Caring for the Soul: Therapy at Iris Healing Arts

Playing in waterfall in forest helps us care for the soul.
Soul care includes attuning with nature.

In this post, you will discover creative ways to nurture your soul (psyche) and heal trauma, grief, anxiety, depression, and illness. Caring for your soul will also help you recover the feeling of disconnection from your higher self.

Caring for your soul is a deeply personal practice. We all nurture our souls and spiritual natures in our own unique ways. It’s like discovering music that resonates with our souls’ deepest personal needs.

Examples of soul care practices include connecting with your inner self through dream work, journalling, meditation, mindful healthy eating, practicing gratitude, and spending quality time in nature. Additionally, caring for others is an act of kindness that nourishes your own soul as well. It is one of the greatest gifts we can give. It also deepens your sense of interconnectedness with life itself.

My work is spiritually inclusive; I work with people from all spiritual paths, even if undefined. Rest assured that I will honor your beliefs and perspectives while supporting you according to your needs and preferences.

To set up your free consultation, please contact me below.   Thanks.

Benefits of Soul Care and Working with Spiritual Ideals

Ocean water's depths represent deep reflection and soul work.
Deep reflection benefits the psyche.

Caring for your soul (psyche) has many benefits. As previously mentioned, periods of reflection will nourish your soul and help you discover which personal spiritual ideals will most support your growth at this time.

These ideals are your highest values that inspire you to become your best self. Examples include qualities like courage, honesty, compassion, patience, and living with integrity.

Here are some additional benefits of working with your spiritual ideals and soul care:

Iris image
  • Inner clarity                       
  • Stronger intuition
  • A renewed sense of life’s meaning
  • Discovery of gifts and strengths
  • Better decision-making                       
  • Improved mood and serenity
  • Increased self-love
  • Enhanced empathy
  • Improved relationships 
  • More energy and vitality
  • Enhanced peace of mind
  • Improved health and well-being
Iris image

Applications of Soul Care: Trauma Healing

Light over Eagle Lake brings peace to the soul.
Find inner peace in beauty.

Trauma healing is especially suited for soul work. This is because the soul is affected by any form of trauma or abuse. The soul is always wounded by physical, mental, emotional, sexual, and spiritual or religious trauma. As a result, you may feel disconnected from the indestructible spark of divinity within your heart. For comprehensive trauma resolution, therapies that include healing your soul are essential.

Shadowwork is another aspect of soul care. It involves exploring any repressed emotions caused by trauma. The more you nurture your soul by connecting with your higher self, the deeper your capacity for feeling and releasing your pain. This creates a space for re-discovering your spiritual gifts, such as self-acceptance, inner peace, joy, and creativity.

Soul Care for Anxiety and Stress Management

A reverent man does yoga meditation at sunrise.
Yoga meditation is soulful.

Soul care offers many ways to manage stress, anxiety, and insomnia. In addition to supportive therapy, yoga, meditation, breath work, healthy nutrition, and exercise will benefit you. Spending time in nature is essential for healing, grounding, and balancing your energy. Outdoor exercise such as walking or yoga is incredibly beneficial.  Decluttering your home and your life also creates space for soulfulness.

Dreamwork and journalling are potent ways to connect with your soul for guidance, personal growth, and healing. Allocating quality time with animals is also very soulful.

Additionally, Plant Therapies, such as Five Flower Formula, are powerful tools for alleviating anxiety and stress. For details, see my Bach Flower Personality Test blog. For additional information, please click the links at the bottom of this page or contact me below. Thanks.

Spiritual Counseling and Soul Work

Underwater school of fish
There are many paths home.

If you have been wounded by trauma or grief, your heart may feel partially closed, or you may have difficulty trusting others. You may also feel disconnected from any spiritual path.  My approach to soul care includes supporting your grief process and helping you reconnect with your loving heart. Then, you can gently re-discover your true nature and personal growth path.

Or, if you feel lost or confused about your purpose or have lost meaning in life, Wild Oat, a Bach flower remedy, can often help, along with other supportive measures. I highly recommend working with your dreams to obtain guidance directly from your soul. Check out my Dream Therapy blog for more information.

You may also wish to return to or discover a spiritual practice that supports your beliefs. Examples include meditation, prayer, spiritual gatherings, or reading inspirational literature. As a reminder, I offer value-sensitive care. I support any path that supports your personal growth and spiritual development.

