Unblocking The Throat Chakra

Chakras are focal points of energy located in 7 different areas throughout the human body. The word chakra means “wheel” in Sanskrit, which typifies how energy comes into the body and is turned through “the wheels of the chakras”, then gets released back outwardly through words, actions and physical movements. Even if you’re not privy to new age language or eastern spirituality, the chakras can help you identify what’s going on within your body and mind, and how the two are connected. Blocked chakras can feel like stuck energy, tension in the body and difficulty taking action from a place inside that feels confident, comfortable and self-loving. In this article, we will discuss unblocking the throat chakra. In focusing on unblocking the throat chakra, we will explore common reasons for blockages, what the block feels like both physically and psychologically and specific techniques for unblocking the throat chakra.

How do I Know if my Throat Chakra is Blocked?
The throat chakra is the energy center that governs the mouth, tongue, jaw and neck; it directly relates to communication and the ability to speak your truth, or share your feelings, thoughts and needs honestly with others.

When your throat chakra is blocked
-It may be hard to get the words out

-You may experience tension in your throat, clenching of the teeth or stiffness in the jaw.

-A blocked throat chakra can manifest as an inability to self-express with confidence; one might feel that they have nothing of value to share with the world when the throat is blocked; you lose confidence in your voice.

-You may get the urge to share something, but feel like the cat has your tongue.

-Or maybe you’re clear about what you want to say, but by the time it’s verbally expressed, the meaning is lost or your words sound confusing.

-Perhaps you’re hedging in conversation, unable to commit to your words, fearful of how they will be perceived.

Unblocking the throat chakra is a process that will allow you to trust your words more fully and express them more clearly. Unblocking the throat chakra can allow you more freedom of self-expression.

How One Develops a Blocked Throat Chakra
The following bullets describe some common examples of how one might develop a blocked throat chakra. Many of the reasons center around using your voice, and difficulty prioritizing your own needs. You may have learned to tailor your speech in order to keep people around you happy or to curb negative reactions. Much of the work in unblocking the throat chakra is understanding the reason for the initial block and how you might begin to relate to your voice differently to prevent future blocks.

-If you’re used to putting other people’s needs above your own, you may stifle your own voice, discounting your needs to the degree that they build up and form a block in your throat chakra. What happens to your needs when you don’t express them? Where do they go?

-If you fear other people’s reactions so much that you silence yourself, you may develop a blocked throat chakra. If you’re constantly changing your words and requests to sound more palatable for others or to control their reactions, what message are you sending to yourself about your voice? What happens in the silencing of yourself?

-If you’ve been taught that what you say isn’t welcomed or doesn’t matter, you may be inclined to develop a throat blockage. How are your relationships? Can you be yourself and still be accepted and included? Are you walking on eggshells around someone, are you fearful of communication?

There are many reasons for developing a blocked throat chakra, but there is a theme here around how you use your voice, and what hinders you from expressing yourself, your truth and your needs. Remember to be kind to yourself during processes of self-exploration; self-compassion is like creating a safe space within yourself to realize how blocks have been created and how they might be released.

How to Unblock Your Throat Chakra
Unblocking the throat chakra is about giving yourself permission to communicate honestly. It’s about acknowledging what you’re thinking and feeling, and asking for what you want and need without over-worrying about the reactions of others. Unblocking the throat chakra is about learning to value your unique voice, and enhancing your ability to use that medium to get your needs met and your points conveyed. A healthy, flowing throat chakra means feeling comfortable with expressing yourself fully to others, asserting yourself calmly and with confidence and setting appropriate boundaries without guilt.

An Exercise to Unblock the Throat Chakra

A Meditation and Affirmation Practice For the reader who has never meditated before, it’s especially important to refrain from self-judgment during the following exercise. Starting a meditation practice does not result in immediate mastery, and it’s the nature of the mind to wander. You can always explore a more general tip on mindfulness and meditation to get a feel for the process of meditation, and then come back to this exercise if you want to get a basic understanding of meditation first. Remember that if you proceed with this exercise, being kind to yourself is rule #1.

