In energy healing, we often discuss the chakras and meridians. Getting less attention but no less important in energy healing is seeking to balance the fundamental elements of nature. Keeping these elements in balance in body, mind, and spirit contributes significantly to well-being.

Depending on the philosophical branch you follow, you'll find there are slightly differing names for the elements. For example, Classical Greek philosophy initially identified four elements: earth, air, fire, and water, but Aristotle eventually added a fifth, ether.  Hinduism identifies five elements: earth, air, fire, water, ether; Buddha identified four elements: earth, water, fire, air; and Chinese philosophy (including feng shui) identifies the five elements as wood, metal, fire, water, and earth.

For our purposes, we will identify five elements: earth, air, fire, water, and ether, which are also the five elements of Ayurveda. The energy of these elements are embodied in our lives, minds, bodies, emotions, and spirits, and they need to exist in balance for one to live a well-rounded life of good health and wellbeing. 

In polarity therapy, these elements correspond with five chakras and also run in lines through the physical body. They also have properties that are essential for well-being and balance. Ideally, all five elements should be balanced and harmonized in order to manifest in health of the body, mind, emotions, and spirit. When imbalances of the elements occur, it is important to find ways through energy healing to rebalance them.

Ether
The ether element represents space. It is most closely connected to the throat chakra, and it is associated with spirituality and airiness. In polarity therapy, the ether channel runs down the midline of the body, connecting with the thumbs, midline, and big toes. Ether is also associated with the ears. 

Ether is present in all four of the other elements. Its manifestation in physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects is by far the most subtle of the elements. 

Someone with too much either may be ungrounded, flighty, or dormant and awaiting an outside force to cause movement and growth. Someone with too little ether may lack the room to grow or change or may be stuck in his or her ways. 

You can increase the element of ether by making space in your life and through meditation, which is connection with the vast spaces that exist in all physical matter.

Air
The element of air represents liveliness and movement. In polarity therapy, air moves in two channels down the body a few inches on either side of the midline. These channels move down through the brows, along the outer curve of the lips, next to the chin, downward along either side of the belly button, and down into the pointer fingers and second toes of each hand and foot. It is associated with your heart chakra and the physical heart. 

If you have an excess of air, you might lack boundaries and follow wherever you are led. You might also be considered an "airhead" because you frequently misplace items or forget what you're saying as you're speaking. You may also be prone to nervousness, anxiety, or obsessions and compulsions. 

If you have too little air, you may be inflexible, over critical, or stuck in your ways. You may feel "heavy" or listless, and you may feel joyless or humorless. 

Fire
The element of fire is bright, hot, passionate, and vivid. In polarity therapy, the fire channels are a few inches out from the air channels on either side, running down the cheeks, across the nipples, along the rib cage, and down through the middle fingers and toes of each hand. It is also associated with the solar plexus chakra and the digestive organs.

An excess of fire might cause restlessness, sleeplessness, fever, sexual compulsion, stress, and burning out. Too little fire might appear as joylessness, and lack of passion or drive. 

Water
This element is associated with emotions. It flows easily, moving around obstacles or reshaping them to suit its path. In polarity therapy, the water channels are a few inches outside of either of the fire channels, moving down along the sides of the head, the ears, the outer chest, and flowing downward through the ring fingers and fourth toes of each hand and foot. It is associated with the sacral chakra and the genitals. 

If you have an excess of water, you may be overly emotional or too flexible. Your moods and emotions may be easily affected by those around you, and you may have a certain formlessness to your personality and desires.

If you don't have enough water, you may be inflexible and emotionally dry, or you may be out of touch with your emotional and spiritual needs. 

Earth
Earth is the strongest and heaviest of the elements. It is a deeply grounded and stable energy that is difficult to move for its groundedness and often moves only slowly and sluggishly. However, earth energy also nourishes, which is essential for balancing body, mind, and spirit. Earth energy runs down through the shoulders, a few inches away from the edges of the body on either side, down through the pinkies on the hands and feet. It is also associated with the root chakra and the colon. 

