Tarot is the rage because more and more people are using it for many reasons that go beyond predicting the future. Plenty of people use it for insight for situations they are in as well as for self-reflection. Some people use tarot to spark their own creativity. Tarot is a great tool to help clear out writer’s blocks but that topic is up for discussion in the future. What else can tarot cards be good for that go beyond doing predictive readings? Tarot cards can be a great tool for mental health. What? What does that even mean and how can that really work?
Here is the thing. When it comes to mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder, and so on, you need to be medically treated. You need to get the right treatment prescribed by your doctor or psychiatrist. And you need to seek therapy. That is the only way you can be treated effectively for mental illness of any kind. However, what about using tools in addition to that? The tools you need to use in order to keep working on your mental health in between therapy sessions that is.
Some people rely on meditation, others rely on meditation and journaling, and you can also use tarot cards. Tarot cards can be an excellent tool for mental health.
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How Can Tarot Cards Be Helpful When It Comes To Mental Health?
Think about this. When you pull a card, you are going to not just look at the card itself, but you are going to look at the imagery and the symbols around it. Those are what stimulate your intuitive and emotional side. And the cards you pull will act as a prompt for getting in touch with your emotions and feelings. You will explore it even more and process it as well.
In fact, using tarot for psychological purposes is not a new thing as the psychoanalyst that was well-known, Carl Jung, saw tarot cards as the perfect tool when it came to tapping into the subconscious part of the mind. You don’t even have to have ever taken a course in psychology or even know the tarot too well in order to benefit from this way of practice. Tarot can still be quite beneficial to you when it comes to helping keep your mental health in check.
Tarot can help you understand your feelings and not look at your feelings from a place of judgment which leads to acceptance. It will help you figure out what you want and understand what your values are, and what is really important to you as well. You can find out through tarot what is really holding you back from achieving what you want.
For instance, if the card that you pull is the Eight Of Swords, that is the card that represents seeing yourself as trapped, and not seeing a way out. But the reality is you are only believing you are trapped when it comes to this card. Being trapped is all in your mind. You really are not trapped. When this card comes up, the first thing you will see is the imagery of someone being barricaded by swords sticking through the ground if you are using Ryder-Waite-Smith styled tarot decks.
There is a good chance that you relate to this card. Then you will start to explore what it is that you feel is trapping you. Then you will realize that this card represents the feeling of entrapment is all in the mind. You see that it does not have to be that way, and then it will stimulate some ideas on how you can begin to feel unstuck. Chances are you won’t be able to come up with this on your own if you are really struggling with a mental illness. This is something to take to your therapist. And if your therapist is not open to tarot cards, then you will want to question the therapist you are using for the sake of having a lack of open-mindedness. With that said, your therapist does not have to believe in tarot cards, but a good therapist will understand they help you and will work with you regardless.
The tarot can really help uncover a lot within your psyche so you can go and explore it even further. The tarot can really help you understand your motivations, your behaviors, and experiences in a way that is non-confrontational. There is no judgment which is why it is also quite helpful. It helps you understand why you do the things you do and can lead you to solutions on how to better your habits in the long run.
I’ll provide another example. You pull the Nine of Swords. This is known as the ‘nightmare card’. This is the card that is indicative of excessive worries and fears as well as intrusive thoughts. And these thoughts can cause a lot of anxiety within. You want to resist these thoughts but you know the saying, what resists persists. Perhaps it is time to examine the thoughts and find out why you are having them. Talk about these intuitive thoughts with a therapist as they can help you understand them better as well, and give you tips on how to work with them.
You already know that tarot cards are beneficial for your mental health because they can help you understand what is happening within. In addition to that, there is absolutely no judgment by utilizing this method whatsoever. That is only one benefit when it comes to utilizing tarot cards for your mental health. Another excellent benefit of utilizing this method is that you can use them to develop a ritual.
Tarot Cards Are Beneficial For The Development Of A Ritual
When it comes to caring for your mental health, developing a healthy daily ritual is important to keep it strong. An idea is to start your morning off by pulling a card and looking at the message it brings. If you end up with a challenging card such as the 10 of Swords or the Tower, there is work you need to do to reframe your perspective on them. Instead of assuming you will have nothing but losses, upheavals, and challenges for the day – perhaps there is another reason you are pulling any of those cards. It does not mean you will have a bad day.
Maybe those cards are telling you it is a good day to prepare yourself for any unforeseen challenges that could emerge. For instance, this could be a good day to head over to the bank and to create a savings account for emergencies. If an unforeseen large expense heads your way such as an expensive medical bill that cannot be insured or a huge home repair, at least you will have savings to cover at least some of it.
Therefore, if you develop the ritual of pulling a card each morning, you can reframe your day based on the message your card brings to you. You may also be wondering if there are any particular decks that can work best.
What Type Of Tarot Decks Should You Use?
The tarot deck you want to use for mental health purposes is completely up to you. You want to go with a deck that speaks to you and that you relate to, and that has imagery you appreciate. There is no rule for this. If the tarot deck is not appealing to you, then it will not work well with you, and you may just throw in the towel and believe that this method does not help your mental health. Go onto Amazon or Etsy, or to your local metaphysical shop, and browse the different decks for sale.
If you like a particular deck that you see from one of those outlets, go to Google Images, and type the name of the deck. Then you will see samples of the cards in the deck and you can judge from there if it is right for you. If it jumps out at you and resonates then it is a good deck to try out.
The great thing about this practice is that it is completely up to you on how you want to use it. If you prefer to pull a card at the end of the day before you go to bed to see what message it brings for the next day, then do that. There is no rule with this. Just use it to help yourself, allow it to give you the guidance you need, and it is a great tool for your mental health.
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