The most common question I get asked with the crystals is which ones are best for stress? Stress is a funny thing isn't it.... We all need a little bit of stress in our lives but what happens when the balance tips too far the other way?
We all deal with stress in different ways, some work and some don't, hopefully as we get older we learn what works for us but even when we know something works we don't always do it!
So what can we do to alleviate stress?
Firstly... recognise it! If we don't recognise it as stress we can not begin to lighten the burden.
Secondly...accept it.
If we try to fight it we can make it worse. Life isn't all roses and chocolates, it has ups and downs with some stressful moments added in. That is what makes us human. Don't be frightened to accept the feeling of being out of control or a bit down or even snowed under as the feelings generally pass. By acknowledging the feeling we can often find it easier to look at what the cause is, we can look at why we reacted that way and most importantly look at how we feel.
We are allowed to feel stressed, yep we are, promise.
HOWEVER....
Sometimes that stress can be a little too much.
Take the last seven days in my life for example...
I have the usual day to day life stresses of grown up kids, dogs, my plants deciding they would prefer to let the weeds grow rather than grow themselves but then amongst it all this idiot decided it would be a good idea to open a crystal shop / hypnotherapy practice in the middle of a pandemic. I found myself getting snappy, crying at everything and beginning to feel very overwhelmed and not knowing where to put my focus.
It took me a couple of days to acknowledge I was getting just a little but stressed (said through gritted teeth!) ok yes I was VERY stressed!!!
I have various things I do when I feel stressed :
I stand bare foot outside on the grass and ground myself.
I stand or sit outside and simply listen...I listen to the noises I can hear, I list them and then listen to the noises below the first ones, when you pause and really listen it is surprising what your ears can pick up.
I slow my breathing down, I really focus on my breath and make sure each one goes right to the pit of my stomach (See breathing blog)
I pay attention to my dreams for any advise that I may be missing (due to stress)
I hold my favourite crystals, as I'm holding them I focus on how they feel, how warm or cold do they feel? Can I feel them vibrating and giving off a energy? What feeling do I get from them?
I pop the crystal I am drawn to most at the time either under my pillow or beside it so that it can influence my sleep.
Sometimes I use more than one crystal, it just depends which ones I am drawn to.
Personally I don't carry crystals with me because I am clumsy and would lose them! I do wear them as jewellery but I tend not to carry them with me. There is no right and wrong with crystals, simply follow what you are drawn to do.
So how do I feel now? I still have a shop to open, I still have far too many weeds, I still have the grown up kids pottering around, nothing has changed other than I acknowledged that I have a lot on at the moment, I acknowledged that it wont feel this manic every day and most importantly I took steps to simply pause and re-ground myself. Pressing that pause button, even just for a moment can have a massive impact.
Adding crystals to that pause button can have a even bigger impact as they can draw the stressful energy away.
So back to my original question....which crystals are best for stress?
Amethyst
Rose Quartz
Tigers Eye
I could go on, but in all honesty I think that you will be drawn to the crystal that is right for you at that moment in time. Stress is different for each of us, the cause is different for each of us, therefore there is no one size fits all crystal for stress. By choosing a few that you are drawn to then looking at their meanings you will most likely find they are the ones you need for your unique stress.
Hypnotherapy is a lovely tool for stress too but in all honesty I would encourage you to try the grounding and crystal route first.
Probably most importantly....breath, remember nothing lasts for ever
***Please seek professional help if you feel you need it.