How are the chakras and emotions related? Part I

Have you ever wondered how chakras and emotions are interconnected?

Today, you'll learn how to identify which chakras are out of balance and a framework for working with your emotions on the physical level.

For those who don't know, the chakras are wheels of subtle energy located along the spine. Different systems differ in just how many chakras we have, but the most commonly used system says we have seven.

Chakras help us understand our emotions and in turn understand ourselves. True healing recognizes that we are multi-dimensional beings, with the body influencing the mind and vice versa.

When you work with the chakras and emotions this way, it helps you to stop feeling victimized by your emotions. Sadness, anger, jealousy — these things aren't here to steal your joy. They're messages from your soul, trying to give you important information.

The key is to stop judging yourself for feeling and instead, open your heart to yourself.

Once you accept how you feel, you can accept who you are. A foundational piece of self-love is accepting how you feel.

Understanding your emotions is a journey covered in great detail in my course Emotionally Empowered, which will open for enrollment again early next year. But today, I wanted to give you an overview of how to use your emotions to understand yourself.

Today's post is the first in a two-part series. If you'd like to have the entire series, download it below.

How to balance your chakras and emotions

Root Chakra 

This chakra is located at the base of the spine and relates to feelings of groundedness. This is our foundation in life and relates to feeling like your basic needs, those necessary for survival, are met.

Out of balance, we fear that we won't have our needs met, and this results in anxiety. We also feel like we're not good enough, or in fear, like we're not safe.

To balance the root chakra and alleviate anxiety you can:

• Walk barefoot outside
• Lie on the ground. (Try a restorative yoga pose or simply lie in savasana for a few moments. It's so relaxing.)
• Try a yoga pose that strengthens the first chakra, like crow pose or child's pose.
• Surround yourself with the color red, or visualize it.

Sacral Chakra 

This chakra centers on the sacrum, which is the triangular bone at bottom of the spine, connecting it to the hipbones. It also encompasses the sex organs.

The second chakra relates to creativity, which also includes the sex organs because they're where we create life. Because this chakra is tied to the water element, it represents our emotional experience.

If you repress your emotions, this chakra is likely out of balance.

When this chakra is in balance, we gracefully allow ourselves to flow with the rhythm of life. Out of balance, we feel stuck, uncreative or dis-passionate, or ashamed of our bodies.

To balance the sacral chakra you can:

• Spend time in water. Take a bath or sit by a lake or the ocean, if possible.
• Move your hips in circles. Dance, move wild and free to your favorite song.
• Do something creative! Paint or sew. Make something, even if you feel like it's not good.
• Do hip openers, like pigeon. Spend time in them because the hips can take a long time to melt open. Increase your flexibility overall.
• Feel your feelings. (Meditation is a great way to feel and heal your feelings, and a great way to return to the flow of life. If you're interested in learning how to meditate, click here.)

Naval Chakra (or solar plexus)

This chakra, located by the belly button, relates to our personal power and will. It's about the fire in the belly.

When this chakra is out of balance, you may feel angry, full of guilt, or unable to influence the world around you. It's like life happens to you and you have no power to create the life you desire.

Balancing this chakra isn't about controlling life, but about recognizing those things you do have influence over. It's about feeling worthy of taking up space. Out of balance, you likely also need external validation.

To balance this chakra:

• Strengthen the core. Practice plank pose or do yogi bicycles — anything that fires up the belly. Increase your strength overall. Strong body, strong mind.
• Surround yourself with the color yellow.
• Create strong boundaries to support a healthy sense of self-worth. Stop asking everyone else for advice, and go within to find the answers. Meditation or journaling is a great way to find those answers within.

Heart Chakra

This chakra is all about love! Balance in the first three chakras supports an open heart. When you feel secure in the world, it allows you to be creative and in the flow of life. That security and fluidity then rise to create a sense of personal power.

A strong solar plexus and personal boundaries protect your open heart.

Out of balance, you may feel sad or lonely. This isn't a call to judge yourself, but to love yourself.

To balance the heart chakra, you can:

• Practice backbends, known as heart openers in yoga. Do a passive backbend. My favorite is placing a yoga block or rolled up mat underneath my shoulder blades and relaxing into it for five or 10 minutes.
• Do cardio! This chakra relates to the lungs and circulatory system. So getting your blood flowing is a wonderful way to open your heart.
• Do things that fill your heart with joy. If you're not sure what that is, ask yourself! What would bring you joy?
• Eat green foods. Connect with the love of Mother Earth. Spend time outside.

If you'd like access to the complete guide with all seven chakras, download it below.

I don't want to make this overview of chakras and emotions too long, so we'll cover the next three chakras in a separate blog post.

I hope this exploration of chakras and emotions served you!

Lots of love,

Suzanne