How To Use Crystals 101
For a few years now I’ve spent a lot of time learning about the more spiritual things in life (not to say religious). I’m talking about chakras, energy, crystals, auras, etc… if this is already a little too woo woo for you, you might want to stop reading now. I’ve gotten my 200 hour yoga teacher training, my Reiki I and II certification, along with taking numerous classes on a variety of topics.
On my journey, I started taking an interest in crystals and instantly saw how positively they impacted my life. In the past few years, my crystal collection has grown more than I am willing to say but it has been worth it. I've been learning a ton, use them on a daily basis, and am loving how much they have been helping me. For those interested in the benefits of crystals or why anyone would bother using them, here is a crash course:
How Do Crystals Work?
Crystals essentially have vibrations or energy just like you, me, the food we eat, plants, and animals. Ever walk into a room and you can literally feel the tension in the air? Well that tension is called energy and yes you are feeling it.
Each type of crystal has a different energy it gives off. You can use the energy of the crystals multiple ways to help align yourself with their energy. For example, rose quartz’s vibration is one of love and gratitude. It is known for helping individuals open their heart chakras to emit unconditional love for oneself and others.
How Do You Use Crystals?
Truth be told, any way you want! There are a lot of different options such as:
Meditating: Hold crystals when meditating to help amplify your intention.
In a room: Placing crystals in a room will help energize the room with their vibrations. You can place them under your bed to help you sleep, put them on display, or have them on your desk to manifest money, enhance creativity & help with communication. Note that if you add them to a bedroom do them one at a time to see how you sleep with them. Some might make you more active than relaxed so it’s important to pay attention to that.
On a grid: Setting up crystal grids can bring a protective energy, calming, or whatever you need! Then you can meditate with the crystal grid or keep it on display to lock in those good vibes.
Carry them around: My personal favorite way to use crystals is to put them in my pocket, purse or bra to tune in with the crystals energy all day long. It also helps me if I have set an intention with it to think about this intention throughout the day & manifest. For example, if I wear my Strawberry Quartz, I am making an intention to be grateful & happy. When my attention goes to the crystal, I remember my intention & reinforce it. Every day the crystals I carry are different depending on what I need.
Program them with intentions: You can alter a crystal by programming it with certain manifestations or intentions. These can amplify what the crystal already does or do something completely new.
Placing them on your body: Certain crystals relate to your chakras & you can place them on your body to align your chakras or clear blockages. If you have a stomach ache, you may want to use Citrine to help clear your Solar Plexus & alleviate some pain. Headaches amethysts work well, etc. Note I am not recommending crystals as a substitution for medical attention.
Energize water: Throw crystals in your bath or you can charge your drinking water with a crystal in a bottle of water for a few hours & literally take in those vibes.
Do My Crystals Need Upkeep?
Yes! Your crystals need to be cleansed *energetically* and recharged, but how often depends on you and how much you use them. Crystals pick up and absorb energy (sometimes negative) especially when you are wearing them around to different places or have people entering your home. It is important to clean and recharge them so they are at their best.
Personally, I like to clean all of mine once a month and clean the ones I use daily every 1-2 uses with at least a quick sage or energy session. I also make sure to do this whenever I get new stones to clear energy it may have gotten from the store, past handlers, people browsing, etc. I like to use water when I first get them, sage and other crystals to cleanse them then moon, sun, or energy to charge them (we will get to the hows in a sec). After you try a few different techniques you will figure out what works best for you.
Ways to Clean & Charge Crystals:
Water (clean only): Water will wash away any negative energy your crystals may carry so even by running them under water for a few minutes can help cleanse them but it is preferable to soak them in salt or rain water for at least half a day; you will need to charge them after this; there are a few stones you do not want to do this to because the water can ruin them such as Pyrite, Lapis Lazuli, Opal, Hematite, or Amber so double check before you use this method!
Sage or Palo Santo (clean only): Light your sage & surround your crystal with the smoke to clear the negative energy just as you would yourself or your house.
Sun (clean & charge): Place your stone outside in direct sunlight for a full day to soak up the sun - literally! This energy will clean & charge the stones with a more masculine energy.
