Author: Elizabeth Hilton

Closing Out with Muladhara

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ 3 Comments

Hi! I am so sad that our time together has come to an end, but I hope that you learned something from my blog. I try to write in a way that people can connect to my words and the chakras that I am trying to teach.

Before I get into the last chakra, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for one of the most welcoming and open classes that I have been in. I have learned so much from all of you both in personal and through your blogs, and I truly feel at peace with how our class is ending although it is a sweet goodbye.

Now let’s get into it!

This week its our last chakra, Muladhara, or the root chakra. The root chakra is responsible for setting a foundation for ourselves that allows the chakras to truly open up from the bottom up. A solid and strong root chakra provides the needed stability needed to sustain both physical and emotional needs. Muladhara’s color association is to the color red. Some gemstones that connect to this association include garnet, red jasper, and bloodstone.

As we know by now, having a balanced chakra is needed in this type of meditation. If the rook chakra is imbalanced, it can lead to anxiety, fears, and nightmares. There are also some physical symptoms that include manifested problems with the colon, lower back, legs, bladder, and the feet.

While there are many imbalances, there are a plethora of ways to balance Muladhara. Some of the best ways to ground the root chakra are through yoga, mantras or sounds, and auras.

One specific yoga practice, is Yoga Asanas. These include specific poses that are associated to certain names that can be practice to root the chakra closer to the ground. Some of these include:

  • A knee to chest pose, otherwise known as Pavanamuktasana
  • A squatting pose, otherwise known as Malasana
  • A head to knee pose, otherwise known as Janu Sirsansana

Another balancing practice for that root chakra that we have learned about with others is a mantra. This includes listening to certain sounds and chants that open up the chakra and release bad energy to bring in the good. The specific mantra for the root charka is the sound “lam.” Please refer to the video below for a further look into this practice style.

Lastly, aside from specific yoga poses, there are a wide variety of yoga sessions that work on grounding the chakra Muladhara. While it is pretty easy to search for any series of of chakra yoga practices on YouTube, I linked one below that specifically works on the root chakra.

One different aspect with this chakra compared to some of the others is the aspect of the root chakra being connected to an element, and in this case, it is the Earth. Because the root chakra is all about grounding, Earth is an important element in this meditation practice because it gives us the ability to dig into the soil and firmly feel us being rooted. Another important connection is that the color of this chakra is red, which relates to the dirt of the Earth.

In the end, I really hope that you took something away from my blogs. Whether that is the inspiration to try chakra meditations yourself or maybe you learned something new about a meditation practice you already knew of. My blogs will always be here to refer to, and I hope you do. I tried to include as many intermediate and beginner information as possible to relate to everyone, especially by including the videos that walk through chakra practices. With that it is time to close out this semester of blogs, but …

As always with peace,

Elizabeth

Sources:

https://chopra.com/articles/the-root-chakra-muladhara

https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/chakras-yoga-for-beginners/intro-root-chakra-muladhara/

Keeping an Open Anahata

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ Leave a comment

Hello everyone! This week we move onto our next chakra that marks the half-way point of our chakra journey.

Today I will introduce you to the heart chakra, otherwise known as Anahata. The name Anahata comes from the meaning of “unhurt, unstruck, and unbeaten” as it protects our heart. Overall, the heart chakra is associated with unconditional love, forgiveness, passion, and joy. Anahata is also a very important chakra in that it connects the upper and lower chakras together with it being in the center of our bodies. It is also connected to the color green to represent energy and transformation as our heart chakra allows us to naturally flow from one situation, relationship, or experience to the next with the proper adjustment of feeling.

While the heart chakra is a very important component of the entire chakra system, there are some major symptoms and signs of a blocked heart chakra that has the ability to throw everything off. Some signs of a blocked Anahata are: loneliness, the feeling of isolation, holding grudges, jealousy, being overly defensive, and difficulty in trusting others.

Although it may sound easy to have a blocked heart chakra, similar to the others, there are practices that help to clear these signs and put your life back in balance in terms of Anahata.

Currently, the use of crystals is becoming a more widely used and accepted practice in society. Using rose quartz in your life is linked to opening the heart chakra, along with some other heart chakra related crystals.

