5

Chakras

What they represent and how they relate to fertility

Chakras are energy centers in the body. The word chakra comes from the Sanskrit word meaning “wheel” or “turning wheel.” These energy centers spin like wheels. There are many chakras throughout the body, but there are seven main ones that go from the base of the spine to the top of the head. They all represent different things, and when I’m working with my clients, if I notice that a certain chakra is closed or not spinning, it gives me an idea of where she might be blocked. Blocked energy can lead to illness, the body not functioning as it’s meant to, and feeling powerless and disconnected.

As we discuss the seven chakras and their meanings, I’ll give you some tips on how to open them up so that your energy is functioning at an optimum level.

Root Chakra

Color: Red

Represents: Grounding, family, knowing who you are, finances, etc. Location: Base of the spine

Sacral Chakra

Color: Orange

Represents: Sexuality, relationships, creativity, children

Location: Lower abdomen

Solar Plexus Chakra

Color: Yellow

Represents: Your power center, drive, ambition, confidence

Location: Upper abdomen

Heart Chakra

Color: Green

Represents: Love and inner peace, the most “you” place you can be

Location: Chest

Throat Chakra

Color: Blue

Represents: Voicing your opinion, feeling like you’re being heard, expressing your feelings and truth

Location: Throat

Third Eye Chakra

Color: Indigo

Represents: Intuition, wisdom, imagination, ability to zoom out and see the bigger picture

Location: Middle of the forehead

Crown Chakra

Color: Purple

Represents: Spiritual/universe-y awareness, connection to Source

Location: Top of the head

The Seven Main Chakras

Let’s explore how these chakras and their meanings can relate to fertility, and how you can use them to aid you in moving toward getting your little munchkin here.

Root Chakra

The root chakra can be closed for a few reasons. When dealing with infertility, we are often spending way more time in our head than in our body. If you are a super Type-A, analytical, overscheduled, cerebral person struggling with OCD, there’s a good chance your root chakra is closed. It can also be closed if you’re having a hard time with family members, if you’re worried about money, or if there’s been some chaos in your life and you’re not feeling grounded. The root chakra is about feeling safe, and on this fertility journey there are so many unknowns that it’s hard to feel safe.

I know these things may not seem related to fertility, but for us to overcome our challenges, we must feel that we are grounded and on a steady enough foundation to build this thing that we want. If the root chakra is closed, it’s also just a wonderful indicator that you need to create more space in your life, whether it’s releasing beliefs that aren’t serving you anymore or finding places to make room in your insane schedule. As I mentioned earlier, if your brain feels like you are stretched too thin, it will send the signal to your reproductive system that it’s not going to add yet another thing for you to take care of.

A good first step is to establish a daily grounding routine. It doesn’t have to be for a long time—ten to fifteen minutes per day would be fantastic. Find an activity that gets you into your body, where you don’t have to think about or analyze anything and your body feels really safe and grounded. Here are some good grounding activities:

• Yoga
• Meditation
• Guided meditation
• Dancing in the living room to your favorite jams
• Taking a bath with your favorite essential oil
• Going for a walk
• Sitting in nature for a few minutes (preferably with hands and feet touching the ground)
• Knitting or doing some mindless activity with your hands
• Bodywork (massage, reiki, acupuncture, etc.)
• Nourishing herbal infusions

It’s important that the root chakra is open so we feel safe to carry on with this journey that our brain is scared of, and we have a solid foundation to build our dreams on.

Sacral Chakra

The sacral chakra can be closed for a couple of different reasons. Relationships, creativity, and children are all related to this chakra, so if you’re having or have had problems in one or more of these areas, the others will be affected as well.

Here are some of the most common things I see with my clients whose sacral chakra is closed or not spinning: endometriosis, fibroids, cysts, and PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) due to hurt or blame from past relationships that is now manifesting in the body. A lot of this is, of course, subconscious, but when there are things we haven’t processed from past hurts, it can lead to a closed sacral chakra and delay the arrival of the munchkin.

If you are a creative person but are not using these skills, this energy center can be closed. If you’re an artist working in corporate America, a chef working as an accountant, or a life coach working as a professor, this is an issue. There’s nothing wrong with any of these careers; it’s more that if you’re on the planet to be an artist and you’re not doing that, then this area can suffer. It doesn’t always have to be that you make it your career; but if you enjoy gardening, painting, or singing and you don’t make time for it, the sacral chakra can slow down or stop spinning. Just like with relationships, this can affect the baby’s timing.

There are some big things to be processed and healed here, so it’s important that you don’t try to gloss over it. What are some action steps you can take to move forward from this?

