Beyond Birth Trauma with Shannon O'Flaherty: From Burden to Brilliance: Shannon Discusses Why Having A Balanced Root Chakra Is So Important to Our Early Imprints Around Safety & Stability

In this episode I'm going to re-introduce myself and my story incase you are just tuning in now and talk about why having a balanced root chakra is so important to our early imprints around safety, belonging and stabiltiy.

 

My story: Mom as 3 months pregnant with me and started to hemmorage...her uterus was tipped. We're pretty certain she miscarried my twin sister at that point, although that information came out many many years later!

 

She had to lay in bed for therest of her pregnancy and stand on herheadevery hour on the hour to tip it back in place, so htat she wouldn't miscarry me.

 

So me, the baby, felt trapped. My spirit didn;t think it was a great idea to stay, and knowing what I know now about losing a twin, I was also grieving, which later explained a lifetime of deep sadness and loss that "technicnally" didn't really make sense.

 

When I finally decided to come out, a nurse panciked and tried to hold me in not permitting me to be born!  So I swallowed a lot of gunk and was very ill the first six months of my life not being able to digest anything.  It also created chronic neck problems.

 

The worst part was that I was not put onto my mother, but instead whisked away all ten pounds of me, jaundiced and put in an incubator for three days.  So me, the baby, felt after being trapped, then I wasn't allowed out, and then I wasn't wanted because I wasn't held and separate from my mother. And she also chose not to breastfeed me, so again lost out on that essential bonding.

 

This unfolding of events manifested in my central nervous system being affected, the doctors were concerned to see how that would play out. I'm fine, and only my mother would notice the ever so slight tremor I get when I'm overdoing things. It also manifested with me not trusting authority, disliking small enclosed spaces, and always wanting to be first, never feeling I could ever get enough holding. Digestive issues, until they discovered goats milk, and always extreme sensitivity to cold.

 

And boy did I ever walk on eggshells around my mother.  

 

I didn't find out about the being held in and being in an incubator part until I was 37.  I went to my first Transactional Analysis class and we had to write down what our mothers were feeling when they were pregnant with us.  I wrote down something like, "Trapped, frustrated and totally alone." I had other reasons for thinking those things but Mom happened to be visiting me in England at that point and I asked her what she felt and she said the exact thing I had written on my paper.  She explained her feelings at the time.  And then she told me the rest of my birth story and I cried in her arms until I had salt trails on my face.  It explained so much about our relationship.

 

It's essential to ask yourslf and your mother how your birth went?  How did your entry into this world shape your sense of security?  Do you feel supported by life, or are you always on guard?

 

I have a pdf of birth questions to ask your mother, father, grandparents, spirit!  You can have access to this on my website: shannonbtb.com or shannonoflaherty.com

 

After the break I'll talk about the root chakra which is all about our Foundations of Safety.

 

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Chakras are energy vortexes shaped like spinning funnels of bioenergetic activity in 7 key areas of our bodies. We also have many secondary or mini- chakras too. The term chakra originates in India but many different cultures work with this fascinating field where physical, emotional, mental and spiritual energies all come together.  Chakras don’t just interact with each other, they also have the potential to connect us to the energetic interaction of our world and universe, connecting spirit and matter, mind and body.

 

Each chakra influences the organs associated with it, ligaments, muscles and veins and any other body part within it’s field.  They also affect the endocrine system, which is a network of glands and organs that produce and release hormones into the bloodstream to control many of our bodily functions.

 

Chakras are also strongly connected to our moods, personality, belief systems, physical and psychological evolution and spiritual journey. Basically they are an intrinsic part of our overall health and wellbeing which is why we want them to be in balance and flowing properly.

 

Nowhere is the chakra journey more apparent than during pregnancy as new being manifests in the mother’s body and is brought into the physical realm through the multidimensional initiation of childbirth.  Learning about the passage of the baby through pregnancy, birth and the first 6 months to 2 years of life and the significance for the baby’s foundation and birth imprint is truly empowering knowledge.

 

Understanding our chakras as a map for rediscovering our inner landscape and re-energising the centres that our ancestral legacy, unconscious conditioning and life experiences have closed down, helps us understand and cultivate our own energy preventing illness and a multitude of possible issues.

 

Our root chakra is located at the base of our spine above the perineum, below the cervix and in front of the coccyx. Basically between our front and back privies.

