Beginner's Guide To Healing Crystals: Everything You Need To Know

What are healing crystals

Healing crystals are stones used to bring about a therapeutic benefit in one's life. These stones can be used for a mental, emotional, or physical benefit. There are many different stones and many different ways to use them in order to enrich your life. I will get into all of that here in a moment, but for now I want to explain my own personal experience with stones.

I began collecting and using crystals 7 years ago. I have studied up on crystals extensively, and also used them in meditation and many other ways. Collecting crystals became a hobby and somewhat of an obsession. You can never have too many crystals in my opinion. That is because each stone looks and feels so unique.

History of Crystals

Crystals have been worn and used since the beginning of humanity. The very oldest of which are amulets made of amber that are a whopping 30,000 years old. We have historical proof that humans have always had an affinity for stones and believed that they would bring about certain effects such as luck, health, and favor. Ancient Egyptians wore crystal jewelry. They believed it has protective qualities and promoted health. Many early humans would pass down crystal jewelry to family members. So as you can tell, crystals have always been a big deal and we as humans will always continue to care about these special stones.

How we use crystals today is really no different than they have always been used throughout history. We believe stones are special and represent different things, so we use the crystals that we believe will help us the most with what we are trying to achieve.

Healing Crystal Benefits

The benefits of crystals really depends on which crystal you are using. In general, all crystals usually bring about better health. There are crystals used for clearing negativity. There are crystals used to bring luck and money. There are crystals that give protection from harm. There are crystals to attract love and friendship. It depends on which crystal you choose. Many crystals have more than one benefit so it would be a good idea to research the other benefits of the stone before using it.

How to use crystals for healing

Crystal Jewelry

Crystals can be used in many different ways. Some people will wear crystals as jewelry. You can have a crystal necklace, crystal bracelet, or crystal earrings. I tend to use crystal necklaces more than other types of crystal jewelry. The benefits of wearing crystals as jewelry are received by the crystal being next to your skin/body. Pictured below is a moldavite pendant necklace:

Crystal Grids

Crystals can also be placed in a grid pattern. People usually make crystal grids on a flat surface, like a coffee table for example. This is so that the crystal grid can keep it's shape and will not be disturbed. The way you arrange the crystals in a crystal grid is totally up to you. The way a crystal grid works is that the energy of the crystals will flow thru each other to a center point. This will cause a greater energy effect than just having the crystals sitting around.

Holding the Crystal

You can also gain benefits from crystals simply by holding the crystal in your hand or placing it somewhere on your body. Let your intuition guide you in this regard. Many people will hold them because of the ability to receive energy through hands.

Meditating with Crystals

To take it a step further, you can hold or wear the crystals while meditating. This will amplify the benefits you receive from the crystals. Meditation is already a very beneficial practice to have. Anyone who is interested in using crystals should also be starting a meditation practice every day. You won't believe how quickly meditation can change your life.

Sleeping with Crystals

While our bodies are asleep at night, we tend to do a lot of healing. That is why some people will place crystals underneath their pillow at night. Placing the crystals under your pillow or right beside your bed is a great way to amplify the healing benefits you receive at night. And you may just notice an increase in interesting dreams as well.

Crystals in Cars

Crystals can also be hung in a car or in a locker or on a wall as decoration. Many people place protection crystals in their car. This is a good idea, as driving can be a dangerous thing. If the crystal is already made into a necklace, placing it on the rear view mirror is a very easy way to get the benefits of the crystal while driving.

Crystal Healing

Crystals are used therapeutically in sessions usually referred to as reiki healing or crystal healing. You would want to get this done by someone who is familiar with crystals and has some sort of training on how to conduct a proper session. That is because protection and proper protocol are needed in such a vulnerable state. A certified reiki practitioner can explain to you how a session would typically go. These sessions can cost anywhere from $30 to upwards of $500 per session. It really just depends on how well known the healer is, as they set their own rates.

Caring For Your Crystals

It's important to know how to care for your crystals. This includes keeping them clean, cleansing them, and proper storage. You will want to take great care of your crystals, as they are precious and sometimes fragile. They could end up broken if you aren't careful. There are also some crystals that should never touch water.

