Episode 75: The Wicked Women of Greek Mythology
Ever wonder why stories of women in mythology and religion so often paint them as the villains? From Pandora opening the jar of evils to Medusa's transformation into a monster, these tales shape cultural narratives that endure today.
In this episode, Angie dives into ancient Greek mythology to unpack how women like Pandora, Medusa, and Circe have been scapegoated for humanity's woes—and how feminist perspectives reclaim their stories as symbols of curiosity, defiance, and resilience. We’ll explore the gods’ messy, human-like flaws, Zeus's power plays, and Hera’s complicated transformation from a powerful pre-Greek goddess to a vengeful Olympian queen. This is part one of a series on “Wicked Women,” examining how patriarchal storytelling turns women’s strength into cautionary tales.
Want Angie to cover Adam, Eve, Lilith, and the Abrahamic traditional takes on women next? Let her know! Email, DM, or comment—because these stories deserve a closer look.
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Follow for more myths, misunderstood women, and stories that challenge how we think about history and culture! 🌿✨
dia de los muertos
Honoring the Days of the Dead around these parts, and hoping you are feeling that sense of connectedness with your ancestors and passed over loved ones. If you are looking for a guided way to honor the dead, join me on November 1st for Cacao Ceremony & Muertos journey. We will first partake in the sacred cacao, then move into a shamanic journey to connect with the dead—whether it is your passed over parent or loved one, your grandparents, ancestors you never met, but want to connect with or a famous artist, sacred figure or philosopher, thinker or religious figure, join me on Friday for our circle.
Lots of bonuses with this one, including a how to guide for your ofrenda, how to make a cup of cacao, how to bake pan muerto or sugar skulls, and of course the healing work we do together in circle. Everything is recorded if you cannot attend live. Until then, enjoy this playlist I pulled together for Dia de los Muertos.
Blessed Full Moon in Aries
Whew, boy, I missed posting this here yesterday (though if you follow my IG, you would have seen it!), but still useful in that three day window you can really dive deep into Full Moon energy.
In my Membership group, I do a collective Full Moon reading and more for our group, so check out my revamped Membership group and join if you like my approach to the medicine.
Episode 73: Q+A Episode on Existentialism, the Meaning of Life + the Gospels according to Angie
Click here to access Episode 73 on Spotify.
On this week’s episode, I am answering some questions from my listeners, and they ended up being long. Little did they know they hit on some of my special interests as a neurodivergent religion + philosophy nerd. (hello, sailor!) Here are the questions and time where you can find them:
Question 1 : (at 4:35)
from Becky Davis, ACM
How do we find meaning when our day-to-day lives feel empty?
Question 2 : (at 29.06)
from Lee Ann Huebner
This is something I've been meaning to research forever.
When did the quote in the Bible from Jesus saying he was the only way to God first show up? Cause I'm not buying it. One it doesn't seem like something he would say and why would God exclude much of the human souls on this planet with a one line quote.
I also discuss Spirit of Oneness in Harrisburg PA, hosted by Sharon Muzio of Alta View Wellness Center. You can find more information at http://spiritofonenessevent.com . It takes place Saturday, October 5th from 10am to 6pm and Sunday, October 6th from 10am to 5pm.
If you want to ask a question or comment, or have an idea for a future episode, or want to be on a future episode, send me an email at angie@themoonandstone.com.
Announcement to my students + Clients
Shamanic Journey with a Skull
Through my time as an earth medicine practitioner, I have developed intimate relationships with the crystals and tools that have come to me. I consider myself an Earth Medicine Keeper, meaning that I often will find medicine of the Earth, like feathers, bones, skulls, crystals, tools, artwork, and altar pieces. I am exceedingly good at hypervigilance when I am out and about in the world, probably one of those residuals from trauma that serves me in my field. I notice small movements, like animals on the forest floor. I point out the toads, salamanders, birds, feathers, and animals camouflaged in their natural habitats. I find patterns in the things, which is an excellent skill set for finding a four-leaf clover, which I am also very good at. This isn’t even a humble brag, this is a brag brag. Because, let’s face it, sometimes it is good to know what you are good at. Being able to see a discrepancy in the force offers me a opening to gather medicine for my clients. Side note: I am also awesome at this at Yard Sales, Thrift Shops and antique malls for all those interested in a buddy or shopper.
I find many pieces for my work in the most unlikeliest of places. I take them home, and clean them. I house them, and consistently cleanse, clear and clean until they are ready for meditation or journey work. Then I journey with the piece to find out how I can best work with this medicine and how it wants to work with me. Sometimes I pass the medicine on, if it was meant for a client. I actually am starting to resell, recycle, and upcycle my finds for my online shop.
So, what is a shamanic journey? Well, journey is a practice best described as a lucid trance state. In the alpha state, it's akin to meditation. In the theta state, the deeper level of transmission, more akin to the dream state. In this way, we visualize and communicate with our medicine and guides much more easily. Intelligence comes through the sensory processes and is later interpreted cognitively.
My questions are often the same ilk—why did you come to me? Are you personal medicine or medicine I will use with clients? What messages do you have? How would you like me to work with you? How can I best honor you and keep you?
In Spring of 2023, my bestie Sharon Muzio and I took a trip to Columcile Megalith in Bangor, Pennsylvania. It is a standing stone Celtic park that is not only beautiful, but sacred and holy. It was an awesome weekend away, and we decided to check out a few crystal shops in the area, as you do when you are witchy bad asses with a rainy day. I found this incredible shop called Celestial Journeys in Stroudsburg, PA. It seems to be permanently closed now, which is so sad, because she had an incredible selection of crystals and offerings.
I went in there looking for nothing, and then we made eye contact with a skull that was white. It looked like bone, almost. When I saw it, I thought it looked like Ocean Jasper, definitely in my top five crystals of all time. One of the things I love about Ocean Jasper is its connection to the Earth, and healing work. Each piece is entirely different from another, but they often have markings that look like cells almost. I kept walking back over to it in the case, not touching it yet, but just watching it. The consciousness of it felt palpable. I couldn’t not think of this skull as I walked around the store. Finally, I went back and asked the owner Janine what it was. She told me it was fossilized coral.
Hmmm…interesting.
Fossilized coral skull. Of course, the little corals are going to look like bones. I assumed it had limestone with it, and my goodness, it was so cool. I decided this was Spirit urging me to connect with a Crystal Skull.
Now, I did have a skull at the time—a black Obsidian skull that I worked with for ancestral healing work, and my altars for Ancestor. My beautiful friend Lisa D’Arrigo sent me a gorgeous little Cherry Jasper skull that I worked with when I was healing from my double mastectomy in 2021. But this Skull felt different, like it was here to teach and work with me.
I didn’t immediately jump into journey with the Skull. I spent the days preceding my journey day prepping. I made baños. Cleared and cleansed with skull with drum, rattle, and burning herbs. I set aside a whole day for journeywork, and this was part of that day. I took a long ceremonial bath in dead sea salt water and prepared for a long journey with the Skull. I brought it to my bed, and set myself up with pillows and Icaros, the Central and South American songs used during Ayahuasca and other medicine. journeys. Now, one of my goals was to develop a relationship with the medicine—specifically with the skull.
Every skull keepers I know who have deep meaningful relationships with their skulls seemed to know their name, their medicine, channeling the wisdom of the Crystal Skull. So, that was one of my questions: What is your name? Then deeper:
What work do you want to do through me?