Moon (clean & charge): Place your stone in the moonlight (preferably under a Full or Crescent Moon) for at least one night to soak up the solar rays. This will help cleanse & charge your crystals with a more feminine energy.
Energy (clean & charge): When holding the crystal in your hand, envision light filling up the stone & surrounding it; allow this light to radiate from the stone for at least a few minutes. If you have an intention for that specific stone now is a good time to reinforce it.
Other Crystals (clean & charge): Some crystals can clean & charge other crystals, for example, Selenite is a main crystal often used to do this. Place the crystals you want to clean & charge on the selenite then leave it here for at least half a day. This is my go to for crystals small that I wear - I have selenite charging plates I place my crystals on by windows where they can get sunlight & moonlight.
Earth (charge only): Place your crystals in a jar & bury it in the dirt (not too deep, but just enough to cover it). This will allow the earth to charge your crystals & is great for ones that are used for grounding.
Great Crystals For Beginners
There are a ton of great crystals for beginners but this would be a good starter package for you to get a feel for them and how they impact your energy / you throughout the day.
Rose Quartz: An extremely common stone for any crystal collector that is associated with the heart chakra. It is known to help attract love & good relationships. Personally, I find rose quartz to make me feel more radiant & happy the days I carry it with me!
Amethyst: Another fairly common stone, amethyst is associated with the crown chakra making you more intuitive & connected to your higher self. It can help you sleep better especially if you are in an area of geopathic stress. Amethyst is good for individuals with anxiety. They say it even helps with addiction problems or hangovers (which I will definitely find out next time I have a long night out).
Clear Quartz: A great stone to help clear your mind & meditate or manifest. These stones are easy to program so they can take place of other stones or be used to amplify other crystals.
Citrine: Associated with the solar plexus chakra, this is the first stone I was really drawn to which is no surprise because my solar plexus always has issues. It helps boost your confidence, creativity & willpower as well as attract financial success.
Smoky Quartz: This gentle detoxifier will help remove negative energy clearing your mind & making you more grounded.
If you go to a crystal store and are having trouble deciding, usually you will be more drawn to the ones that you need. Look around, ignore the signs and see which one you like the most.
Some Of My Favorites
Tigers Eye: A protective & motivating stone that tends to help with the solar plexus more so than other chakras. It gives you strength & perseverance to move forward. It also makes you more creative which is why I keep a huge crystal of Tiger's Eye on my desk.
Black Tourmaline: A great stone to protect yourself from negative energy and feel grounded throughout the day. It helps repel negative energy & cleanse it. If you are a person who is uber sensitive to how people feel or find yourself around a Negative Nancy, this could be a good one for you too.
Red Aventurine: Provides calmness, enhances creativity, boosts your energy making you more productive (I am starting to see a trend with my favorite stones).
Moldavite: A very strong stone with a ton of qualities. This stone is special because it is the only known one not from Earth - it actually comes from a meteorite over 15 million years ago that hit in what is now the Czech Republic. A few of the qualities are raising your vibrations to a higher consciousness, healing illnesses, aligning your life path, & attracting love & wealth into your life. This one should be used in small increments when you start using it & worn with a protective stone such as tourmaline.
Selenite: While I don’t carry selenite around with me, I use it to charge my crystals, cut chords & clear energy blockages when doing Reiki. If you don’t know what I just said… that’s okay, I warned you this was going to get even more woo wooey.
Books About Crystals
Crystals For Healing: A great overview especially if you want to use crystals to heal. This book has profiles on over 95 crystals & over 200 different remedies giving different crystal grids to use, meditations to do with crystals for certain situations, etc.
Crystals: The Modern Guide To Crystal Healing: Good for beginners especially with about 50 common crystals, their qualities, & recommendations for those specific stone. It is more in-depth than a lot of other books talking about what ways to clean them, where that one comes from, etc.
In Focus Crystals: Your Personal Guide: While this book doesn't have a ton of specific information on types of crystals (it has some just not super in depth), it has a lot of information on the different ways to use crystals like setting up grids, pendulums, clearing chakra blockages & more.
Encyclopedia of Crystals: This book has hundreds of crystals in it talking about the properties of each & they are sorted by color which makes it a bit easier for beginners rather than sorting by names.
