Does anyone else have a headache?

Your body might be detoxing during this time of important energetic transition.

If you read my articles this month, you’ve learned that opening up your Third Eye or Brow Chakra to intuition is not just about woo-woo New Age ideals on spiritualism, and it’s not just about increasing psychic abilities.  A strong and balanced Brow Chakra is opened to physical and metaphysical information.  It seeks to fuse its understanding of the physical world with a deep inner knowing that comes from being spiritually connected.  We become aware of energy - motivations, emotions, ideals, “hidden agendas”, forces - beyond what can be perceived by the physical senses.  This knowing can help us make decisions that are more ethical, enlightened, and aligned with the highest good.

So when I wake up almost every day for a week with a headache, and I meet clients and colleagues who are also suffering from headaches, body aches, nausea, and tiredness…  When my guidance and Oracle Readings all have the same theme of R&R to prepare for a new beginning, I start thinking that it is not just me, not just the time change, not just the fact that I might not have been drinking less than my 2L of water daily, not just the change in weather; there must be something else going on in the Energy Field.

I did a bit of research to supplement my meditations, and found that, indeed, the Energy Field is changing.  Just last Friday, we experienced a New Moon, the Equinox, and a solar eclipse.  Earlier last week, we experienced the magnetism of various big solar flares.  There are also big astrological changes with signs and planets pointing to personal transformation and reevaluation .  Spiritually, Doreen Virtue summed it up well on her Facebook page:

From Doreen Virtue's Facebook page

"If you feel tired right now, it could be a positive sign of your sensitivity to the powerful shift in energy which has occurred. (…)  Any blocks were blasted open.

Now it's time for reassignments for us all, and promotions to a higher purpose. We are guided to rest, take naps, and take it easy. During sleep, rest, prayer, and meditation is where you receive the new information about the higher path that your life is taking.

With this energy shift, your body will likely ask you for a cleaner diet, and gentle forms of exercise. Sensitivities or allergies to processed foods, gluten, and chemicals might be affecting your body right now. Headaches, illness, and body pain can arise from detoxing or from allergens in your diet. Your body is literally rejecting toxins right now. You can expect increasing sensitivity to harsh energy, which might mean that career and relationship changes will come about sooner than expected."

What have you been praying for in the past few months, especially since the Solstice?  Where have you been focusing your thoughts and energies?  What is the gist of your inner talk, and your conversations with the divine?  Your prayers have been heard, and your spiritual helpers are coming up with a solution - it’s not quite ready yet, but they will surprise you soon with their answer.  They are working hard - so what is your role now?

Rest.  Meditate.  Smile.  Don’t worry; be happy.

Doing nothing seems like a tall order when ego wants to run around in circles with so much to do and so little time to do it.  Meditating might feel counter-intuitive when you feel the need to plan, think, analyze.  Praying might feel irrelevant when you feel the call to action.

Remember: having an open and healthy Brow Chakra involves listening to these urgings of the soul!  By resisting these whispers from spirit, you risk increasing physical symptoms of discomfort such as those listed above.  Balance both sides of your brain; balance logic and intuition; balance planning and analysis with creative activities.

Remember also: a healthy Brow Chakra involves trust in Spirit and in your creative mind.  This trust relationship develops over time, and in moments of quietude - not in hustle and bustle.

Now that you have more information about what is happening in the Energy Field, the choice is yours: will you resist the changes and try to ignore your soul’s callings, or will you find some moments of quietude and rest to joyfully welcome the new, higher-vibrational energies coming your way?

For myself, I am increasing meditation time, walks outdoors with my dog, and am becoming more disciplined in my daily self-Reiki practice.

To what meditation practice, energy medicine or rest time can you commit?  I’d love to hear from you.  Remember to reach out to me by private message or email if you need help.

Surrounding you in Love & Light.

It’s more than just plopping a crystal on your nightstand

Steps to carefully select and work with the crystal that’s right for you

It’s the third week of the month which means I am writing about crystals! In the context of the Brow Chakra month, I will share with you tips to intuitively choose crystals that can work with your vibes and help you on your spiritual journey.

I carry a small amount of crystals for sale in my healing centre.  People often come looking for a specific crystal because they have read in a book that the crystal could help with such-and-such an issue. Newbies to crystal work might even believe that placing a crystal in a certain area of their home or on their bodies might be sufficient to heal specific issues. People working with the brow chakra, for instance, might be looking for amethyst, clear quartz and lapis lazuli.  (I do have a few nice specimens waiting to find a home!)

But I’m not a “by-the-book” kinda gal.  I don’t believe that because an author says that you should work with a specific crystal means that it’s right for you.  There are many generalizations and assumptions in books.  You are not a general assumption - you are a unique soul with a unique vibe, and it’s best to find out what works best with you, specifically.  Use the books as general guidelines, but trust your intuition in making your selection.

