Crystals have been used throughout all of history as a source of healing power. Ancient cultures all over the world used healing crystals and stones to align, clear and transform their energy, spirit and physical health. The metaphysical powers of crystals were no mystery to most ancient cultures including the Egyptians, Mayans and Sumerians who regularly adorned their bodies, jewelry and buildings with these sacred stones.

If you’re looking to heal some aspect of your mind, body or spirit, there are essentially 3 primary ways healing crystals can transform your energy and resolve imbalance:

Clearing – Crystals have the ability to absorb and remove certain types of energy from your body. Like a magnet can pick up little pieces of metal shavings, a healing crystal can absorb negative energy from your body.

Energizing – Healing crystals and stones can also push energy into your body, mind or spirit through inducing resonant frequencies. This is similar to the way electricity works by conducting and transferring energy into an object. A crystal can harness energy from the quantum field and send it into your own energy field. Don’t worry, unlike electricity, this crystal healing energy is painless and not dangerous.

Balancing – Our world is very symmetrical. Look at the leaves on trees or even your body. The energy of our planet aligns things in a mirrored pattern. Sometimes, your energy may be misaligned and out of balance, and healing crystals can use the properties mentioned above, which are essentially attracting and repelling, to balance out areas of energetic disharmony.

Wear healing crystals. Since crystals and stones absorb, repel and transmit energy, wearing certain healing crystals can help you balance your energy field throughout the day. Think of the crystals you wear like taking a vitamin. You eat the vitamin and it nourishes your body for the entire day. Putting on your crystal jewelry in the morning or putting certain stones in your pocket is like taking your daily vitamin on an energetic level.

White/Clear: Clearing

Examples: Quartz, Moonstone, Selenite

Uses: White and clear healing crystals are very absorbent. They are perfect for learning and cleansing any type of energy. Many people use clear quartz in their meditation practices because it clears and calms the mind. Be sure to clean your quartz frequently because they do absorb so much.

Brown: Allowing

Examples: Tiger’s Eye, Petrified Wood, Halite

Uses: Brown healing crystals and stones are very grounding. When you think of brown crystals, think of a dirt path in the dark woods. This path shows you the way and protects you on your journey. That’s what brown stones do—guide, protect and clear the way. Use them when you’re trying to make room in your life for something like a new job or relationship.

Red: Energizing

Examples: Ruby, Garnet, Jasper

Uses: Red healing crystals have a lot of energy. You can remind yourself of this by thinking of your reaction to a red stop sign, a red traffic light or a red warning signal. Red invokes sudden surges of energy, so if you need a quick pick me up, you can carry around a red stone as a substitute for something unhealthy like a caffeinated beverage.

Orange: Releasing

Examples: Copper, Sunstone, Aragonite

Uses: You know when you feel really sick and you walk out into the sunshine and feel better? That’s because orange is simultaneously a soothing and energizing color. Orange healing stones release negative energy and clear out room for a boost of health energy. Use them when you’re feeling down in the dumps or you’re dragging your feet.

Yellow: Aligning

Examples: Amber, Sulphur, Mookaite

Uses: Yellow gemstones are great for reorganizing energy patterns. These healing crystals are perfect for times when you’re trying to instill a new habit or break an unhealthy one. Think of yellow stones like a really efficient made. They don’t just cleanse energy, they reorganize it.

Green: Balancing

Examples: Jade, Emerald, Malachite

Uses: Green gemstones are often used for physical healing because of their balancing properties. Often, our illnesses are a matter of too much of something. For example, digestive issues often stem from too much acid or too much unhealthy bacteria. While we need these things to survive, too much of them makes us sick. Green healing stones don’t get rid of negative energy; instead, they tip the scales in the right direction, redirecting our energy flows and balancing them out.

Blue: Communicating

Examples: Sapphire, Sodalite, Angelite

Uses: Just like the blue throat chakra, blue healing crystals are all about openness and communication. If you’re having trouble finding your truth, or you want the truth to be revealed about something, work with blue crystals for healing.

Indigo: Calming

Examples: Kyanite, Azurite, Lapis Lazuli

Uses: Sometimes, like gets really chaotic and you just want to relax and take it easy. Next time you want to treat yourself to a calming spa experience, use the soothing power of dark blue/indigo healing gemstones to mellow out anxious, fragile energy.

Violet: Uplifting

Examples: Amethyst, Iolite, Sugilite

Uses: Violet is one of the most powerful colors, because it vibrates at a very high frequency/wavelength. It is at the top of our color spectrum, combining both the warm and cool ends of all the colors we can see. In this way, anything violet connects you to a higher plane of existence. Violet healing crystals are no exception, and they are perfect if you need to be uplifted, want to induce a spiritual experience or call on higher powers to guide you.

Black: Protecting

Examples: Tourmaline, Apache Tears, Obsidian

Uses: Black healing crystals deflect everything. They are strong and resilient, so they make perfect protecting crystals. If you want to repel any kind of energy, use black stones to drive those negative energies away from you.

Pink: Loving

Examples: Rose Quartz, Morganite, RhodoniteUses: Pink makes us think of romance, and that’s because the color pink is a combination of passionate red and clarifying white. But you don’t have to use pink healing crystals just for romance. They vibrate a compassionate, loving energy, so use them for anything that needs a little bit of sweetness. They’re great for deflecting anger, drawing in romance or just making you feel the love.