Color therapy – a gentle way to assist the healing process

Color therapy, although relatively new in the West, has its origins in the ancient world. The ancient Egyptians used color as a healing aid 2000 years ago. They worshiped the sun and knew about the healing powers of light.

For inside a ray of light you'll find the entire spectrum of colors. Each color relates to a different chakra-- one of the body's major energy vortices. Each color evokes a different mood or emotion. Each color vibrates at a different frequency, and attuning with the right colors acts a bit like a tuning fork on our own vibrations-- it can set the body right and prepare the way for the healing to come.

Isaac Newton introduced us to the seven colors of the rainbow through his prism. The electromagnetic spectrum shows us the different frequencies of light waves from high to low. The visible frequencies range from yellow to orange, red, green, blue, indigo and violet.

In countries with cold climates where the sun is rarely seen, people suffer from SAD syndrome (Seasonal Affective Disorder). The excessive lack of sunlight causes melancholy which ranges from deep depression to Arctic hysteria. In the UK today, light therapy is becoming a more and more popular treatment method.

We tend to underestimate the power of color even though we see it every day and use it every day. We choose colors when we get dressed. We paint our houses. We decorate with colors. Colors evoke feeling.

Sitting in an office all day with grey walls and fluorescent light (cold, blue light), is damaging to our psychological being. Lying in hospital surrounded by stark white walls is damaging.

Each color in the spectrum has its own healing power. Each color affects a different part of our body, mind and soul. Sometimes we need a cool color like blue, to calm hysteria. Other situations require a warm color like orange to energize or tackle exhaustion.

There are two major ways of healing with color.

The first is healing with pigment which includes the color of clothing, painting, colors of the interior and exterior of our home or workplace. They are all external and influence our psychological state of mind and our emotions. Even the color of food influences us.

The second is healing with light. This type of treatment influences our mental state as well as our physical and emotional being. Healing with light involves tuning the exact colored light (waves and frequencies) to the matching waves and frequencies of the organs of the body. In other words, feeding the colored light to our chakras where they are blocked or suffer deficiency. We use the colored light to regain our physical balance or to return to a state of harmony. Light in nature plays a big role. Watching a glowing sunset or a turquoise ocean has a great effect on us.

Often, a person has a certain aversion for a particular color. In almost all these cases, the color relates to trauma or a particularly bad experience. This helps a color practitioner to assess which color to work with. The following case study demonstrates this appearance.

Mrs M. had a deficiency of the thyroid gland. It was suggested to her to work with turquoise. Before working with light therapy, she should wear a turquoise scarf, or necklace and try to place a turquoise feature in her bedroom where she feels most relaxed. She immediately rejected this idea, saying that she hates turquoise and refuses to work with this color. This is a strange ‘coincidence’, as the color turquoise is the color most needed to balance the thyroid chakra. Now the work of the practitioner is to help the patient re-discover the rejected color and to see it in a positive light. Almost always, once this rejection is turned into acceptance, the ailment is easily treated.

The following is a very basic description of the attributes of each color:

Yellow – solar plexis, mind and intellect, power of thought, stimulates mental activity, detachment from obsessive thoughts, feelings and habits.

Orange - sacral, feminine energy, energy of creation, influences both physical vitality and intellect, the color of joy and happiness, balance between mental and physical, freedom of thoughts and feelings, disperses depression.

Red – root, symbol of life, strength and vitality, great energizer, stimulant, masculine energy, aggression, raises body temperature, improves circulation.

Green – heart, duality, balance, harmony, sympathy, wholeness through balance of body, mind and spirit, antiseptic, detoxification.

Turqoise – (combination color), boosting the immune system (thymus), strength of lymphatic system, combating of inflammation, used to combat infections.

Blue– throat, sensation of space, inspiration, devotion, peace, tranquility, for treatment of fear, tension, insomnia, throat infections, reduces inflammation.

Indigo – brow, uniting with higher self, balance of female and male energies, restoring, spirituality and dignity, higher states of consciousness, spiritual awareness and insight.

Violet – crown, letting go, flowing with change, leaving the comfort zone, trusting intuition, emotional freedom, used to treat suffering from loss.

We should be more aware of the colors around us and try to enhance our surroundings where we can with the colors that make us feel good.

We should try to help people who are in distress, by improving their color surroundings especially if they are in a confined space.

We should be more aware of the effects of color.

The rainbow spectrum of light is a gift, we need to learn how to receive it and utilize it for healing ourselves, our loved ones and others who we see have a need for healing.

For more info see :

http://www.mysticaartdesign.com/colour-consultancy.html