Another simple practice to keep the heart chakra open and aligned is through the use of a daily gratitude journal. This allows the energy to flow from the heart chakra to paper when recalling various things that you are grateful for. In addition to this practice, drinking beverages like rose tea and cacao are linked to opening the heart chakra. Furthermore, even drinking and eating green foods are fuel for the heart chakra. These foods include green tea, green vegetables, spinach, and kale.

Unlike the other chakras, while yoga can be practiced to clear the Anahata in a practice where a pose is selected to meditate in, the heart chakra becomes open through the practice of self-love. Aside from a gratitude journal, the heart chakra strives off of taking time to appreciate oneself. Devotion is also a large part of clearing the heart chakra, since it can evoke deep feelings and expression.

Ultimately, the heart chakra is an essential chakra to the entire system, but it is unique in that the methods to reset and open Anahata is completely different than the others. While this is true, I know that sometimes meditation videos are easy and quick when you want to practice chakras but do not have much time. For this reason I still am going to share some video practices for the heart chakra.

Recently, I introduced that music and sounds are associated with chakras. The heart chakra while it does not have a specific sound, there are certain musical notes that send an internal message to open the heart.

Aside from sounds, all chakras have yoga practices that enhance the movement of opening specific chakras. For the heart chakra there are a few poses that can help stretch the body to release the bad energy of Anahata.

Along with the yoga practice, I have my own experience doing chakra yoga. One thing that stood out and helped me release my heart chakra even more was performing the practice under green light to match the color that the chakra is associated with. Within this experience, there was also diffusers releasing scents into the air and sounds/music that made the grounding of myself even more intense.

Out of all the chakras, for a beginner I believe that the heart chakra is a great one to start on when wanting to get into the practice. As mentioned above, the heart chakra does not necessarily take that much outside practice, but rather more personal practice. I think with how society is today in that stress is so high, practicing the heart chakra is a special experience in that all it takes it being grateful to yourself and making devotions to do better for you.

Sources:
https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/chakras-yoga-for-beginners/intro-heart-chakra-anahata/

https://www.artofliving.org/us-en/blog/heart-chakra-fourth-anahata

Communicating with Vishuddha

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ Leave a comment

Hello everyone! It is so nice to be going through this chakra journey with you all. While I know that this concept is pretty new for most people, I hope that I as help to introduce new ones each week, that the idea of balancing our lives through chakras is becoming more evident.

Today we are onto our third chakra, the throat chakra. The throat chakra is formally known as Vishuddha. It is the throat chakra that is responsible for our ability to communicate truthfully and have creative self-expression. Vishuddha is also associated to the color blue, which is known to provide the body a feeling a stillness.

As we know by now, if our chakras are unbalanced we experience the symptoms that tell signs of which area we need to work to rebalance. Some symptoms of an imbalanced throat chakra include: hesitation to express emotion, a lack of vocabulary, a sense of misunderstanding, aggressive behavior, negative words, a fear to speak the truth, and anxiety towards speaking. Along with more complex symptoms, Vishuddha has some more health-related symptoms of blockage. Some personal health signs of a blocked throat chakra include: a sore throat, raspy voice, gum disease, mouth ulcers, thyroid challenges, and even TMJ disorders.

It is important to have the Vishuddha chakra balanced because it is responsible for our internal communication, so when balanced we are able to listen and collect the proper energy from the chakra to have a deeper bodily connection.

Some ways to assure balance in the throat chakra are through specific yoga poses. One of my favorites is the shoulder stand, or Sarvangasana, which stimulates the thyroid gland to activate increasing blood flow and oxygen to the throat and lungs. This pose also increases better blood circulation all around, especially in the digestive system.

How to do Shoulder Stand — YOGABYCANDACE

Another pose that is beneficial to the throat chakra is the plow pose, which I have mentioned a few times before with our other chakras. All around the plough pose is a standard for many things because it rejuvenates the nervous system that connects our whole body. This pose reduces stress, fatigue, and headaches. Specifically, it has the capability of unblocking the throat chakra through the stimulation of the thyroid gland and abdominal organs.