 

 It is our foundation of personal power, well being and our connection to the Pachamama (Mother Earth). And just like a tree with its beautiful roots connecting it, it lets us know that we are connected and safe to grow into our highest potential.

 

On a literal level its about our safety, security and primal needs for survival; ie: food, shelter, safety and security.  It helps us meet our daily demands of what we need to survive. If its in balance we’ll stay self confident and out of fear.

 

Anatomically, it governs our bones, blood, our immune systems, the colon, rectum, vagina, lower pelvis, pelvic floor, base of spine, legs and feet. It’s domain is also the hips, our vitality, stamina, strength and energy. It also governs the sexual and birthing instinct and has the power to open the vagina to receive the sperm, to release menstrual fluid and to birth babies.

 

Emotionally its about feeling protected, and having strong foundations about our groundedness, stability and trust, as well as our survival and security. Our emotions and physicality go together because if our energy is out of whack, it will affect our emotions.

 

Mentally its about our foundation, our contentedness and connection to the earth. It holds the space for us to connect to the tribe or family we were born into even if life’s journey has pushed us in another direction.

 

With a balanced root chakra we’ll stay out of worry and attract all that we desire with a quiet sense of strength and confidence about us.  We’ll also be reassuring for others to be around because they’ll feel that calmness and easy going -ness about us. 

 

The beliefs about the root chakra grounds us to the earth, its about our abundance. It’s also about our inability to let go, and all the lack, scarcity and abundance issues you may have, live here.

 

When its not working properly there’s a lack of vitality. When we feel vulnerable about our survival or safety, victimised by society or within our family or clan, this chakra may need some stabilising. If a woman feels unsafe and frightened, or isn’t grounded or feeling safe and secure, her labour may become slow and difficult or even stop altogether if cervical regression arises from stress.

 

We may have food and health issues, or feel spacey or un- grounded. We could also have problems with our bones and blood.

 

In Sanskrit the root chakra is called Muladhara which translates to "root of existence". It's made up of two words: mula, which means "root", and dhara, which means "flux". 

 

The Root chakra is our foundation and beliefs related to the root are about: security, safety, anything around work, order, routine, whether you feel nurtured or if you nurture yourself, what your nutrition is like, fairness, organisation, honesty, flexibility, responsibility and health.

 

When you regain balance in your foundation in all of those qualities, your spirit will inspire all your own personal ways for maintaining that balance.

 

Some ways that root chakra issues could potentially manifest: Physically, our bones are the structure of our bodies.  They literally hold us up and without them we’d just be a big puddle of skin and organs.

 

Our ligaments, muscles and nervous system are all based on the bones because the bones are the core of all that we are! Bones can pertain to sacrifice and worthiness issues like not feeling supported, deserving or worthy and not trusting.

 

Our colons hold onto old issues like anger, resentment, fear, guilt, old abuse ad the ability to accept love.  So if you have any issues like irritable bowel, or any rectum issues like haemorrhoids (unless you’re pregnant which is common in pregnancy).  It’s all about eliminating old stuff.  All the old stuff that holds us back in life.

 

We may also feel frustrated because things we intellectually know, we still somehow cannot break out of our habitual patterns. Until now! Stick with me, you’ll soon learn how to grasp your destiny by the reins.

 

Because the root chakra also governs our feet, hips, knees and spine which is all about moving forward, standing tall and feeling secure and safe to step out into the abyss of the unknown.

 

So if you are constantly making excuses, that chunks down to fear. If you have an inspired moment, a real “AHA” moment, what often happens is that we immediately begin talking ourselves out of it instead of taking action and trusting. Your knees and bones may ache. 

 

If you have an injury in your root chakra, like a broken tailbone for example, that is also a sign that your root may be out of balance.

 

You are looking for the repeating patterns in your life.  You may not connect all the dots because underlying circumstances may be different, but the energy imprint could be the same that creates a repeating pattern.

 

Emotionally because blood is the real communicator in our bodies it’s our lifestream and hormone running through our bodies communicate to us that we are having a life experience!

 

It’s connected to how we perceive ourselves, so if we can speak up clearly and express ourselves free from fear, our blood s flowing efficiently.

 

But when we have low self perception we probably have some sludgy blood flow going on on too.  Since blood goes through all of the bodily systems our of our emotions come into play in the circulatory system.

 

Because blood carries nutrients, hormones and beliefs with it, if it’s not flowing properly these vital nutrients and messages are not sent.

