Tarot, Etc.: Paranormal or Intuitive Methods for Self-Care #AtoZChallenge

Posted on by Astrid

Welcome to my letter T post in the #AtoZChallenge. Today I’m talking about a topic that may be a little weird to some of my readers. Tarot, huh? Yes, I am writing about how to use paranormal and intuitive methods in self-care.

The tarot is a bit of a floaty concept to some. I mean, many people associate it with fortune-telling and predicting the future, which in my opinion isn’t possible. I mean, as a teen, I used to believe in some degree of fortune-telling, but I don’t anymore. However, the tarot is really a method of tapping into your own intuition.

So what is the tarot? It’s a deck of 78 cards, each with their own symbolism and meaning. People who lay out a spread, usually pose a situation or question and then draw one or more cards. Each card then is supposed to give the reader insight into part of the answer to their question.

The cards are visual, in that they have an image on them. As such, they at first seemed meaningless to me. That was until I downloaded a pretty accessible tarot app that had explanations of each of the cards in it.

Like I said above, drawing a card cannot predict the future. However, reflecting on a card or spread can help you come closer to understanding your own innermost self. You don’t just draw a card or lay a spread and expect the cards to solve your problem. You still have control, but really thinking about the meaning of cards, can help you come to realize your most true feelings and thoughts.

In addition to the tarot, there are many other “paranormal” ways of taking care of yourself. I like to explore astrology. Again, laying blame on the stars for your shit isn’t going to solve anything. However, reflecting on astrology can help you understand yourself a bit. As a teen, I would also experiment a bit with the pendulum, but that didn’t help me.

I also as a teen had a large collection of gemstones. Though I mostly kept them for their beauty, I did believe in their healing power to an extent.

I follow a few tarot bloggers who use the cards to explore emotions, character and setting, sometimes even in creative writing. I love that.

Fairy

Posted on by Astrid

Fairy. I have always identified with this word. Or elf. Or changeling. The mythology of fairies taking human children and replacing them with one of their own, a changeling, has always spoken to me. It is a common early explanation of autism in the centuries prior to Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger. Obviously, I don’t agree with this, but I do understand it.

When Elena, one of my most spiritual alters, first emerged, she didn’t see herself as entirely human. She was the first to claim a fairy, elf or changeling identity. ChangelingGirl is one of my most commonly-used nicknames on bulletin boards.

I still like the idea that I have some spiritual aspect to myself. I don’t fully believe in Indigo children or the like. Besides, the theory of Indigo children is rooted in racism, usually favoring White children over those of color. However, somehow, there is some appeal to it. I do believe everyone has some spiritual aspect to them though.

When the body was a teen and Elena was most prominent, we had these weird superstitious rituals. We would’ve been open to pendulums and the like if we’d known about them at the time. More recently, when we did know about alternative stuff like this, I’ve tried to explore the tarot. I have several tarot apps on my phone. Of course, they’re marketed as for entertainment only. I like to use them to inspire my self-reflection. I don’t care that there’s no scientific proof.

This stream-of-consciousness piece was inspired by today’s word of the day challenge.

Gratitude List (November 30, 2018) #TToT

Posted on by Astrid

It’s Friday again! I am not a big fan of the week-end, but I like Fridays nonetheless. I don’t relly know why. Maybe it’s just that they’re blue in my mind’s eye’s synesthetic perception and blue is my favorite color. Who knows?

Friday also means it’s time to link up with #TToT again. Here are the things I’ve been thankful for this past week.

1. Tarot apps. I don’t really believe in the spiritual basis of tarot, but I wanted to learn it anyway to use as a thought-starter. I read up about it on some blogs, but didn’t know how to make it work for myself, as I, being blind, cannot use real tarot cards. After looking for a while though, I found some accessible-with-VoiceOver tarot apps. Of course, I still miss out on the visual aspects, but I can still reflect on the card meanings.

2. Gratitude journaling. Okay, yeah, I am doing this now, but I also have been doing it in an iPhone app this past week. I couldn’t manage to do it daily, but I managed two tims since installing the app on Monday. It does help me.

3. Yet another extra afternoon at day activities. This was just once though. Because my support coordinator was off sick and my support worker or mother-in-law couldn’t come either, the staff got the manager’s permission to let me stay at day activities on Wednesday afternoon. It was really nice.

4. Horseback riding with my mother-in-law. My support worker couldn’t come on Thursday to go riding with me, but my mother-in-law could. It was a lot of fun.

5. Dinner with my in-laws. Alos yesterday, I decided on a whim to go have dinner with my in-laws. I was scared my husband would be mad with me for it, but thankfully he wasn’t. We ate delicious macaroni.

6. My fabulous husband. Need I say more? I just love him.

7. Good food. My husband has been experimenting with healthier food choices. On Tuesday, he made zucchini noodles. When on Wednesday he made rutabaga (Swedish turnip) fries, I was a little suspicious. However, I liked it.

8. A lie-in on Thursday. I didn’t have anything to do except for horseback riding at 4:30, so I slept in till 11AM. I also listened to some relaxing music in bed.

9. Relaxing in the snoezelen (sensory) room. On Tuesday, I took my phone into the sensory room with me and listened to whale sounds and music while lying on the water bed. I also took time to relax in the sensory room on Wednesday morning.

10. Chatting to a former nurse. Yesterday, a former nurse from the acute psychiatric ward I spent sixteen long months on in 2007-2009, sent me a text message. It wasn’t intended for me, so I told him who I was and that he probably had texted the wrong Astrid. He started chatting to me anyway. I don’t have a lot of memories of that time, but I did remember him.

What have you been thankful for this past week?