How to do Plow Pose - YouTube

 

Sources:

https://www.arhantayoga.org/blog/vishuddha-chakra-balance-how-to-balance-your-throat-chakra/

https://www.healthline.com/health/throat-chakra-healing#throat-chakra

Embracing the Third Eye

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ 3 Comments

Hello everyone!

Similar to last week, I am going to introduce a new chakra to you all, and this week’s chakra just happens to be my favorite one. I would like to introduce to you the third eye chakra, also known as Ajna. This chakra can be found in between the center of your two eyebrows and/or above the nose. For me, when I practice meditating the third eye chakra, I can most times than not feel the energy, which is why I have found a strong gravitation to it. This chakra is all about intuition, spiritual connection, imagination, and insight.

The name Anja, comes from the meaning of “perceive,” “command,” and “wisdom.” This chakra is represented by the color indigo and is associated with light. While I did not mention this last week, chakras can actually be connected to crystals and stones, so for the third eye chakra connections can be made to amethyst and purple sapphire. Overall, this chakra, like the others are all connected to the physical and mental body. The third eye is associated to our physical body through the pineal gland in the brain that controls hormones, melatonin, and our internal clock. Ajna is connected to our mental body through facts, fears, experiences, and memories which allows dualistic thinking between the hemispheres of the brain. On a more emotional level, Ajna can also make-up our emotional bodies which provide us visions, auras, precognition, and out-of-body experiences.

The importance of all of our chakras is to keep them aligned, or recenter them when they become imbalanced. Some signs of an imbalanced third eye chakra are any form of stress (physical or mental), a feeling of overdrive, unwillingness, the fear of acknowledging the truth, fear of criticism, fear of the unknown, confusion, lack of focus/purpose, depression, hallucinations, and dissociations from the physical world.

While there are many signs to having an imbalanced Ajna, the techniques to realign this chakra are very soothing and peaceful, unlike some of the other more difficult practices for realignment. Another reason why I love this chakra so much is because there are unique, individual yoga poses that contribute to finding balance. Below I have attached a video of a yoga practice that reviews some of these poses, but if you do not have time some of the poses include: downward dog, plough pose, lotus pose, child’s pose, or putting your legs up a wall. Personally, I strongly suggest downward dog or the child’s pose, not only for this chakra, but for all chakra practice.

Another method to focusing Ajna is through sound vibrations. This practice is specifically called Chantra mantras, and it includes using a vibrational frequency to focus the third eye. Through sound and breathing, this method can be a powerful way to signify the meaning of Ajna. To practice, you are supposed to breathe in and then breathe out on the vibration sound of “OM.” Below is a video of the OM mediation sound. To complete this practice, you simply sit still, close your eyes, and breathe to the sound.

The last practice that I recommend is the practice of Trataka, which embraces light throughout the practice. Because the third eye chakra is associated to light, picturing lights, orbs, or even using light helps to better center Ajna. The practice of Trataka, focuses on both the physical and internal worlds as it involves a candle flame. In this practice, you ultimately stare at a candle flame without blinking and then you meditate with your eyes closed while still embracing the light of the flame. Traditionally, this practice is done in a dark room, with your body positioned on the floor with the candle about an arm’s length away. Meditation posture is used to relax any tension in the body as you close and open your eyes to observe the flame. Ultimately, this practice is used to improve concentration, balance, memory, focus, and release suppressed thoughts. For more information and specific instructions on this practice visit the sources below.

Overall, the third eye chakra, Ajna, brings harmony to our lives when it is in balance because it is connected to both our physical, emotional, and mental states. An important part of this chakra is earthliness. Some say that spending more time in nature is a great way to connect to Ajna. In the end, Ajna can bring peace, opportunity, and fulfillment if practiced properly, which is how I have found ease in stressful times. As someone who gets a lot of migraines, I found that channeling a focus to my third eye chakra and even physically rubbing between my eyebrows, brings a greater intention to my life as I realize the situation is only temporary as long as I focus to change it.

While I know chakra practice is not for everyone, and some people may not even believe that it has any substantial benefits, I encourage you to keep in mind what I shared in this blog, and just try one practice for even a few minutes. I honestly had no idea about the practice of chakras until I started going to a yoga class with my mom that solely focused on them. Each class the instructor would light the room to the associated colors, scents, and feelings of that week’s chakra. Even you could mimic this if you have any type of LED colored lights and a space to practice some yoga. I wish you all the best of luck, and see you next time!

