I’m pretty sure we would all like more joy in our lives, but it’s a slippery thing to grab hold of when life is busy, downtime is fleeting, and everything seems to happen a mile a minute. So, how can we start to invite more joy into our lives? Read on and let’s explore how we can live more joyfully.
What is joy?
Everyone’s idea of joy will obviously be different, but the concept of joy is universal. The dictionary definition says: ‘a feeling of great happiness’, but I think joy and happiness are ever so slightly different.
Happiness feels a bit ‘passive’.
Things, people, places, experiences can all make you happy, but I like to think of joy as something much deeper.
Joy comes from within.
Deep within.
It stirs and bubbles in your Sacral Chakra until it must be let out and expressed. It moves you and moves through you longing to be set free. It’s no coincidence the Sacral and Throat Chakras are linked up! But I digress…
Joy is whatever bubbles in your soul, stimulates your mind, and acts on your body – and yes, that is different for everyone.
Where is your joy?
Joy can be an elusive thing.
It’s easy to become disconnected from it if you don’t recognise, nurture and care for it. Busy work schedules, even busier homelives, all the should, musts and to-dos. They all clutter up our soul. Cut off our supply of joy to such an extent that many of us get to a point in life where we suddenly realise that certain something that made life joyful has up and disappeared, and we’re not sure where to find it or how to get it back.
So, what can you do to reconnect with your joy?
This isn’t just about ‘self-care’ although it is important to take care of yourself physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Feeling depleted and well, knackered is not going to support your quest for joy!
It’s about reconnecting with yourself.
Again, everyone will do this differently, but I have some suggestions of things you could try, that I use to reconnect with my joy when I’ve found myself overworked, overtired, and just… over it!
Slow down
When I get to this point, the first thing I do is slow down. When life gets so hectic you can’t take a break – that’s a sure sign you need to TAKE A BREAK. Burnout doesn’t help anyone – not you, not the people in your life who rely on you to be awesome – no one.
Take some time to do something you know will relax you, make you feel at least a little bit good – something entry-level, no pressure to have high living, hilarious, ass-kicking fun here. A walk in nature, a relaxing bath, an energising shower, a soothing massage, even a great cup of coffee – whatever it is, just make time for it and do it.
Meditate
I love to meditate – I even qualified as a meditation teacher! But, when I’m disconnected from my Sacral, running around, doing all the things (not in an intentional way), I suddenly realise I’m not meditating as much as usual. Or I’m just ‘phoning it in’!
However you meditate – sinking into your cushion in your fully kitted out Zen Den, or grabbing a quick five minutes while you wait for the bath to run or kettle to boil – just make some space to do it. There really is nothing like it to ground you, bring you back to centre, and open you up to the joy of life.
Mindful Moments
If full on meditating feels a bit much for you right now, how about taking a series of Mindful Moments throughout your day?
This is my go-to! It’s part of the reason I created Shine Body & Bath.
Just standing at the sink, as you feel your feet on the floor, soaping up your hands – feeling every bubble, and inhaling the beautiful scent as the essential oils are released and getting to work.
Or exfoliating in the shower with your natural body buff (coming soon!) and energising Solar Plexus Chakra Soap for Power & Energy as you feel the water running over your body.
Or – and this is the most indulgent for when you have some extra time – as you relax in a bath with luxury blooming bath oils as they mingle with the water, soften your skin, and wrap you in the supportive scent of your chosen Chakra. Extra ‘joy’ points if it’s Sacral Chakra Blooming Bath Oil for Sensuality & Joy.
Cleanse your energy
A salt bath is such a great way to cleanse any energy which may be stuck in your auric field, and wipe your ‘energetic slate clean’. And it’s easy, relaxing and feels so good!
I love a salt bath so much I created a whole ritual around it and put it in a blog for you – check it our here.
Now that you’ve slowed down, relaxed, meditated – what now?
Re-learn to trust yourself
Joy comes from a place inside us. We need to know how to connect with that sensual place and trust that it knows what is best for us.
This feels easier said than done – I get that.