1.Find a comfortable position: you can be sitting on the floor cross-legged, in a chair, standing or lying down. Whatever you need to do to get comfortable is fine.

2. Take 10 deep breaths, count out loud to yourself to keep track. One breath is a full cycle of inhaling deeply and exhaling fully. When breathing deeply, try to fill your belly, lungs and chest with breath. You can put your hand on your belly and invite the breath to fill your hand, and then continue to direct the breath upward towards your lungs and chest. But do not stress yourself out over the form of your breath. If you’re new to meditation, breathing deeply, according to what feels right to you is perfectly fine. View this exercise as an exploration with no right or wrong way of doing it.

3. After your 10 deep breaths, set a timer for 5 minutes and begin to focus on your neck, throat and jaw. Notice if you feel any physical tension, or you notice any mental anxiety as you hold focus on this area of your body. Physical tension might feel like squeezing in the throat, clenched teeth or pressure on the neck. You may notice a desire to stop focusing on your throat area and dis-engage in the meditation altogether. Feel free to invite physical relaxation, softening and ease. If your mind wanders, remind yourself that it’s normal and gently ask yourself to re-focus on any physical sensations.

If you’re unable to sit for 5 minutes, that’s perfectly fine, too. You can start smaller and aim for 2 minutes if that’s what feels right. Remember that meditation is a choice, and even the intention to turn inwardly is a radical act of self-care and self-inquiry.

4. After your 5 minutes is up, slowly and carefully read this list of affirmations to yourself. You can feel free to add an affirmation, or change them to fit your unique situation. It’s all about what feels personally helpful for you.

· My needs are important.

· I stay true to myself.

· I can honor myself while honoring others.

· I can say what I mean without hurting others.

· It’s okay to put myself first and ask for what I need.

· I can express myself and be understood and supported by others.

· The world will benefit from my unique voice.

· I make sense when I speak, my words are clear and powerful.

· My thoughts and feelings are valid.

· I support myself and honor my speech.

5. After you’re done reading the affirmations, it’s time to meditate one last time. Set a timer for 5 minutes. Close your eyes and begin to breathe deeply again. Take a few moments to settle in to your breathing, and gently relax your breath. Continuing to breathe deeply here is important, but the main focus should be on the following visualization.

Begin to envision a light blue ball of light glowing in the center of your throat. If it feels helpful, gently touch your throat, reminding yourself that you’re here to care for yourself. And slowly invite the light blue light to expand. Let it get bigger and bigger until it encompasses your head and your heart, and invite feelings of safety and love. Remind yourself that you can communicate what’s on your mind and heart.

6. Reflection & Continuous Practice: Make this practice a part of your daily routine for a couple weeks and see how you feel. You can increase the amount of time sitting in meditation if this feels helpful to you. You can change up the affirmations to best suit you and keep things interesting. Consistency is key and a meditation practice allows you to spend deliberate time with yourself, experiencing the direct connection of your mind and body. Take notes after your meditation. What did you notice? What affirmations resonate with you and why? What does it feel like to notice your throat in a physical sense? Get curious and explore. What has been blocking your speech? Your truth? And over time, what are you noticing about your ability to communicate? Are you able to use your words to express yourself more clearly?

Parting Words
An unblocked throat chakra is a powerful thing because life changes when we learn how to be transparent about who we are and what we need. There’s a risk in being vulnerable with our words, but there’s an even bigger risk when we aren’t. Learning how to strengthen our ability to self-express means we can communicate our deepest needs and give people a chance to meet them. When we express with less guilt, we get to know ourselves outside of the shadow of another person’s needs, we see ourselves more vividly and we can recognize the natural boundary between ourselves and other people. When we don’t hesitate so much to share ourselves with the world, we can think less and be in the moment more freely. We can express ourselves more creatively and more lovingly, less fearful of the reactions of others, and more in tune with what we want to put out there in our moment to moment experience. At the Center for Growth, we are passionate about helping people gain the skills needed to express themselves fully and clearly. Unblocking your throat chakra can be understood as the process of owning your voice and asking for what you want and need.

You can self schedule an in-person or virtual therapy session at the Center for Growth by calling (215) 922- LOVE (5683) x 100.

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