With peace,

Elizabeth

Sources:

https://www.ekhartyoga.com/articles/practice/third-eye-chakra-ajna-chakra

https://beyogi.com/trataka-love-beauty-third-eye-beholder/

https://www.arhantayoga.org/blog/ajna-chakra-your-third-eye-chakra-awakening/

Introducing Sahasrara

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ 1 Comment

Welcome back everyone!

I know it has been awhile since my last Passion blog, so if you do not remember I will be introducing you to the various chakras that are used as a method of meditation and awareness. Throughout each blog, I will be individually introducing a new chakra.

Today we will start with our first chakra, Sahasrara. Sahasrara is also known as the crown chakra, and ultimately it is associated with thinking, controlling, and connecting with oneself. The crown chakra allows us to gain a sense of wisdom, universal consciousness, and self awareness. Sahasrara is also associated to the color violet which amplifies the idea of spirituality and enlightenment. The word “Sahasrara” actually means thousands of petal locus, which is a common symbol when learning about the chakra spirit and being divine.

What is Crown Chakra? - Definition from Yogapedia

The overall purpose of identifying and practicing meditation of this chakra is because it can get blocked and clogged in the everyday world. It is found that a clocked crown chakra can lead to not only a clogged mind, but also an unstable body as this chakra is found at the top of the head. Some signs of a blocked Sahasrara are poor coordination, imbalance, low physical function, confusion, lack of focus, poor mental state, and a lack of connection to the world.

While I am sure that all of these signs sound all too familiar to us, as we spend our lives running around without pausing, chakra meditation focuses on internally healing these symptoms through realignment. Altogether when practicing chakra meditation, in order to set an intention to “fix” our chakras, we always have to look towards realigning them. To this point, there are different ways of doing this depending on the chakra at hand.

Specifically speaking for the crown chakra, I am going to run through a series of meditations to focus on bettering the Sahasrara, to overall create a better life. Because Sahasrara is the energy center, otherwise known as the brain, the focus on realignment has to be high due to the amount of thoughts that get put out. Although more focus and power is needed, the crown chakra is a direct path to the self, so once this chakra gets realigned, so are we. We are able to let go of all bad thoughts and misunderstandings, and rather focus on good intentions and healing.

The first way to realign the crown chakra is through yoga asana, which works on tuning our connection to Sahasrara. In this practice, balancing poses and head-activating movements are utilized to gain feeling of the energy that flows from the crown. Below I have attached a video that walks through an entire yoga session, solely focusing on the crown chakra.

Another way to work on realigning Sahasrara is through pranayama, which is an alternate method of breathing only through the nostrils. This practice specifically helps to release tension that may be caused by anxiety and other mental limitations with deeper-inner breaths. Many times in more advanced yoga settings, this means of breathing is always used, but as someone that is looking to sit down and take a second to rewind, learning this technique can be very useful. Below is a video that walks through how to perform alternate breathing, which I do recommend to try.

Overall, it is important to have awareness of why it is important to have an aligned crown chakra. The crown chakra gives us openness to the world, as it allows us to open our higher self and inner-connectivity to things. Sahasrara gives us a conscious that is separate from the physical world, which can be a powerful thing.

While it is just as important to have an aligned crown chakra, it is also important for our other chakras to keep Sahasrara grounded, so that it can not become too powerful. As we continue further into this journey together, we will learn about how some chakras support others, which is why it is crucial to gain knowledge about all of them. As one may assume, the crown chakra is an intuition that gives us the power and knowledge to a spiritual energy. It internally sends messages that we cannot always put into words, but it can also have a high power on our lives. Because of this, we have other chakras like the root chakra that keeps us connected to Earth without always having “our heads in the clouds.”

A great warning that comes with embracing the crown chakra is that we are still human beings living on Earth; therefore, we cannot gain a spiritual obsession. The point of a “spiritual awareness” is simply knowing that there are higher powers giving influence to our lives, like our conscious, but we do not have any control to them. Like with all the chakras, we will learn that we need to have awareness to our bodies’ energy flow, but we also need to have self-awareness to the outside world which means practicing these methods in moderation and only when they are needed for a realignment when times get stressful.