• Sign up for voice lessons (or the equivalent for your creative thing)
• Block off some time this weekend to garden
• Do some belief work on the relationships in your life that are hurtful
• Do some visualizations (filling the area with light, shrinking the fibroids, etc.)
• With a hand on your abdomen, visualize an orange orb spinning in that area. See it glowing bigger and brighter and spinning faster. Then see if you can connect to the energy of the baby. Just observe and see if you get a feeling, a visual, or something that confirms your connection to the baby. Building that connection is important so that you feel there is someone there for you, versus a blob in the ether who may or may not arrive.

Solar Plexus Chakra

For the solar plexus chakra, our drive and ambition center, I usually find that my clients are having an issue in the work arena if this area is closed. As I mentioned earlier, career and fertility are tightly linked. We have to feel confident, capable, and in our purpose to succeed at work, and feel confident and capable in ourselves to make a baby. The solar plexus is our power center, and if we’re not feeling powerful in our lives, it makes it much more difficult to move forward and achieve the things we want most.

Most people are not being “what they want to be when they grow up.” They are in a job they feel obligated to be in versus something that really lights them up every day. Most often this is a result of being influenced by parents who direct them into what is an “acceptable” career, or they want a certain lifestyle and think that there are only certain jobs that will pay them enough money, so they sacrifice their purpose for a paycheck. This is not a judgment at all. It’s a survival mechanism. It makes sense that we would do that. I am finding, though, that there’s a big energetic shift going on in the world. More and more we are called to be in our purpose versus just a job. When we ignore our purpose, the other areas in our life are often not in alignment or we’re not able to make progress. Here are some steps you can take to open your solar plexus chakra:

• Put a citrine crystal on your solar plexus when you’re meditating. It helps with resolving work issues, building confidence, and opening your solar plexus.
• Visualize a yellow orb spinning at your solar plexus. See it getting bigger and brighter and spinning faster. This can be done at any time—while meditating, during your lunch break, before you get out of bed, etc. It only takes about a minute, but it can really help open this energy center.
• Let yourself dream about what you’d really love to be doing, even if you have no idea how it would happen. Write down what you’d love. What would make you feel powerful? Take some time to sit in the feeling of how awesome that will be.

If you are aligned in the career area, the fertility area (and others) will follow. Align yourself with what you want versus what you don’t want, and summon your innate strength and capability.

Heart Chakra

The heart chakra represents joy, love, and peace. If this area is closed, it’s likely due to a loss (such as a miscarriage or a death in the family) or giving up on yourself.

If you’ve had a loved one pass away in the last few years, that can be affecting your ability to allow in joy and love, because your heart is still sad and processing the grief. If you’ve endured one or more miscarriages, the heart chakra can be closed because of the pain of the loss and the fear that it may never work out, and because your body doesn’t want to be hurt anymore. So this energy center shuts down to preserve the self. Also, if this has been a long journey for you, this energy center can be closed if you’ve started to lose hope. Here are some things you can do to open the heart chakra:

• Get a green aventurine or green calcite stone. Place it on your heart when you’re meditating. You can even wear it in your bra!
• Visualize a green orb spinning at your heart. See it getting bigger and brighter and spinning faster.
• If you’ve lost a loved one or had a miscarriage, connect to them. You can do this by writing a letter or journal entry to the person. You can also do it through visualization: close your eyes, picture them there with you, and say and feel everything you need to. It’s important to feel these things and then choose to let them go. Ask the person’s spirit/energy to help you move forward, and see if you can release some of the grief that’s not serving you.

Often when something traumatic happens, we try to move through it as quickly as possible as a survival mechanism. We may consciously think we’ve processed these things, but we really haven’t. We don’t like feeling this stuff, so we try to hurry up and get through it. But if your heart is closed off, you’re being called to really feel this stuff, to sit in being uncomfortable, to move through it, and then to choose to let it go.

Throat Chakra

The throat chakra is a really important one in fertility. It represents the ability to voice your opinion, to be yourself, and to feel you’re being heard. As mentioned in chapter 3, if there’s a thyroid issue connected to this chakra, it can be the result of humiliation, not being able to speak up, or wondering “When’s it going to be my turn?” For some women this area is blocked due to poor communication with their spouse, and not being able to fully be themselves and say what they need to say. For some it’s an issue with a boss or coworkers at their job, and they’re unable to voice their opinions or feel heard. And for others it’s related to their families. If they come from a tight-knit or culturally strong family, they can feel judged by family members and communication can be compromised. So what can you do to open the throat chakra?

• Use a blue kyanite stone, which is helpful for learning to voice things in a way where people hear you and for finding the courage to speak. Place it on your throat while meditating, and carry it on your person when encountering one of those people who make you feel that you can’t voice your opinion. Set the intention for the stone to help open the lines of communication in a way that is beneficial for all.
• With eyes closed, visualize a blue orb spinning at your throat. See it getting bigger and brighter and spinning faster and faster. Keep doing this until the orb extends to about a foot outside your body, all the while spinning. This will help keep that area open.
• Write a brain dump about how your voice is being stifled and by whom. Notice what fears or judgments come up, and try doing a belief sheet from chapter 2.
• What are three steps you can take to exercise your voice from an empowered place rather than a forceful one? They don’t have to be huge things to start, but commit to these three things. This will go a long way toward shifting your energy.
• Sing. Get that area of your body used to vocalizing and projecting.

