Managing Your Subtle Energy

Photo Credit: Polina Tankilevitch on Pexels

When people talk of being stressed, the advice is sometimes to manage your energy to help reduce symptoms. But what does that really mean? Most people think about rest and diet because our food is a source of energy and certain foods or drinks can have a negative impact on our sleep or our physical energy.

However, there is also another kind of energy called subtle energy. This is the electromagnetic energy that flows through our body by way of the chakra centers and meridians. This energy flows both inside our physical body and radiates outside our physical body in what is referred to as the energy body. If you're ever entered a room and had a feeling like you don't like the space or it gives you the creeps, you are sensing subtle energy. If you meet someone and after the interaction feel really tired and a bit yucky, you are sensing subtle energy. This can also be experienced when you are around someone that just makes you feel good in their presence or a space that becomes your refuge because it's calming and enjoyable. All of these examples are how subtle energy can impact us. So managing our energy also has to do with who we spend time with and where we choose to be in our environment.

Managing our subtle energy means that we become aware of more than just our diet and our exercise. We can all learn to become more aware of our subtle energy and work with our own body to keep our energy clean and our body healthy. The practice of Meditation can help us learn to sense our own energy body and the energy of others. Practices like Yoga & Qigong are great for learning how to flow our energy. Managing our subtle energy can look like spending time each day to work with our energy body to clear our energy field and move stagnant energy. So what does that mean? 

Energy is in constant motion, that is simple physics. Where energy is blocked, it can build up and become stagnant causing issues in the body. This can show up like muscle tension, pain and even chronic illness. The reason physical exercise is important is not just for our muscles, but also for our energy. Energy has a quality to it called vibration. The higher the vibration, the more pure and loving the energy feels. The lower the vibration, the more dense and heavy it feels. We can learn to work with this energy to move it, change its vibration or clear it. This can be done on our own or through energy practitioners like those who practice healing modalities like Reiki, Emotional Release, or Body Talk, to name a few.

Our subtle energy is being projected outside our body every moment. When we interact with others, that energy can mix. Depending on how aware you are of your own energy, and that of others, you are affected in different ways. Those of us who are highly sensitive can be so impacted by energy, that we find it hard to be in large groups. Going to places like a shopping mall can be especially difficult. So we need practices that can help us manage it all. I personally have a number of different practices: 

I use Meditation to remain aware of my subtle energy and work on "reading" the energy of others, which simply means I can sense the difference between the state I’m in and what I sense from others. Think of it like WiFi... there is information sent out that can be received by our bodies and we can learn to interpret that information. I use that ability in my relationships to have a better understanding of others and to practice empathy. I can sense other’s emotions and use that information to change the way I interact, or use it as a cue to ask if they are alright. Meditation allows me to ground in my body so I can practice feeling my energy.

Another practice I use is movement. Moving my body helps to move energy intentionally to ensure my body stays healthy. Sometimes it's just going out for a walk in nature to restore and ground myself, other times it's qigong or yoga poses, but I do my best to move my body every day. I can tell when I need to move because my body becomes restless and I feel restless. I also pay attention to where in my body I feel tightness or pain and use that to guide how I move and learn where I need to move and where I have more serious physical issues.

My final practice involves clearing my energy. As a highly sensitive person, if I'm not careful, I can inadvertently take on lower vibrational energy from others. If I’m not consciously aware of the energy, my empathic nature means I not only feel what others are feeling, but that emotional energy becomes part of my energy body and I take it on as if it were my own. Clearing my energy field involves visualization and breathing to imagine the dense energy leaving my body and replacing it with higher vibrational light energy, something like taking an energy shower. It doesn't need to take a lot of time but it's great to build a daily habit to learn to be consistent. 

I'll share more about each of these practices in future articles! Stay tuned.