I hope that this information is as helpful to you as it was to me. I do find insight and peace when practicing methods such as yoga and alternate breathing when I am tense and stressed out. Since high school, I found benefits to doing yoga daily to help reset my body in order to maintain a better well-being.

I would love to answer any questions, or even just hear your personal connections to anything that I mentioned above. In today’s society I think it is important to bring up conversations about both physical and mental health, as the further we get into life, the more stressful weight we take on.

With peace,

Elizabeth

https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/chakras-yoga-for-beginners/intro-sahasrara-crown-chakra/

https://yogamasti.co.uk/the-meaning-of-sahasrara-the-crown-chakra/

“Exercising” Sustainability

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ Leave a comment

Much like fashion and beauty, there are industries all around us that have been found faulty in a sustainability matter. One setting that surprised me, yet was quite interesting at the same time, is the fitness industry.

With fitness and exercising, we always come to immediately think of our health, but what about our planet’s health? Quite honestly, personal fitness and environmental sustainability go hand-in-hand.

Fitness has been on the rise as a type of social movement, as we commonly see friend groups and trends emphasizing group exercising. For example there has been a rise in cycling classes, CrossFit, various types of yoga, and much more. While this is true, the pandemic has led to a movement away from large “big-box” gyms, to more small, intimate spaces.

Quite frankly, with the pandemic people have created home gyms, found “weightless” exercises, or found a gym out of the great outdoors. The more that these trends arise, the more waste that has been made out of your large gym corporations. While this situation has both good and bad influences, one benefit to smaller gyms, has been the incorporation of eco-friendly options.

Eco-friendly gym options include, using less energy, being an environmental steward by using sustainable products, reducing water consumption, and having more efficient lighting and temperature sources. Thinking about the list just provided, it can be clear how our COVID-friendly, at-home gyms have supported these initiatives through working outside and using natural lighting and temperature control, along with even using make-shift workout equipment.

Personally, my family found this approach to our pandemic routines to continue to now even with more “big-box” gyms reopening. For example, throughout quarantine my mom initiated mandatory family walks that soon turned into walking into town to go to dinner or get ice cream rather than using a car, which is effectively being sustainable in multiple ways. The room that we also workout in at our house is full of windows that serve as natural light to provide a “cleaner” workout.

While not everyone is accustomed to these methods, or maybe the big gym setting is better for them, there are still new efforts being made in the fitness industry to better the sustainability situation. For example, more gyms now than ever are switching to more eco-friendly materials such as natural cork, rubber, and latex over the standard PVC and non-recyclable plastics.

Gyms are also switching to using more human powered exercise machines. One company, SportsArt, has created a variety of exercise equipment machines that can generate up to 200 watts of electricity per hour of use, which not only uses less energy, but also helps the electric bill at the end of the day.

Furthermore, most gyms are notorious for having their spray bottles or wipes that must be used to clean the equipment after each use. While no one really thinks about the chemicals that are in these products and rather just simply use them to get the job done, more gyms have been switching over to cleaner products that prevent the hazardous effects of conventional cleaning products.

Another large effort that has been seen in almost all gyms and even other recreational facilities, is the installment of refillable water bottle stations. Beyond using the refillable water stations, the bigger gym companies have also switched to lower, and smarter energy sources. This includes smart water programs like motion-detected water faucets and toilets, along with shower faucets that conserve water when used.

One the last major efforts that has also been reported in large gym settings, it the use of LED lighting over other types of systems. LED lights use approximately 25% less energy than traditional lighting, but they also last 25 times as long. Additionally, with the use of LED lights, further technology like motion-sensor lights in private workout rooms and bathrooms can also be utilized to save more energy.

Altogether, the gym and fitness world can no longer be just a commitment to yourself, but also to the environment. A large part of the fitness industry relies on energy to be able to perform any type of business, so it is crucial to understand how to make smart choices that will make a positive impact and influence on both the customers and the environment. With the COVID-19 pandemic, the fitness industry made a turn for the better sustainability wise, as the outdoors became many people’s new gym. While this is true, many “big-box” gym companies lost business which in return made them find new efforts to bring members back to a better gym that mimics standards of those wanting to be healthy all around.