Bearing with adversity with patience and courage enables us to enter the spiritual path more easily.

Creativity as an Opening to Spirit

Boy smiling while listening to music nurtures his soul.
Music heals the soul.

Creative expression of any kind is also invaluable in soul care. The arts open your heart and soul to higher energies. Everyone possesses an inner artist, no matter what you may have been told.

What is your medium? Photography, painting, sculpting, writing, poetry, dancing, performing, singing, acting? Do you play or enjoy music? These are some of the many other ways to express your creativity. Using your creative imagination provides another soulful experience.

Music, however, is the universal language of all souls. It crosses cultural barriers and biases. Classical music especially nourishes the soul. Composers like Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven have compositions that music therapists often recommend. Singing, playing an instrument, or listening to music that speaks to you are also very beneficial.

Making time for creativity raises consciousness and enhances vitality, joy, and healing. If you feel creatively blocked, the flower essences Iris or Indian Paintbrush from FES (Flower Essence Services) may also be helpful.

Music provides a bridge to higher consciousness.

Caring for Your Soul When Recovering from Illness or Trauma

Children jumping for joy
Becoming free

Recovering from any illness or trauma involves soul care. When ill, soul work encourages you to look deeply within yourself. You can choose to let go of self-judgment.

You can then receive intuitive messages from your soul. Healing comes through lovingly processing your pain and opening your heart to compassion and self-acceptance. Self-Heal from FES helps restore your innate healing potential.

When you integrate your repressed emotions, you free up creative energy for positive life changes. Additionally, from the soul’s perspective, psychological and physical challenges can promote healing and transformation. Your pain encourages you to search within. Finding meaning in suffering is the final stage of healing from grief, illness, or trauma.

Caring for the Soul with Grief Counseling

Child picking up wet red leaf
Accepting change eases grief.

Grief counseling is a significant aspect of soul work. In my personal life and as a professional grief counselor and hospice nurse, I had the opportunity to care for many people, including those in their final transition to the afterlife and those left behind. So, if you are experiencing current or unresolved grief or loss of any kind, I would be honored to support you. When ready, please reach out to me below. Thanks.

The Courage to Grieve

Man praying in the light of dawn
Letting go opens us to light and love.

It takes courage to grieve and work through its stages. Any soul care practice will help you through your unique grief process. When your heart feels empty, filling it with love once more is vital. Music, nature, and creative expression, such as dance, may help. Be sure to reach out to trusted loved ones and pets for support. Additionally, being patient with and accepting of the grief process facilitates grief resolution.

Flower remedies are beneficial as an adjunct to soul work counseling because they directly address the psyche. Here are some options to consider: Grief Relief combines flower essences with essential oils to soothe sorrow and enhance insight. Honeysuckle helps integrate the past rather than living there in the mind, and Walnut helps with healthy transitions. For more information, see Plant Medicine. For support, please reach out to me HERE.

Mom's Rainbow

Grief has a way of opening our hearts and letting the light back in. Here is a personal example:

Before my mother died, she chose a beautiful poem for me to read after her passing. It is entitled ‘I’ll Paint You a Rainbow‘ by Grace E. Essley. One week after Mom’s death, John and I went to our special place on the coast. We felt Mom’s presence while experiencing a complete double rainbow over the ocean that lasted about 30 minutes. This expansive twinned rainbow even made the newspaper. Mom also visited me numerous times in dreams to tell me she would love me forever and more. These profound healing experiences reinforced the following three principles:

1. Love is eternal.
2. Our Higher Self is our true identity. 
3. No matter what conflicts we may have with others, the soul has its own agenda.

Rainbow Poem
Double rainbow over seawall
Mom's rainbow

Caring for the Soul Summary

I chose to share this personal example of a profound life lesson. What I mean by the soul having its own agenda is this: as humans, the most important people in our lives are often those with whom we have the deepest personality struggles. This is especially true of family-of-origin relationships. My mother and I had a strong, loving relationship but experienced our fair share of conflicting views. After her passing, her visitations and expressions of unconditional love taught me to remember that we are all spiritual beings at our core and that love is eternal. Mom helped me care for my soul.

These are just a few possible soul-care issues we may explore together. If you are ready to move forward, please contact me below. Thanks.

For more information, see Services, Dream Exploration,

Resources, Yoga and Healing

Blogs, Dream Therapy, and Plant Therapies.

Iris Healing Arts
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