The Vagina Saga Continues (aka Give Me a Break Already!)

 [Tl;dr (too long, didn't read) warning! Enter at your own risk! xD]

About three days ago, give or take, I discovered to my chagrin that I had yet another yeast infection. I took very small comfort in the fact that I hadn't had one since February, but it didn't stop me from being super pissed. It's interesting to note that in the few days before the infection really set in and made itself known, I instinctively did a mini-ritual where I worked solely with my sacral chakra; I must have sensed that something was off, and I was having some mild symptoms at the time, but as usual, only my hindsight was 20/20. Once I realized that I had the infection, I immediately refilled my prescription for Diflucan and bought a product called Yeastaway from a company called Boiron, which sells homeopathic medicine. Quick product promotion: it's a pack of 7 homeopathic vaginal suppositories that you use for 7 consecutive nights, and while it is SUPER messy (seriously, wear an overnight pad, or you will very much regret it), it is also super effective in relieving symptoms quickly. I tend to use homeopathic medicine in conjunction with modern medicine, but your mileage may vary!

But I digress; earlier today, I began experiencing what I believed to be early signs of a urinary tract infection (UTI), so I purchased some UTI test strips and some Cystex to help relieve some of the pain. Both UTI strips came up negative (I had to use two because I accidentally placed one pad-side down on the paper towel and I was unsure if that affected the results at all), and Thea advised me that it was most likely irritation from the yeast infection. Needless to say, the negative UTI strip results were very cheering, but the fact that I was so uncomfortable was really frustrating me; I realized that these medical issues were probably causing a ridiculous blockage in my sacral chakra, and that blockage was exacerbating my medical issues in a horrific Catch-22. I decided to do a combination healing spell and chakra cleansing/realignment specific to the sacral chakra in order to combat this problem.

I went on a trip to the East Village with my boyfriend earlier this evening, and we stopped in a little shop on St. Mark's Place whose name has completely escaped me (I'm sorry!). Usually when I walk into a crystal shop, the first thing that will happen is that my attention will immediately be drawn to a particular crystal for whatever reason; it's a pretty color, has an interesting pattern, etc. The next thing that will happen is I will either read on the placard or hear from the shop owner what the properties of the crystal are, and I will find that it's exactly what I need in that moment. That's exactly what happened with this crystal, which happened to be fire agate. Not only is fire agate perfect for the sacral chakra, but it also has a specific attribution of healing problems with one's sexual organs. I of course bought that crystal, and then went on to Enchantments to stock up on my usual chime candles, along with a white yoni candle to use for the healing portion of the spell. I decided to buy a new candle even though I already had a red yoni candle that had been used for a similar purpose because of two things; one, it was technically a brand new problem (even though I'd had the same problem before, it was happening at a relatively far-removed time from the previous problem), and two, I noticed that white candles were popular for uncrossings, and since the point of my healing spell was to uncross that area of my body and remove all the negativity, I felt that it was fitting!

Here you can see all of my spell ingredients, including an herbal mixture of hyssop, raspberry leaf, and lavender, as well as a moderately sized orange candle for the chakra cleansing/realignment and the white yoni candle for the healing spell. There's also my Hygeia and Uncrossing oils from Enchantments; it was actually Thea who inspired me to use Uncrossing oil for a healing spell, and considering the conjunction of the sacral chakra cleansing/realignment with that spell, it was a perfect fit! Next to the yoni candle is the fire agate, and behind that are two pouches; one black one in which I placed the remainder of the herbal mixture after finishing the dressing of the candles, and a red one which I created as part of the first healing spell and planned on recharging with this new spell. Finally, you can see my homeopathic medicine; as I mentioned in my post about the first healing spell, I've taken a great liking to blessing my medicine. It just makes sense!