Why did you come to me?
Are you personal medicine or medicine I will use with clients?
What messages do you have?
How would you like me to work with you?
How can I best honor you and keep you?
As I began, I seemed plunged into a world with many layers and levels, different outlooks, but it was all fluorescent and changeable. And I continued to try to be grounded in a journey on the land, but it was somewhere between ether and space. It reminded me of the movie Tron. But as I explored, and frustratingly was trying to direct my journey, I kept asking the question, I am here to know your name. Tell me what Medicine you have for me. It was just the Icaros and the place that could be very large or very small.
Why are you asking me my name?
The Skull began speaking. And it continued as colors and shapes, nebula and sacred geometry was all around me. “I used to have a whole universe in me and you are asking if I have a human name.”
Suddenly, I could see all this nebulous color and shape come into focus. It was a coral reef, so deep and long and intricate. It was like watching a movie on speed 4x, except the 4 were years, millennia, really. I could see the life cycle of plants and anemones and fish—their babies, their babies’ babies, birth, life, mate, death, and then birth, life, mate and death, over and over and I could see the eating of fish my other fish and the gentleness of the animals in and around the coral. The whole of the coral reef was a universe where certain fish and plants spent their whole life. The Skull repeated itself, “I used to be an entire universe. You can never fully grasp what that means. You can never understand with your ways unless you want to. You humans just want to possess things. You take me out the Earth, cut me out of the womb again, after my life cycle being a universe, from the place where I lived, and then you take me and carve me into your image and ask me my name, like I am happy to be here looking like a human.”
“You shaped me to be you. You carved me in your image, to look human, but I am anything but human. I had a universe in me and around me the likes you will never understand and you dare to ask me what my human name is. I am everything. I am the Earth. I am the universe..”
At first, I had that sarcastic defeating Gen X voice in me, “Figures I’d get the angry little skull.”
The Skull continued to talk, “You are asking the wrong questions. You are asking me my name. How you work with me? These are petty human concerns.” I could still see the coral extending out into the sea, and housing all the life cycles.
What the skull taught me is that Earth Medicine isn’t us, we cannot project our humanness onto the Earth. It doesn’t have a consciousness like ours. The Earth doesn’t pull things out of its environment and expect it to thrive and teach and be wise and understand humanity. The Coral taught me about community and interconnectedness, and showed me, more than meditation or writing about (which I had to do for my Level 3 shamanic training) ever could communicate—we must dismantle the myth of separation. Not only is the Coral the Sea, but it is also the Earth. It is the fish it housed. It is the salt, the plants, the limestone. It is me. It is you.
My line of question was very me-centeric. I was asking the questions about what I had just bought, That in and of itself was problematic to him. When I asked, what's your name? How do you want to work with me? It was all me, me, me, me. I wanted a cool story. I wanted to channel the medicine. But the Skull was like, all righty, well, let's get you in line here. And it was interesting. He showed me the universes that exist on the Earth, and that right now, you are no different Angie. There are universes around all things.
I am a human. I wanted what I wanted when I wanted it. And he was basically saying, this is how you work with me. Learn about me, learn about the earth. I am the medicine of the earth. So, in the end, this tempermental coral skull was not moody at all, but honest and wise. He teaches me every day about how to work with the earth medicine and not how to possess it or use it and be an ally to it. We are in service to the medicine, not the other way around. Humility and walking the beauty way can help soften tough relationships with the medicine and the Earth, which continues to struggle with heat and climate change. I was asking its name, but that was decidedly the wrong question. The question I should be asking is Would you please show me the way of the Earth?
In the end, that is what I do. I'm an earth medicine practitioner and I was asking a Coral Skull, “In what ways are you human? How do you be more human? What kind of human ways can you help me with?” But that is not the medicine of the Earth—it about the wisdom of the animal, the plant, the plant.
As I have explored my unnamed Crystal Skull, I researched coral, because of course, I did. Cool Coral factoids:
Coral grow by biomineralization, a process that starts when the young coral polyp uses seawater to create calcium carbonate crystals.
Corals worldwide, no matter if they live in the ocean or in a tank, bloom at the same time. They communicate no matter where they are in the world.
Coral reefs only take up 0.0025 % of the earth's surface but they, along with other marine organisms are responsible for producing 50% of the earth oxygen.
They also absorb nearly one-third of the carbon dioxide generated from burning fossil fuels.
Synchronized mass coral spawning typically occurs several days after a full moon once a year.
I bought my Skull and continue to build a deep relationship with its medicine. He comes in one form or another in every session I have. I mostly keep him on my altar and honor his medicine. As we have softened and taught me more about working with the Earth, our work together seems one of the most important medicine journeys ever.
Do you have a skull? Tell me about it in the comments! Also, let me know how you loved Skull Week, and I can’t wait to explore more topics with you. If you love my deep dives, consider asking me a question to cover in my next podcast episode, which is a Q&A episode. Send your question via email either written or you can send an audio file to angie (at) themoonandstone (dot) com.
Skull Tour with Suzanne Pfister + Julie Taylor
I am so pleased to introduce one of my people, Suzanne Pfister of the Midnight Owl. Suzanne has served as a Moderator for the Moon + Stone Healing FB Community and the host of our monthly Craft and Tails night, which is a virtual craft night—bring your own cocktails. (I mean…come on! doesn’t that sound like the best time!) Suzanne Pfister, RMT, ACM, is a Reiki Master Teacher, an Advanced Crystal Master, a yoga teacher and a proprietress of Midnight Owl, a mystical and metaphysical shop of all things fantasy, spiritual and whimsical in Chester, NJ. I am hoping Suzanne will offer more of these tour of her shop. I know I bought some things, and Mama is very happy!!
Skull Tour with Suzanne Pfister Rmt Acm at Midnight Owl. If you would like to purchase a skull you see, please reach out to Suzanne by clicking here.
The Skull: history, iconography, ritual use, and ally
Long associated with death and rebirth, skulls, whether crystal or not, often evoke that deep fear within people, so much so they have become a staple of Halloween and horror movies. However, skulls have been one of the oldest symbols found ritual, religion, artwork, cultural celebrations, and iconography in human history.
In our not-so-distant past, death was part of human life. Humans were not shielded from death. People died at home, sometimes in the streets. Humans, of all ages and genders, saw war, accidents, disease, pandemics, and death. What is left of the human body, the bones, represents the impermanence of the human body. Even before we studied anatomy, dissected humans, or understood medicine, humans held bones as representative of death. They held skulls and bones. Humans understood that these parts of us were all that remains after death.
The Skull, or rather, the human head houses vision, hearing, speaking, and thoughts. It is what we look at when we talk and when we recognize a person—so it holds the seed of identity and spirit for many. Skulls are human-shaped with a mouth, eyes, and nose, but no longer house the Spirit or Soul of the human. The skull becomes an important symbol in depicting the cycle of creation as a whole: birth, death, mortality, and, at times, immortality. We see skulls represented in artwork, mysticism, religion, and spirituality.
The mystical and metaphysical symbolism intertwined with their very real structure brings in a feeling of grounding, the structure of life with the mysticism and mystery of death. Spiritually, we work with the skulls in altar work, ritual, symbolism, and meditation. I do think skulls are some of the most potent symbols one can work with. Shamanically, they are totally my jam.