While it is true that the vibes of crystals can help enhance certain areas of your body-mind-spirit personal vibes, nothing replaces inner work.  Moreover, I learned through experience that crystals are a bit like people, or pets, in the sense that each crystal has its unique frequency or personality.  Not all chunks of amethyst or clear quartz are calibrated to work with your vibes.  It’s important to find the right crystal that can best work for you, in your particular issue.  It’s even more important to go to the root of the issue for greater healing and increased awareness.

For example, someone might want to work on opening up their Third Eye and increase clairvoyant abilities.  But even if the “want” is there, this person feels fearful.  The fear might be rooted in a lack of skills pertaining to grounding and protection.  Or it might be rooted in adopted social negative beliefs about people who are psychic.  Either way, the Third Eye will not open up until the root issues are healed.  Stare at Amethyst all you want.  It’s just not happening.

Ugh.  That means finding inner peace or increased financial flow is not as simple as plopping a crystal on your nightstand.  There’s work involved.  So what are the guidelines?

1. Go within to find what aspect of your life you would like to enhance.  Do you want to increase your Love magnetism?  Increase psychic abilities?  Find forgiveness?  Feel grounded?  Increase prosperity?  Clearly define what you truly want.  Then ask yourself why this is what you truly want?  What is the core feeling or value behind this want?  Is there a hurt behind this?  Or social pressure, or a sense of accomplishment or peace? (An intuitive session can help you with this task)
2. Listen to your intuition when you select a crystal helper.  Hold your “what” and your “why” within your heart and mind as you shop, and allow your body’s wisdom to tell you if a crystal is right for the job.  To do this:

• Hold the crystal in your receptive hand (if you’re right handed, your receptive hand is your left hand).  If the crystal is too heavy for one hand, such as a big chunk of amethyst, use both hands to hold the crystal to your heart, or to touch the crystal on its display.  
• Connect with the crystal through your senses - feel its weight, see its colours, feel its shape and the qualities of its surface (is it rugged, sharp, smooth, cool to the touch…).  This is an intuitive way to say “hello”.
• Holding your “what” and “why” in your mind and heart, ask the crystal if it is willing to work with you on this particular issue.  Ask it to give you its response through your body and your intuition.
• Close your eyes, and allow your body to give you the crystal’s answer.  With a “yes” answer, your body might sway forward.  You might sense a pulse in your hand chakra coming from the crystal as it activates.  You might even feel an opening or melting in your heart and mind, similar to when you see a new kitten or puppy.  A “no” answer feels very different.  The crystal’s energy might zap you (that happened to me once; it was very painful!); your body might sway backwards; you might hear a “no”; the crystal might feel too heavy, forcing you to place it back on the shelf; or you might feel a closing in the heart chakra.  
• Thank the crystal, and thank your body.  Respect the answer you received.  If the crystal gave you a “yes” answer, then adopt it and bring it home.  If it’s a “no” answer, then thank it and place it back lovingly on the shelf.
• This process can take a while, especially if you receive a few “no” answers before finding “the one”.  Give yourself enough time to shop, look around and feel the crystals.  It’s best when you feel relaxed and open.  Avoid rushing.

3.  Once your crystal is home, cleanse it under water, using sage smoke, or placing it in a bowl of sea salt.  Some crystals can be left in sunshine or moonlight, but remember that sunshine can be too harsh for many of these minerals who have been, after all, cocooned in the darkness of the Earth for thousands of years.  Amethyst, for instance, will loose its beautiful purple colouring if left in direct sunlight.

4.  Hold your crystal in meditation, or place it in front of you as you gently gaze at it.  Use it as a gateway to your inner consciousness, and as a key to ancient wisdom.  Ask questions.  Go deeper in your “what” and your “why”.  Ask about your next right step in your journey to healing.  Is there something - an emotion, a thought pattern, a habit - that needs to be released?  Is there a specific action for you to take?  Is there an option available to you that is more in alignment with your vibes and with your divine plan?  Does it want to be activated as part of a crystal grid?

5.  Thank your crystal helper, and cleanse it at least once a month using one of the methods listed above (#3).

Crystals have a way to let us know when their work with us is complete.  You will find a change in their vibes; a fullness in your heart.  Many times, crystals will disappear.  It happened to me more than once that a crystal fell off a necklace, just like that.  I imagine it possibly waiting on the sidewalk or the parking lot for the next person to pick it up and work with it.  I’ve had other pieces disappear from a shelf and reappear years later when an issue resurfaced.  It’s important to accept that although a crystal is right for you at the moment you adopt it, its commitment to you might not be for your entire lifetime.  Like other magical helpers, crystals will move on to where their help is most needed.  A bit like Mary Poppins.  We have to be ready to let them go when their work with us is done.