As a society, we continue to push how necessary it is to be healthy and workout, yet we also need to be constantly thinking about our actions on the planet. Just as selfish as we should be about our body’s health, we should also be about our planet’s health. Going forward I encourage you to find sustainable ways to grow your health. Whether you enjoy taking your workout outside or at the gym there are ways to contribute to a better environment. Next time you are at the gym take note of the systems they have in place to be sustainable. Is there a water bottle station? Is there any clean energy equipment? What material are the mats and floors made out of? And ultimately, what can you do to improve this setting individually?

Sources:

https://greenbusinessbureau.com/blog/sustainability-guide-for-gyms-and-fitness-centers-getting-started/

http://www.dothemovement.com/fitness-and-sustainability/

https://www.ihrsa.org/improve-your-club/industry-news/fitness-industry-roundup-sustainability-consumer-marketing/

The Evolution of Sustainable Makeup

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ 1 Comment

Much like the fashion industry reviewed last week, the beauty cosmetic industry is a rapidly evolving outlet in society that has to constantly stay up-to-date with trends to be relevant.

Unlike the fashion world, where it is much more difficult to realize the harmful consumption of plastics and waste, the makeup industry is easily identifiable as one that contributes to the dangerous, unhealthy world we are living in. It has been noted that the makeup world produces more than 100 billion units of plastic within all of the products created, yet less than 9% of the plastic produced is recycled thus creating an abundance of unnecessary waste.

While the obvious negative impacts to climate change, pollution, and waste are evident in the beauty world, in the recent years, there has been a multitude of initiatives to fight the stereotype and make a change.

Now more than ever, there are vegan beauty brands, no waste companies, completely compostable makeup, and so much more. But like many things in society, as the fight continues to expand the sustainability of beauty brands, there is always a double edged sword.

While seven out of ten beauty shoppers believe that companies should be more transparent about their efforts, there is a low percentage of people that will put forth the effort as consumers to support sustainable makeup products whether it is because of price or the extra energy needed to recycle a finished product over throwing it in the landfill.

One specific approach to mitigating the problems that arise with wanting to be more sustainable but having consumer “errors” get in the way is the upbringing of “naked” products. In other words, these “naked” products means that there is no packaging.

Now this approach while it solves serval issues, is not applicable to all beauty products. On the positive side, naked products have no packaging which means they are ultimately less expensive and more money efficient being that the consumer can get every last drop of material with zero waste being created. As a con, like mentioned above, not all beauty/makeup products can be maintained in this method. For example, the products that have the ability to go “naked” are those that are compatible and most times put into a bar-like form. Some common package-less products include shampoo, conditioner, and cream eye shadow/pigment compacts.

In most cases, multi-brand beauty stores will not highlight these products because more times than not they target a specific audience that wants to make a difference in sustainability efforts. A lot of the “naked” products are sold by individual brands such as Lush, The Earthling Company, Well Earth Goods, and so many more. Based on what I saw in my little time searching for various products, there are a lot of individual beauty creators and sellers on platforms like Etsy. Most of these brands also focus on healthy being, making their products not only naked but also cruelty free, toxin free, and all natural products.

On a similar note, there is a wide misconception about complete sustainability in the beauty.industry. Some believe that sustainable makeup is one that does not cause harm to the human body through toxic waste and products. While this is a measure that we want to actively be taking because no one wants to consume chemicals through the pores of our skin, sustainable beauty is more than the human body, but also being considerate of our planet’s body.

The trick to determining between the two is looking further into the packaging and production of the products. While using vegan and all natural makeup products is a habit that is a beneficial choice, the reality of saving our planet and slowing down the effects of global warming/climate change is only going to be changed by a difference in production means.

Altogether, there are a plethora of cosmetic brands working to change their impact on our planet through their production methods. There are also brands working to limit individual product waste to as little as possible or even none. While efforts are growing in this sense, similar to fast fashion companies that have no compare to other brands, some of the typical “must have” beauty products have too much popularity to limit production matters creating a gap in sustainability efforts.