Use of Skulls in Various Cultures
Skulls have always held a special place in mythologies, legends, and traditions across different ancient cultures. While the meanings varied, skulls carried powerful symbolism and were often considered sacred, sometimes even used as offerings to gods.
Aztecs
For the ancient Aztecs, skulls weren’t just about death—they were seen as something more positive. Yes, they were tied to death and facing the fear of it, but they also symbolized life and the promise of a new beginning. To the Aztecs, skulls represented regeneration and rebirth, emphasizing the natural cycle of life. It was all about humanity and the idea that new life emerges from death.
Celtic Culture
In Celtic traditions, skulls were also considered sacred and were often placed on altars as offerings. For them, the skull was linked to the soul and seen as a symbol of power. The openings for the eyes and mouth were thought to be holy, offering a pathway to wisdom and knowledge. Beyond being a “house for the soul,” skulls in Celtic lore were sometimes symbols of creation and transformation, representing the ever-turning cycle of life.
Ancient India
In Buddhism, skulls were closely connected to the concept of emptiness. The belief was that everything in the Universe, at its core, is neutral, and only loses that neutrality based on how we perceive it. Emptiness wasn’t negative—it was a key part of understanding the true nature of things.
In both Hinduism and Buddhism, skulls were also tied to Munda Mala and the sacred syllable, OM. Deities like Shiva and the Mahavidyas Goddesses often wore garlands of skulls, representing divine power. Skull jewelry symbolized the gods' greatness, showing that they were beyond fear, danger, and even death itself.
Christianity
In Christianity, skulls symbolize mortality. Saints in many religious artworks are often depicted holding skulls, representing wisdom and a higher understanding of life. This act symbolized letting go of earthly concerns and turning toward spirituality, placing trust in the Divine.
At the same time, the skull, being part of the human body, also represents the link between the spiritual and physical worlds, connecting life and death, the seen and the unseen.
Día de Muertos and Skulls in Latin American Culture
As a Latina, I have consistently grown up with ghost stories, skeletons, and the honoring of ancestors. My mother kept and still keeps a fancy-cut crystal glass with water for death, sometimes putting food next to it on a window sill for the dead who may visit our home.
Skulls have a significant role in Latin American culture, especially in the context of el Día de Muertos or the Day of the Dead.
Day of the Dead
Of course, there are pre-Hispanic origins of el Día de Muertos. Aztecs and other Indigenous peoples in pre-Columbian Mexico celebrated death as a natural part of life. They believed that the dead were not gone, but rather that they had a relationship with the living. The Aztecs celebrated the death of their ancestors with a festival that lasted a month, honoring the goddess Mictēcacihuātl, the Queen of the Underworld. Mictēcacihuātl was known as the “lady of the dead.” She ruled the underworld, and watched over the bones of the dead, which the Aztecs believed were a source of life in the next world. Her grinning skull face is strongly associated with Dia de Muertos.
Spanish influence
When the Spanish arrived in Mexico, they brought Catholicism and forced many Indigenous people to convert. The holiday was moved to coincide with All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, which are celebrated on November 1 and 2. But are these two celebrations the same?
Both are centered on remembering the dead, but they approach this remembrance in different ways. All Souls Day focuses on praying for “all the faithful departed,” while Día de los Muertos invites the spirits of loved ones back for an annual family reunion.
All Souls Day has been around for centuries. By the 9th century, monasteries were setting aside a day to pray for the dead, and it was a Benedictine abbot who first established November 2 as the official day to remember the departed. After the devastation of World War I, Pope Benedict XV extended the observance to the entire Catholic Church in 1915. On All Souls Day, people of faith remember those who have passed and pray for their peaceful journey into the afterlife with God.
Día de los Muertos, on the other hand, is not only about remembrance—it’s also a celebration of life. Families gather at gravesides, turning them into festive picnic spots where food, drinks, music, flowers, and fireworks are shared with the dead. It’s a joyful gathering that celebrates the memory of loved ones. Altars are set up in homes, adorned with flowers, photos, and offerings like food to welcome the spirits back and honor their presence.
Many offerings are sweet treats, like candy skulls, coffins, and sugar rolls called pan de muerto. The celebration also includes playful elements like toy skeletons and papel picado (colorful tissue paper cutouts of skulls and bones). These joyful touches bring a sense of sweetness and lightheartedness to the otherwise somber concept of death.
Whether through prayers on All Souls Day or the lively customs of Día de los Muertos, the past is brought into the present. Families, along with the broader faith community, gather at altars and gravesides to celebrate life in the midst of death, finding joy in sorrow. In these celebrations, memory becomes a living hope for eternal life.
Modern celebrations
Today, Día de los Muertos is celebrated in many ways, including building altars, dressing up, and sharing food. Every year, families and communities celebrate Día de los Muertos for three days. We think of this as a Mexican holiday, and yes, some of the largest, most elaborate celebrations are in Mexico. Still, El Día de Muertos is celebrated all throughout Latin American. In my mother’s hometown of La Chorrera in Panama, the procession came down in front of her home, as she lived across from the cemetery. According to Google, the states of Oaxaca and Michoacán have special traditions for the holiday. In Nejapa de Madero, Oaxaca, preparations begin a month before the celebration, including choosing stalks for altars, preparing food, and buying mezcal. In cemeteries and homes, families gather to honor and remember their loved ones who have passed. Celebrations vary by region and cultural influences. For example, in Guatemala, people make kites to reach their ancestors, while in Bolivia, processions involve the actual skulls of ancestors.
Skulls, or calaveras, sit at the center of Day of the Dead festivities. It would not be el Día de Muertos without brightly colored skulls. Everything, brightly colored and light, shows skeletons, skulls, and representations of death, like Monarch Butterfly, the carrier of souls. We see skulls made from sugar paste, wood, paper maché, or carved bone. Sugar skulls are given as gifts to family and friends to honor and celebrate the lives of the deceased. The decorations on the skulls reflect the likes and desires of the deceased. They are placed on altars and on the gravesites, and then left in the rain to melt into the Earth, mirroring the decomposition of the body after death.
The Aztecs and other Meso-American civilizations believed in death as a continuation of life, and that the dead would return to visit during a month-long ritual. They decorated their temples with skulls, kept them as trophies, and used them in rituals to symbolize death and rebirth. After Colonization, the Catholic Church often incorporated the local customs and celebrations into Catholic existing holidays. El Día de Muertos began to be celebrated on the Holy Days of All Saints Day and all Souls Day, incorporating and honoring babies and children who have died (El Dia de los Angelitos),
To welcome them, families build altars, or ofrendas, in their honor. These altars often include yellow marigolds, candles, photos of the deceased, cut tissue-paper designs, as well as food and beverages offerings, though these can vary from culture to culture.
Skulls, or calaveras, are often used as decorations. Though these can be made of papier-mâché, clay, wood, metal, cut-out tissue paper, they are often made of sugar decorated with colored icing, flowers, or metallic colored foils.
Interesting sidenote:
After Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821, the newfound freedom of the press led to the publication of many broadsides featuring skulls, or calaveras. These illustrations were a form of popular resistance by artists and writers. Lithographer José Guadalupe Posada's illustrations of calaveras found a wide audience in the new country. His most famous calavera was la Catrina, a female dandy portrayed as a fleshless skull with a wide-brimmed hat.