I hope this article can help you select the optimal crystals to accompany you on your life’s journey.  If you have any questions on selecting and working with crystals, send me a message; I’d be happy to be of assistance.  I can also bless the crystal with Reiki and optimize it for your personal vibes.

Surrounding you in Love & Light.

Is that my ego or my intuition?

Tips for knowing the difference, and making a difference

I love this time of year.  The days are getting longer, and most of the time, warmer.  Birds are migrating back, and their song brings joy to my mornings.  The snow is melting.  The pets start wanting to spend more time outdoors (my cats do not enjoy snow or temperatures below zero).  I don’t have to put on so many layers of clothes when I leave the house.

There is this effervescence in the air.  I have this deep feeling that something great is going to happen; that Nature is fully awakening and is preparing a glorious spring.  I don’t see them; I don’t hear them…  but I know the flower bulbs gracing my gardens are getting ready to grow and bloom.  I trust that the season will change.

It’s odd, isn’t it, to say “I trust the season will change”.  Of course it will; it’s been doing so every year since forever.  It’s a fact of life.  It’s not magic; it’s the way things are.

This is the same way I feel about intuition.  Of course it exists; of course it provides me with insights that are beyond physical perception.  No, it's not magic hocus-pocus.  It’s not a question of belief to me; it’s a fact.  Just like I can feel the change in the seasons through my body, mind and spirit, I can sense changes in energy fields. 

Intuition, just like knowledge, serves to inform how I live my life.  

We live in a world of polarity where things are perceived good or bad; black or white; valid or invalid.  We are looking for certainty and we hate failure and mistakes.  The world of spirit is not anchored in this duality.  The world of spirit does not necessarily favour any one aspect of the duality over an other.  It’s a holistic and balanced approach:  our experience of the moon wouldn’t be the same without its monthly cycle of shadow and light; our experience of day wouldn’t be the same without night; our experience of love wouldn’t be the same if at some point in our life we did not experience resentment, jealousy and hatred.  Shadow and light are BOTH pieces of the same puzzle.  They are both valid life experiences.  They can both help us know more about ourselves, our true desires, and our core divinity.

There is an ego-driven form of spirituality out there, and it's been there for ages, where we believe that only higher wisdom is valid and we must reject all physical sensations and material wellbeing.  We start alienating and rejecting part of ourselves for being "less than".  We judge those who are "more spiritual" and those who are "not connected".  We'd often rather floating on spiritual cloud 9 instead of being grounded in the physical world we incarnated to experience.  Is this really Spirit talking?

And therefore, when you think these thoughts and you wonder, “is this my intuition or my ego?” - allow yourself to consider for a moment that it could be both at the same time; the ego brain feeding you information about your fears, your physical safety and your immediate wellbeing; and your intuition feeding you information about the greater energies available to you at this time.  Question both, allow them to inform you, then take a well-informed decision.  Experiencing your thoughts and feelings in a holistic manner, without judgement, will make a huge difference in your life and bring you closer to inner peace and meaningful satisfaction - because you'll learn to love all pieces of you.

That being said, many want tips on identifying the voices of ego and the voices of intuition; and these guidelines are very helpful!  Here are a few things to ponder.  Ask yourself how you feel when you receive the messages, and be mindful of any other information you are perceiving.

Are you feeling…

Lower Self - Ego	Higher Self - Intuition - Divine Messages
Fearful, jealous, judgemental, insecure, greedy	Loving, confident, fulfilled, calm, secure, positive

Are you…

Lower Self - Ego	Higher Self - Intuition - Divine Messages
Focused on the future	Focused on the present moment, the next right action
Being competitive, win-lose approach	Interested in win-win approach
Impulsive	Consistent with your core values
Acting out of fear of abandonment, rejection, or guilt	Acting out of love and compassion for yourself and others
Feeling better or worse than others	Believing that you are others’ equal
Feeling betrayed, isolated, needing to build up walls of protection around you	Feeling supported and nurtured

Are you perceiving…

Lower Self - Ego	Higher Self - Intuition - Divine Messages
An immature or demanding tone	A mature and direct tone
Going from topic to topic	Consistent guidance
A dissonance with your core beliefs	An alignment with your core beliefs
A feeling of being drained of energy	Enthusiasm, energy
Verbal, emotional, physical abuse	Direct yet loving and clear direction
Lots of words, logic and rationalizations	Empowering and motivational words
Manipulation, sneakiness	A feeling of what is right and ethical
Heaviness in your heart or over your shoulders	A lightness in your heart and a smile on your face

Remember that ego’s role is to see to your physical and material immediate wellbeing, and it can inform your life and your decisions.  The key here is to allow it to INFORM you; not rule your every decision and feelings!  When you notice ego’s head popping up, ask it what it really means to tell you, and thank it for its input.  This could lead to a self-conversation like this: "Yes, thank you ego, I am feeling rather insecure about my financial health at this time.  It’s true that meditation alone is not putting money in the bank quickly enough to pay the bills on time, and it’s true that one of my core values is to be timely with paying off debts.  Now, instead of complaining and feeling jealous of others who appear to have it all, let’s find an action I can do today to give me an increased sense of stability and confidence with my finances.”