People with an excess of earth may be slow moving, stubborn, and obstinate. They may be extremely resistant to change or slow to change. They may move slowly, and be slow in their thoughts, words, and actions, as well. 

People with not enough earth may lack groundedness and centeredness. They may often seem as if they are going to float away or think or speak so quickly they can't keep up with their own thoughts and words. 
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Correcting Element Imbalances
You can align amplifying crystals, such as clear quartz, down the any of the elemental lines in the body, paying attention to the corresponding chakra, as well. You can also use a sound such as a clanging ghanta or striking a singing bowl along the the elemental line(s) to stimulate and awaken the elemental energy.

For too much of an element, place an absorbing crystal, such as a piece of black tourmaline, touching each finger and toe that corresponds to the element, as well as along the line(s) for that element in the body. Using your receiving hand, you can also place it at points along the element's pathway(s) to pull the excess of energy. 

To balance an element, sing a bowl along the pathway for the element and on the corresponding chakra chakra, or place smoky quartz points and the start and end of the element's channel(s) with the points facing away from the body to move the energy through the channel in both directions.

Intuition plays an important role for energy healing practitioners. As I grew in my own practice of the energy healing arts, I started to work more intuitively as I tuned into what my healing partners were experiencing. 

In my classes and books, I often encourage people new to the healing arts to start to listen to their intuition. While some nod with complete understanding, I notice from others a flare of panic in their eyes.

I get it. When I first started working with energy healing, I was one who looked vaguely panicked. Although I've been intuitive all of my life, I spent a lot of time worrying my intuition would let me down when I most needed it. Fortunately, that has never happened. 

New energy healing practitioners learn techniques and tools for practicing their craft. For example, First Degree Reiki practitioners learn basic hand positions for use during sessions. Sound healing practitioners learn bowl layouts, instruments, and tonal patterns. Crystal healing practitioners learn about the specific energies of crystals as well as some basic grid layout and uses. Virtually every energy healing modality teaches specific techniques to new practitioners. 

These are all important foundational tools and techniques that allow new energy healing practitioners to enter into sessions with confidence knowing they have techniques they can use to create a safe and positive experience for their healing partners. Without these foundational techniques to impart confidence, a new practitioner may feel anxious entering into a session, and that anxiety can be passed on to the healing partners, which isn't ideal for creating an environment of safety and security throughout the session. However, at some point on your energy healing journey, I strongly encourage you to tune into your intuition and begin working more intuitively in your practice. 
 
Recognizing Your Intuition
 
Everyone has a Divine Guidance system that communicates with them via intuition. Some people have spent a lifetime ignoring that intuition, however, and it’s gotten really quiet as a result. I was one of those people. I thought I didn’t believe in any of that stuff, so I ignored intuitive hits except for a few REALLY big ones that were impossible to ignore. However, once that belief started to change and I started to listen to and seek guidance from my intuition, it grew stronger and louder. Now I’m shocked I once believed I didn’t have any intuition. I’ve noticed this happening with the energy healers I teach, as well.
 
If you’re someone who doesn’t believe you have intuition, you may just not recognize it as such yet. Some ways your intuition may be manifesting include:

• Persistent thoughts that pop into your head
• Flashes or persistent images in your mind’s eye
• Sounds or words that appear in your mind
• Physical sensations in your hands and body
• Differences in audible sensations such as ear pressure, unexplained volume changes, or pitch changes you notice such as in music, the ringing in your ear, or the timber of a voice
• Visual disturbances, such as seeing wavy lines, dimming or brightening of light
• Sudden changes to the smell in the air around you or the taste in your mouth

Any of your senses may be communicating information to you, or it may come purely mentally through your thoughts or things you see in your mind. It may also appear in dreams or visions, such as dreaming of a healing partner before or after a session or suddenly having that person pop into your mind and seeing something about them. These are all valid ways your intuition speaks to you.

For example, if you have a sudden thought you should use a specific crystal in your session, use it. If an affirmation or intention for your healing partner pops into your mind, incorporate it in your session. If you suddenly feel you need to offer a visualization for your healing partner while she's on the table, share it. If you feel you need to sound a specific singing bowl, do it. If you feel you need to move your hands and energy in a specific pattern, do so. These are examples of guidance, coming in to help your healing partner receive exactly what she needs when she is in your healing space.
 