What a Skull Represents in Spiritual Work
Wisdom
The skull is the “home” of the mind. It symbolizes higher knowledge, truth, and ageless wisdom. Skulls or heads hold two or three chakra centers, depending on your perspective: the Crown Chakra, the Third Eye Chakra and the Throat Chakra (I do see it this way because of the ears and mouth.)
Skulls represent and emphasize the power of the rational mind, willpower, and mental agility. It represents the ability to transcend the limitations of the established systems of knowledge, penetrate deeper truths, and find higher meaning.
Bravery & Fearlessness
Skulls are old symbols of courage and strength. Associated with not simply valor and glory in war or battle, but they are associated with death for a cause as well as OVERCOMING death, which we will talk about more in a bit. Defeat the odds, overcome obstacles, limitless personal power, and the ability to deal with danger bravely and boldly is often seen in the symbolism of skull with warriors, fighters, ex-military and military folk.
Although it has been linked with fear, the skull represents the ability to conquer fears and rise above them.
Death
To pretend skulls symbolism is not about death would be to completely miss the mean of Skull. Everything in life moves in cycles. Endings inevitably occur as a part of that process. While they represent finite things, skulls also symbolize the start of the new cycle and the birth of new life as well as the end of one cycle and the beginning of another.
A skull reminds us that everything in life is transient and impermanent. The only thing that does not change is the knowledge that everything changes. Skulls urge us to see the beauty of every day, or as the Mexican iconography of Skull in El Dia de los Muertos reminds us, to laugh in the face of death. Skulls represent presence and gratitude, inspiring us to live a well-examined life with purpose and meaning.
Shamanic Uses of Skulls
Skulls have been used in shamanic work in many ways, (literally countless) but including some here that are interesting:
Ritual implements: In Hindu Tantra and Tibetan Buddhist Tantra, a skull cup called a kapala is used as a ritual bowl. In Tibetan Buddhism, kapalas are often decorated with jewels and precious metals.
Spiritual adornment: A shamanic practitioner in Bali made a necklace from five individually carved skulls made from water buffalo horn.
Symbolism: Skulls can symbolize death, evil, fear, and mortality, but they can also represent protection, power, and gratitude toward life.
Prehistoric Europe: Shamans in prehistoric Europe packed skulls with clay and burnt brains.
Mesolithic shamanism: Mesolithic shamans used red deer skulls with antlers during rituals.
Lakota culture: In Lakota culture, the buffalo skull is a symbol of self-sacrifice and is present in all sacred rituals.
Tibetan Buddhism: In Tibetan Buddhism, skulls are reminders of impermanence that help remove attachment to self and one's body.
Whew! If you made it this far through my Skullie research, congratulations! You deserve a little sugar skull as a reward. So, as you know, I love the Tarot and often will create Tarot Layouts with symbols I find resonate or for issues I am facing, and so I took the Skull and asked it—how can you help Tarot readers?
And I held my own Crystal Skull asking the questions. Immediately, my eyes went to that midway gaze between focus and unfocus and I could see the blackness of the eye sockets, the nose, the mouth and the ears as places to tap into. Not our eyes, but what is left is the eyes of our eyes, the nose of our nose, the ears of our ears, and the voice of our voice…the spiritual, wise parts of us that exist before consciousness and will exist after the body dies. And so I present The Skull Layout
Spirit Journey with Skull
I am so honored to welcome a piece by Julie Taylor, ACM. Julie and I got to know each other through Hibiscus Moon Crystal Academy. Later she studied Tarot through the Moon + Stone Healing Academy and joined my weekly circle. Since then, she has become one of the moderators at the Moon + Stone Healing Academy’s Facebook page and one of the contributors here on our site.
Julie is a certified Advanced Crystal Master and Reiki Master. She's a lover of words and moon magic. She received her bachelor's in professional writing and associate's in early childhood education and practices crystal reiki on herself and with others. She lives in sync with moon cycles and seasons and practices her witchery in the Las Vegas Valley of Nevada. She's the author of the children's book, Blue Hissy Highness and the Shiny Stones, founder of StoneSpelling.com, a new community for sharing witchery, curator of the Private Facebook Group, Stone Spelling & Witchery, is a moderator for the Moon + Stone Healing Academy Facebook group, and is a contributor here at the Moon + Stone Healing Academy.
Follow Julie Taylor on Stone Spelling
Trigger Warning: Touches on topic of death
Skulls, the spirit of them, have called to me. In years past, I’ve noticed them in crystal stores, seen them around Halloween time, and noticed them around Day of the Dead. But I hadn’t yet felt the urge to buy one or spend time learning about them enough to open to what they might mean to me--until this year. Now that I think back, I think skull spirit started calling to me late last winter.
More and more my eyes landed on crystal skulls as I shopped stones but I couldn’t land on any that felt a right fit for me. I started to wonder why. I started to think maybe I’m missing something. And then I thought that if the universe was speaking to me, sending a call to connect with skull spirit, that maybe I’m meant to learn before I leap.
So, this summer, I started a quest to find out what skulls represent for me in a spiritual sense. I began with the dictionary. It’s one of my favorite books. It’s like a marker at the beginning of the trail, a spiritual reminder to keep me from falling down too many rabbit holes or from traveling astray of where I want to go.
The first definition is what one might expect with its description of the skeleton of the head.
And even definition 4 with its “emblem of death” seemed expected considering celebrations around Halloween and el Dia de los Muertos. But definitions 2 and 3 sparked something new for me.
Definition 2: the seat of understanding or intelligence: mind
Definition 3a: the crown of the head
Hmm...my eyes paused over “seat” and “understanding” and “crown,” and my intuition translated “seat” to the root chakra and connected “understanding” to the “crown.” My thoughts started running ahead, following the ideas popping into my imagination, sparking for me the sense that I’m meant to connect special meaning between earth and skeleton with crown and skull.
They’re interconnected but there’s emphasis on the journey up to the skull...starting from the root charka, building air in the belly, moving up through the heart, and signaling to the crown.
And I take in that mindful, deep breath, and as I let it out, I feel the Element of Air moving in me to connect body, mind, and spirit.
Whoosh
Ahead of me on this spiritual path, a rabbit hole appears, and I’m spiked to go down it. The Element of Air is wafting and saying to me, “when breath becomes air.”
Wait, what? My mind’s eye feels an almost mental shake of clarity, because I know those words. I ask myself, “Where have I heard those words?” And I remember.
I attended a Death Cafe last year, and I saw a book titled, When Breath Becomes Air, by Paul Kalanithi. Poetic. Four words that conjured in me a sense, a feeling about life after human death. That when a last human breath is taken, the soul enters Air, moving into spirit, wafting through realms, and at times keeping me company with their essence.
Air is moving in me. In through the nose, out through the nose. The skull represents that for me.
The sense that with every breath I take, I connect body, mind, and soul to spirit, and my heart guides me to who and to when. The air I breathe is air my ancestors once breathed. Skull spirit helps me connect to air of loved ones--loved ones who have crossed to a place so close yet so far that I ache to translate all they have to say. Dear ones whose breath became air speak through skull, waiting patiently for me to understand, willing to return again and again, to sit with me, to come closer and to place signals in my path until my imaginings light up in my mind’s eye. And I breathe in the spirit of connection to spirit.
