Bish, Don’t Kill My Vibe: How To Cleanse Your Space
Vibes or energy can linger on you or in a space and have an affect on your mood and how you interact with others. Clearing your body or space of stagnant or bad energy is a great way to rebalance the mind, body and the spaces you occupy. Below are a few different ways to know when is a good time to do an energy clearing and the different ways in which it can be done.
When to Cleanse Your Energetic Space
- After a loss
- When you feel uninspired or stuck
- After an argument with a close friend, family or partner
- When transitioning to a new space
- When experiencing major life changes; children, new job, moving
- After being ill
Smudging: Sage & Palo Santo
Smudging is an Indigenous practice of burning sacred herbs, woods and resins to create a smoke that will help cleanse energy within a person or space. There are several different ceremonies or protocols that are part of a smudging ritual. Traditionally a large shell is used to hold the smudging stick and a feather is used to move the sacred smoke around you or your home. If you don’t have these items you can still create a smudging ceremony unique to your experience, but I think it’s important to always honor and show appreciation to the cultures where we pull these ceremonies, so before you smudge do your homework, it will only elevate the experience. Always set an intention for what you are trying to achieve, attract or remove from your space and approach ceremonies with a heir of gratitude and appreciation. When cleansing a person move the lit smudging stick in small circular motions around the body. You can also move the smudging stick over various chakra points on the body to help cleanse and reset these energy centers located along the spine. When cleansing your home or office space move the smudging stick in small circular motions around the perimeter of the space. Be sure to trace along base boards, doors and windows. A really important step that people often forget is to open your space when smudging, this will help to prevent too much excess smoke, but also allows for the energy you wish to cleanse to move out of your space. Another way to assist with this process is to run water in your sinks or showers throughout the house when performing smudging ceremonies. I always try to use ethically sourced sage or palo santo when smudging to avoid exhaustion and over farming of these resources.
Pro Tip
Use a lighter or flame to light the sage or palo santo thoroughly. Get a good burn going for about 30 seconds and then blow out the flame to create a good smoking.
Sound Therapy
Sound therapy uses music, vibrations and frequencies to help elevate and cleanse your energy. You can use music or various tools such as crystal sing bowls, cymbals or gongs. The idea behind this practice is that the vibrational frequencies that are emitted when the music or instruments played affect the frequencies of your body as well as the frequencies within a space. You can play the music throughout the day or even set time aside to meditate with music in the background. My Meditation Playlist is a great compilation of calming and cleansing music to help shift energy, including Hertz 432 frequencies which are known for their ability to activate healing within the body. If you create your own playlist mostly any genre of music will do, as long as it is something that begins to settle and relax the body. Sounds of nature are also very therapeutic and cleansing, so bring in the sounds of the forests, birds or ocean waves crashing on the shore. You can also do something as simple as moving through your space while clapping your hands, using noise and frequencies to help clear out the room. When performing sounds rituals at home start near the front door or entrance to the room and move clockwise around the space while clapping your hands or using instruments to move energy. Again, keep windows open or water running while doing this and spend a few extra seconds in the corners of your space as energy can easily build up in these areas.
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy can help enhance your physical and emotional health. Aromatherapy uses aromatic scents to activate different parts of the brain and body to boost moods and immunity, reduce pain, promote healthy sleep, and reduce stress and anxiety. There are a variety of options when choosing the best method of aromatherapy for you, essential oils are typically used within the practice but you can use candles, incense or even perfumes to help achieve this affect. Whenever choosing your preferred method always use essential oils or products that are organic, this is so important. It’s best to avoid using any products or essential oils that are made with synthetic fragrance as the chemicals used are easily breathed into the lungs or absorbed into the skin causing damage and disease. Soy candles with an essential oil base for fragrance are ideal for a more clean burn. There’s a wide variety of essential oils, all with different benefits for the mind and body. Be mindful when using the practice of aromatherapy the the scents you are using are safe for pregnancy and pets.
Aromatherapy Options
- Essential oil diffusers or warmers
- Incense
- Candles
- Body oils, lotions, creams and perfume
- Bath Salts
Plants & Flowers
The living energy of flowers and plants helps to attract positivity into any given space. Beyond bringing positivity into your home plants can also improve health, boost your mood and longevity of life, for these reasons I love keeping plants in every room of the house. Plants can be aesthetic and functional by using herbs or others plants that you can incorporate into your diet. You can also clean and filter your air with the use of plants improving air quality by removing toxins within any space. Flowering plants like lavender and jasmine are relaxing and healing plants that also offer additional benefits through aromatherapy. Whenever choosing a plant be sure to pick one that fits the functionality of your home; making sure that it gets proper light, you can adjust to its watering schedule and also choosing plants that are safe around children and pets if you have them.
Crystals
Crystals are an amazing aesthetic and design piece in your home but are also functional as well. Crystals can hold, emit and amplify energy. We use crystals in all kinds of technology like phones, computers and watches as conduit of energy, so imagine it doing the same thing for you or your home. All crystals have an array of functionality within health and wellness. Crystals are often associated by color to various chakras in our bodies helping to heal, boost or re-balance your energetic being. When shopping for crystals its always recommended that you spend less time reading about the specific benefits of the crystals and to just let the crystals you need choose you, the idea is that you gravitate towards what it is your body needs. You can always start small when beginning to amass your crystal collection. This is one space where size does matter. Smaller crystals work well for keeping on your body, but when trying to balance energy in a larger space the larger the crystal, the better it works. Crystals can be very expensive so if large crystal aren’t in your budget yet grab a few smaller ones to fill places in your home. Like plants I keep crystals in every room of my home to keep the good vibes flowing. You don’t have to keep your crystals in just one space of your home, I encourage you to try moving the crystals to various spots around your space based on their benefits and the mood you’re wanting to create.
Cleaning Your Crystals
Since crystals can hold and absorb energy both positive and negative it’s best to not allow other people to handle your crystals so their energy isn’t affecting yours. This is why it’s important to cleanse your crystals on a fairly regular basis, even if no one is touching them, over time they will begin to loose their charge, just like a battery. There are several ways to go about cleansing and recharging your crystals, here are a few ways I keep the energy up.
Cleanse in the Sun - setting your crystals out into the sun is a great way to recharge them. You can set them outside in direct sunlight for a few hours and rinse them with water and allow them to dry before replacing throughout your home.
Full Moon - Full moons symbolize a fresh start. Using a full moon to cleanse your crystals is a great way to super charge your crystals with positive and divine feminine energy. Let them sit out over night where they can bathe in the moons rays and rinse and let dry before repositioning them around your home.
Salt Bath - You can also sit your crystals in a large bowl filled with salt. Salt helps to absorb and repel negative vibrations cleansing and recharging your crystals at the same time.
Smudging & Sound Therapy - Using the same techniques described above you can use sounds and smudging to help remove negative energy from your crystals. We sure to keep strong, positive and loving intentions when using this method.
Pro Tip
Be careful when cleansing your crystals under water, not all crystals hold their integrity when wet. Also do your research, some crystals like selenite never need cleansing and can also cleanse and recharge other crystals. I have a small selenite bar that I use to charge some of my smaller crystals by just placing them on top of the bar.