Exercises for Developing Intuition
 
The following exercises can help you to develop your intuition. I recommend either working on yourself or a pet, or inviting a trusted friend in to be a healing partner who engages in the session to help you develop your intuition. If you work with a healing partner for this, realize these practice sessions are for your benefit and shouldn’t be treated as a regular energy healing session. Always give thanks to your intuition when it guides you. 
 
 
Minds Eye Intuition
 
This exercise may help you learn to recognize intuitive thoughts and feelings
.

1. With your practice partner on the table on his or her back, stand at his head with your hands in prayer position. Close your eyes.
2. Ask silently or aloud, “Please show me where to place my hands" or "Please show me which crystal to use/bowl to play/etc."
3. Wait silently until a thought pops into your head about where to place your hands. Move to that position and place your hands there saying in your mind, “Thank you.” If you see a specific color, get a crystal of that color (or the specific crystal if it pops into your head), etc. 
4. Now, with your hands still in that position, after a few minutes ask, “Show me where to place my hands.”
5. Continue for 30 minutes, or until you feel guided to stop.

 
Hand Sensations
 
This is an exercise we actually practice in my classes. Most people are surprised at how easily it works for them.

1. With your healing partner lying on the table on her back, stand at her head with your hands in prayer position. Rub your hands together lightly.
2. When you feel guided to move, hold your receiving (non-dominant) hand about an inch over your healing partner’s crown chakra and, moving slowly, skim your hand (staying about an inch above their body) down the midline, moving slowly.
3. Notice any changes in sensation in your hand, such as heat, cold, tingling, pressure, or a sense of deadness. When you feel this, stop and place your hands there for three minutes. Then, start where you left off and continue scanning down the body to the root chakra, stopping as needed.
4. Then, start at the right shoulder and scan down the arm to the fingers doing the same thing.
5. Repeat on the left side.
6. Start on the right hip and scan with your hand down the leg, across the knee, to the ankle and the feet pausing to place your hands for three minutes wherever you notice changes in sensation.
7. Repeat on the left side.
8. Return to your healing partner’s head, place your hands in prayer position, and give thanks to your intuition and your healing partner.

 
Body Sensations
 
Some people receive intuitive information empathically, that is, there bodies and emotions tell them what they need to know.

1. With your healing partner lying on the table on his back, stand at his head with your hands in prayer position.
2. Ask, “Please, what is needed here?”
3. Now close your eyes and pay careful attention to your own body.
4. As soon as you notice any sensation in your body – pressure, pain, tingling, itching, coolness, or heat, etc. – no matter how light or how brief, move to that point on your healing partner’s body and place your hands there for three minutes.
5. Close your eyes and ask” What is needed here, please?” again.
6. Move to where the next sensation in your own body is on your healing partner.
7. Continue for 30 minutes, or until you no longer notice any sensations in your own body.
8. Return to the crown chakra and with your hands in prayer position, give thanks to your intuition and your healing partner.

 
Visual Changes
 
Visual changes may be subtle, but they can also indicate where you need to work on your healing partner.

1. Stand at your healing partner’s head with your hands in prayer position.
2. With your eyes open, ask, “Show me what I need to see.”
3. Now, starting at the crown, scan your eyes down your healing partner’s midline, looking for any changes in your vision at all, such as flutters, waves, color tints, or changes in light or focus. Where you see one, stop, step to that spot, and place your hands for three minutes.
4. Continuing from where you are, ask again, “Show me what I need to see.”
5. Continue visually scanning down the midline through the chakras, stopping where needed.
6. Then, visually scan from the right shoulder, down the arms to the fingertips and do the same on the left.
7. Starting at the right hip, visually scan from the hip down the leg to the tips of the toes, stopping where needed. Do the same on the right side.

 
Audible Changes
 
I find using tingshas or a singing bowl are the best way to start to understand audible changes.