Now the next step in my journey is to find the stone skulls meant to be with me.
the mystery and controversy of crystal skulls
Welcome to Skull Week!
It is a little like Shark Week, except with skulls. Skullnado anyone?
Part of the reason I wanted to share some goodness about skullies with you is that we are coming up on October and we will be inundated with crystal skull pictures. and I know you are thinking what I was thinking more than 15 years ago, what’s with the crystal skull thing?
Well, past life Angie, I am here to share a little history of Crystal Skulls in modern consciousness. I have to warn you, some of you will be disappointed at the lack of woo in this piece, because it is mostly a debunking of the mystical origins of crystal skulls, and yet, I totally love skulls. I think they have spiritual and mystical value, even if they are not 10,000 years old and placed here by extraterrestrials. If you like that mythology, cool. You do you, boo, but this is my research monkey hat coming out, jumping on my head, and saying, the truth is out there.
Other things that may or may not happen this week: a skull-y tarot spread a guided skull meditation, my first guest blog feature from Julie Taylor about Skulls and her personal journey with skulls, and then an excerpt from my journal work with one of my skulls. Enjoy Skull week!
Crystal Skulls are available at almost any rock and gem show you attend. Whether carved by master carver Leandro de Souza or by anonymous master skull carvers, these carved masterpieces bring intrigue and mystery. I know as a Crystal Expert, I am frequently asked about Skulls. Some people are almost repulsed by them, confused about why they are around, asking questions like:
“Who would work with them and why?”
“What are they?”
”They are so morbid. Why would anyone buy them?”
Others are immediately drawn to them. It is interesting because I have seen people almost repulsed by them, later become devotees. While skulls are widely available, there are a handful of crystal skulls that have captivated many and fueled intense controversy among archaeologists, scientists, spiritualists, and museum officials for more than a century. Their legends blend elements of mystery, history, and mythology.
A dozen of these rare crystal skulls in private and public collections, some crystal clear, others of smoky or colored quartz, are actual human size and of very fine detail, while others are smaller and less refined. All are believed to originate from Mexico and Central America. Many believe these skulls were carved thousands or even tens of thousands of years ago by an ancient Mesoamerican civilization. Others think they may be relics from the legendary island of Atlantis or proof that extraterrestrials visited the Aztec sometime before the Spanish conquest.
Among the most well-known legends is that of the 13 original crystal skulls, which are thought to play a significant role in the elevation of human consciousness. I’ll get into that below.
Joshua Shapiro, coauthor of Mysteries of the Crystal Skulls Revealed, shares an insight into what draws people to work with skulls, "We believe the Crystal Skulls are a form of computer which are able to record energy and vibration that occur around them...The skull will pictorially replay all events or images of the people who have come into contact with them (i.e. they contain the history of our world)."
Most archaeologists and scientists are skeptical, and I will get into that below, but in terms of pre-Columbian artwork and artisan work in the Americas, particularly among the Aztec in Mexico, skulls figure prominently in artwork and iconography, so the connection between skulls and Mesoamerican culture seems like a natural historical fit.
The Legend of the 13 Crystal Skulls
There is a channeling from Harley Swift-Deer Reagan about 13 original crystal skulls that says when all the 13 crystal skulls from the Americas are together again, there will be a dawn of a new era. All the collective consciousness and knowledge of the world will be available to humans. The skulls are said to represent cosmic significance: 12 of the skulls supposedly correlate with planets, while the 13th skull, located at the center of the circle, symbolizes collective consciousness. The belief is that once these skulls are reunited, they will trigger a spiritual awakening, raising the consciousness of the planet.
Harley Swift Deer Reagan claimed that when the 12 skulls were arranged in a circle with the 13th in the middle, representing higher knowledge, that is when we could expect this consciousness awakening. However, there is some ambiguity about whether these skulls come from our planetary system or from another. Initially believed to be located in South America and connected to the ancient Mayan civilization, the skulls are now thought to be scattered around the world.
There is a lot to say about Harley Swift-Deer Reagan. His lineage as a Cherokee and/or Navajo medicine person has been called into question. I was taught by my mentor Hibiscus Moon that he was of mixed ancestry with Cherokee and had trained with a medicine person in the “Navajo” tribe, or maybe Cherokee. This is the thing about these fake lineages: they are fake. They don’t make sense, and we repeat them as though they should be taken seriously. Not only did he not seem to have any Native heritage, he also didn’t train with any Native medicine people of the Americas. There is an extensive post from Friederich Abel, a journalist who spend time with the Navajo people in the Southwest. After he retired, he researched Swift-Deer for lineage and truthiness, and it seemed he was simply bamboozling the new-age community. I loved Mr. Abel’s research and care in this subject. As someone who never wants to subscribe to this culturally appropriated new-agey history, I feel it is my responsibility to debunk his channelings and really correct the record. Mr. Abel’s post was so comprehensive that I thought it important to give you an opportunity to read it yourself. The link to the original post is in this pdf, if you want to read other people’s thoughts on his research as well, but I find it compelling enough to nix all of Swift-Deer’s so-called channelings.
Back to the skulls, there are a number of these “original skulls” that travel around the country. They are human-sized, and each one of them is said to be a depository of certain information, so they need to communicate with each other. And this is the thing with skull work, having skulls in your collection helps connect you with that universal consciousness and the original 13 skulls. I have heard they need to be clear quartz crystal, but I know that many of us collect skulls of all types of crystals and stones. People meditate on their skull’s name, their certain knowledge set, and connect them to themselves and other skulls.
The legend centers around 13 original crystal skulls, though, some of which are said to have been “discovered” on archaeological expeditions. Others came to the owner through mystical means. Some well-known skulls are "MAX," "Synergy," and "Sha Na Ra." According to Jodi Serota, MAX’s caretaker:
"MAX is considered by many, including the British Museum, to be one of the rarest artifacts ever found. Estimated to be at least 10,000 years old, MAX was found in a tomb in Guatemala in the 1920’s. Used by Mayan priests for healing and prayer, the skull was given to Norbu Chen, a powerful healer of the Tibetan sect of Red Hat Lamas for use in his journey as a healer.
Max, along with other ancient crystal skulls, remains a mystery with regard to its origin, including who carved it and where it is from. Many who have been in the presence of these crystal skulls feel that they are from other dimensional realms and perhaps were used by ancient civilizations (including Atlantis and Lemuria) to sustain contact between Star Beings and the human race.
Others who have touched the skulls have had a range of experiences including receiving instantaneous healing, information, visions of other worlds and the experience of unusual sounds and expanded intuitive abilities. To this day, MAX is used as a tool for awakening consciousness and accelerating healing and growth on all levels."
You can read the fascinating history of Sha Na Ra here.
Origins & Doubts
The idea that these crystal skulls are ancient, perhaps originating from sunken civilizations like Atlantis or Lemuria, or even extraterrestrial sources, has been the obvious point of contention. Some suggest they may be from the Pleiades star cluster. However, historical and archaeological evidence often contradict these claims. When you have sources like channelings or impressions, it is impossible to prove lineage.
