I have been obsessed with crystals for as long as I can remember. In fact, one of my first memories is counting crystal eggs on my mom’s bed. My mom is a doctor of Chinese and Integrative medicine and uses them in her practice, and just like myself, she has been in love with crystals since her childhood. I grew up with giant rock specimens gridding the house, and my mom even had several crystals placed in the cement when our pool was being built. We have black tourmaline by the entrances of our house to protect from negative energy, selenite in every windowsill to release stagnant energy, and enough rock salts to make any person’s blood pressure shoot through the roof. It is safe to say; my mom and I have felt a connection to crystals far before it was “cool” and Instagram worthy.

In recent years, I have noticed a growing trend with the millennial generation displaying an obsession with crystals. Whenever I go to farmers markets, I see 20-something year old’s wearing their Alex and Ani jewelry, All Star Converse sneakers and Lulu Lemon workout clothes snapping Instagram and Snapchat stories of these rocks. Now don’t get me wrong, I will never pass up the opportunity to take a photo of a beautiful spirit quartz, but I was raised in a house which honors the healing properties of stones, never considering them for a “like” on an image. In fact, this seems like quite a paradox. Crystals are supposed to ground, center, and protect you from the negative energy in the world, yet social media tends to promote waves of negativity.

So why is it that a generation obsessed with Instagram and their online presence suddenly feels a need to be around crystals? The answer is simple: crystals are made of minerals which affect our bodies and calm the mind. When our phones light up with notifications, the brain releases a series of dopamine, a neurotransmitter, which is often released when given a reward and during the intake of drugs. Therefore, your cell phone can become addicting, because accumulating “likes” and comments creates the same reaction in your brain as drugs do.

Regardless of whether millennials feel a connection to crystals due to the promotion of energy healing or simply jumping on the bandwagon, there is no doubt that crystals do in fact have healing properties. Below are some of my personal favorites!

• Kunzite is a source of lithium which has been used to treat depression. Lithium is used in batteries to power cell phones.
• Tourmalines carry a high negative charge and are said to help remove negative energy. They were even used to clean chimneys.
• Pearls are often used to help calm the mind and treat acne in Chinese medicine.
• Amethysts are protective stones and are often used to treat physical pain and release emotional issues.
• Salt has been used in Chinese medicine to help ground the body down and clear the mind of anxiety.
• Quartz has been used as a generator, moving and creating energy for hundreds of years. It is even used in watches and radios.

If you really want to try energy healing, I support that decision 100%. In fact, one of the reasons I LOVE going home is because I get to have crystals lined up all around me which never fails to center my mind. If you are shopping for crystals do your research beforehand. It is also important to hold each crystal and feel how it resonates with you. Each crystal carries a different healing property and holds different energy which you might not react well to. For instance, selenite is great for moving stagnant energy, but I can only be around it for short periods of time before I begin feeling uneasy and overstimulated.