Energy is the fabric of life, literally. Each cell and atom is made of energy, and they are the building blocks of everything else in our reality. This foundation makes it clear why energy transmutation is real. Transmuting energy is not “woo woo” or about suppressing emotions. Rather, it means consciously transforming emotional, mental, physical, or spiritual energy into a more constructive state. The concept appears across a variety of ancient traditions, as well as psychology, somatic healing, and modern self-regulation practices. Read on for a guide on how to transmute energy effectively, along with practical, repeatable ways to do it in daily life.
Energy transmutation is a practice and a process, not a one time action. It is a skill and a tool that gets easier over time. It’s not a spiritual shortcut or bypassing, but a deep experience that can change your life, bring growth, and improve your wellbeing in many ways.
If you are a sensitive person or empath, energy transmutation is even more important. Empaths tend to not only sense energy and emotion more than the average person, but they often take it on unwittingly from others. For more information about the 7 main types of empaths, read this blog here. And for support in protecting your energy, read this blog.
We are going to cover awareness, movement, breath, reframing, and intention, among other aspects of this topic.
It’s been said that energy never dies, it only transforms. This makes sense, since it is the fabric of life as I noted above. You may have also learned in physics class about how energy cannot be created or destroyed. For example, energy in the form of water molecules can exist as liquid water, ice, steam, rain, snow, or clouds.
Thus, learning to transmute our own or others’ energy into something more intentional is the way. Avoiding or denying it never works — or only does in the short term.
Emotions are a type of energy in motion, and the most relevant type for us. Perhaps the most unique, distinguishing factor of being human is this capacity to feel. Learning to process your emotions is an essential step to wellbeing. When you don’t, there are often consequences like anxiety, burnout, or physical tension. Make sure you are tending to your feelings through tools such as mindfulness, exercise, breathwork, and therapy.
Energy transmutation is not emotional suppression, and therefore ideally occurs after you have worked on emotional processing. It requires presence, quite the contrary to toxic positivity or avoidance.
The concept of energy transmutation derives from a plethora of sources and traditions, as I’ve alluded to. Here are a few of them:
The times when transmuting energy may be most useful or relevant include:
Effective energy transmutation tends to follow a similar sequence. Here are the three main aspects. Then in the next section we will go through a more detailed step by step framework.
The first piece in almost anything healing and mental health related is awareness. Becoming aware of the energy, emotion, or sensation that is currently here.
Now we must accept it. If not, suppression, denial, or avoidance occurs.
Another word for transmute is change, transform, or redirect. This is where we learn to alchemize energy into something different and more productive.
Now let’s get into the actual steps you can take to transmute energy, including what to expect and their purpose.
What are you feeling? What is coming up in your body or mind? Sit down and breathe if you can. Notice any sensations, thoughts, emotions, or messages. Do they have a shape, color, texture, sound? Gently investigate. Give yourself space and time, and be patient for clarity to arrive.
What has the energy revealed? Name it. Common possibilities include grief, anger, outrage, hurt, restlessness, fear, sadness. Resist the temptation to judge any of it as good or bad.
Continuing on with the theme of nonresistance, simply allow it to be there. Maybe the energy appears out in front of you, or inside your body somewhere. Maybe it’s more of a thought form swirling in your head, or an external entity of sorts. For more in this vein of how to block negative energy, read this blog.
Here’s where the transmutation comes in. Once energy is named and allowed, it can be transformed successfully. There are many safe and conscious ways to do so. In the next section, I will go over several methods of redirection you can choose from.
Try the following practical ways to transmute energy. They are especially potent when used with triggers, emotional spikes, and before escalation occurs (either internally or with another person). For more support around how to deal with emotionally draining people, read this blog here.
Breath, the simplest thing of all, has the power to change the state of the nervous system, bring you into the present moment, and discharge emotion. As a result, it can indeed shift energy. Some specific therapeutic breathing patterns are basic slow exhales, box breathing (in 4, hold 4, out 4), and 4-7-8 breath.
All energy, but especially stagnant or stuck energy, responds to movement. Physical expression helps move it out and transmute it. Options here include walking, shaking your body, stretching, running, yoga, lifting weights, and dancing.
Emotional reframing is a technique often used with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). You have the power to reframe and shift your perspective, and you can do this on your own or with a therapist. This is essentially claiming your power through a new, more positive or realistic story.
Start by identifying any unhelpful, heavy, or negative thoughts and emotions. Explore if you can know for sure that they are true, and explore alternatives. What could you replace them with or provide more context to? In this way, emotional charge can turn into insight or motivation.
Similarly to reframing, journaling can help transmute energy via release and new perspectives. It is a creative outlet that allows for problem solving, either through free writing or specific therapeutic prompts (questions). Once feelings and thoughts are written down, clarity often comes as well as a healthy distance from emotions. Art and music work in the same way.
One of the classic, original energy transmutation methods is visualizing with intention. As the saying goes, energy flows where attention goes. Intention is all that’s needed to affect energy (and it has nothing to do with forced positivity). So, play around with some visualizations. You can find endless options online, or go with your intuition. What does this energy or emotion feel amenable to? Maybe you imagine it morphing into effervescent sparkles and flying away!
Grounding is another type of intention with visualization often used with somatic therapy. It refers to focusing your energy into your feet or the earth. Walking barefoot outside on the grass is ideal, but just sitting in a chair or on the floor and imagining a root going down into the center of earth or into your feet works too.
Well done! You have worked your way through an education in energy transmutation. Take your power back and realize you can indeed transmute energy at any time. Energy makes up life, so when you change your energy you change your life. If you’d like some tips on turning down your overall energy sensitivity a notch, check out this blog next.
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