1. Stand with your instrument in your hands at your healing partner’s crown chakra.
2. Ask, “Let me hear what I need to know.”
3. Strike the bowl or the tingshas and hold it down an inch or two above your healing partner’s body. Holding it there and striking as necessary to refresh the sound (do this lightly around their ears), listen for warbles, noticeable volume changes, pitch drop offs, dissonance, or other changes in sound.
4. Where you hear it, set down your instrument and hold your hand for three minutes.
5. Move first crown to root chakra down the midline, then from the right shoulder down to the fingertips, left shoulder down to fingertips, right hip down leg to tips of toes, and left hip down legs to tips of toes, pausing as needed to hold your hands on spots where you notice this.

 
Other Senses
 
You can pay attention for other physical changes by running the receiving (non-dominant) hand down the body about an inch above it in the pattern noted in the hand sensations section, noticing any of the following changes:

• Changes to pressure, volume, or pitch of ambient noise or ringing in the ears
• Differences in the smell of the air
• Differences in changes of the taste in your mouth
• Differences in other sensations such as changes in temperature on your skin, goose bumps, chills, or feelings of pressure on any part of your body

 
I recommend practicing all of these several times with different practice partners to see which of these provide the strongest feedback. Once you feel confident in recognizing the changes, start to incorporate them in your practice session, knowing that you can always return to your foundational techniques if you feel you aren’t receiving intuitive information.
 
As always, I’m here for questions and support. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if I can help.

This daily singing bowl meditation is adapted from recommendations and a poem by Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh as relayed by author Frank Perry in his book Himalayan Sound Revelations. Thich Nhat Hanh recommends performing this short meditation twice each day in the morning and in the evening, and that you view the bowl as a sacred friend who is there to help you be mindful.

You can use any type of a singing bowl, although the Himalayan bronze singing bowls are believed by Buddhist monks to transmit the frequency of OM, which is the fundamental sound of the universe and are what were originally intended for use with this meditation. Ringing or singing the bowls transmits the dharma, or the principle of cosmic order. 

1. Bow to the bowl with hands in prayer position.
2. Strike the bowl. 
3. Breathe in as the bowl sounds and say silently, "Body, speech, and mind held in perfect oneness."
4. Breathe out while the bowl continues to sound and say silently, "I send my heart along with the sound of the bell."
5. Strike the bowl again. 
6. Breathe in as it sounds and say silently, "May the hearers awaken from forgetfulness."
7. Breathe out while it is still sounding and say silently, "and transcend all anxiety and sorrow."
8. Half strike the bowl by striking it and allowing the stick to rest against the side of the bowl to dampen the sound.
9. Lift the bowl in an upturned palm and visualize it as a lotus with a jewel in the center.
10. Strike the bowl again.
11. Breathe in as the bowl sounds, saying silently, "Listen, listen."
12. Breathe out as the bowl still sounds, saying silently, "This wonderful sound brings me back to my true home."
13. Repeat steps 10 through 12 for two more strikes, so three full strikes.
14. Replace the bowl on its cushion.
15. Bow to the bowl with hands in prayer position.

Here's the audio so you can hear what it sounds like:

Close your eyes and relax. Breathe deeply into your stomach, noticing your breath as it flows in through your nose, traveling down through your lungs and deeply into your stomach. Now, exhale through your mouth. Focus on your breathing and allow the sounds of the music to relax you deeply.
 
Image you are standing on a sandy beach. Gulls fly overhead, and you can see dolphins leaping in the ocean at a distance. Notice how blue the sky is. Feel the warm, gritty sand sifting between your toes and notice the pleasant heat of the sun warming your head and your shoulders.
 
Breathe in the salty air as you listen to the crashing of the waves on the beach. When you feel relaxed, ready, and comfortable, begin walking along the beach. As you walk, notice the sights and sounds all around you as you alternately gaze out at the ocean and at the rough, rocky coastline on the other side of the sand.
 
Notice in the distance the opening to a cave appears in the rocks. As you walk towards it, see the cave’s opening drawing nearer, and a glowing, red light is coming from it. Cross the sand to the opening of the cave and stand in the red light at its entrance. Allow the light to bathe you as you stand at the entrance. Notice the cool, damp air coming from the cave on your front while the heat from the sun still warms your back.
 
