What are these crazy rocks that interest people so much? They come in a multitude of shapes, sizes, and colors. Some are tumbled and smooth, others are clusters with pointy ends, and then some are completely rough pieces, easily mistaken for regular rocks (if a "regular rock" exists!). They are worn as jewelry, used as decoration, and even used in technology such as ultrasound, transistors, computer chips, cell phones, digital watches, guitar amps, and many other places. When it comes down to it, crystals are used for so many purposes, it is highly unlikely you haven't encountered one.

The fact they are utilized so heavily in technology is a testament to their power. A quartz crystal, when put under pressure, creates an electrical charge, known as a piezoelectric effect, that can be focused and utilized for many purposes. Just as crystals are electric, our bodies are electric as well. Taken to another level, everything, including our body, is energy, manifesting as vibrational frequencies. The human body is a complex bioelectric system that vibrates at varying frequencies, depending on the environment, the body's health, the body's emotional state, etc. Our bodies (and the world we live in) receive and transmit vibrational energy. In this regard, nothing is solid. Our bodies can be changed, in both good and bad ways, by what surrounds us.

When our bodies fall out of balance and we become sick, our vibrational frequency shifts, distorting the crystalline structures in our body. When we surround ourselves by perfected patterns of energy, such as those from crystals, the energy of our body entrains or synchronizes with the higher vibration from the crystal, restoring balance and equilibrium. In other words, we are greatly influenced by the company we keep. This applies to the food we eat, the water we drink, the activities we engage in, and so on. In this regard, crystals are our ultimate friends. There are many types that can be customized for specific health issues. On a scientific level, the crystal's chemical composition, when it comes into contact with our skin, affects our body. Stones are a reflection of the elements in the periodic table, made up of Calcium, Magnesium, Copper, Phosphorus, Lithium, etc. We know that when we ingest a mineral, it affects our body in a certain way. When Magnesium is taken internally, it has a calming affect and helps regulate the heart and muscles . Similarly, when a crystal with high magnesium content is touched, it can have similar effects on the body.

To take it a step further, crystals not only reflect the elements within them, but also have properties related to the principles of Chinese Medicine (according to the studies of Taoist Master Jeffrey Yuen). Essential oils are another tool that can be utilized in the same manner, but that would be an entirely different post! Crystals can then be used on acupressure points for their specific qualities. A certain stone might help cool the body and release a headache while another stone might be great for sluggish digestion and fatigue. Even more amazingly, different stones are used together to create custom "formulas, " for addressing specific health issues, similar to an herbal formula. In this regard, they are helpful for Qigong Sessions.

I hope I have given some interesting background on crystals to help demystify them. If you remain skeptical and still do not buy into their healing powers, don't let that discourage you from seeking them out anyway; you can always enjoy their natural beauty!

(02/12/21 Disclaimer: since writing this post nearly 3 years ago, my health has greatly improved allowing me to resume regular workouts. While I do intense exercise at times, I also ensure that I’m taking significant downtime for restorative qigong, stretching, and deep breathing. I still feel that if you’re significantly low on energy or having health issues, you should NOT push through discomfort or pain. Instead, find alternatives that feel good and don’t further deplete the body!)

I am a recovering crossfit-style workout junkie. For years I was doing burpees, pushups, planks, mountain climbers, dive bombers, you name it. I did these workouts 3-5 times a week, tracking my progress, and rarely missing a workout. I enjoyed the exercise high, as well as feeling strong. I was proud of myself for building the strength and dedication to have a strong exercise practice. What I didn't like so much was my aching back and joints. Over time, I developed chronic back and joint pain because of the exercises.

I have always found it interesting that we seem to either under or overdo most things in life. There are the people who are sedentary, who exercise very little, and then we have the people who exercise too much, or do exercises that hurt their body. In knowing this, we should strive for balance, exercising enough, but not overdoing it.

I eventually had to make the difficult decision to quit vigorous exercise altogether and only do qigong. My body was sending me a message and I was finally ready to listen. I think we all need to listen to our bodies and find balance, rather than the extremes.

Since quitting and working on healing my body, I have slowly been coming back into exercise, finding more gentle moves. I have also come to appreciate that qigong and tai chi can be just as strengthening, if not more. It's easy to fixate on doing big, heavy, vigorous movements, but small, subtle, and gentle can actually be even more powerful. Through more gentle exercises, such as qigong, there are incredible health benefits as well. By learning to circulate energy throughout the body, energy is unblocked from areas of pain and health issues begin to resolve.

Every body is different, but for me, I had to stop all planks, burpees, pushups, heavy weights, dive bombers, and any other forceful moves that put a lot pressure on the joints.

Here is what I do these days:

I tend to put on happy music and just dance or move my body however feels more comfortable. Occasionally, I will drop in some lunges, squats, arm exercises, and gentle ab work. The important thing is to never feel pain. If anything starts to hurt, I immediately stop.
Always breathe through the nose and keep the mouth shut. See this blog post for more information. If you have to open your mouth to catch your breath, you're exercising too hard.
Make sure to cool down when finished by rubbing/holding lavender and peppermint, or vetiver essential oil onto Liver 3 and Liver 8 points and doing some deep breathing.

Liver 3 point on the foot, just a few finger widths below where the big toe splits

Liver 8 point is located on the inner portion of the knee near the knee crease

Another great exercise option is Callanetics, which is gentle style of exercise focusing on tiny pulse-like movements that sculpt and strengthen muscles, while re-aligning the back. Callan Pinkney, the founder, created the exercises to help heal her own back and get into shape. Eventually, the exercises caught on and she became quite famous in the 80's. While the exercises look dated amid the leotards and 80's spandex, they are quite effective, gentle, and help those with back problems.

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