Color Therapy
Contributor: Cristin Smith
Photographer: Madison Cline
Even with all of our active self-care and healthy living, there are still times where we do not feel our best. We may feel stressed or down or just be experiencing the sensation of running on empty.
Sometimes talking it out or going for a run isn’t enough or doesn’t seem to provide relief to our present situation. Another way we can work towards feeling our best is through color therapy.
The idea of using colors to help spur moods dates back to ancient Egyptian and Chinese civilizations where it was thought that different colors had different healing properties.
Color therapy, also known as chromotherapy, is treatment affiliated with the way different colors and spectrums of light affect human mood and psyche. Color therapy is often used along with other more traditional therapy practices to create well-rounded health. Surprisingly, there has not been much research devoted to chromotherapy, so it is regarded as a complimentary therapy and not a primary approach to therapy.
It works in regards to the energies that our bodies have (like your chakras) and how to manifest that energy in the most effective way possible. Color is part of our daily life, whether it is picking out a paint color for a living space or finding beautiful produce at the market. Color therapy takes the way colors affect us and uses it to ease moods like depression and anxiety.
The colors of the rainbow relate to your inner chakras, starting from the base to your head. Red is affiliated with your base chakra, orange your sacral chakra and so on. Aligning the light and color in your life to your chakras can balance all of your energies and ensure a healthy and whole life. Using crystals or aligning yourself with spectrums of light (like color filters in a sunlamp) in your daily being can ensure this balance.
Along with our energies, color has a big impact on our mood and how we interact with the world around us.
Different colors move us in different ways (both mind and body) and learning the basics of how colors affect us is a good place to start. Warm colors, like reds and oranges can evoke feelings of warmth and comfort, where cooler colors like blues and greens can evoke calmness or mellow feelings. The feelings one achieves due to different colors has a degree of subjectivity to it. For example, when some are exposed to cooler colors, it evokes feelings of sadness or loneliness.
One big way to boost color in our lives is to increase the amount of natural light to which we are exposed. Especially for those living with seasonal affective disorder (SAD), adding light can boost colors making your living space more inviting and emit positive vibes. Painting rooms of your home in certain colors can also promote feelings of happiness and calm.
Another way is to pay attention to the colors you are wearing. Make some notes of your moods and the way you dress, and try to see some patterns. Perhaps wearing a navy sweater will make you feel calmer or a red dress will make you feel more inviting towards others?
As I mentioned, everyone experiences colors differently, and everyone may feel different feelings with different colors. I encourage you to start cultivating mindful awareness and to take stock of your feelings and their affiliations with the colors in your life. The patterns may surprise you and encourage you to find a new path towards your best self.