As for last time, I mentioned a recommendation for how to help fight the efforts of more sustainable products. When it comes to the beauty industry, more times than not the brands that are working to change sustainable efforts also are brands that have all natural products. This being said, the cost to support these brands may be higher, but ultimately nothing can compare to the cost of our planet. Overall, the reality of the makeup/beauty industry and many others is that we all have our guilty pleasures of products we want. That is completely fine. The point is that we all just need to start doing better as a whole. It is okay to buy a product you want, but maybe spend some extra time looking into how to properly dispose of the product so that it causes less harm, whether that be in a landfill, recycled, broken-up in a certain way, and so on. The more steps to small progress that we take, the better we will all get at unconsciously taking the proper steps to a better and healthy planet.

Sources:

https://www.thisismatrix.com/sustainability-in-the-beauty-industry-2019-update/

https://www.voguebusiness.com/beauty/to-be-more-sustainable-beautys-biggest-companies-are-teaming-up

https://www.sustainablejungle.com/best-of-sustainable-beauty/zero-waste-make-up/

https://lmi.edu/how-the-beauty-industry-is-promoting-sustainability/

Fast Fashion and the Revolution to Stop It

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ 2 Comments

In today’s world, millennials and Generation Z individuals have built up a society that is fashion forward and fashion focused. Through the abstract and embracive styles, there has also been a push to expand the variety of clothing options in your closet, along with constant swapping of clothing items.

Within this idea, there has been much controversy over fast fashion brands and the ethical issues surrounding them. Fast fashion brands are those that can significantly increase the rate of production of clothing making the decision to purchase, the supply, the delivery, and the fashion trend all happen fast. While the convince of this idea is in the liking of many, the ultimate effects of this consumer-producer relationship is toxic for many.

The pressures that arise from solely the cheap prices of clothing is a problem within itself. Customers are more pressured to buy more items or continuously purchase items to stay “on trend” with the low prices, which in return forces the production line to make bulk amounts of clothes in addition to producing new styles to stay trendy.

This pattern of constant need, has lead to the underlying label of fast fashion as, “disposable fashion.” Within an article provided by Ethical Consumer, a statistic was listed that in 2019 it was reported that Generation Z individuals wear a clothing article about 14 times before getting rid of it, but some surveyed considered wearing an article once or twice was enough. Aside from the fact that the pressures to stay updated on the latest fashion causes this belief, fast fashion companies are also not creating durable clothing leading to a large waste factor from the use of fast fashion.

Brands such as Shein, Forever 21, H&M, Zara, Fashion Nova, Primark, etc. all have this reputation of giving customers that look that they want to achieve for several uses and then never wear it again. But why are these brands so popular if they are known to cause sustainable issues in society?

Now more than ever between the economy and the reality of being stuck in a pandemic, people have been forced to do more online shopping and also find the best deals to conserve money. Fast fashion companies are the prime vendors to serve society right now due to the vulnerability of wanting something to feel like a human in society, while also maintaining a healthy wallet. While there are growing motivations to stop these companies, the alternatives are no where close to competing with the reality of society at this time.

Some of the proposed solutions against fast fashion have been finding more ethical clothing brands to support, buying higher quality items but less often, participating in a clothing swap, renting clothes, and repurposing or recycling items. All these are all solutions that are very much doable, but just like fast fashion come with several consequences.

Before getting into one of the largest proposed solutions today, a quick overview of some of the consequences are the price to participate in these alternatives (especially in buying higher quality items or the cost it takes to constantly drive to donate/swap clothes). Most of these solutions combat the ethicality of fast fashion brands and work to achieve a more appropriate fashion world, yet once again with the reality of COVID-19 not everyone has the income to support these companies even with the small business movements.

Moreover, one of the biggest alternatives to fast fashion brands recently, has been the rise of thrifting. Through both donating clothes to thrift store such as Goodwill or Plato’s Closet, a large population of millennial and Generation Z individuals have found a new sense of fashion. The reputation of thrift stores have gone from something that is a last resort to a goldmine for anyone looking to spice up their closet or find expensive clothes for cheap without supporting fast fashion.

