I first offered to treat Client with a Colour Therapy session after several conversations with her. She has been a friend for several years and struggles with confidence and low self-esteem. She has a volatile relationship with her family, doesn’t particularly enjoy work and has been searching for ‘the right man’ since her divorce 6 years ago. She became interested as I talked to her about how colours can affect our emotions and we agreed to set up a proper ‘session’.
First session: Before Client arrived I set up the room. The room has large windows and is decorated in cream and pale mauve. I opened the windows to ensure a free flow of air, and burned incense to clear any negative energies. I also made sure that on the table we had water to drink, coloured cards, affirmation cards, a set of coloured scarves, my set of crystals, my pendulum and paper and coloured pens. Prior to her arrival I closed the windows, lit small tea lights and put on some calming meditation music. The room was warm and relaxing.
As we sat I poured some water. We filled out an initial treatment card together. From this I clarified that she had been treated for depression in the past but was currently not on any medication. She also told me that she had been having trouble with her voice (she sings as a hobby ), that it seemed to have no strength and she found it difficult to take deep enough breaths. When she visited the doctor it was diagnosed as a virus. She was advised to rest it and drink lots of water. She felt frustrated by it. This together with an incident with some friends the previous weekend which resulted in her feeling ‘used’ meant that she rated her stress level as 3/5.
I asked Client what she hoped to gain from our session. She said she’d like to “learn about how colours make you feel”. We’d briefly discussed this in our initial chat. She told me she had a tendency to “look on the black side of things” and that she felt problems with friends were “probably my fault”. She said she wanted to “change” herself somehow. At this point I made it clear that Colour Therapy is not a ‘quick fix’, but can give individuals power to balance themselves and learn how to use colour in their lives for health and well-being.
I commented on her statement about “looking on the black side”, linking it to the clothes she was wearing. She told me that that most of her clothes are black, grey and cream. Any colours in her wardrobe are dark tones eg. Maroon, but these are few.
I had prepared cards about the different colours – some with affirmations – some with information about personality traits and qualities associated with the colour. Client read the ones about black and grey and immediately identified with feelings of wanting to keep herself hidden, her lack of self-confidence and of looking at herself and situations in a critical way.
I suggested we begin by balancing her chakras.
I offered different methods of doing this as I wanted her to be comfortable with what we were doing.
- Using a pendulum
- Colour breathing
- Rainbow meditation
- Coloured scarves
- Crystals
I briefly explained each method to her.
Client opted for a mixture of colour breathing and coloured scarves. I pulled the curtains to darken the room a little and asked her to lie face up on the treatment bed. I turned the relaxing music up slightly and we began.
I started by removing my shoes and ‘grounding’ myself. I connected to the Universal energy and silently asked that healing take place ‘for the highest and best’.
I spoke softly and asked Client to close her eyes and take 3 deep breaths – “Breathe in – hold – and relax”. I explained that I was taking a red scarf and laying it across her base chakra. I asked her to imagine a red light moving up through her feet and legs to this chakra. I asked her to visualize the colour ‘waking up’ and ‘balancing’ the chakra. I she breathed I suggested qualities linked to red. “As you breathe in the red glow, notice how you feel energized. Red brings you strength. It makes you feel safe and secure. It helps you enjoy life and live it to the full.” I left the scarf in place for a minute or so as she continued to breathe and visualize.
Next, I removed the red and placed the orange scarf on her sacral chakra. Again I asked her to draw in the orange ray with her breathing up through her feet and legs to this next chakra. Again I spoke of the qualities. “Feel the orange ray filling you with strength. Its glow brings joy and happiness and it allows you to release any emotions you don’t need at this time. Breathe them out. Feel confident in yourself.” After a minute or so I removed the orange scarf and placed the yellow scarf on her solar plexus. I continued in the same way with the green scarf on her heart chakra (she visualized the light going straight in here), the blue on her throat chakra, the deep blue on her brow chakra and the violet at the crown chakra. For these higher chakras I asked her to visualize breathing the colour down from her head and through her body.
Having completed all 7 scarves I asked Client to visualize being surrounded by a brilliant white light – breathing it in – a combination of all 7 colours – balancing and protecting her.
To complete the treatment I used a clear quartz crystal in a figure of 8 movement over her body to seal the aura. I explained what I was doing. I silently gave thanks for any healing that had taken place and told Client I would leave her quietly for a few minutes and that when she was ready, to sit up and drink some water. I left her in the room, washed my hands to clear myself of any energies transferred from Client and drank some water.