Despite being attributed to pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures like the Aztecs or Maya, none of the skulls in museum collections have been unearthed from verified archeological excavations. In fact, the type of quartz used in many of these skulls does not come from the regions where they were supposedly found. Archaeologists and scientists have determined that the skulls were likely made using modern lapidary techniques, which were not available in ancient times. For example, tests on crystal skulls held by institutions like the British Museum and the Smithsonian reveal that they were carved using rotary tools and abrasives standard in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Early Skull Discoveries & Debunking Myths
One of the earliest known crystal skulls brought to the British Museum in 1856 was a small artifact whose origins remain unclear. By 1863, larger skulls appeared, often associated with collectors such as the French antiquities dealer Eugène Boban, known for selling Mesoamerican artifacts. Boban’s skulls and others acquired during the same period were examined and determined to have been carved with modern equipment.
One of the most famous crystal skulls, the Mitchell-Hedges skull, is often cited in discussions about the legend. However, the origin story told by its owners, Mitchell-Hedges and his daughter Anna, has been largely discredited. They claimed to have discovered the skull under a Mayan altar in Belize, but documents show that the skull was actually purchased at a Sotheby’s auction from another collector, Sydney Burney. In 1970, the Mitchell-Hedges skull, or the Skull of Doom, was examined, and experts found it carved with modern tools. Despite these findings, the story of the skull’s supposed powers has continued to inspire fascination.
Modern Skepticism and Scientific Analysis
In the 20th century, many crystal skulls, including those housed at the British Museum and the Smithsonian, underwent scientific scrutiny. Advanced tools like scanning electron microscopes were used to analyze the skulls’ surfaces. Researchers determined that the skulls had been crafted using modern techniques, some as recently as the 1950s. For example, the Smithsonian skull was worked with silicon carbide, a synthetic material that didn’t exist until the late 19th century.
In fact, research from the British Museum points to most of these skulls being crafted in Germany, a region known in the late 19th century for producing detailed quartz and crystal pieces. The type of crystal used in the skulls is thought to come from Brazil or Madagascar, which would have been out of reach for pre-Columbian civilizations.
Given these findings and that none of these skulls have ever been discovered in official archaeological digs, the British Museum believes that the famous crystal skulls are likely not ancient relics but rather modern creations. All that being said, Richard A. Lovett and Scot Hoffman wrote a piece on National Geographic about Crystal Skulls notes, “The fact remains that no one knows for sure who made these skulls and when. And since there is currently no way to determine the age of such inorganic objects accurately, the mystery will likely continue.”
How to use Crystal Skulls
Despite the debunking of the ancient artifact myth, crystal skulls are still powerful tools for those of us who use earth medicine in our personal and professional practice. Crystal skulls are said to hold mystical powers and store ancient knowledge. Meditation with the skull helps unlock this stored information.
Conclusion
While the legend of the crystal skulls has woven its way into popular culture, even inspiring characters like Indiana Jones, much of the narrative has been debunked by modern science. The skulls in major museum collections are now understood to have been crafted with modern equipment, and their connections to ancient Mesoamerican cultures are questionable at best. While some enthusiasts continue attributing mystical significance to certain skulls, the broader archaeological community regards most crystal skulls as 19th-century fabrications.
I share all this information not to poo-poo beliefs in the skulls or their value but to say, do we need a mystical past to find messages in these powerfully carved healing tools? Crystal healers and metaphysical practitioners, maybe partially fueled by the allure of ancient civilizations, cosmic connections, and the tantalizing possibility of hidden knowledge stored within the skulls, have meditated with skulls, channeled incredibly rich and valuable knowledge and messages, and found healing with skull work. There are healers in my area who channel messages from different skulls. Others use them in their healing work. I certainly have and will continue to. I work with an obsidian skull for ancestor work, for example, and a fossilized coral skull for deep healing work with the Earth. While scientific evidence points to a more mundane origin, the mystery of the crystal skulls continues to captivate those who are open to their mystical or extraterrestrial possibilities.
There is an interesting piece in the 2014 Rock and Gem magazine about crystal skulls.
Episode 72: Positivity + Chronic Conditions with Julie Taylor
Today’s episode is near and dear to my heart, as Julie and I dive into living with Chronic Pain and Chronic conditions and positivity. I am so honored to introduce Julie Taylor. Julie is an Endo and IC Warrior who's passionate about mindset as medicine. Endo is an abbreviation for endometriosis and IC stands for Interstitial Cystitis (a painful bladder syndrome). While healing with these chronic conditions, she learned the power of crystals and energy to heal and how using a positive mindset as a tool to help manage her moods and emotions helped her body build resilience. Julie's formal degrees are in writing and early childhood ed, though the innate cheerleader at home in her heart drives her to write words, she hopes will spark a mood or mindset that might brighten things for others. Julie is the author of a children's book, Blue Hissy Highness and the Shiny Stones (you can buy that here). The book focuses on how a positive mindset can reframe and heal. It also reminds children that we can move toward mutual acceptance and forgiveness, but also the very adult reminder that acceptance isn't a one-and-done ideal—a lesson we need to revisit as we age. Julie also tends a website and an online space called Stone Spelling & Witchery, which is also the name of her private Facebook group Stone Spelling & Witchery to connect and share the metaphysical and mystical, celebrate earth and moon cycles, share spells, post favorite crystals, chat about witchiness, and ask questions. Julie curates a beautiful community that serves as a magical hub for joy and positivity.
Julie and I talk about living with chronic conditions and chronic pain, how we manage our spirit during times of flares. We talk about positivity, staying positive, toxic positivity or not toxic positivity, the benefits and downfalls of emotional bypassing, and what Julie has terms LoMo—or how to manage Low Moods and shift them to help with chronic conditions. Honestly, this is such a refreshing conversation for me—I could talk about pain and living with autoimmune disorders without censor. As someone who has to manage many chronic autoimmune conditions, speaking my truth about living with pain and fatigue feels like a long deep exhale, as I often just go through life sucking it up. Julie is so wise, intelligent, and articulate about her approach to living with physical challenges.
Here is the latest podcast:
You can also follow this link to listen on Spotify. Episode 72: Positivity & Chronic Conditions with Julie Taylor. You can also listen on any of the podcast services you can think of—Apple Podcasts, Pocketcasts, Amazon Music, I Heart Radio, Google Podcasts, Podbean and whatever you listen.
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In other news, this upcoming week, Julie is popping in for a guest post about Crystal Skulls. Monday, I will have a piece on the history of Crystal Skulls, debunking some myths, and talking about skullies in general. I will have a cool Tarot Layout using the Skull as a basis, and I will be sharing a journal entry about my meditation experience with my Fossilized Skull. All SKULLZ—this week!
Episode 71: Recovery for the Masses with Angie Yingst
In 1989, September was named National Recovery Month, and SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) holds events all month, as do state Depts of Drug and Alcohol Services. I am one of more than 21 million Americans in recovery from alcohol or substance use disorder. Substance Use Disorder does not just touch one segment of the population—addiction touches the lives of literally every socioeconomic class. This year, I trained to become a CRS, or a Certified Recovery Specialist, which is like a peer specialist for those seeking recovery. I have over 13 years of recovery from alcohol use disorder and I have been wanting to do a new series about recovery. I hope to do it maybe once a month called Recovery for the Masses.
What does that mean?