Within this movement, there has even been a rise in online thrift stores or second hand stores that allow people to online shop with the pandemic and still not support fast fashion. Although the shipping process still seems costly to the environment, a study done by MIT found that online shipping is more eco-friendly then shopping at brick-and-mortar stores due to the decrease in fuel emissions. Ultimately, online shipping includes a truck taking multiple orders to various people. While fuel is still being emitted, it is significantly less than a truck delivering goods to a store to sell to then have individual customers each take a mode of transportation to and from the store to shop.

Companies such as ThredUP, Poshmark, Depop, even Facebook Marketplace are all brands that are utilized by those who are reversing the fast fashion pressures on society right now.

Another company that I personally want to remark on as an uprising trend is through the means of renting clothing to wear for an event and then sending it back rather than buying it to never wear again. Rent the Runway is an online clothing company full of various styles, sizes, and types of clothing. Personally, I rented a dress for homecoming in high school from them and it was one of the best decisions I made compared to the other homecoming dress that I bought and have just hanging in my closet.

Overall, the current reality of society being influenced by the younger generations along with the COVID-19 pandemic, has effect many areas of life, but more specifically the sustainable and not-so-sustainable  effects of fashion recently. Although it has been strongly encouraged lately to stop supporting fast fashion companies and start supporting local, small, and more ethical fashion brands, the reality of the economy and societal pressures has made the movement of canceling fast fashion more difficult. In the end, I believe that there is a movement to be made to start a more progressive wave away from fast fashion, yet I too fall into the trap sometimes. My strongest recommendation to do this is to research and find companies with realistic values to begin supporting. A website that I found that goes over online second-hand clothing stores that are sustainable is: https://www.sustainablejungle.com/sustainable-fashion/best-online-thrift-stores/

Sources:

https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/fashion-clothing/what-fast-fashion-why-it-problem

https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/fast-fashion-how-to-be-sustainable/

https://pollybarks.com/blog/is-online-shopping-eco-friendly

The Beginning of a New Guided Practice

~ Elizabeth Hilton ~ Leave a comment

Welcome back everyone!

I am so glad that we can be together once again, and it is my pleasure to continue to expand the meditative practices to becoming a better YOU!

Last blog session, I talked a lot about mindfulness and what it means to live your life in a state of mindfulness for well-being. Most of the approaches that I went over were only the beginning to the journey of self-discovery and self-worship. This time around, I want to explore the idea of chakra meditation, for it is a practice that I find healing yet fascinating.

Before getting into the specific meditations of chakras, I thought I would take the time to introduce this type of meditation and provide some background information to make our time together in the next couple of weeks more valuable.

Chakras are a practice derived from the culture of Hinduism that are meant to connect our bodies to a body or energy of power. In the Hinduism culture, they refer to chakras as a lotus flower that blossoms and opens up to restore energy and put out good spirits. In the human body, there are seven chakras that are associated to a different type of energy and color that are balanced throughout the body along the spine. It is noted that the higher frequency of acknowledgement and power to our chakras, the more balance we will have in life.

With all of these ideas behind the practice, many people find it is important to meditate with these chakras in mind to maintain a balanced lifestyle and well-being. The meditation practice using chakras is more about becoming more aware with your body, your mental well-being, and your emotions. It is interpreted that when we are struggling, our chakras are not aligned so time is needed to re-align or clear any blocked chakra.

For the purpose of our time together. I am going to take each week to introduce a new chakra and its importance in our lives. I will also provide various meditations to focus this specific chakra, so that altogether we can work on improving ourselves.

Last blog session, I was an advocate for working on yourself at a pace that is comfortable to you. In meditation practices there is no right or wrong, but I believe that there is a lot to learn and take away from each session. Meditation is all about listening to your body and becoming connected with one’s own self.

I cannot wait to take on this journey together. I know that when I first learned about chakras, I was unable to comprehend it all, but now I find myself in my daily life thinking about resetting my energy by focusing on a specific chakra, or area of my body. I encourage you to take the time to learn with me, even through the bizarreness, and hopefully you too will be able to find a practice that creates bliss in your life without much thought over time.

As always with peace,

Elizabeth

Source: “Chakra Meditation.” Learn How To Unlock The 7 Chakras & Their Benefits, https://www.anahana.com/en/meditation/chakra-meditation.