The chakra system consists of 114 chakras in total and we have been delving into the 7 main chakras, from the root to the crown. If this is your first time here, welcome!! You can learn more about the chakras in the following blog post: The Chakra System. Today we will be exploring our second chakra and how it relates to our food preferences.
In my last post, we explored the first chakra, in respect to reconnecting to our bodies. To recap the importance of the first chakra, it is the foundation of our chakra system and governs our sense of stability, safety, trust and connection to the physical world and our physical bodies. Please note that this list is not extensive! It governs so many aspects from trust to finances. If this has peaked your interest, my upcoming course will take you on a deep dive into each chakra and the chakra system as a whole.
The second chakra is located at the sacrum just above the root chakra, between the navel and pelvic floor. So a steady and solid foundation in the root chakra, allows for fluidity and change within the second chakra. The second chakra is also where we enter the world of dualities: good or bad, right or wrong. Thus, someone with an imbalanced or underdeveloped second chakra can get stuck in black and white, binary or polarized thinking.
Let’s get curious!
Take a moment and get curious with yourself in respect to your thinking. Do you think or behave with an all or nothing mentality? Notice if any of these thoughts resonate with you on any level.
“I can’t/don’t bring (insert food) into my home because I don’t trust myself. I know I’ll eat it all!“
“I ate (insert food) so f*ck it, I’m going to eat everything and anything today and ‘I’ll be good’ tomorrow. “
If any of these statements sound even remotely familiar, it could be a sign that your second chakra needs some TLC.
Exploring food preferences
Binary Thinking
As we enter into dualities in the second chakra, it is also where we explore our likes and dislikes. One caveat of this, is that some people identify with their likes and dislikes. As a result, they can become rigid and fixed. Rigid food rules (that are not connected to allergies, celiac etc.) can signify a second chakra that needs some healing. It can also create or worsen an imbalance in the second chakra. Remember that our relationship with our chakras is a two way street!
As a balanced second chakra allows for flow and change, this means your likes and dislikes can also be fluid when in balance. This is a crucial part of healing one’s relationship with food. When dieting or trapped in an eating disorder, people often aren’t attuned to their true likes and dislikes. Often, food preferences are based on food rules created through internal and external sources. Over time, these rules can become that person’s truth. Yet another example as to how an unharmonious relationship with food can create imbalances in your chakra system. These imbalances make it that much harder to access and live in your ultimate truth, as the person you’re meant to be in this lifetime.
Separating from the disordered voice
Part of healing one’s relationship with food includes separating out the disordered voice from our authentic voice. This can be very hard to do in the beginning of recovery as so often all of the thoughts feel like your thoughts. Separating this out can help one see that the disordered thoughts and behaviors are in fact not you and that true control is when you can overcome the disordered thinking. Please be patient and kind with yourself as you do that work. We will go more in depth with this in my upcoming course and I always suggest working with a professional to help you with your journey.
Getting Curious
When you can get curious about their food preferences and explore them with an open mind, you might realize that food you eat often (i.e. kale, rice cakes) maybe doesn’t taste very good to you. Foods you avoid or don’t allow yourself (i.e. pizza, donuts) might actually taste really good to your authentic truest self! Foods you binge on, because you don’t allow yourself to have them on the regular, maybe actually don’t taste very good.
The more you explore food preferences with an open mind, you can see how nuanced it can get. For example, the disordered voice might tell you that you hate all chocolate. The authentic voice can identify that white chocolate is not my favorite. I really like anything with milk chocolate and I enjoy dark chocolate. However, dark chocolate over 70% tends to be too bitter for my taste preference. Unless of course, I pair it with salted peanut butter, then I really enjoy it.
In this example, you can see the disordered voice is very rigid and binary. It’s polarized with little flexibility akin to a wounded second chakra. The authentic voice in this example is aware of their preferences in a fluid and nuanced manner, representative of a balanced second chakra.
How do I heal my second chakra?
You might be wondering, how do I heal this chakra? Two relatively accessible ways to work with your second chakra is to embrace the color orange and water.
- Orange is the color of the second chakra. Wearing orange clothes, jewelry and gemstones, having orange decorations, flowers, eating and drinking orange foods and liquids with the intention of healing your second chakra is a great way to begin to heal this chakra.
- The element of the second chakra is water. Thus, being in or around water (i.e. swimming, baths, showers, fountains, etc.) with the intention of healing your second chakra can be quite powerful in the healing process.
3. You can also utilize affirmations as you bring your awareness to the second chakra. You can learn more about this practice here. Please also enjoy the accompanying meditation on youtube.
I hope this brings to shed some light on how connected our relationship with food is to the state of our chakras. Specifically, today we focused on the second charka and our likes and dislikes. In my upcoming course, we will also explore our relationship with pleasure and desire with food, sexuality and body image, emotional regulation and movement as it relates to the second chakra.
If any of this resonates, I invite you to sign up for the wait list for my upcoming course, Getting Unstuck to learn more about how to work with the chakras to help heal your relationship with your body and food.