Root chakra: Feel deeply supported

The “base” or “root” chakra represents our connection with the earth. It can be affected by whether we feel safe, secure and rooted, or unstable and without solid foundations. It’s associated with our basic needs for survival.

For the most part, by the time we’re 5, we’ve decided what the world is like. For many of us, this involves some measure of fear.  Whether its from traumas and memories or just watching the news, we often learn to be afraid of life.

If we don’t feel safe, our adrenals and kidneys will be overtaxed, and we’ll be weak in the knees, and shaky in the hips and ankles.

Working with the root chakra can help you let go of subconscious fears that undermine you, and will help keep your body healthy on a basic level.

3 powerful ways to tone the root chakra:

1. Get your feet on the ground!

And I mean literally!  Barefeet on the ground connects you to the earth, and gives you access to vital earth energy.  Get your toes onto the dirt (or grass, or stone) and feel how deeply supported you are by the firm ground.

In addition to helping you feel supported, barefeet allows the energy of the earth to circulate through your systems, leading to a whole host of health benefits. The rubber-soled shoes we usually wear blocks this “most potent antioxidant known to man,” as Dr. James Oschman calls it, from entering our bodies.  Barefeet are much better conductors : )

So, I know the equinox has passed, but if its not too chilly yet, put yer toes in the earth to tone your root chakra AND improve your overall health.

2. Change your inner dialogue with affirmations

Affirmations help us turn around the negative stories we’re telling ourselves at every moment of the day. These are the subconscious fears I mentioned at the beginning of the article.  Instead of whispering “you are safe and supported” they’re often saying “watch out!” or “it’s a miracle you’re still alive!”

I’m sure you can imagine that this keeps our stress response at unhealthy levels, burning out our adrenals and damaging our immune systems.

Affirmations work to subvert this sort of unhelpful self-talk that gets in our way.

Here are some to get you started:

(photo credit: Bhumika.B via photopin cc)

I am safe and supported.

I am exactly where I’m supposed to be.

I have everything I need.

I am grounded and stable.

I am deeply rooted.

I am standing on my own two feet.

I trust in life.

I am connected to my body.

I am grateful for all the challenges that helped me to grow into who I am.

The earth supports me.

I make healthy choices.

I love my life.

If you see a few that resonate with you, repeat them to yourself 10 times or so a day, maybe even while standing barefoot outside.

And, if you feel like this is  just what you need this week, I’ve made you a printable! with some root affirmations that you can put up at your desk or in your room where you’ll see them each day : )

3. Visualization

This is another one that pairs nicely with barefeet on the ground.

Close your eyes.

Take a few deep breaths, feeling them fill the entire body, all the way down into the toes of the feet.

Bring your awareness down to the base of the spine.

Begin to see a beautiful, deep red encompassing the lower body, spinning clockwise or counterclockwise.  

Take some deep breaths into the red and see it become deeper and more vibrant.

Begin to send this color downward from the pelvis, from the hip bones, seeing it fill your legs, knees, and feet, filling the lower body. 

Start to send the red down from your feet through the earth like roots.

 Go as deep as you can down into the earth, and wrap your red roots around what you find there: dirt, bedrock, or even the molten core of the earth.

See your roots turn the whole area around them red, and take a few deep breaths.  Breathe into this connection, and release down into the ground anything in the body that’s holding you back from feeling fully supported. 

Now, leaving your roots intact, begin to draw that deep red from the earth up into your feet, knees, legs, and hips.  Bring it all the way up through the body, through the belly, chest, arms, and crown of the head.  Feel the red uniting the earth and sky.

Breathe deeply and relax into this sense of connectedness, staying here as long as you wish.

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And there you are!  Kinesthetic, auditory, and visual tools to complement your learning style.  I hope you enjoy playing with these.  They’ve all really helped me settle into my body and feel safe in my own skin.

bonus idea: join me this week in wearing red clothes and eating red food  (strawberries, beats, red wine, etc) to re-enforce your commitment to getting grounded in the  body!

me and my old friend in our red outfits from yesteryear : )

Have an awesome day!

And if you enjoyed this, you’d also like this guided meditation focusing on the root chakra

You can also find more chakra posts by clicking the green “Feel More Vibrant” button on the sidebar : )