Root Chakra (Muladhara)  

The first chakra is called the root and it’s located at the base of your spine.

The root chakra relates to your sense of security, finances, belonging and survival and forms your foundation. When this chakra is out of balance, chances are some or all of the others are out of balance, too.

This is where your determination and grounding come from. It’s also the foundation for all the other chakras and your overall well being.

The root chakra affects your fight or flight response such as your sense of danger, gut reactions and recognizing truth.

It’s associated with the color red. Considered a very strong color, it gets your attention which is why stop signs are red. The website ColorPsychology.org describes the color red like this:

The color red is most associated with energy, passion, and action. The color is warm and makes our minds think of our physical needs and our will to survive. It has a strong masculine energy and can often be linked to strength and power. Its color can help excite the emotions and motivate people to act, plus it signifies a pioneering spirit and leadership qualities, promoting ambition and determination.

When the root chakra is balanced, you feel safe, healthy and connected to your body, have a sense of belonging in the universe and have confidence that you can take care of yourself.

Conversely, here’s some signs to be aware of when your root chakra is out of balance:

1. You worry about finances.
2. Generally, you mistrust others.
3. You have a dysfunctional relationship with your birth family.
4. You’re always fearful.
5. You have a scarcity mentality.

Physical symptoms of an imbalanced root chakra could possibly be issues with your:

• legs and feet
• constipation
• lower back
• IBS/IBD
• fatigue
• cold hands and feet
• immune system issues

This is usually the first and most common chakra to be blocked which makes sense. It’s your very foundation and when anything shakes your foundation, your root chakra becomes blocked and out of balance. Flying in a plane along with changing time zones tends to disturb this balance, too.

How To Balance Your Root Chakra

There’s several simple ways to balance your root chakra to ensure it’s open and flowing which correlates to better health overall.

Yoga is wonderful for calming and balancing your whole system. Practicing yoga teaches you good breathing habits and helps with mindfulness.

Stones are very helpful to balance your chakras. Some good stones for balancing your root chakra are:

• Red Jasper for strength, stamina and stabilization
• Clear Quartz for healing and cleansing
• Smokey Quartz for grounding and intention

Energy healing such as Reiki or sound therapy will help you to balance an under-active or over-active root chakra.

For just a few minutes every day, visualize a red ball of light pulsating at your root chakra (your groin area). 

Eating root vegetables and red foods helps with healing and balancing:

• Red Apples
• Tomatoes
• Cherries
• Cranberries
• Beets
• Carrots
• Sweet Potatoes

Essential Oils For Your Root Chakra

Aromatherapy blends specifically for the root chakra are very helpful to cleanse and balance an over-active or under-active root chakra. Some good grounding essential oils are Lavender, Frankincense, Sandalwood and Ylang Ylang. 

You can diffuse them, inhale them or blend a drop of each together along with a carrier oil and apply to your tailbone area.

The Scented Balance Root Chakra Rollerball is created with a blend of oils to aid in balancing and opening this important base chakra.

Apply the Root Chakra Roller Ball to your tailbone area, behind your knees and your inner wrists. It is ideal to use when meditating, during your yoga practice or whenever you need to ground yourself.