This detailed guide is about Throat Chakra and is an extension to our comprehensive guide on the 7 Chakras.
How many times has it happened that you have held back on what you wanted to say? You were not authentic in your expression and almost every time found it awkward when socializing with people. These are a few signs of a blocked throat chakra.
The throat chakra which is located in the middle of the throat is primarily associated with the expression of your true self. By expressing yourself you can tap into your true potential, your creative self, your purpose in life.
When this chakra remains blocked due to various reasons, the energy flow from other chakras gets blocked too. You constantly find yourself at unease and negative thoughts start building up.
Keep reading to aware yourself of the problems and how you can benefit by balancing your throat chakra.
What is Vishuddha?
The fifth chakra known also as Vishuddha or Vishuddhi in Sanskrit means “pure.” Your pure form of speaking, communication, and thoughts arise from this chakra. When you think purely, you can deeply understand subjects because there are no biases in your thoughts. Hence, it increases the level of your understanding.
This chakra also serves as a gateway to the other two higher chakras the 6th and 7th chakras. And as already mentioned any blockage in this chakra disrupts the flow of energy from the other chakras too.
The element of Vishuddha is ‘ether,’ an element that is quite hard to describe. In ayurvedic teachings, it is described as ‘space’ in which the other four elements reside. It lacks the properties that the other elements possess like the heaviness of earth and water, the warmth of fire, etc. It is associated with your consciousness.
These are a few characteristics which the throat chakra influences or is influenced by:
- The quality of your relationships
- Awareness of your needs
- Realizing your purpose
- How well you handle conflict
- Your emotional honesty
- Communication – whether it’s verbal or non-verbal, internal or external
- The propensity to create and project ideas into reality
By focusing on this chakra, you will open up to better communication and develop deep listening to your inner voice and others as well, effortlessly.
The Symptoms of an Imbalanced Throat Chakra
The reason for an imbalanced chakra can be traced back to your childhood. Were you criticized by your parents or your teachers at school? Maybe your opinions and thoughts were not valued by your peers or family? An atmosphere of true self-expression is necessary to further encourage the child to be and show more of himself.
Once you grow up, these feelings of suppression of yourself and acting in a certain kind of way to please the society or your own family can start feeling normal. This is not healthy at all. This is the reason why many people are uncomfortable in their own skin.
Finding the root cause and identifying the symptoms for a blocked chakra can be a great start to realize your potentials and further adopt ways to heal it.
There are both physical and emotional symptoms for an imbalanced throat chakra.
The Physical Symptoms to pay attention to:
- A stiff or achy neck
- Inconsistent fluctuations in hormone levels
- A sore throat
- Have swollen lymph nodes in your neck
- Your voice frequently cracks or sounds thin
- Ear problems such as premature hearing loss and infections
- Develop sinus, throat or respiratory infections
The Emotional Symptoms to pay attention to:
- Lacking the vocabulary to describe your emotions
- Difficulty saying what you want to
- A sense that people don’t know the “real you”
- Feeling like you’re holding onto too many secrets
- You struggle to have a voice of your own
- You are shy around others
- You feel nervous when trying to share your opinions
To add to this, there are two forms of imbalanced chakras, where too much energy flows in or too little. You have to find the ‘sweet spot’ for activating your chakras.
People who are timid, afraid to express their views, suffer from an Under-Active throat chakra. They also do not stand up for themselves and are forgetful. The reason is that not enough energy is flowing in.
On the contrary, some people are critical and judgmental. They fail to listen and have domineering personalities, avoiding the vulnerability of feelings. In this case, too much energy is flowing in and the person has an Overactive throat chakra.
The Need for a Balanced Throat Chakra
Oneness is something that we discussed in our post on Sacral Chakra. The concept exists here too. When your throat chakra is fully open, there is no inner and outer world. What I mean is that there is no communication division between your inner self and the outer world.
The throat chakra gives you the state of mind to be your true selves which is ‘pure.’ This state gives you profound knowledge and information. And therefore, when you speak or listen, there is clarity and pureness in your thoughts and communication.
Your expression is thoughtful. You know then, when you have to be honest and when diplomatic. You develop this ability to handle different circumstances and people, easily because you are now your true selves. There are no more secrets and no more hiding.
You are driven by this strong force of energy in you which comes from a clear purpose or intent. The intent to express your thoughts until it manifests itself in reality and that is a beautiful thing to experience.
I am sure you all know that inner self that is rich with ideas, dreams and what not! That is you. A balanced throat chakra helps you with overcoming fear, unclarity or doubts. So that you are clear on your path towards achieving those dreams. That feeling is truly liberating and it can be achieved through healing this chakra.
