Intuition, the Sixth Sense
-- A tool for healing --

by Carol Ritberger, Ph.D.

Continued from Part I

The best way to start the process of becoming your own diagnostician is to learn how to read your own energy and body. Start by paying attention to how your intuition communicates with you. Does it reveal itself through your instinctive feelings? Perhaps it is a gut feeling or a sudden flash of insight, or maybe even those goose bumps you get when you "just know that you know". Pay attention to the impressions that your intuition sends you. Listen to how it tells you that something is out of sync. When you get those feelings, ask your intuition where in the body you are out of sync and what is causing it. If you pay attention, it will even tell you what is needed in order to restore balance. When you are using your intuition to read your body, it is always important to trust your first impressions. They will tell you precisely what is happening within the body. Do not dismiss any impression even if it is disturbing. The impressions you receive first provide a clear picture of what is really occurring, as they have not yet been distorted by your emotions. If you get the message that something is wrong, then act on that information. Your first impressions will always serve you well, and nine times out of ten, they will be right.

You do not have to literally see the human energy system as I do in order to be an energetic diagnostician. You can develop a skill called symbolic sight. In fact, many gifted healers and intuitive diagnosticians work from symbolic sight. Symbolic sight is where you look for the symbolism of what is happening in your life and connect that symbolism to what is happening within your physical body. For example, when a person feels that life is beating them up, then their body responds by feeling beat up and tired. When craving sweets, then maybe they are craving sweets in other parts of their life such as self-esteem, financial abundance, love, and relationships. Breathing problems symbolize the feeling of being stifled. Being financially strapped shows up in the lower back. Inability to face life shows up through mental illness. Never being good enough manifests as autoimmune diseases and anemia.

Diagnostic Keys

Learn to listen to your emotions. Spend time with them. Do not rush to hide them or make them go away. Emotions provide direction. They are indicators that send very clear messages of how you are feeling both energetically and physically. If you are feeling positive and optimistic, then your energy level increases and your whole body responds by feeling good. If you are feeling depressed, then your energy level decreases; your body becomes tired and lethargic. Confusion causes a chemical imbalance in the brain, and your thinking becomes cloudy. The feeling of being out of control causes an energy loss throughout your entire body. Resentment drains energy from your stomach area. The feeling of being taken advantage of causes a loss of energy in your heart. Anger toward others drains the lower extremities of energy. Your emotions can even tell you if you're holding on to old emotional hurts and if you are using those hurts to manipulate others to get what you want or to feel sorry for you.

Begin to pay attention to how you interact with the people in your life: family, friends, and co-workers. Do you surround yourself with people who energize you or drain you? How do you react emotionally to these types of people? Do the people in your life support you, or do they want you to be dependent on them? Do they enable you to stay emotionally wounded, or do they encourage growth and change? Always listen to your intuition when it comes to dealing with others. It will provide a clear picture of what is really happening. Learn to read your behavioral patterns when around others. If your behavior is submissive, then you will attract people who will try to control you. If you send out the message that you are emotionally vulnerable, then people will sense that and take advantage of you. Is your behavior telling people you are a victim? If so, that might help explain why you keep attracting individuals who are domineering and aggressive.

Body Scanning

Take a daily pulse check of your energy body by doing a body scan. The body-scanning process allows your intuition to participate in your energetic evaluation. It also hones your skill to become sensitive to energetic imbalances. Through the scanning process, you will receive impressions that can tell you where you are both energetically and physically. I find that my morning meditation is the best time for me. Start at your head or crown and work your way down all the way to your toes. Spend time in each section of the body. Run your hands over each part to locate any energy protrusion or depletion. The body is very effective in communicating where there are any imbalances. It will usually convey these imbalances physically through our aches and pains, and areas where we feel discomfort. If a blockage is occurring, then there will usually be some kind of inflammation or heat buildup in that particular part of your body.

The technique of body scanning also fully utilizes your intuitive awareness by bringing attention to the impressions it sends. When you get an impression that alerts you that there is something out of balance, spend time with that impression. Determine where in the body you are sensing it. For example, if you are scanning the body intuitively and get an impression that your stomach is on fire, spend time exploring why it is occurring in this area. Ask yourself some questions. Could the imbalance be caused by something you ate? Have you been under a lot of stress lately, and is this where you are carrying your stress issues? Have you been suffering from frequent indigestion for a prolonged period of time? Is the severity of the discomfort enough to cause your mind to become alarmed? If so, then it is probably time to have it checked out by a physician or a holistic practitioner, depending on your belief system. Remember, the body will tell you what it needs; you just have to take the time to listen.

You can also keep an energy journal. This will help track your energy cycles. Each of us has them. Some of us are morning people, while others are night owls. Some people get their day started energetically at three o'clock in the afternoon, while others are ready for a nap. Know when you feel energized and when you are energetically low. Begin paying attention to what or who drains your energy, and if at all possible, stay away from those things or people when you are in a low cycle. Avoid tasks that require large amounts of energy to be expended in your down times. Stay away from having to deal with emotional issues when you are feeling low. It is too draining, and the results will be less than desired. Also, never deal with emotional issues before you go to sleep, or you will wake up the next day energetically drained and physically tired. Try to deal with emotional issues when you are in your high-energy cycle.

When you first start the process of being your own diagnostician, it may take a bit of getting used to. If you give yourself time, it will become second nature to you. You will find the rewards to be many. There is one thing, though, that I must warn you about: once you allow your intuition to become an active part of your life, you will change. But change is what life is about anyway, isn't it?

This article was excerpted with permission from the book "Your Personality, Your Health", by Carol Ritberger, Ph.D., published by Hay House Inc., Carlsbad, California, USA. www.hayhouse.com.

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About The Author

Carol Ritberger, Ph.D., is a medical intuitive, bioenergetic diagnostician, and nationally renowned lecturer who holds a doctorate in theology. She helps people understand how emotional, psychological, and spiritual energy can lie at the root cause of illness, disease, and life crises. Carol can literally "see" the human energy system to identify where there are blockages that affect the wellness of the physical body. She may be contacted by email at carol@ritberger.com  and through her website at www.ritberger.com.