Sometimes your crystals may get dirt or other debris on them over time. Many crystals can be rinsed off with plain water. But there are some crystals that cannot get wet. Ever. Period. Be careful not to ever get the following crystals wet:

• Celestite
• Pyrite
• Lodestone
• Turquoise
• Malachite
• Hematite
• Calcite
• Angelite
• Mica
• Opal
• Himalayan rock
• Lepidolite

This may not be an exhaustive list of crystals that can't get wet, so be sure to search up the information if you are unsure about something. I would say just try to be careful not to ever get your crystals dirty to begin with.

Over time you may notice the energy from the crystal being a bit...lack luster. It may happen to a crystal you use a lot, or one that is used for protective purposes. This is when it's time to charge up your crystal.

What is Charging a Crystal?

Charging a crystal is when you feel the energy of the crystal has faded or been bogged down with negative energy. So what you want to do is get the crystal to feel new again. There are a few ways to do this.

A full moon cleansing involves placing the crystals on the ground under the light of the full moon. Usually one night is sufficient for getting your crystals charged up. My personal favorite way to charge crystals is placing them in the Sun. Some crystals' colors will fade in the sun, so I don't leave them out all day. In my experience, 30 minutes is plenty of time to feel a definite difference from the crystals. And the effects of placing them in the Sun can be felt immediately. You choose whichever way works best for you.

Crystal Storage

Storing crystals is important as well. When you aren't using the crystals, try to store them in a storage container that only contains crystals. I place mine in small ziplock bags used to store jewelry. Sometimes I will place them in small velvet bags. I separate my rough stones from my tumbled stones. You do not want to store rough stones with stumbled stones, as the rough stones may damage the tumbled stones over time. I also store my softer stones separate from all other stones. For example, selenite is a soft stone that can easily be scratched. It's important to place those vulnerable stones and special stones in a different velvet bag all by their self.

I have even crocheted some small bags to place special crystals in. Once your crystal collection grows to more than just a handful, you will want to separate your most special crystals as well for easy access when you need them.

Another way to store crystals is to simply leave them out on shelves and tables. This is perfectly okay to do if you don't have pets or children in the house. If you know the crystals will not be disturbed or knocked off into the floor, then arrange them as you like on any surface of your room or house.

Choosing the right crystal

Choosing the right crystals to use takes a small bit of research. It all depends on what effect you want from the crystal. For example, if you want to attract a romantic partner, wearing rose quartz would help you. If you are looking to increase your luck, jade is a good crystal to use. Each crystal brings about a different effect. I have blog posts on this blog dedicated to explaining the benefits of stones. I also have specific posts that tell you which stones to use for stress, protection, love, money, etc. You just have to do a little bit of reading to find which crystal you want to use.

Another popular way of finding the right crystal is to just hold the crystal in your hand. If you get a certain boost of energy, that crystal is 100% meant for you. Use your feelings to guide you in this regard and you can't go wrong.

There are some good crystals that are fool-proof for beginners. I think everyone should have these crystals, as they are some pretty important and useful stones. Those would be clear quartz, rose quartz, and amethyst. You can't go wrong with these. So if you are a beginner, purchasing these stones would be a good starting place for your collection.

Where to find crystals

So you're ready to begin collecting your first crystals. But where to get them? Well, you could start by searching for a local crystal shop. For some people, you may not find one that is local, or you may see that the nearest shop is at least a few hours or more away. In that case, your best bet is to buy online.

Online Crystal Shops

Buying crystals online can actually be a bit scary, especially for a beginner. You need to make sure the crystals you are getting are actually real and not some synthetic stone. Again, locate the nearest shop to you on a map and see if they have a website. If they do, purchasing from there would be the next best thing. Etsy is a great place to go for real crystals. A lot of items on Etsy are good quality. I have found real crystals on Ebay as well, but on there you have to be much more careful. It's so much easier to get duped there. Steer away from anything that looks too cheap. Buying in person is always best but I understand that most people do not have that luxury.

Crystal Digging

If you are super lucky, then you may live close to a mine. You will have to search for this information to find out if you do. Check "crystal digging (your location)" and see if there are any places close by. A lot of crystal mines will let you come and "dig your own crystals" which is a lot of fun. You won't get polished stones though. The crystals would be in their rough form. But they are still nice. I prefer to have a mixture of both rough and polished crystals for my collection.

These sites that let you dig your crystals usually have a shop where you can purchase polished stones as well, so check for that. These shops typically have crystal jewelry, figurines, incense and many other nice items to buy.

So I hope you beginner crystal lovers have all the information you are seeking. Now go out and start collecting your crystals.