Step into the cave, into the glowing, red light and allow it to surround you. Take a moment to adjust to the light as you notice you can still hear the distant sound of the ocean waves cutting through the cave’s deep hush. Ahead of you, you spot the source of the red glow – it is coming from a cavern. When you are ready, walk forward and enter the cavern.
 
The cavern is full of glowing, red crystals. They are everywhere – on the walls, on the ceiling. They are all shades of red and all shapes. There are deep red stalactites, lighter red stalagmites, and crystals in every size, color, and opacity. Feel the power of these red crystals and allow it to surround you. Notice how their vibration and energy affects every cell of your body, causing you to vibrate in tandem with them. Bathe in the light and vibration of the cavern, allowing it to surround you completely.
 
When you are ready, step out of the glowing red crystal cavern and back into the cool cave. Notice in the same direction you were traveling that up ahead you can see a faint, orange glow coming from further down the cave. Step away from the red glow and walk towards the orange glow, noticing as the red fades and the orange intensifies. The air grows cooler here and the distant roar of the ocean fades even more as the cave’s hush takes over. Walk closer and closer to the orange glow until you can see its source – a cavern off to one side that is emitting a vivid orange light.
 
Step out of the cave and into the cavern. Notice it is filled with vibrant orange crystals in every shade, size, shape, and opacity. They cover the walls. They cover the floor and the ceiling. They are lit from within, emitting a deep, orange glow and vibration. Close your eyes and bathe in the glow and vibration of the crystals, feeling them enter through your naval region and permeate into every cell in your body until you are vibrating in tune with the orange crystals. As you vibrate in tune with them, you become the orange light, and you no longer know where your light leaves off and the light from the crystals begins. Take the time to fully enjoy the feeling here in this cavern. When you’re ready, open your eyes and step out of the cavern and back into the cool depths of the cave. Continue walking, away from the orange glow.
 
Ahead of you, notice there is a golden yellow glow. It’s faint at first, but as you walk towards it the glow intensifies until it starts to envelope you completely. You can no longer hear the sound of the ocean. Instead, you are immersed in the deep silence of the cave, where all you can hear are your footsteps and your deep, relaxed breaths.
 
As you approach the golden yellow light, you notice it is coming from a cavern off to one side of the cave. Step into the cavern and allow the golden light to surround you completely. Notice the cavern is filled with golden and yellow crystals in every shape, size, shade, and opacity. The crystals are everywhere – not an inch of that cavern is free of the beautiful crystals. Close your eyes and allow the light to fill all of you, entering through your solar plexus and on your breath as it flows through your lungs, into your heart, and your heart pumps the vibration of the yellow crystals through every cell of your body. Become one with the golden light. Bask in it and allow it to fill you completely.
 
When you’re ready, step out of the cavern and back into the main area of the cave. Give thanks to the golden light and travel more deeply into the cave, noticing the darkness and cool air around you as the golden light fades behind you. Notice as you travel the cave floor has started to slope upward now. Ahead, you see light from outside entering the cave and notice there is a small crack, just big enough for you to fit through and back out into the light.
 
When you’re ready, approach the crack to the outside and squeeze through. It’s a tight fit, but you can just wriggle through. Suddenly, you’re surrounded by the bright light of the sun. Allow the time for your eyes to adjust and feel the sunlight warm your cooled skin and the light fill you. Notice a path continues from the cave, up the rocky hillside at a steep incline. Follow the path and observe up ahead a plateau off to the side of the path with green light streaming from a copse of trees.
 
Approach the glowing green light. Step off the path and through the small copse of trees. As you pass through the trees, you step into a clearing. In the clearing is a garden of green crystals. Green crystals of every shape, size, and shade are everywhere – carpeting the ground on which you step, growing up the trunks of trees, and forming a canopy over your head. In the clearing is a green crystal bench underneath a tree made of green crystals. Walk across the carpet of green crystals and take a seat on the bench. Close your eyes and bask in the vibration and light from all of the crystals, allowing it to enter through your heart and your breath. Feel the vibration and light fill every blood vessel and your entire body. Bask in the light.
 
