Crystals are used as an alternative healing method, and they come in countless shapes and sizes.
The effects that these crystals possess also vary widely, with some even being said to have healing properties.
Amethyst, a very popular crystal, it’s dark, purple and often used to help with anxiety and sleep. But does that glistening purple rock actually have the capacity to act as a sleep aid, or is it just a hunk of rock?
The use of crystals, incense or anything else in the realm of spirituality is often looked down upon by those who don’t partake in it themselves. Their opinions aren’t invalid necessarily, it is somewhat hard to believe that a shiny colorful rock could change your life in any way.
But these people are missing a key detail — that it doesn’t matter if it truly works or not. The power of crystals is not what it could possibly do, but rather it shows the user has the desire to fix that area in their life.
For example, if someone wanted to use crystals to be more focused, they would get a fluorite crystal because it is known to be the best crystal to increase focus. After getting that crystal they have to cleanse it of negative energy and charge it with positive energy, often by meditating with it or just leaving it in the sunlight.
This is often the step that causes people to lose interest in crystals, because to those who know nothing about spirituality all this positive and negative energy talk starts to get overwhelming.
But only after the user has gone through the steps to make sure the crystal is charged and ready, does it work.
Whether or not the process actually did anything within the crystal is of no importance because the user thinks it did. And because the user now believes that this crystal that they keep around their neck will make them more focused, it will.
Crystals can be used for every aspect of one’s life, whether it be helping manage symptoms of depression or anxiety, or just in a broader more spiritual sense.
Marcus Epps, an employee at the White Willow Wellness Center, a crystal shop in Tracy, said “It’s just kind of like any other belief, people use all different kinds of tools and ways to get to their level of Nirvana.”
So placebo or not, crystals have shown time and time again to have a positive effect on those who truly invest time and energy into them just like any other religion or practice.