It means that I talk about what recovery from alcohol or substance use disorder is all about. We often talk about how everyone in the world should do the kind of work those of us in recovery do. I don’t think many people outside of our community realize the daily work we do just to stay sober or clean or abstinent from our addiction, whether that be alcohol or drugs or sex or gambling or food or pornography or whatever can be used to avoid feelings. I personally think my first addiction, and my hardest addiction, is work. I literally have times in my life where I have thought about work 24/7, obsessed about it, worked until I forgot to pee, eat, sleep, take care of my body. Addiction is addiction is addiction.
Addiction is often defined specifically in relation to how someone uses the substance. People with addiction use substances or engage in behaviors that become compulsive and usually continue despite harmful consequences. Read that again, DESPITE harmful consequences. Why? Because the effect of numbing out is better than raw dogging life. (Hey, I’ve been out here in the world raw dogging life for 13 + years now, and I can tell you it is hard work, people.)
So what is this first Recovery for the Masses episode like? It is a lot of disparate thoughts about recovery and addiction and learning how to feel again. I think I just opened my brain and let it flow. But upcoming episodes will be more succinct and thoughtful and follow a more linear pathway. I talk about how lucky I am to be an alcoholic.
By lucky, I mean this seriously and also provokingly, because alcoholism took me to my brink, to a place I had never been before—praying for death because the suffering was so desolate. And yet, I didn’t know it was alcohol that took me there. I was just suffering. I wanted to die. And the outward appearance of my life looked together, beautiful, and truly was everything I had ever wanted. But I couldn’t feel joy or gratitude. I was in a loop of suffering, and I couldn’t get drunk enough or sober enough. And so one day, I called the A.A. helpline and talked to another alcoholic, asking if they thought I was alcoholic. But she couldn’t answer that. We can only answer that question for ourselves.
Okay, I know it is not cool to quote J.K. Rowling, but I love this quote, "Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life." As Anne Lamott further goes on to talk about rock bottom, “There’s freedom in hitting bottom, in seeing that you won’t be able to save or rescue your daughter, her spouse, his parents, or your career, relief in admitting you’ve reached the place of great unknowing. This is where restoration can begin.”
We all hit rock bottoms in life. Maybe it is losing your job or breaking up with a partner or it is just that recognition that your life doesn’t bring you joy. Maybe it is realizing your hypervigilance might be from trauma. Or maybe your parents were alcoholic or drug addicted people or just emotionally immature. In the end, I think we all relate to rock bottom and facing that crossroads of—I have to change and that pathway is dark and I have no idea what it means for the rest of my life, or I can stay the same and if I stay in the same place, I get the same thing. Nothing changes if nothing changes. The choice is mine right now. I know for me and my drinking, I chose the latter until I just felt like that choice was death to a part of me that was curious, awe-struck, joyful, honest, kind…it is painful to share that, but that is where I was.
So desperation brought me to recovery. Not a desire to quit drinking, but a desire to stop my own suffering. If I could do that and have a glass of wine, I totally would. That isn’t in my cards. I come from a long line of drunken storytellers and comedians who turn into absent parents and mean drunks. I am recovering from alcoholism, but I am also an adult child and grandchild of an alcoholic parent and grandparents. I am recovering from them. I hit bottom in my own way. And sought recovery. Recovery brought me spiritual work, a community, gratitude, love, creativity, honesty, integrity…As Anne Lamott says, “...being sober delivered almost everything drinking promised.”
And in the end, you are here because recovery from alcoholism allowed me to pursue healing work because I sought healing work. I couldn’t get sober and not heal the other stuff. And in seeking healing, I found this part of me that had always been there—highly sensitive, intuitive, empathic and ready to be of service to other people.
Hopefully, though, this series transcends alcohol and substance use disorder and recovery. My intention is to transcend it, and bring you into the recovery part of life and open it up to everyone who is suffering from being human.
Love,
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Some links that might be helpful if you or someone you know is suffering from Alcohol or Substance Use Disorder or has a family member who is:
SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) https://www.samhsa.gov/recovery-month
Walk for Recovery – September 5, 2024 https://www.samhsa.gov/recovery-month/events#walk-for-recovery
President Joe Biden’s Proclamation on National Recovery Month 2024
Alcoholics Anonymous https://www.aa.org/
Carl Jung’s letter to Bill W., the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous https://wccm.org/outreach-areas/addiction-recovery/carl-jung-letter-to-bill-w/
SMART Recovery https://smartrecovery.org/
Recovery Dharma https://recoverydharma.org/
Refuge Recovery https://www.refugerecovery.org/
Alanon/Alateen https://al-anon.org/
Adult Children of Alcoholics and Dysfunctional Families https://adultchildren.org/
Supermoon in Aquarius
This Aquarius Supermoon, Monday, August 19 at 2:25 pm ET, is set to be one of our most potent Full Moon. Aquarius, the Fixed Air sign, is ruled by the staid, rule-hungry Saturn. But Aquarius is powerful and transformative too, because it believes so much in itself and it’s vision. Aquarius marches to its own drum, individual, innovative, boundary-breaking, but deeply cares about the collective. This Moon can connect you to your true authentic self; that is, if you move through and past fear of judgement, fear of being seen and possibly laughed at (hey, laugh back at them, isn’t it funnier how you look, dress and act like everyone else, sheep?!?l), fear of reputation-tarnishing, and just be you. Share your deep, reasoned values and step into your weird-ass self.
First accept yourself. Then find which freak flag is yours, or better yet, create your own freak flag, then you fly it. Wherever you are on your journey, this supermoon can supercharge it.
I keep hearing about this being a Blue Moon. My friend Julie Taylor at Stone Spells & Witchery just outlined why that is (2 full moons in a month vs. 4 full moons in a season are called blue moons in different traditions. This year, we are in the latter.) Blue Moon are like supermoons on steroids.
If you do connect with that idea, here is my Blue Moon layout from my book. Below it is a full moon in Aquarius layout. Pick your soul work!
This is your chance to connect with your true self - the authentic you that exists beyond fear, societal expectations, and self-imposed limitations. It's time to clear the path for a new way of being, rooted in love, acceptance, and compassion
Here is a tarot layout for the Blue Moon from my book The Complete Tarot Layouts, if you decide that yes, indeed, this is the Blue Moon and I want to work with it. Enjoy!
Episode 70: The Rat Chronicles with Dr. Amy Kittelstrom
Episode 70: the Rat Chronicles with Dr. Amy Kittelstrom
Dr. Amy Kittelstrom, is a professor of history at Sonoma State University and author of the book the Religion of Democracy (https://www.amazon.com/Religion-Democracy-Liberals-American-Tradition/dp/1594204853) . I asked this incredibly accomplished historian to talk about “Rats”, the rodents and the proverbial rats of the world. We talk about what it is like to be a single mother homeowner who needs some home repairs done and rats removed from the house. I am really grateful for the opportunity to share Dr. Kittelstrom, one of my closest friends, with my world.
or listen on Spotify here:
Recovering Empaths Anonymous
Hello, my name is Angie. I am a recovering empath. And I have a quote to share with you.
Honestly, I think about this at least once a week. When I studied with Pixie Lighthorse, it was powerful and humbling for her to explain this to our group of earth medicine practitioners. She said it just like this, "What if it is unethical to pick up on other people's emotions?" 🤯
Unethical?!?!
But but but…I can’t control who and what I feel! And besides, all these messy people who just avoid their work…THEY ARE THE PROBLEM!