 

So our food and health issues or feeling spacey and ungrounded could come into play.

 

Ancestrally the baby in utero picks up everything the parents are feeling and going through.  In fact we hold at last 7 generations of cellular memory from our ancestors! With every new client I clear foetal memories and in my course From Burden to Brilliance you learn how to do that for yourself.

 

This is why your birth experience impacts your life so radically.  Your imprint could have already been set by your ancestors, and what you experienced in utero and when you were born and the first two years of your life, creates a kind of template for how you will perceive the world with your baby self perception without having the full picture.  And we humans love to be right, so we set up a self fulfilling prophecy for ourselves even if it doesn’t serve us!

 

After the break I'll talk about how literally wecan be informed about the state of our root chakra! And before we leave I'll give you some root chakra downloads. You can find me at shannonbtb.com or shannonoflaherty.com

 

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On the literal level sometimes our homes can be much more revealing to us about whats going on energetically in our bodies! That’s because our root chakra provides the links between our energy system and the physical world and is our base for our life force energy.

 

Because our root chakra is our foundation, we want it to be solid. What about the land your home was built on? Was it once a sacred site? Are there angry spirits who don’t want you there?  Is there a lay line disrupting the energy? Was your building once a psychiatric hospital or some other institution?  Did someone die there?

 

Our homes represent our safety, security and survival. You may be having structural problems in your house.  You may be homeless!  You may be in a huge transition.  If there’s any water damage, burst pipes are an immediate attention grabber for root chakra issues. Flooding can also be a problem, but someone with a balanced root chakra living in a flood plain will have flood insurance and solutions in place to cope with the potentiality of it ahead of time. Along the river in New Jersey in the states expensive houses are built on floats so as the river rises, so do the houses, avoiding being flooded.

 

Mold is also a big issue and creeps in stealthily.  It may already be in your house when you buy it which could mean the landlords have root chakra issues, but really you have to ask yourself, “Why did I attract this house?”

 

What does your garden look like?  Filled with weeds or colourful flowers?  What about the facade of your house?  Does it need a coat of paint?  Just like people, if we walk around presenting ourselves all dishevelled and shabby, we will not give off the energy of being self nurturing.

 

People avoid transients because they do not feel safe around them, because they are generally not grounded, protected or particularly safe if they are sleeping rough.  Our houses reflect the same energy.

 

Our root chakra is about our inability to let go and it holds all the lack, scarcity and abundance issues you may have.  When it’s blocked, you may have a lack of vitality.

 

Do you have stuff everywhere even if there is a dedicated place for everything? A certain amount of clutter is understandable, busy lives and having a house that’s comfortably lived in. But when we don’t care about our possessions and simply toss them anywhere it’s a reflection of our deeper selves. 

 

Do you have laundry that’s been sitting there for weeks? Is there so much clutter that you cannot open doors all the way?  How is energy supposed to flow? Have you ever seen a house with a hoarder living there?  When we suppress our inner emotions they get impacted and it prevents us from opening all the way to reach our potential and shine our brightest light.

 

What about broken things? Get your tool kit out and make repairs! Either fix it, or chuck it!  You do not want broken energy around you.  It’s the same with ourselves, why go through life carrying around something that’s broken, when you have the power to fix it?

 

What about your closet…keep those clothes circulating! It’s all energy, just like money.  You’ve got to keep the energy moving.

 

And finally, how’s the state of your refrigerator? Do you have leftovers that have gone mouldy? Do you need a big clean out? Because our root chakra is also about our physical health and nutrition, and because food comes from our beautiful Pachamama (Mother Earth) and we’re connected to the earth, how you respect you nutrition and food health also will enlighten you to root chakra issues.

 

Okay here's a few root chakra downloads.  Have a sip of water, put both feet flat on the floor and be open to receive.

Say YES out load if you want the download: 

I know I have all that I need.

I know what it feels like to live without irrational fear.

 I know how to live without resentment.

I know what it feels like to be grounded.
I have God’s definition of what it feels like to be safe. 

I have God’s definition of what it feels like to be protected.

I have God’s definition of what it feels like to be secure.

There is always enough of everything to go around.

 

 

In my course From Burden to Brilliance you receive over 60 beleifs for each chakra.  It's life changing stuff and extremely empowering.  Book a free 20 minute call with me! shannonbtb.com or shannonoflaherty.com