For the actual spell itself, I carved the phrases "Healing," "Balancing," and "Realignment" into the orange candle, anointed it with both Uncrossing and Hygeia oil, and then sprinkled the herb mixture onto the candle. Next, I carved the phrases "Heal me," "Protect me," and "Release me" on the back of the yoni candle (I felt quite squeamish about carving the actual anatomical part!) along with a pentacle on the flat top of the candle, followed by an anointing of both Uncrossing and Hygeia oil and an application of the herbal mixture to the carvings on the back, the pentacle on the top, and the anatomical portion at the front of the candle. I placed the fire agate between the two so that it would be charged from both spell candles, and it was at about this point that I realized that I had no incantation ready to recite. I could feel that I had already built up quite a bit of energy just from creating the spell candles, and it felt right to simply recite what I had carved into each candle before lighting it. After lighting the candles, I anointed the fire agate and the medicine box with both Uncrossing and Hygeia oil and some of the herbal mixture.

After allowing the candles to burn for about 15 minutes or so, my boyfriend assisted me in deducing whether or not the spell had had any immediate effects by using a pendulum over my sacral chakra; at first the pendulum barely moved, but after placing the agate over the chakra and using a quartz point to help reactivate it, it began swirling in healthy, strong circles. I'm beyond confident that this spell is going to help me regain my sexual health (at least for the time being), and even as I speak, knock on wood, my UTI-like symptoms are gone. Hurray for witchcraft! haha

ETA: Just wanted to add a picture of the way my sacral chakra candle EXPLODED literally the second after I finished this blog entry: 

Elementary, My Dear Pagan! (Reconnecting with the elements)

 

These candles are the result of a month-long journey that I took from Full Moon to Full Moon, starting from the February FM and lasting until the March FM. The purpose of this month-long spell was to help myself reconnect with the four elements of earth, air, fire, and water. I was very much in need of a reminder that nature and I are one and the same, and I had been wanting to do something like this for a very long time. After gaining some inspiration from my friend Monica, I decided to get cracking!

I created a separate candle for each element, and for the week that I was working with that particular element, each morning and evening I would light the candle, say the appropriate incantation (which I got from Silver Ravenwolf's book Hedgewitch, which I borrowed from Monica), and meditate on the element for about ten or fifteen minutes. For the air candle, I used a yellow votive candle, anointed it with oil (I don't remember what kind unfortunately), and rolled it in lavender; for the fire candle, I used a red votive candle, anointed it with Fire oil that I purchased at the NYC Pagan Pride festival a few years back, and rolled it in crushed cloves; for the earth candle, I used a green votive candle, anointed it with Eucalyptus oil, and rolled it in salt; and for the water candle, I used a blue votive candle, anointed it with rose oil, and rolled it in crushed rose petals. I worked with the elements in that order: air, fire, earth, and water.

As an example of me using shiny things as talismans, I wore this pendant for the entirety of the spell:

I found this on an Etsy shop back in June 2011, about eight months before I even began to think about starting this journey, and I had worn it pretty frequently before then, but the moment I decided to commit myself to the process, I felt that this was the obvious choice as a representation of it. This happens to be one of my favorite pendants, and it's probably the one I wear the most these days, so I had absolutely no problem with wearing it non-stop for a month while I completed the venture! 

I found that with each week, depending on the element that I was working with, I noticed that element in relation to nature and in relation to its more "mundane" characteristics (for lack of a better term). During air week, not only was I paying more attention to the feel and scent of the air itself (the air had that "snow" feel/smell), as well as other scents (both pleasant and not-so-pleasant) of NYC, I noticed that anything sensory was very much amplified. My music seemed more meaningful, the scents more potent, the sights more beautiful. During fire week, everything having to do with creativity and passion was amplified tenfold; fire week also happened to correspond with my menstrual period, and that was definitely an interesting combination (I blame Sekhmet). During earth week, the focus was on the varying meanings of abundance, and also on mortality; one of my dad's friends died during this week, and as a result, my subconscious fears about death and mortality came to the surface. However, because of the element I was working with, I was able to work through and move past these issues. During water week, it rained almost the entire week, and I noticed that it was much harder to hide my emotions; I was wearing my heart on my sleeve that whole time. 

