Self-Care For Healers

As healers, we know the importance of self-care, and need to be especially aware of the transference of energy from our clients to us. Ever help someone with a headache, and they walk off the table relieved while later that evening you find yourself with a horrible headache? Perhaps you just feel absolutely wiped out after a full day of treatments? If we aren’t aware of our own energy bodies, we can easily take on unwanted pain from our clients. It’s our job to stay clear channels for healing energy. The following are a few practices I use to keep myself energetically tuned up. Hope they help you!

Take a moment at the end of the massage, before you disconnect from someone’s energy field and body. Scan your body and feel your feet on the ground. In your mind’s eye, thank your client for allowing you to work with them. Ask that any residual energy from their field be “flushed” back to the earth where it can be transformed. Visualize a clear disconnection between your energy an your client’s.

Rinse hands with cold water first, followed by washing with hot water immediately after the session. This may not be a “scientific fact,” but I feel it really helps. Cold water closes pores, thus closing mini pathways into your body as opposed to opening them further with hot water. I rinse first with cold water until I feel “clear.” Then I go for the warm water with soap to wash off my hands and arms.

Smudging. This is an ancient practice of clearing energy. It involves burning herbs or incense like white sage, cedar, palo santo, or frankincense among a few. The smoke is considered to be a cleansing agent for the surrounding area. If this practice resonates with you, I invite you to smudge your treatment room periodically, and you own body. And it’s not just new age woo-woo. Here’s an interesting study from 2007 about medicinal smoke reducing ariborn bacteria!

Salt crystals have the ability to cleanse and recharge our energy. If you’re lucky enough to live near a warm ocean, get yourself into the water on a regular basis. There is nothing like a dip in the mother ocean to cleanse and renew your energy. If that’s not an option, try a salt scrub in the shower. You an make your own easily and cheaply (use high quality sea salt). Add some essential oils like clary sage and lavender to improve the energy clearing qualities. An Epsom salt bath is also highly recommended.
Essential oil spray. Between treatments, spray yourself with a mixture of water and your favorite essential oils. Mine are rose, lavender, sage, lemon, and peppermint. I also really love this calming blend from do Terra.

Take time out in nature. Fresh air, sunshine, and nature sounds are purifying to the spirit. Schedule some time to walk, run, or just be out in some nature. Take your shoes off, and plant your feet on the soil. The Earth’s magnetic field will re-balance you.

Plants. Do you have plants in your treatment space? Living plants are little energy transformers. They can really help you out!

Take some time at the end of your day to scan your own body/mind. This can take as few as 5 minutes, but it’s really important! With your mind’s eye, scan yourself for any areas of discomfort, agitation, or general “stuckness.” Invite your breath into the area. Visualize your breath as cleansing light, filling each cell in your body with light. When you fully occupy your body with the light of your own consciousness, there is no room for other energies to hang on.