What is the Sacral Chakra?
- 2nd Chakra
- Sanskrit Name: Svadhisthana
- Location: Lower abdomen, about 3 inches below the belly button.
- Color: Orange
- Element: Water
- Spiritual Attributes: Creativity, emotions, passion, pleasure, sensuality, and sexuality.
In the system of 7 chakras, the sacral chakra (also known as Svadhisthana in Sanskrit) is the 2nd. It is found in the lower abdomen, about three inches below the belly button and also rules over the genitals and lower back. People who have a healthy 2nd chakra exude warmth, an innate ability to enjoy life and pleasurable experiences, are more playful, and have good humor.
The Center for Creativity, Passion, Emotions, Sensuality, Desire, and Sexuality.
The sacral chakra is the center where you derive your creativity and passion to create. When healthy and balanced, the Svadhisthana allows you to fully harness inspiration for creativity and express your creative endeavors to the world.
In addition, the sacral chakra is where emotions are harbored. When balanced, you are in touch with your emotions and express them fully. You allow yourself to feel joy, sadness, anger, pain, hurt, jealousness. Every emotion permeates your soul, then is set free as you heal. When unbalanced, you may tend to either spin out of control, unleashing every wrong hurtful feeling onto the world around you or bury your emotions deep down until one day they come spewing out like a volcano.
Lastly, this chakra rules your sensuality, sexuality, and desire. Having a balanced sacral chakra allows you to have a healthy relationship with your sexuality. It empowers you to embrace your sensual side and get in touch with our deepest desires for pleasure. When unbalanced, you can either become obsessed and sexually overdriven or want absolutely nothing to do with it whatsoever.
What is it like to have a healthy, balanced sacral chakra?
- You feel comfortable in your own skin.
- Expressing your creativity comes easily to you, as you truly want to share your creative endeavors with the world.
- Finding inspiration for your creativity comes naturally as you realize that inspiration can be found all around you.
- You can share your creativity without fear of judgment.
- Emotions flow through you as you allow yourself to feel then release in a healthy fashion.
- You do not bury your emotions deep down.
- You also don’t allow yourself to spin out of control and spew your emotions on everyone that walks in your path.
- Sexuality is viewed in a healthy manner, no longer feeling guilt or insecurity around it.
- If you have been closed off to desire for sexual pleasure, you will find that you once again have the desire to have a healthy sex life.
- Or, if you have had an obsession with sex, you find that you no longer think about it constantly and instead have a healthier mindset.
- Lastly, you are in touch with what brings you great pleasure, whether it is particular foods, entertainment, art, music, companionship, sex, or what-have-you.
Two Types of Disruptions
There are two types of disruptions to the adequate flow of energy to the root chakra: Deficient and Excessive.
Deficient Energy Flow – a low flow of energy, blocked, introspective, passive.
Associated with:
- anxiety
- highly emotional
- inability to be comfortable with expressing creative endeavors
- low libido, or no sexual desire whatsoever
Excessive Energy Flow – too much energy flow, agitated, irritable, overreactive, aggressive, too much focus on outside influences.
Associated with:
- aggressiveness
- an unhealthy addiction or obsession with sex
- stifling emotions, holding them in tight before erupting like a volcano
Common Reasons the Sacral Chakra Becomes Unbalanced
Starting as early as childhood, there can be many reasons why one’s sacral chakra can become unbalanced. Discovering the root of the blockages is the first step towards healing yourself.
- Raised in a strict, religious household where you were taught that feeling any sort of pleasure is a mortal sin.
- Being constantly told that you will die of many diseases if you even so much as think about having sex. (proper safety is key)
- Made to believe that pleasuring yourself is eternally damning.
- Experiencing sexual abuse at any point in your life.
- Being in a toxic relationship where sex is used as a tool for leverage.
- Not being able to fully express your emotions as a child. Always being told that “big kids don’t cry”, or “just get over it”, or “no one wants to hear your problems”, “don’t be a sissy”, etc. (Men especially experience this as young boys)
- Watching the adults in your life never express any emotions other than “happiness” or anger with you. Not being taught that expressing all of your emotions is healthy.
- Not having an outlet to express your creativity.
- Being made to believe that only hard work is important in life and there is no time for creativity.
- Having any type of major surgery in the sacral chakra region.
Symptoms of an Unbalanced Sacral Chakra
- Uncomfortable in your own skin.
- Frequently experience creative blocks.
- Inability to get in touch with what you would like to express creatively.
- High level of fatigue with the inability to get yourself interested in anything.