8 Ways to Heal the Throat Chakra
These are some methods you could adopt to heal the chakra. Do give a try to all, to settle on the ones which work best for you.
1. Meditation Techniques
Meditation is bringing the mind to stillness and calmness and is very unique to all individuals. It is better if you sit in a comfortable position, wear comfortable clothes and most importantly find a place where you will not get disturbed.
Now visualize a blue ball in the center of the throat. Also, feel that this blue glow is growing and spreading through your whole body. Direct this energy to clear all blockages of energy in your body. It’s good that you practice for 3-5 minutes and get into a flow.
We have a guided Throat Chakra Meditation Video for anyone who is getting into meditation or wants a good flow of undisturbed meditation. We have found that this method works great for beginners.
Also, do these:
- Practice assertiveness (Learn how to say ‘No’ and speak up)
- Sing to yourself
- Scream and laugh to release that blocked throat energy
- Practice deep breathing into your stomach
2. Mantras and Chants
The seed mantra for the throat chakra is HAM which is a single syllable word pronounced as “hhhhhaaaaaammmmmm.” This sound matches the vibrations of the throat chakra and helps in activating the chakra. Also, chant along with the vibrations, this greatly helps. Feel the sound coming from your throat and not your mouth.
For practicing the chanting of the seed mantra, pronounce the mantra along with the chant in the video below. Synchronize your breath with the chanting and focus on the vibrations created by the mantra chanting.
3. Sleep Meditation Music
In addition to meditating via Throat Chakra chanting, you can also heal the chakra by listening to sleep meditation music that we have prepared.
To effectively use the music, we recommend to play the music on speakers at a low volume (almost to a whisper) while sleeping. We also recommend not consuming any heavy meal before sleeping as it will disturb the sleep pattern.
Focus on your breath and visualize an orange sphere three inches below the navel while sleeping. As you inhale the sphere expands and as you exhale it spreads this energy throughout your body and you slowly drift into sleep. The screen will automatically turn black in a few minutes.
4. Affirmations
The Affirmations work to realign the Throat Chakra. Repeating them multiple times a day or whenever you sense that the chakras are not balanced, can be very useful. These are some:
- I express myself truthfully and lovingly
- I communicate with clarity and ease.
- I realize the power of my voice, the power of my words.
- I choose my words with care and love
- My words echo softly within the universe.
We have made a guided affirmation video for the above throat chakra affirmations. You can view it below.
5. Asanas and Other Physical Techniques
Yoga is very important to balance the throat chakra. Wear something comfortable and get started with yoga for better communication.
The above video specifically guides you through each yoga pose. Practice the yoga along with the video and follow through carefully to get the poses right. Add these 10 minutes of yoga every day in the morning.
6. Gems, Jewelry and Color
Gems and jewelry
Stones such as Lapis Lazuli, Amazonite, Aquamarine, Turquoise can help with dealing with communicating honestly and develop confidence while communicating.
Use these to protect yourself against negativity. You can keep them near the chakra while meditating or even better, wear them in the form of jewelry.
Color
The color for the throat chakra is blue. This color signifies self-expression, purpose, and pureness. Wearing blue-colored clothes can enhance the opening of the throat chakra, as the frequency after the brain processes this color matches that of the throat chakra.
7. Food and Diet
Some specific foods related to the throat chakra are:
- Eating blue foods like blackberries, blueberries, blue currants, blue grapes.
- Also consuming tree growing fruits like oranges, apples, plums, pears, figs, there are many others.
- Spices such as lemongrass, ginger, salt.
8. Vishuddha Mudra
Mudras are a way to attune ourselves with specific vibrations in the universe. In order to balance your throat chakra, mudras are very beneficial. You can practice the mudra for 2 -3 minutes daily in the mornings and evenings.
Shunya Mudra:
For this mudra, rest the back of your hands on the top of your knees. Press the tips of the middle fingers into the palms of your hands at the root of the thumbs. Now, secure the middle fingers with the thumbs. This mudra is also known as the gesture of the void.
Many people do not know that they can be helped. They have suffered all their lives with emotional and physical symptoms and they do not know what causes them. But thanks to the internet, we all have the knowledge at our fingertips.
If you are reading this you have already begun the path to finding your true self.
Do tell us if any of these methods have benefitted you, we will be delighted to know that you have taken the first steps to self-acceptance.
Resources for Chakra Healing
- What are Chakras? : Complete 2024 Guide to Balancing Your Energy Centers
- Meditative Mind’s Chakra Healing Playlist
- Chakra Healing Camp