Colors For Life

Have you ever observed a young child with their coloring book, using strokes that appear to go in all directions and colors don’t reflect reality? And, did you happen to notice how satisfied maybe even happy they looked when they were finished? Often as children, we inherently know what we need to do to stay healthy and happy. Get ready to discover the quickest, simplest, and most enjoyable way to decipher your internal dialogue and use it to bring about healing, clarity, and peace.

The basic premise used in this exercise is that we are energy and are surrounded by energy. Each frequency at which this energy vibrates correlates to a color. Energy emanates from us and at the same time we are absorbing energy; every situation is an exchange of energy between us and our environment. Some color therapists even go as far as to say that this is why we display angry people with a red head, or sickly people as green. The thought is that these expressions got started because at some level people feel this color vibration emanating from the person. Some studies have been conducted where a group of people with violent tendencies are surrounded by a color to calm them. For example violent criminals being put in a room that is all pink. These studies have shown that the color does in fact have an effect on the person. These same studies show that when the same violent people are removed from the pink room their violent nature slowly returns to its original levels. This tells us two key things: First, that the effect of color is real; second, that in order to sustain the desired effects it takes more than just one application. The reason is that the person’s energy needs to be re-programmed until it can sustain itself at the new frequency.

This brings us to how we absorb color. It is a well known fact that our senses are always registering information, even if we are not conscious of it. In recent years the awareness of color has increased from choosing color schemes that look best on us based on our personality type, to using color to improve our moods and health.

A study by the Psychology Department, University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand tested the effects of color on preschool children. The results were positive. The physical strength and the mood of creative production were measured for six preschool children under six colored room conditions in an ABACAB design. Physical strength and high positive mood were demonstrated in a pink-colored room while the reverse was found in a blue-colored room. The results were interpreted as supporting the differential arousal function of colors.

A San Diego State University School of Nursing controlled study in 1982 involved 60 middle-aged women suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. The patients placed their hands into a box with a blue light and were exposed for 15 minutes. This resulted in significant pain relief which improved with further exposure.

This workbook uses coloring exercises to trigger your creative state of mind and help you better understand the language of your internal dialogue. The ensuing dialogue can help you address those problems that are causing stress in your life.

The first part of the exercise is to select the color from your crayon or pencil box that most appeals to you. The assumption here is that this might be the color you are vibrating at or it may be a color that you are lacking. If this is the color you are vibrating at then the color will come about in strong strokes. Depending on how strong your vibrations are, you might feel like taking the strokes beyond the boundaries of the design on the page. What is happening is that you are venting this energy by expressing its representative color. If on the other hand this color asks for soft timid strokes, then what is happening is that your energy is expressing the need to be “fed” this color.

The second part of the exercise is to decipher or translate your picture. The translation guides provide suggested actions on how to respond to what your sub-conscious has expressed. As you will see, once you get into the exercises, the suggested actions go beyond the use of color.

Each of the nine designs included in this book have a symbolism aimed at addressing specific aspect of life. The title of each design explains the aspect to which it speaks. It is not expected that you color the pages sequentially. Rather, focus on an aspect of your life that you want to explore. Review the titles of the drawings and select the one that is closest to what you want to work on.

A suggestion on how to approach this exercise: don’t read ahead to the translation guides. Look at the design for a few moments, then at your colors. In this part of the exercise you are learning to listen to your inner-self. Don’t put expectations on what color will emerge, just allow your sight to guide you. Gaze over the various colors and see which one stands out. Or, you might find yourself coming back to a color over and over. Or, a color triggers a reaction in you. All of these indicate that you are reacting to that color, so listen to it without judgment. After you finish your coloring you will have lots of time to analyze what you did. For now, give the exercise a chance to start this dialogue between you and your energies. At some point during your color session you will feel that you don’t want to color anymore. Again, listen to yourself and stop even if your picture still has blank areas. We are not looking for pretty pictures; this is not an art exercise. We are looking for clues as to the status of your energy.

Welcome to this adventure with colors, and enjoy the journey.