- Feeling emotionally numb or having an inability to feel any sort of emotion.
- Or you may be hypersensitive and overreact emotionally.
- Addicted to drama, living your life completely absorbed in your own and other people’s dramas.
- Difficulty with expressing your emotions, either spinning out of control and spewing your emotional baggage onto everyone you see.
- OR stifling your emotions and burying them deep down until you explode.
- Too much focus on the pleasures of life – such as overeating, watching too much television, general laziness, gambling addiction, etc.
- Low libido. No desire for sexual pleasure.
- OR a super high libido, wanting to pleasure yourself constantly.
- Addiction to pornography.
- Fear of sex and intimacy.
- Feeling guilty and insecure while experiencing sexual pleasure.
- Arousal at inappropriate times.
- Inability to become aroused at all.
- Consistently have pain in the lower back.
- Tight lower abdominals and hips with limited mobility.
- Pain in the lower tummy region.
- Bloating and puffiness. Also associated with that lovely “pooch” that most women tend to have.
- Carrying excess weight in the lower tummy, hips, love handles, and buttocks.
- Lower digestive system and eliminations issues.
Methods for Healing the Sacral Chakra
1. Get to the root of it.
Really take the time to look at the list of common causes above. Moreover, think of any other situations in life that may have caused your sacral chakra to become unbalanced. To move past blockages, you must first uncover the original cause.
2. Visualization Exercise
Get comfortable and raise your vibrations
Find yourself a comfortable place to sit or lie down. Take a few long, deep breaths and try to clear your mind of the day’s worries. Feel yourself rising to a higher vibration, connecting you to the universe and your Higher Self.
Close your eyes and imagine with your mind’s eye white, healing light pouring over your from the universe like sunlight beaming down on the forest floor through the treetops. Starting from the top of your head, allow this light to permeate every cell of your body.
Be conscious of any sensations
Feel the warmth. Feel the vibrations buzzing through you to the core. (It’s ok if you don’t feel anything at all at first)
Clear blockages with healing orange light
Rest your hands on your hips or groin region, turning your attention to this area. Now imagine the light turning a warm, beautiful shade of orange like a sunset flooding your pelvic area.
What do you feel? Can you feel any blockages? Does your pelvic floor feel pinched or closed off? Does your lower abdomen feel tight? Do you have pain or tension in your lower back, hips, lower abdominals, or pelvic region?
Release physical tensions
Imagine your rib cage separating from your center, your sides expanding with every breath. Feel your abdomen release and drop to the floor. Notice the separation between your upper abdomen and lower abdomen. Imagine your stomach elongating, creating space in the vertebrae of your spine.
Now imagine that you are creating space between your hip bones and allowing the lower abdominals to release the pelvic bone. Once you feel a release in these areas, focus your attention to your pelvic floor. Imagine the groin opening wide allowing you to be receptive to the flow of energy in this area.
Breathwork
Fill that newly opened space with air from each long inhale. Sending the air first towards your back and then down, filling your entire belly while you imagine the breath going all the way down into your open and receptive groin region. When the stomach and ribs can expand no more, hold that breath there for a few seconds.
Slowly release the breath. Feel the stomach return to the earth as you slowly exhale until your lungs are completely empty.
Continue to repeat this breathing technique while you imagine that the healing orange light is blasting each blockage into a million tiny pieces. See these pieces swirl around your Sacral chakra, then dissolve into the orange light. Feel your pelvis become lighter as you release your burdens into the light.
Send it back to the universe
Now, send the healing light back up into the universe like a beam of light shooting out of your Sacral chakra into the sky. Surrender it. Be free of all that was holding you back.
To conclude your practice, fill your entire body with the white, cleansing light again, and sit with any new sensations that you may feel.
It is absolutely ok if this exercise doesn’t fully heal your Sacral chakra the first few times. Remember, it took a lifetime to build-up your blockages, so you can’t expect them to disappear instantaneously. Keep practicing.
3. Sacral Chakra Affirmations
Repeating affirmations daily can help you to overcome blockages in the Svadasthana by rewiring the way your brain thinks. Just by repeating these affirmations, you can open yourself to the flow of creative, passionate energy. Try picking a few that resonate with you and repeat them to yourself throughout the day.
- I am a creative being.
- Creating brings me great joy.
- I explore my passion for creating beauty in this world.
- I create for my own pleasure.
- Sharing my creative endeavors with others brings me great happiness.
- The universe needs what I can offer creatively.
- I find inspiration to create all around me.