When you’re ready, open your eyes. As you sit on the bench, notice a being is walking towards you across the carpet of green crystals. You recognize this being somewhere deep inside, and you feel the love welling up as you remember who it is. This is your guide, one who has been with you in every lifetime and in between. Stand up and greet your guide. Embrace your guide and feel the love and support flowing between the two of you. If you cannot recall your guide’s name, ask. Thank your guide for all of the support he or she has given you. Then, when you are ready, invite your guide to accompany you as you continue on your journey.
 
With your guide by your side, step back through the copse of trees and onto the rocky path once more. Continue moving up the hill, noticing the blue of the sky and the sound of birds singing nearby. Notice the rocks of the path are slowly becoming lush, green grass, and the path while still going uphill is gentler now. Feel the grass gently shifting under your feet, and notice up ahead a small copse of trees off to the side. Walk towards them with your guide.
 
When you get to the trees, with your guide by your side, step through them and enter into an area completely made of blue crystals in every shape, size, shade of blue, and opacity. There is blue under your feet and all around. There are blue crystal flowers growing from the blue crystal ground, and trees that are entirely blue crystals. Close your eyes and bask in the vibration of the blue, allowing the blue light to wash over you and the vibration of the crystals to enter through your throat and in through your breath, flowing throughout every cell of your body. Bask in the light and vibration of the blue crystals.
 
When you are ready, open your eyes and look around at the blue crystals one last time before you step back out through the copse of the trees and onto the grassy path once again. As you look up, notice the path continues up the hill again. Follow the path with your guide, enjoying the sights, sounds, smells, and feeling of nature as you walk.
 
Notice ahead of you is a huge copse of trees directly in your path. From the trees, you can see a violet light glowing between the trunks and branches. Step with your guide through the trees. You are in a clearing completely surrounded by purple and violet crystals in every shape, size, and shade. They are all around you – on the ground, dripping from branches of trees, and growing as trees, shrubs, and flowers.
 
Close your eyes and feel the violet light coming from the crystals enter through your forehead and on your breath. Notice the vibration filling every aspect of you. Become one with the violet light.
 
When you are ready, along with your guide continue through the violet area. Notice a tall copse of violet crystal trees on the other side and walk towards it. Step through the copse and out onto the path. Notice the path goes up steeply now, moving to the hilltop that is covered in a fluffy white cloud so you can’t see it.
 
Walk with your guide on the path, moving up the hill towards the mist. As you get closer to the top, the fog gets thicker, but you can see light coming through from the very top. Step out of the fog with your guide and notice you are in a beautiful garden glowing with white crystals everywhere. Ahead of you is a giant temple made of clear crystal with crystal steps leading up to it.
 
Enter the temple and notice the cool air inside. Take in the beautiful crystal temple, noticing all of the details: the columns, the altar, the beautiful crystal floors.
 
Notice at the far side of the giant temple hall is a door. This is your healing and meditation room. Walk across the cool crystal floor and open the door. The room beyond is your healing room. Notice how it looks. Is there a table? A chair? Are there windows? Are there symbols on the walls, floor, or ceiling? What is the view from the windows? Are their curtains? What is on the walls and on the shelves? This is your space to create as you will, and you can come here during distance sessions to work with your healing partners. You can make this anything you want and come here whenever you want. It may have a comfy chair where you can meditate, or a fireplace where you can go and sit and study important works or have a chat with your guide. What this room in your temple is is entirely up to you.
 
When you are ready, embrace your guide and thank him or her for coming with you to this room. You will part ways for now here, but know you can always return to the temple or any of the crystal gardens to talk with your guide anytime you wish. Take one last look around your room and step back out through the door and into the main hall of the temple. From there, walk across the hall, out the temple door, and down the steps.
 
Go back into the mist and down the hill, passing through the purple garden and heading down past the copse of trees where the blue crystals are, past the copse of trees where the green crystals are. Squeeze back through the hole in the rocks and back into the cave. Walk through the cave, passing the golden cavern, then the orange cavern, and then the red cavern and feeling their vibration reach out to you as you pass. Step back through the cave entrance and on to the beach once again.
 