Um. I deeply value ethics and integrity and boundaries. But omg, to discover you are a violator of other people’s boundaries takes some real cajones to admit. But that is the work we engage in here, no? We are engaged in meaningful self-discovery. I often say that I am on a fact-finding mission, and if I get stuck in the eddy of shame and guilt about not knowing something, then I will never change that thing.
If shame worked, we’d all be sober and thin. But it doesn’t and we aren’t.
There is two layers here. One is the one who is the empath, and the other is the one who is “empathed upon”. Last first, um, so, that is what I was feeling when people were trying to comfort me after Lucy died by saying, I KNOW JUST HOW YOU FEEL, Angie, my cat died last year, cue tears. Now I am comforting the grieving cat mom and I feel less understood than before. It is also why it enraged me when people were telling me how I was feeling or reading me without my permission, and why my empathy wasn't healing me. Feeling other people’s emotions did nothing for me, but cause an autoimmune disorder and crippling anxiety.
Being "an empath" was not my path to psychic work or third eye opening, but my biggest blockage. Understanding that it is my work to keep boundaries around feeling other people's energy, not theirs, freed me. Pixie reminding me that being an empath and feeling other people’s feelings made it impossible for me to truly hold space for them. It made me messy and erratic. It also wasn’t exactly true. I am intuitive. I am empathic. But that involves wild sweeps of assumptions about another’s emotions. I have no idea if I was ever right about another person’s emotions. How presumptuous to think I ever knew that. Maybe what happened instead is that person triggered emotions of my own that I hadn’t touched in a while, and I thought they were theirs?
Pixie’s challenge and argument provoker empowered me to feel able to hold and maintain my boundaries around empathy and start doing some work around my wounded childhood. Not only that, it helped me understand and face my own emotions when I stopped feeling other people's emotions. I had spent so much of my childhood trying to figure out adult emotions, reading faces and body language to figure out what was going on, or how I should act that empathy became a natural result of being emotionally neglected and trying to read people’s emotions. You just become hypervigilant in any changes in the force. And by force, I mean, the force of emotions. Kids who grew up with emotional or physical neglect are hyperaware of the subtle, microchanges in someone’s facial expressions, emotional energy, and body language that defines a good 70% of communication. Energetic hygiene means clearing your own filter...a filter used to perceiving others through wounding and people pleasing.
Ethics and integrity is so important to me as a healer, and engaging in it means looking at ourselves--what can I control? Me. But first I had to divorce the moniker Empath, and embrace myself as a highly sensitive neurodivergent person. As I am preparing my work teaching my first online Earth Medicine Mentoring Circle, I know boundaries, energetic hygiene and understanding our gifts is going to be my first stop.
Where are you on this journey?
Kyra and I talked about the dark relationship between narcissists and empaths on my podcast a few years ago.
Saying Goodbye to a Home
The Moon + Stone was featured on ApartmentGuide’s Saying Goodbye to a Home article. Check out the blog article here!
Moving Out and Moving On: Best Tips on Saying Goodbye to a Home, by Darby Mulligan on Apartment Guide, July 18, 2024
It is always fun to be interviewed about your approach and how to integrate Earth Medicine, shamanic approaches, and ritual into your daily life. This is my passion and my life’s work. Making the everyday sacred.Some friends are also featured in that piece, including one of my favorite crystal vendors Exquisite Crystals’ John VanRees Jr.
Leaving a home is like leaving a trusted friend, and there are some great tips and ideas on how to approach moving out of a home.
When I advise my clients during the incredibly stressful time of moving space, I try to help them find a way to make packing and moving sacred. When stressed, we sometimes forget to take moments to breathe and create space to honor. Whether that is doing a release ceremony before you officially move out, journaling and setting intentions, setting an alarm every hour to sit and thank your home for keeping you warm, safe, or protected, or creating a cleaning and clearing ritual, you can take a moment to honor and express gratitude around how this home served your Spirit, what you are ready to release, and what you want to call into your new home.
We can pack up and leave a space, but we always take our emotional baggage. A great way to process and release is combination of journaling and ritual. Journal questions:
1. Tell the story of your life during your stay in this home—remember the joys, successes, challenges, and energy this space gave you.
2. What did you learn while living in this space?
3. What are you ready to release emotionally, mentally, or spiritually?
4. What energy do you want to call into your new space?
Through this process, you can identify some things you are ready to release—maybe it is releasing fear, or stuckness. Then identify what you are calling in—if you are releasing fear of change, then maybe you are calling a sense of adventure and courage to be authentically you. Write out releases on paper. Some people like to use a little rosemary, lavender, tobacco or other herb on the paper, and tuck it into a little package. Take it outside and put it on a burn-proof plate or in a fire pit and burn. You can watch the wind carry the prayers of release to the four corners of the earth.
If you want to incorporate this into a cleansing ritual, you can take a bit of ash, mix with lavender, salt (Himalyan sea salt is nice, but you can use any salt, even table salt), and spread on the floor before you sweep and clean your space. Open windows if you can. Do this work mindfully, Visualize the energy here, the challenges, the experiences and items you identified for release, being swept away. Always sweep toward an outside door. You can use a dustpan, or sweep outside if it is acceptable. Just take the dirt and detritus outside to bury or put into a trash can away from your stuff.
Some great stone medicine allies for moving house are:
Citrine: Helps selling your home. Put a small citrine grid in a main living space. Even a piece in a central location can attract that incredible abundance energy, sunshiney feel and warmth you need to attract financial abundance to your life. I am partial to Congo Citrine and the Smoky Citrines from the Congo are a perfect addition to moving home, as they ground and attract abundance.
Carnelian: Bringing the energy since the beginning of time! Carnelian is a great ally for getting some energy to do the dang work of packing, cleaning, cleansing, plus it just brings so much joy and creative energy, what else do you need? Put it in your pocket and buzz around like you drank some espresso. I actually do put it in water when I need that extra oomph to get shizzle down.
Black Tourmaline: Helps with grounding and clearing as you make space for change. If it is on your person, it is like having a forcefield against other people’s stress and tension. I also love gridding my home in BT for extra protection when all kinds of people are walking through.
Lepidolite: Stress can really take its toll, so using lepidolite can help de-stress, rest, recuperate, and come at things with a new peace. During your packing breaks, place it on the heart or third eye, and rest or nap. Wake up with a new perspective. I also love it for tension headaches.
Amethyst: Protective. Visioning. The stone of acceptance, what is there not to love about our old fave?!?
Please check out the entire article at Apartment Guide.
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Episode 69: Workaholism, Self-care, and Dropping with Angie
In this episode, which I initially wrote as an open letter to my clients and friends, is actually a series of writings about workaholism, alcoholism, codependency, self-care, self-preservation, being of service to others and some of my history. It is split up in 6 parts. I hope it resonates.
I also mention some things. Last words are Those last four words are not mine. It is Ho’oponopono, the Hawaiian practice that combines love, forgiveness, repentance, and gratitude in four powerful phrases. I’m sorry. Please forgive me. I Thank you. I love you.
Links I mention:
https://www.amazon.com/Laura-Dernoot-Lipsky-Trauma-Stewardship/dp/B07VPNP3XF/
Blessed 2024!
During this episode, I talk personally about myself and my journey this past year, working with the Chariot, and moving into 2024 with the Card of the Year--Strength. I also talk about the biggest astrology transits of the year and how to work with them.