It may not seem like the throat is related to fertility, but when the throat chakra is closed or compromised, it can be a problem. Your body feels safer when it feels it can speak and be heard. If your brain thinks you’re not being heard, the last thing it wants to do is add another thing to your plate—another place where someone else’s voice will matter more than yours. While this is a block to fertility, don’t just work on it to get the baby. This has probably been a pattern in your life for a while, and it’s important for your overall life (and not just the baby) that you address this. You must make sure you’re being heard. No one else will.

Third Eye Chakra

The third eye (or brow) chakra is at your forehead. It represents your intuition center, clear thinking, and that “knowing” when something is true or not. It’s very common for this chakra to be blocked because most of us are in our heads so much of the time. This is especially the case if we tend to be of the Type-A persuasion. Our brain/ego runs the show most of the time, and many of us are too busy analyzing things down to a bloody stump to pay attention to our intuition. If we are anxious or in a fight-or-flight state, our brain will come up with all kinds of crazy, scary scenarios that just keep our wheels spinning. But if we can find a way to operate from our intuition, we don’t question our decisions and we are able to feel what the best course of action is. So how can we open this chakra?

• Use an amethyst or moonstone on your forehead when you meditate. Both of these are for opening your intuition center. If stones aren’t your thing, place one of your hands on your forehead and breathe deeply.
• Find a short third eye meditation on YouTube to do every day.
• Visualize a tight rosebud at your forehead, and then in your mind’s eye, visualize it opening and expanding.
• Ask open-ended questions and release the need to get a “profound” answer. Then just observe what comes into your thoughts. With yes-or-no questions you will have an attachment to the answer, so be sure to ask open-ended questions, such as “What do I need to know today?” or “What can I do to move myself forward?” Write down what you notice. It could be a color, a feeling, a chill, a smile, or a sentence. Don’t judge or have preconceived notions about what sort of response you should get. Just observe and make it a daily practice to build that intuition “muscle.”

Crown Chakra

The crown chakra represents your spiritual awareness—not a religious awareness necessarily, but more of a “Universe-y” awareness. It’s our connection to Source/Spirit/God. The crown chakra is where our divine inspiration comes in, and is our connection to loved ones who have passed. If this area is closed, it can result in a feeling of hopelessness and victimization when it comes to getting pregnant. When deciding to try an alternative approach to fertility, you must be open to the idea that things could change, that you’re supported by the Universe/God, and that by shifting your thoughts you can shift your circumstances. In order to manifest, we need to remember this connection. We are having a human experience, but we are still connected to Source. It can be helpful to be aware of that connection, as it can aid you in unexpected ways.

Here are some things you can do to open/strengthen your crown chakra:

• Visualize a white, gold, or purple light being poured in through your crown chakra from a pitcher above your head. Ask to let in the energy and information that is for your highest good and to receive whatever guidance you need.
• Ask for the help of your guides, angels, and/or loved ones who have passed for guidance or signs (without the attachment of needing to get an answer right away). Mantras can be helpful to open you up, break old thought patterns, and connect you to universal energy. Try something like this: “I invite in the next step,” or “I am excited for Source/Spirit/God to unfold the next step in my journey,” or “I am open to receiving the messages that help me move forward.”
• Try automatic writing. Take a couple minutes to meditate and get your body still. Loosely hold a pen to paper and ask an open-ended question, like “What next step should I take?” or “What do I need to know today?” Again, you don’t want to ask a yes-or-no question, because you’ll be attached to one of those answers and that can skew the results. Don’t judge what comes up; just write. It’s okay if you don’t get anything right away. It took me about three weeks of writing every day to get consistent messages. It’s more about building the pattern of allowing in the message versus hunting for it. These are two very different energies, as we’ve already discussed. Automatic writing gets you in the habit of tapping into this amazing invisible team you have, who are just waiting for you to ask for and receive their help. If you’re religious, tap into your angels. If you’re spiritual, tap into your spirit guides. If you were close to a family member who passed, tap into that person.

It’s so easy in this day and age to be caught up in external things, like work, relationships, and responsibilities, that we rarely make the time to listen to and energize ourselves. You can take action to move yourself forward in a positive way by listening to chakra meditations and simply visualizing the color of each chakra spinning, beginning at the root chakra and working up to the crown. This is something that can affect not only your fertility but every area of your life. Again, this journey is really about taking care of you and moving yourself forward. Going inward to replenish and recharge yourself will make what has seemed a daunting journey much more doable.

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