A few days ago I happened to catch a blog about the recent trend of ‘dopamine fashion’. Bright, colour pops of clothing, that make you feel happy. Now I don’t know about you, but I have been guilty of doin
this for some time — and not just clothes.
I mean, who can resist a bright orange handbag or a lime green throw! OK, maybe not everyone wants these things but what about a fuchsia pink diary? No? Maybe it is just me then!
Anyway, this made me think about crystals! Sometimes, I buy a crystal just because I like the colour! Now it could be argued that there is a deeper, more spiritually significant reason for acquiring such stones. Perhaps the crystal is calling me, or I needed its qualities for myself, my clients or my house. On occasion, this has turned out to be the case. In truth though, I sometimes buy a crystal just because I like the colour! In my case, these crystals mostly sit around being fabulous, although they have been known to do some work every so often. My particular dopamine crystals include a fabulously cobalt blue lapis lazuli, azurite with deep turquoise colours, impossibly coloured ocean jaspers, pale lavender amethyst flowers, soft pink tiny rose quartz crystals, natural copper with a soft metallic sheen and the list goes on (see video below)! These dopamine crystals then, are all about the colour!
It just so happens, that in addition to training and teaching crystal therapy, I did the same for colour. This gave me lots of opportunities to look at colour theory, how colour affects people and therefore how it works. There has been a huge amount of research done about the effects of colour and how it can be utilised commercially. It is generally accepted that colour is either energising or calming depending on how you combine warm, cool or neutral tones. We see colour as a result of light travelling from an object to the eye, passing through the retina (with photoreceptive cells) into the visual cortex and through the brain to the pre-frontal cortex. This is where we process what we see according to what we have learnt to date. Some women (with very rare tetrachromat) see colours beyond normal human vision, whereas people with synesthesia may hear or feel colours. Interestingly, there is some scientific evidence to say that organs other than the eyes have photoreceptive cells both in animals and in humans. It is early days for this type of research but it is thought to be influential on biological clocks and behavioural patterns in humans.
So back to the matter in hand, dopamine crystals that lift the mood. If like me, you have some crystals that you bought just because you liked the colour (large or small), take another look at them. If you have five minutes, try this experiment to see how it feels.
Find a comfortable place to sit for a moment with the crystal in your hand.
Really actively look at the crystal, turn it over in your hand, be aware of the shades and tones within the colour.
Visualise that colour expanding outwards from the crystal until it is large enough for you to be in the centre. Then, just take a moment to notice how it feels.
When you sense that you completed this experiment, you will have had all that you need from that colour for now. Let that vision go, and sense the colour contracting back into the crystal.
Take a moment to see how you feel, making sure that you are in your body, present and alert.
If you have more than one of these dopamine crystals, work your way through the stash one at a time. A crystal has duality in that it carries the energy of a crystal and the colour. Both qualities are available but it may be that one is more prevalent than the other. I use colour and crystals on an interchangeable basis as colour energetically has some interesting qualities. On a final note, should you ever find yourself about to buy a crystal for the colour, it is worth remembering that sometimes, a burst of a particular colour for a very short time is actually all you need — so have a quick check before you commit to buying. It could be little look will be enough.
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