- My emotions are balanced.
- I am at peace with my emotions.
- I no longer feel the need to feed my emotions with food.
- It is no longer necessary to self medicate with drugs or alcohol to numb my emotions.
- I am in touch with my feelings.
- It is ok to feel all emotions no matter how difficult.
- I feel all emotions. I allow them to flow through me and then release them back into the universe.
- My relationships bring me joy.
- I am a sensual being, finding pleasure with all of my senses.
- It is my birthright to experience joy and pleasure.
- Like-minded people are attracted to me and support and nurture me.
- I am comfortable in my own skin.
- My sexuality is alive and vibrant.
- I am secure and confident in my sexuality.
- Sex in a beautiful, sacred connection and I give myself permission to enjoy it.
- It is safe and absolutely ok for me to express my sexuality in healthy ways.
4. Meditation and Chanting
Practicing meditation has amazing health benefits, including:
- calming the nerves
- lowering blood pressure
- strengthening the immune system
- reducing pain and inflammation
- reducing stress and anxiety
- improving sleep
- and so much more.
Find a meditation practice that you feel you can stick to and see how you can benefit in a short period of time.
While meditating, if you find it hard to fully clear your mind it is helpful to chant (either out loud or in your mind). Chanting some of the affirmations listed above in #3 will work wonders.
Additionally, consider repeating the sound “VAM” (Vahm) as it can help to release the tensions held in your Sacral chakra. Check out the chanting meditation video included below.
5. Move Your Hips
The best way to do this? DANCE.
Maybe you can try a belly dancing or salsa class. Or possibly check out some Bollywood or hip-hop style dance videos in your living room. Whatever style you choose, as long as you get those hips moving you will receive a ton of beneficial sacral chakra energy.
6. Practice Yoga for Sacral Chakra Healing
Check out YogaJournal.com and use their hip-opening and forward-folding practice for the second chakra to unleash creativity as you cultivate fluidity in your pelvis.
You might also enjoy this sacral chakra sequence by Brett Larkin:
7. Pranayama (breathing exercise)
This is a great video that teaches you how to generate sexual energy using breathing techniques:
8. Aromatherapy
While you are doing the above visualization, meditation, and physical exercises, you can switch on your essential oil diffuser and add one or a blend of the following essential oils:
- Bay Laurel
- Bergamot
- Cardamom
- Clary sage (avoid if pregnant)
- Geranium
- Jasmine
- Neroli
- Orange or sweet orange
- Patchouli
- Tangerine
- Rose
- Sandalwood
- Ylang ylang
Before using any essential oils, it is always best to check for any contraindications with any existing conditions that you may have, pregnancy, allergies, or interactions with medications.
9. Herbal Teas | Supplements
The best way to consume medicinal herbs is usually by making herbal teas.
Follow the link above to learn the best way to brew your tea using one or a blend of the following herbs that benefit the sacral chakra:
- Calendula
- Cleavers
- Dandelion root
- Ginger
- Mints (peppermint, spearmint)
- Fennel
- Black cohosh
- Blue vervain
- Hibiscus
- Red Raspberry leaf
If you have a hard time coming around to herbal teas, you can always try these herbs in capsule form.
Before consuming any herbs, it is always best to check for any contraindications with any existing conditions that you may have, pregnancy, allergies, or interactions with medications.
10. Crystal Healing for the Sacral Chakra
“There are healing crystals that clear positive ions from the sacral chakra so it can begin to absorb negative ions. This is what the 2nd chakra must be able to do efficiently in order to keep you energized physically, emotionally and spiritually. As this chakra heals, you will begin to notice that you are feeling truly happy again. You will feel energized, creative and sensual again.” (from thehealingchest.com)
Try using or carrying the following crystals to receive their beneficial energy to heal your sacral chakra:
- Amber
- Aragonite
- Carnelian
- Golden and yellow citrine
- Goldstone
- Orange Calcite
- Orange Kyanite
- Sunstone
- Spessartine garnet
- Tiger’s eye
Don’t be daunted by complex crystal placements. Just using one crystal at a time will help you achieve amazing benefits.
11. Healing Foods and Spices
Consuming any orange-colored foods and spices will help the healing process of the sacral chakra. Also, since this chakra is related to the element of water, choosing foods with high water content will also be helpful.
Spices:
- Coriander
- Cardamom
- Sweet paprika
- Fennel
- Cinnamon
- Carob
- Vanilla
- Licorice
- Sesame seeds
Foods:
- Fish (especially salmon)
- nuts and seeds
- Sweet and tropical fruits such as mangos, papaya, oranges, peaches, nectarines, apricots, tangerines, mandarins, passionfruit, coconut, guava, melons.