When I returned to the room I was greeted with “Oh my god I feel brilliant! I feel so different!” I asked her to clarify this and she told me she could feel different points in her body (the chakras) moving and making her “feel more alive”. She said she could identify the heart chakra as probably the most significant movement but that she’d felt all of them – particularly the lower ones. I suggested that this colour breathing was something she could easily practice at home.
I continued by explaining to Client that each colour has its own balancing colour – in this case orange and yellow – which can assist with clearing blockages and so aid well-being. We discussed the positive elements of orange and yellow – confidence, cheerfulness, optimism, good communication – and agreed that these were all relevant. We then worked together to develop a Home Treatment Plan – which involved simple ways to include these colours in everyday life.
1. Food – try to include carrot, mango, orange, sweet potato, peach, pulses and grains, banana, corn, yellow pepper, pineapple.
2. Flowers – buy yellow flowers and place the vase in prominent position (she decided to have one on desk at work and another in lounge at home).
3. Clothing – Client didn’t feel she would buy or use a scarf in either of these colours but was happy to look for some underwear.
To complete the session I presented Client with 2 small laminated cards to take and use at any time.
“The orange ray fills me with joy and happiness. It brings confidence and strength.”
“The golden yellow light warms and strengthens me. I am worthy of my own self-love”.
We agreed to meet again in a week’s time.
2nd session – When we met for our 2nd session – I had prepared the room as before – Client arrived in black jeans and coat but was wearing a cream, pink and green flowery top. She also wore pale pink lipstick. I commented on the top and she told me “I just saw it when I was out and I liked it”. I linked the colours back to how she had felt a lot of ‘movement’ in her heart chakra during the Colour Breathing. We talked about accepting and loving yourself and that being drawn to particular colours was a positive step.
Next we briefly reviewed how the Home Treatment Plan had gone. She felt very positive about the flowers at work and home, saying “They really make me feel better when I see them”. She had managed to include the orange and yellow fruits but not really the vegetables. She told me that the laminated affirmation cards had been really useful and that she had used them at night, in the morning and had carried them in her bag during the day. “I haven’t always used them but I like knowing they’re there”.
Client was keen to repeat the Colour Breathing session from our 1st meeting, so we did. Again, after having rested she reported the heart and lower chakras were the most active. We talked about how this showed her confidence, security and self-love were being stimulated and balanced.
As the heart chakra had been specifically mentioned again and because she had arrived wearing the green and pink top we decided to work with these colours. I gave Client a mandala pattern and green and pink pens and asked her to colour it. As she worked I talked about the energies of the colours – self-love, harmony, balance, soothing, healing, ability to give and receive love, universal or unconditional love, relieving anxiety. When she was finished I asked her to look at the mandala whilst repeating short affirmations – “The green ray fills my heart.” “I feel soothed and healed” “I am able to give and receive love.”
We concluded the session by again drawing up a Home Treatment Plan.
1. To use the green and pink mandala (daily if possible). To look at and repeat affirmations.
2. To purchase a rose quartz crystal and keep it by her bed.
3. To purchase a green/pink mug to use at home or work.
4. To eat green fruits – green grapes, kiwi, – and try to eat some green vegetables.
Other sessions – Over the following couple of months we met for a further 4 sessions. Each time we reviewed the previous Home Treatment Plan before repeating the Colour Breathing. Client continued to feel more ‘movement’ in the heart chakra but the others became “more even”.
For the remainder of each session we examined and worked on: –
1. Colours she disliked (what this revealed and how to clear these blockages).
2. Colours in home decoration. ( she has since redecorated her bedroom in duck egg blue)
3. Her identity colour (using her birth date) – which was turquoise, and how to use it for healing and protection.
4. Crystals – Client had expressed an interest in this after buying the rose quartz and experiencing its gentle qualities.
Client’s Comments
At the end of the 6 sessions Client wrote: –
“I can’t believe how different I feel. I never realized colours were so important and could affect us so much. I feel like I look at things in a different way now. I hope to continue with the affirmation cards which I’ve found really useful and I’m looking forward to buying some more crystals and having them around. I feel like I’ve learned a lot about myself as well. I would definitely recommend that people try Colour Therapy!”
