#blackwellness

Leg day!

Cord cutting is one of those rituals that is a must in my personal opinion. If you call yourself a spiritual girlie (or guy or person) and you aren’t doing any cord cutting then I don’t even know what to tell you. Let me be honest. I wasn’t really into this ritual until recently. While I had known about cord cutting for many years I didn’t incorporate the ritual until fairly recently. Chalk it up to me not being on top of my spiritual game cause I had been slacking on my cleansing and protection rituals as well. But that’s a conversation for a whole other post.

If you are new to this practice let me tell you that it’s not as complicated as one might think. First off when it comes to a ritual you should really tailor it to your specific needs. I can give you some general tools that you can use but feel free to use whatever is calling you, or Spirit and your ancestors are guiding you to use. Some basic items that you can use are:

A candle or candles - any color can work. White is all purpose and can be used for anything. Do not feel that you need a specific color in order to do a ritual. It’s more about your energy and less about what color you need to use.

Incense - preferably something that is good for cleansing like palo santo, frankincense or sage. You can even use rosemary or hyssop.

Rope/yarn/string

Scissors

I’ve included bells, oils as well as my own saliva and pictures to place in front of the candles for certain people who I am either cutting myself off from or helping (as in ancestors). You don’t even need actual scissors. You can use your hands and make the cutting motion with your fingers and it can have the same affect. As always consult with Spirit and your higher self about best items, tools and structure for your ritual. The major component of the ritual is the words. This is where I always suggest using your own words as this will grant you the greatest power with the most potency because the words are coming from you and not from someone else who doesn’t understand your situation. Take some time and meditate on what it is that you are cutting yourself off from. This is important so do not skip this step. It may take you days even weeks before you come up with the words for the ritual. As you meditate open yourself up to Spirit and allow the energy to flow. Tell Spirit what you are doing and ask for guidance.

Most people do these rituals to cut themselves off from a person. Usually an ex. But this ritual can be used for anyone, even aspects of yourself that no longer serve you. I would caution you though that when it comes to cutting cords from old versions of yourself that you make sure that you have done the healing work on that part of you. Cutting any cord prematurely is not advised because it can come back with a vengeance. It’s the spiritual equivalent to ghosting but can have very damaging effects. You can also cut cords from emotions, behaviors and patterns that have been weighing you down. The same advice for old versions of yourself can be applied to emotions.

Here’s the thing. None of this should be done without proper healing time first. Any and all spiritual work is not a fast track to avoid dealing with pain and trauma. Though we may not want to, it’s necessary to deal with and process your shadow work. Someone once told me these wise words and I repeat them to this very day. Do what you have to do so that you can do what you want to do. Many people are so focused on manifesting and trying to bring things into their lives but they haven’t cleaned up all the cobwebs and dark energies that are hiding out in the corners of their internal selves. That’s like trying to buy all new stuff for your home while still having the old stuff that’s broken down and falling apart but acting like the old stuff isn’t there. Before you know it your home is cluttered with stuff and even though you got shiny new things your home looks like your hoarding rather than living.

Something else that I suggest is doing cleansing and protection work after cutting cords. The reason for this is because once you have released yourself from something, there may be some residual “stuff” that can still be attached to you. Just because you cut the cord doesn’t mean that everything is now hunky dory. It’s the same as when a new born baby is cleaned off and wrapped up after it’s born and the umbilical cord is cut. Cleansing is just a good practice to have on a regular and consistent basis. As we go throughout the day and our lives, energy is getting attached to us all the time. But we’re rarely aware of it. And if you are an empath (as many people are) then it is imperative that you cleanse yourself regularly. Have you ever noticed that there are times when you could be alright, everything is good and then suddenly, out of nowhere you’re whole vibe shifts and you have no clue as to why? It could be the result of a physical person or a spirit that has attached itself to you and is now controlling and manipulating your energy field which can affect your emotions and overall physical health.

Protection work seals the deal. Once you have cut the cords and cleansed yourself, put up some protection. Let me tell you! I did some heavy duty cord cutting with my ancestors and with some folks who were sending out spiritual attacks my way and if I had not protected myself I would have ended up worse for the wear. Protection ensures that you are keeping yourself safe and secure. Sometimes we may unintentionally end up cutting cords prematurely and that energy could come back and try to wreak havoc on your and your loved ones (or anything you touch for that matter). Whether you do a daily ritual, enchant a totem item (like a piece of jewelry or some oil) or carry a gris-gris bag, be on point when it comes to your protection. I had done a cord cutting ritual that required a great deal of spiritual energy in order for me to execute it. The entire ritual took about three days for me to do from beginning to end and when it was all done I had gone the extra mile and done a return to sender ritual before I did the protection. This isn’t necessary in all cases but like I said, I was dealing with some stuff that was going back generations and involved a lot of labor on my end. I wasn’t playing around and wanted to make sure that nothing was coming back to me or my loved ones for this life and the generations after me.

You may be asking yourself What are the benefits of this ritual? Well cutting cords allows you to see clearly. Sometimes folks are deciding on the next move that they should make whether that’s if they should get out of relationship, how to get out of a relationship or to leave a job, and they’re having trouble seeing the options that are laid out before them. Cutting cords can give you the ability to remove energy that is clouding your mind and causing confusion. Another question that you might have is how often should you do cord cutting and how do you know when you have been completely cut off from whatever it is you are disconnecting yourself from? If you know you want to cut a couple of cords, (like from an emotion, old versions of yourself or a person) I would give enough space and time for you to sense and know that the energy has cleared. Doing cord cutting back to back my overload your system. There’s no rush. Check in with Spirit and your higher self through meditation and see how the energy is. You will know when the cord is cut because you should be able to get confirmation from your own energy. You may feel lighter, experience more joy or peace. If it’s a person that you cut yourself off from maybe you notice that you no longer get angry or emotional when their name is brought up or you see a picture of them. If it’s an older version of yourself you may recognize that a memory or past experience no longer hold the same weight that it did before the ritual.

Happy Full Moon in Cancer!! 🌕🌊 Let’s collectively EASE into these deep waters with a healing breath.

☁️To really tap into the energy of this Full Moon take some time out of your day to center and allow your mind to breathe too.

✨We’re making our way through this new year and getting grounded into a higher vibration. 🌍🍃

➡️Swipe for your weekly affirmations & claim this peace of mind for yourself. Have you tried one of our breathwork classes? We have tons of skilled instructors that can take you deeper into the magic of breathing. 🫁💞

Living a healthy lifestyle as a black person is a form of Activism. Inspiring other black folk to be well is a form of Activism. In a world where black neighborhoods are 30 mins away from good produce and natural untouched food cost more than foods with extra chemicals in them, black health matters. We are healthy despite the obvious disadvantages presented and we won’t give them a chance to shorten our lives with food that is literally killing us. Taking care of ourselves is important. I was talking to my husband the other day about how racism affect so much more than we think. The change a systemic racism includes so much. We realized that the past 2 places we lived, we drove 30 mins to get good healthy options for food. That is way too far for someone who may not have a car or can barely afford to drive 30 mins away. Its really not easy for many people to have access to good food. Good veggies, good fruit, healthy grains, healthy fats. The black community is plagued with heart disease, diabetes, and malnutrition. Its all in what we eat, no matter your size. I love that black folk in wellness are being showcased. Herbalists, nutritionist, plant-based chefs, the yogis, energy workers, the therapists are all wellness warriors.To be healthy is to say “fuck your food deserts!” So keep trying to be vegan, keep trying to be plant-based. See a therapist, see an herbalist. Get your exercise on. Be well.