Feng Shui for Mental Health
So, if the environment you spend the most time in seems dull, unappealing to your senses and you notice while in this space your mood tends to be on the downside, you may need to improve your feng shui. According to the dictionary, feng shui is "the Chinese art or practice of creating harmonious surroundings that enhance the balance of yin and yang, as in arranging furniture or determining the siting of a house." It is a system of spatial and aesthetic arrangements that impacts the flow of energy in your environment and how you respond to this energy.
Ever notice how some colors in your space naturally increases your joy and happiness, or how the sound of water triggers a calming feeling? If so, then you may have some good feng shui flowing for you. Explore and re-evaluate your work and/or home space to determine if your spatial arrangement, decor or natural settings are helping to balance or lift your mood.
Here are a few ways feng shui can help benefit your mental health:
Bright or Relaxing Colors: consider using bright or relaxing paint colors in the rooms you spend most of your time in. Colors that reflect the natural environment such as sky or ocean blues, bright yellows and earthy greens are reminiscent of nature. Visually, these colors can instantly create feelings of joy or peace. They tend to brighten your spaces and have a positive impact on your mood.
Plants (and Flowers): indoor plants significantly improve air quality in your space from helping to reduce carbon dioxide levels and certain pollutants to improving the humidity in your space. Essentially plants help to improve the breathing air inside your space and help to provide you with oxygen. If you meditate or would like to meditate, doing it in spaces with plants will help you feel at ease that you are breathing in decent quality air. Also, plants create feelings of comfort and cheer as flowers brightens spaces; aesthetically, they are beautiful to look at.
Sounds: music and sounds can have several positive effects on your mood; they can create excitement, trigger good memories that lift your mood, create calm and help with relaxation. For example, sounds and music may be useful tools to aiding your sleep hygiene-- listening to music or the sounds of water at bedtime can help to induce restful sleep.
Animals or Animal Totems: animals like human beings, make great life companions. Understanding and valuing the qualities that animals bring not only to your life but to your space helps to increase the harmony in your environment. For example, listening to your birds’ chirp, having your dog or cat in your lap can all help to decrease feelings of physical and emotional tension. If you are drawn to a certain animal but may not be able to occupy this animal as a living being in your space, animal totems instead in your space may be something to consider.
Lighting: low to medium light can have a relaxing effect on your mood and spirit. Bright lights may increase feelings of vitality and energy. Candles and lamps are tools that enhance feng shui which in turn may deepen your spiritual experiences or rituals in your space.
Decor: whatever it is that you love-- whether it is collecting instruments, stones/crystals, paintings, sculptures or other art work, explore ways to implement your loves in to your space. They serve as reminders of the things you obtain joy from in this life and will trigger fond memories and feelings.
Ways to improve your mental health may be right there in your own space, but you may not be maximizing the use of your spatial arrangements or overlooking the things in your home you may need to bring to the front of your mantel or inside from your garden. Check out a flea market or an antique store if you feel you may need to do some updating to your space. Search for things you may have packed away in your attic or basement that may help to improve the energy in your space. Replace, sell or donate the things that are not presently serving your space. Have fun! Do you, boo!😊