By the end of the lunar cycle, I felt that I had learned a lot, not just about the elements, but about myself. These were all lessons that I needed to learn, all experiences that I needed to have, and I am very happy that I decided to commit myself to this.

Earth My Body (A Healing Spell)

This is a healing spell I did in mid-February when I was having some issues under the belt (I think we've all been there at least once). I had a nasty yeast infection that I didn't realize was a YI until after it was already well in full swing (the bastard snuck up on me ): ). I had also been having issues relating to recurring urinary tract infections that I had finally cured with a three-month-long course of low-dose antibiotics, but I had some residual pain from having one after the other after the other for so long. I decided that my body, specifically my reproductive and urinary systems, needed a thorough cleansing and healing, and that was how this spell came to be!

The ingredients I used for this spell included the medicine (which worked like a charm, no pun intended), a red yoni candle, a blue chime candle, Hygeia oil (specifically made for women's health issues), raspberry leaf, and hyssop, all from the shop Enchantments located in New York City. There's actually an interesting story behind the blue candle, which is that while I was browsing the other candles on that particular shelf, this candle actually rolled itself towards me from inside the box where it was located...and nobody had touched or shaken that shelf. I took that as a sign! As for deciding to place the medicine on my altar, ever since I became more adept at crafting my own spells, whenever it came to healing spells, I would always charge any medicine that I was going to use, and I figured that this time should be no different!

For the blue candle, I carved my name and some symbols for healing, anointed it with the Hygeia oil, and rolled it in the hyssop/raspberry leaf mixture. For the red yoni candle, I honestly don't remember if I carved any symbols or anything into it...I think I decided to leave it be, since I didn't really like the idea of carving anything into my vagina, and simply anointed the anatomical portion with the Hygeia oil, along with the hyssop/raspberry leaf mixture. I did the same with the YI medicine, anointing the box with the oil and the herbs. After I was finished with all of this, I lit the blue healing candle, and then lit the red yoni candle with the blue healing one in order to transfer that healing power to myself. I can honestly say it worked wonders; ever since then (knock on wood), to date, I haven't had any women's health issues!

Salt and Thorns (protection spell)

This is a protection candle spell I did for myself a few weeks ago.  It was for both general protection and to repel negative energy directed at me by others, whether deliberately or unconsciously.  This was one of those happy instances in which my mood was perfectly in line with the aim of my spell, so everything seemed to fall into place easily and I didn't really have to think too hard about what to do.  I also performed it when the Moon was waning and in Scorpio, and I was really feeling that dark lunar energy.

I used a black candle which I'd carved with my name and various words and symbols of protection.  I anointed it with Szemmel Veres oil from Conjured Cardea's Etsy shop and then rolled it in fine sea salt.  Then I placed it in the center of a circle of sea salt on a black metal candle plate and surrounded it with a small piece of hematite, a compact mirror (one which I keep for use in spells), and a small twig with thorns.  (No, I don't know the type of plant the twig was from.  Although I have a few pieces of blackthorn, I didn't feel the need to use them for this spell.  I decided to use this tiny bit of twig that I found quite some time ago, fallen from a hedge on the street where I live.  It's been in my magic cabinet ever since, waiting to be called into service.)  I also poured a bit of spring water at the base of the candle

The music I used to raise energy was Hex by Jade Sol Luna, which is one of my favorite songs/chants to use for this purpose.

As I said, the timing worked out so that both my mood and the lunar energy of the day were perfectly in sync with the spell and everything seemed to work smoothly.  Everything I needed was just right there, waiting to be used.

In the background, you can see Hekate's candle and the figure of Kerberos that always stands beside it.  I didn't invoke them in working this spell, but they are always present on my altar.  There used to be a statue of Hekate there, as well, but one of my cats knocked it off the altar so it broke *shakes fist* and I have yet to find a replacement that I like.