stand tall? Would you rather blend in with uniform colour? Would you like a serene space? What would you like to stand on? How big a space do you want? What are you willing to pay? Are you willing to upgrade everything or just a portion?

Those questions are being answered by your Soul at this time, and you may not even be aware of it. You may be too busy sorting out the dust. You might be angry at the inconvenience or with the bad timing. You may feel confused because your spiritual utensils are now in the living room and the metaphysical cookbooks in the basement. Nothing is the same anymore, but we're trying to make sense of it all based on what we know; on what used to be.

Hmph. The in-between phases are always the most difficult. They're filled with doubt and worry. They're filled with insecurity. All renos go through a period of icky mess before things can be put together again in a way that is better and more beautiful than before. Just watch a few home shows to the OMG reveal, and you'll know it's true. Watch a few life makeover shows too, and you'll notice how the process is similar. Let's blame the contractor or the designer...

Hmmm maybe not. Now that we are fully aware of the spiritual reno going on, what can we do to stay sane and centered in this mess? We have to take responsibility for our own awakening and make mindful choices because the decisions we make now will have long-term ripple effects. We have to stop viewing this situation from a victim point of view (aka "it's happening to me and it's not fair"). We are invited now to be mindful co-creators and rise above the dust and the noise and the mess (aka "I'm lovingly choosing how I live my life, and Spirit and the angels are my contractors and labourers. I'm in good hands.").

How to stay peaceful in the mess?

• Getting out in Nature, or at least taking a 15-minute break to look out the window and breathe deeply.
• Spending at least 10 minutes a day in mindful meditation - that's as easy as listening to your favourite tunes and allowing yourself to daydream.
• Dust off that vision board, and make necessary adjustments. This is the plan for this next phase of your life - and you want to make sure you can live with its colours.

Do you need extra help to work through life lessons or to release anxiety about the past, present or future? I can help! We can work on your vision board together. An Oracle Reading will help you understand what your Soul wants you to know, and what plans Spirit has for you. I'll ask you about your goals and your energy, and I'll give you tailored-to-you tips to move forward in your heart's direction.

Sending you blessings of Love!

September 2014 - Romantic Outlook Reading

I love trying different ways of bringing you messages from Spirit...  I'm using crystals and Doreen Virtue's "The Romance Angels" Oracle Cards to bring you an overview of your romance forecast for this month of September.

First...  take a deep breath, close your eyes and think of your current relationship challenge.  Then, focus on the crystals and pick the first one that gets your attention.  Or pick a number from 1 to 3, going from left to right.

Have you made your choice?  Don't scroll down until you've made your choice!

Now look below to read your message.  Use your intuition to feel how the Angels and the crystals are counselling you and giving you strength for your next step.

1. Hematite and "Romantic Feelings" card:  You are ready to turn up the romance in your life, whether in an existing or new relationship.  Take this as your cue to take grounded action to follow your romantic feelings!  Hematite is a beautiful stone to help release anxiety and negative feelings.  Use the energy of Hematite to help you overcome past hurts that may be blocking a new venture, and to release the negative thoughts and "what ifs" of surrounding a relationship.  Stay positive, be confident, and take the first step in making your feelings known!  It is safe for you to do so.
2. Rose Quartz and "Deception" Card:  This is a reminder to stay true to yourself!  Have you been shielding your heart in hopes of preventing a heartbreak?  Is your relationship plagued with conditional love - aka love, affection or sex in exchange for a chore or task, or "I love you only if you behave a certain way" attitude?  Are you - or your partner - not disclosing true feelings on a particular matter for fear of offending the other?  Remember to be genuine with your feelings.  Say no when you mean no.  Follow up lovingly with your commitments.  Discuss your true feelings, even if it's uncomfortable to do so.  When you do, you will feel lighter.  Call upon the energy of Rose Quartz to be connected with Unconditional Love.  This particular chunk I acquired in Brazil is excellent with soothing the heart and inviting forgiveness.
3. Labradorite and "Forgiving and Learning" Card: This Labradorite wand is excellent for Lightworkers, and it helps bring Light and clarity to any situation.  In this instance, call upon the energy of Labradorite to gain clarity about past experiences in your current and/or past relationships.  What have you learned about yourself through theses experiences?  How have your strengths and your character been tested?  You have been hurt before and are afraid of being hurt again...  but this fear of being hurt is only putting up a wall preventing a great Love to reach you!  Review your past experiences and understand that these are life lessons for you.  Now forgive the role you played and the roles your partners have played while you were learning these life lessons.  Use White Light to protect you as you move forward and cut away the cobwebs of the past.  When you learn and release a life lesson, you will feel a surge of freedom and the road ahead will appear more clear and less frightening.  

Do you need extra help to work through life lessons or to release anxiety and past hurts?  I can help!  Contact me for a complimentary chat.  I'll ask you about your goals and your energy, and I'll give you tailored-to-you tips to move forward in your heart's direction.

Blessings of Love and Light!

There's a Lull in My Heart...

I feel it every time, and I wonder if the intensity will ever lessen or if it’s just part of how I manage and share my energy…

I truly love this work that I do. I love teaching and coaching people how to reconnect with their spiritual nature. I know that it’s a journey, and that I get to walk with my students for a short time only. But even if my head knows the nature and the brevity of our time together, my heart goes “all in” every time. I draw my students in a sacred energy before the Program starts and I pray for Spirit to surround us with blessings to support our journey together. Each student makes an imprint in my heart and mind. There’s more that goes on in one of my Programs than the actual classes… And then, when comes graduation time, I release the energy and the bonds that brought us together. And I feel a bit empty.

This past Saturday was such a graduation day. Four new Lightworkers have completed their Level 1 training, and I am so proud of the journey we have shared these past 6 months. I love how we have all grown. I admire their new confidence in their healing and psychic abilities. I find joy in noticing the extra light in their eyes and feeling the inner peace they have found.

Tuesday evening, it is the closing of a 9-week Chakradance cycle. These students have found messages and guidance, journeying deep in their chakras. They have met spirit guides. They have explored their inner psyche. They have come to an understanding of a few patterns in their lives. They are noticing synchronicities, coincidences and messages from Spirit. We’ll be celebrating their journey Tuesday night.

You could say I’m a proud momma.

I am happy and joyful, and yet with two Programs finishing the same week, my soul is singing Ella Fitzgerald’s version of “There’s a Lull In My Life” … As I release the energy that united me with my students, it feels like there’s a bit of a void. There’s an absence. It’s almost like a small grieving process.

The card I pulled this morning to help me focus on this article reminded to honour all the cycles in my life. Life is made of endings and new beginnings. Life is full of seasons. It’s time to release the old and start again. I’m thinking also of Calypso with whom I have danced a few weeks ago, and indeed I feel the strength of her ocean. I feel like the wave ebbed out only to gather more strength to flow once more.

One thing I learned in this life and especially through the miscarriages and infertility experiences, is to allow myself to truly feel the losses. It’s only when I truly feel the emptiness, without clinging to what was or what could have been that I can make space for new projects, new love, new classes, new ideas… new students. It can take a few hours, a few days, a few months… but it’s only when I go deep in the emptiness that I gain strength to move forward again. The same holds true for my clients; those who have the most pain and difficulty finding joy are still holding on to old hurts and grief. It's important to learn how to let go.

My meditations these next few days will focus on thanksgiving and releasing to make energetic space for the next season – and my inner knowing tells me this coming season will be full of powerful transitions and experiences! My energy will be ready soon to work with new clients – for private coaching sessions and through classes and Programs. I’m already looking forward to it all!

Sending you blessings of Love!