Notice the warmth of the sun on your face now and feel the sand between your toes. Listen to the crash of the ocean for a few minutes before you return your attention to your breath once again. Notice as you breathe in through your nose, deeply, and then out through your mouth. Take all the time you need to enter your body once again, wiggling your fingers and toes first, followed by larger stretches. When you are ready, open your eyes.

I believe our thoughts become things and where we focus our energy is what we create in our physical lives. So I truly believe it has been my pattern of thoughts and beliefs throughout my life that has created any and all health conditions present in my life right now. And I also know if I created a health condition, I can dis-create it.

To do this, however, takes great focus and faith. It means I have to learn to look beyond what I perceive as my physical reality to the subtle energies that underlie everything. And when I'm struggling with symptoms from a health condition, this isn't always easy to do. After all, if something hurts, that feels pretty darn real.

The other thing I need to do in order to dis-create a health condition is to actually stop believing the condition is irreversible. And since I am a physical being living in a physical "reality" where I've learned certain conditions are, indeed, permanent (just ask WebMD), I also have to battle against beliefs I've held since I was very young about the nature of reality and the physical realm.

It's a pretty tall order - especially given that I am as firmly rooted in my physical presence as anyone else. As an intuitive energy healer, I have a lot of tools at my disposal to help with this, but I am still a product of a lifetime of beliefs.

Likewise, it doesn't help that in my thoughts and words, I take ownership of my condition and in doing so, I reinforce the belief the condition is something that is a permanent part of me.

For example, I've been pretty open that I am living with celiac disease and Hashimoto's thyroiditis. These are conditions I've written about a lot (including writing books about them), so they are a powerful part of my self-image. I think and say frequently, "I have celiac disease." "I have Hashimoto's thyroiditis." And every time I say or think those things, I strengthen their energy in my life, and I reinforce the energy that these things are a part of me and always will be.

With celiac disease, I also continue to give power to the belief system by studiously avoiding gluten, and that's not something I'm going to stop doing for the foreseeable future. However, it creates a unique energetic challenge for me. Every time I eat in a restaurant, dine with someone else, or shop for food, I scour ingredients to ensure there's not even a trace of gluten in them. And every time I search for gluten ingredients, I'm reinforcing the belief, "I have celiac disease."

I was teaching a Reiki class this weekend with a group of women. During the course of the class as I talked about various aspects of energy healing, I noticed myself a few times using my celiac disease and Hashimoto's as examples saying, "I have celiac disease." "I have Hashimoto's." Then, one of the women mentioned to me a condition she has, and something clicked into place.

Every time we say, "I have _________ condition," we are owning that condition. We are saying, "this condition is part of me and always will be," and in doing so, we are reinforcing its energy. I realized I needed to change the way I think and communicate about any health condition I might have, whether it's temporary or "permanent" in order to change the energy surrounding it. Because if I own it over and over again, I strengthen it.

So if the language, "I have...." or "I am...." is creative and brings about conditions in our lives, is there a way to change how we think and speak about a condition or disease so we don't create energetic ownership and set it more deeply in our psyches? In the class, I struggled to come up with new wording that resonated with me. I offered things like, "I am living with...." and ".... is my partner in life right now," but even those felt too ownershippy. 

Then, on the way home, I realized there was a way of thinking and speaking about illness that worked for me. And since so many people struggle with chronic health issues, I thought I'd share it with you, as well. The phrase I came up with is this: "Celiac disease is my teacher right now." "Hashimoto's thyroiditis is my path to awareness right now." "A migraine is challenging my pre-conceptions right now." 

With these statements, I've acknowledged a condition or a symptom exists, but I'm not owning it. Instead, I'm recognizing it for what it's presence really is in my life: a path to my higher self and ultimately a path to my healing. 

This feels right to me. It's new. I'm working with it. But I wanted to share it with you. If it resonates, if it feels right, I recommend you try it. Find a non-ownership phrase that helps reframe a condition, symptom, or illness and try to bring that into your consciousness whenever you feel yourself taking ownership of the illness. It could just create a new pathway to healing.