We know what’s best for us. We really do, but sometimes we don’t trust that knowing, we don’t hear it, or we dismiss it. When we disconnect from our inner guidance, we stop trusting ourselves and look outwards for someone to tell us what to do, how to feel better, how to feel joy. And just end up even more disappointed that we don’t feel it inside.
Try some of these for reconnecting with your inner knowing and intuition, and learn to trust yourself again:
Give yourself easy decisions – decision fatigue is real, so I’m not talking about rolling the dice (literally) on whether you should quit your job! But small things – what to eat, what to wear, which route to take.
Give yourself an ‘either or choice’ and see how each one feels in your body.
This can take practice so keep doing it. You will come to learn your body’s yes or no signals. Butterflies in your tummy? A contraction in your chest? Listen and observe.
You could flip a coin – there is research that suggests, how you feel about the outcome illustrates what you really wanted to do in the first place. You’ll feel excited or disappointed – it might be tiny, but you will feel it.
You could also use a pendulum to guide you, or oracle cards.
Have some fun with it and give it a try.
Connect with your Sacral, Third Eye, and Throat Chakras. These are your Chakras of Sensuality & Joy, Vision & Insight, and Communication & Truth. Download our free resource for loads of information on how to connect with and support these chakras or check out our blogs on the Power of the Lower Chakras and Higher Chakras & Connection.
The easiest way to support any of your Chakras is to grab your Chakra Soap, Chakra Bath Salts, or Chakra Bath Oils and lather, cleanse and soak your way to healthier Chakras!
What brings you joy?
Do you even know anymore? Sometimes it feels so far away we don’t even know what it is, let alone how to welcome it into our lives with open arms, make it a cup of tea, and invite it to hang out!
I believe we are designed for joy. Life isn’t something to be endured. So, once we are tuned into our inner knowing, our chakras, and intuition – let’s ask – “What brings me joy?”.
You might have very clear ideas of what brings you joy, but if you’re still a bit unsure, I always find the easiest thing to do is ask!
Ask for guidance – clear some time and space, relax, ease yourself into meditation, have your journal to hand and simply ask the question. Start slow, with a few minutes and build up. If you don’t get an answer right away, stick with it. Journal anything that comes up for you when you finish and throughout the day and subsequent days! It might take some time, but have faith the answers are coming.
Make a joy list – it’s exactly what it sounds like! Keep a running list of things that bring you joy, things you’d like to try, or things that just sound fun. Don’t censor yourself. You don’t have to do all (or any) of them. This exercise is about noticing what’s happening in your life, the opportunities the universe is placing in front of you, and the endless possibilities for joy. No pressuring yourself to fill up even more of your time!
Exercise – sometimes when the body is active, the mind clears, and intuitive messages come through. I get some of my best inspiration in the gym!
How do you feel? How do you want to feel? – Ask yourself every morning and at various points throughout the day. If you’re not feeling great and going from feeling rubbish to joyful in one bound feels too much, Gabby Bernstein and Abraham Hicks talk about reaching for the next best feeling. Moving up the scale slowly and gradually until you are closer to where you want to be.
Watch this Ted talk – finally, watch this talk by Ingrid Fetell Lee on the whole idea of joy. During the video, she talks about ‘joy beginning with the senses’ and how there are recurring ‘things’ that bring us all joy – bright colours, googly eyes (!) and multiplicity are just a few (I don’t want to spoil the whole thing for you).
Watch her video – it’s joyful!!
So, there you have it…
To wrap up, if you want to live a more joyful life:
- slow down to the right pace for you, which means you can take it all in;
- connect to your intuition and Sacral Chakra;
- know how you want to feel and what joy feels like for you – in your body;
- understand what brings you joy;
- notice all the things you have and do which currently bring you joy;
- recognise all the new opportunities for joy the universe places in your path; and
- place yourself in the path of joy whenever it shows up.
There are so many more things I could add on this topic – maybe I need a part 2!
If you fancy going a little deeper into the Chakra element of all our products, download our Chakra Health Checkup and find out which of your Chakras could use a little extra support and which of our products can help you do that best – indulge in this unique and mindful way to support your energy from Root to Crown.