Try this; it works!  Ego feels heard and validated.  It’s like a puppy to whom you just gave a cookie and can now relax knowing that it is loved and useful.  It will stop hounding you for a moment and give you some peace as you meditate on your next right action - as long as you follow-up on your promise and TAKE that action.

Winter is to summer what shadow is to light…  and what ego is to your higher self.  Part of a whole.  Both need to be heard and honoured.  Finding this balance brings inner peace.

If you need help sorting our your perceptions and making friends with your ego, I’m here for you!  The Spiritual Development Program would be ideal in this situation, because I will mentor you, over time, to be a better listener to both your ego and your intuition.  Finding this balance does not happen over night, which is why I offer mentored programs.  Contact me to receive more information - then let your higher self guide you.

Surrounding you in Love & Light.

Intuition or Imagination?

The Gateway of the Brow Chakra

We have travelled up our chakras in the past five months, from the earthy Root, watery Sacral, fiery Solar Plexus, airy Heart and etheric Throat…  and now we are arriving on the other side of the veil and into the higher vibration of the Brow Chakra.

This chakra is commonly called the “Third Eye” chakra, and I dare say it is misunderstood.  Many seek to “open” this chakra and develop their psychic senses, expecting to immediately experience a Hollywood-esque parting of the clouds, thunderous voice and visions of angels, swirling lights and dancing fairies.  Others yet are very fearful of an opening of their psychic powers, and this fear is most often associated with beliefs of the “dark side”, an association of psychic events with lunacy or insanity, or lack of trust in insights that can not be explained through logic.

Although this chakra is a gateway to a reality beyond our physical senses, trust me when I say that intuition is much more normal than what we are made to believe.  As my teacher and mentor Sonia Choquette explains, intuition is about being “in-tune” with the world around us: "Sixth Sense is Common Sense." Useful intuition involves a balance between physical perception, imagination, and divine communication.  Yes, it feels magical.  Yes, it’s common sense.

Physical Perception:  One of the main reasons top CEOs, financial analysts, investors, artists, teachers… etc… excel in their work is that they are acutely aware of the trends and the subtle shifts in their area of expertise.  They read topics related to their expertise, and many other topics where they can draw inspiration.  They listen to hallway and water cooler conversations.  They read the mood of their peeps.  They listen to their gut feelings.  Good marketers even know how the weather, the time of year or even the moon might influence their message… THEN they make a decision on their business direction.

Imagination:  This is the brain’s wonderful ability to receive and interpret subtle messages.  It’s not just about pretending to be a princess or a dragon, fighting off mighty foes to claim your kingdom.  Imagination helps us bring pieces of information together in new ways.  Imagination is also a doorway to communicating with your subconscious self.  It’s also a doorway for manifesting what you really want in life.  Everything that exists was a thought, an idea, a dream before it became reality.  Many have been taught to dismiss their imagination; I suggest you learn to embrace it like a dear friend.

Divine Communication:  “Of course God speaks to me through my imagination, how else would he?”  (Paraphrase from Jeanne D’Arc, when asked if the messages she heard were truly from God or only her imagination.)  The voice of Spirit, the voice of God is subtle, gentle, loving and strong.  You can hear it in the wind, in the songs of Nature, in synchronous conversations.  You can see it in the myriad colours, in the non-verbal of the animal kingdom, in sacred geometry.  You can sense it with your whole being.  When you embrace both rational and creative sides of your brain, you truly open the doorway to a new perception of life; one that is filled with divine harmony.  You become able to read the signs of the divine without doubting yourself and constantly asking if what you are perceiving is the Truth or a trick of the imagination.

So you see, your Third Eye or Brow Chakra is not just about psychic abilities.  It is not to be feared.  It is not to be dismissed as woo-woo.  Tuning into this energy centre through contemplation and meditation helps you make sense of your world.  It helps you gain a sense of direction.  It helps you develop your higher meaning and life purpose.

It’s not just about floating away and being on a cloud - it’s also about truly being fully present to your everyday life.  These are the teachings of your Higher Perception.

If you need help sorting our your perceptions and making friends with your imagination, I’m here for you!  The online and in-person Intuition Development Program is a wonderful starting point to learn information and practice techniques in an environment that is supportive and loving.  If you want individual coaching, then the Spiritual Development Program is for you.  Contact me to receive more information.

Surrounding you in Love & Light.