- Honey
- Agave nectar
- Grains and granola
12. Add These Colors to Your Surroundings
The sacral chakra is associated with the color orange. Adding various shades of orange, peach, salmon, apricot, tan, natural wood tones, etc. will also aid in helping you to focus on and heal your 2nd chakra.
Try adding more of these colors and natural woods to your wardrobe, home or office decor, or wherever you spend time.
13. Explore Your Creative Side
Try your hand at creating something. Anything. What have you always wanted to try? Painting? Drawing? Ceramics? Sewing? Dancing? Cooking? Maybe you have always wanted to learn to play an instrument, or sing?
Find a hobby that allows you to use your creative energy. Also, don’t be disappointed if you aren’t amazing at it in the beginning. Just as long as you are creating and exploring, you will get better with practice. It will do your soul good to immerse yourself in something new and creative.
14. Embolden Yourself to Share Your Creations.
That’s right. Put it out there in the world. We are all creative in different ways because that is what the world needs. There is something missing in this world, though. And that thing is whatever you have to offer.
Create it. Perform it. Share it.
The world and the universe are waiting.
This can be as simple as snapping a picture of something that you made or a video of a performance and sharing it with family members. Or, maybe you could post it on Facebook? If you aren’t comfortable sharing it with your entire Facebook audience, find a Facebook group of similar interests and share it on there. You would be amazed at the loving support you can find in online groups.
15. Practice Mindfulness Over Your Emotions
For those that find they bury their emotions deep down, it would be wise to practice mindfulness over your emotions. Really allow yourself to get in touch with your feelings. Holding them in only harms you and the people you love in the end.
Remind yourself that it is ok and perfectly healthy to feel all emotions. Let them sweep over you and flood your senses. Once you fully immerse yourself in the feeling of each emotion, imagine that you are cutting the cord and allowing that emotion to float back up to the universe. Move on.
16. Get in Touch with Your Sensuality
This doesn’t necessarily mean sex. Being a sensual man or woman means being aware and satisfying the main senses which include touch, smell, taste, and hearing.
Sensuality is about experiencing pleasure using all of your senses, not just in the bedroom. Check out this additional article on ElephantJournal.com to learn a little more about getting in touch with your own sensuality.
17. Give Yourself Permission to Enjoy Sex and Other Pleasures in Life
If you find that you are deficient in the sacral chakra energy, then you most likely have fear and feelings of guilt and insecurity surrounding sex and intimacy, as well as other things or activities that bring you pleasure. This is a hard one to shake, especially for those that come from a strict, religious upbringing.
You are an adult. You were given a body that is capable of experiencing great pleasure. Your existence was not created to constantly avoid that which brings you pleasure, sexual or not. The universe does not find joy in watching you suffer. We were put here on this earth to have earthly experiences. To experience joy and explore what brings us happiness and pleasure. As long as this is done in a non-addictive or non-abusive manner, it is perfectly healthy to take part in activities that bring you pleasure.
Now is the time for you to give yourself permission to live a life without great guilt and insecurity. Give yourself permission to enjoy sex and intimacy. Allow yourself to find pleasure in everyday things. Live your life to the fullest and let your soul soar.
18. Get Creative in the Bedroom
Also for those that have deficient sacral chakra energy, sometimes spicing things up in the bedroom can help awaken your stagnant libido. Look into the Kama Sutra or other books on pleasurable intimacy. It might be all that you need to bring a little more magic to your sex life.
19. Or Find Yourself a Support Group for Sex Addicts
For those that have excessive sacral chakra energy, you might find that you are a bit of a sex addict. Do you constantly think about sex? Frequently feel the need to pleasure yourself? Is it possible that you have an addiction to pornography? Do you have an unhealthy view of the others, only thinking of them as objects for your own pleasure? Is this affecting your relationships, or ability to have or maintain relationships?
If any of that resonates with you, then you may be a sex addict. The best thing that you can do for this is to find a support group, get a mentor, and go to meetings as often as possible. They will help you overcome your addiction so that you can live a more normal, productive, happy life.
Take your time to go through this list and pick a few methods that resonate with you. Not every method with work for each individual, so don’t feel daunted. Do what works best for you.
What other methods have you found to help heal your sacral chakra? Have any of the methods listed been helpful for you? I would love to hear from you!
Also, be sure check out: