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"INFORMATION ABOUT THE MENTALLY HANDICAPPED" Psychic Advice Column addresses inquiries such as: "therapy for the mentally disabled", "social competence of children with mental retardation", "families and children with mental health disabilities", "how to teach mentally retarded children", "help with mental disability", and more...

INFORMATION ABOUT
THE MENTALLY HANDICAPPED

Question #1: "How does one spiritually heal another if the person that needs healing is unaware of their issues? Such as the mentally ill and mentally retarded?"

"Psychic Advice":
There is a lot of different information about the mentally handicapped, and there are many different causes, types and reasons for mental disability. In order to offer healing and help with mental disability, one must first embrace it as a gift that serves a purpose for everyone involved. Before we can change anything, we must make peace with what is.

Spiritual healing often requires the co-operation on some level of the person being healed. They must have the will and desire to heal because one cannot override another's free will. A person may subconsciously refuse healing as long as the condition is serving a purpose,

Sometimes karma provides keys to understanding mental retardation and mental illness. Some newer souls choose to incarnate with mental retardation so they can experience life on Earth without bearing the full burden of responsibility or ego. Many people with mental retardation are able to maintain a childlike innocence throughout their lifetime, and thereby avoid incurring certain karma.

Some mentally retarded people are angels who have come to teach others compassion, patience, unconditional love and acceptance. People who are mentally retarded are often uninhibited and freer in their emotional expression, and can lack the ability to control their emotions - this can be both a problem and a gift for those around them.

Those who are mentally retarded and also aggressive are usually not newer souls, but are often having a karmic experience as a result of their choices, actions and judgments in other lifetimes. People with mental illness and mental handicaps have been treated terribly throughout history, and sometimes those who are born mentally retarded and aggressive have been harsh on those with mental disabilities in other lifetimes, and must now experience what it is like to have the shoe on the other foot, so to speak.

Karma plays a great part in the evolution of the soul. Karma is not only an experience of the Golden Rule ("Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"), but also follows Newton's third law of physics: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Our soul reincarnates so it can grow and evolve through experiences - we have been all things, and we will be all things. We are here to learn compassion, unconditional love, detachment and non-judgment, so we experience all aspects and perspectives of life in order to grow and evolve as a soul.

Karma can also play a role in mental illness, but not always. The mind is a powerful yet fragile instrument. Severe trauma can cause the mind to be imbalanced, fragmented or fractured - traumas that occur at the physical, emotional, mental or spiritual level can all affect mental health. Essentially, such trauma creates discord within the mind, knocking the person off center.


People with mental illness can live in their head and can be quite detached from their body. They are often completely ungrounded, therefore grounding techniques can be very helpful: walking barefoot, especially in the grass or the sand; sitting on the ground, especially with one's back against a tree; visualizing deep roots like a tree descending from the person's feet into the Earth (this visualization should be done daily as soon as the person gets up in the morning).

Healing and miracles are always possibilities for those who have strong faith, however, one cannot interfere with the path and Free Will of another soul. There are many things that one can do to support peace, harmony and wellbeing for those who are mentally challenged. Animals, particularly dolphins, horses and dogs, can offer amazing and miraculous therapy for mentally disabled people. Swimming with dolphins has offered extraordinary help with mental disability, especially autism and mental retardation.

The following visualization can be helpful - you can perform the visualization for them, but it is even better if you can get them to do this visualization as well. Visualize a great and massive sun above the head of the person who is mentally retarded or mentally ill. Imagine that sun is shining a beam of light that enters that person through the top of their head, filling their head, their mind and their brain with light, peace, joy, and healing. Ask for that light to restore balance and wellbeing, aligned with their highest good. See that light pouring all the way through the person's body, filling their heart and their body full of light, full of peace and love. Envision the light pouring down through their feet into the Earth, all the way into the core of the Earth. They are now a pillar of light connected to the Earth below and to Source above. Affirm that they are now grounded, balanced and centered in the Light of Love, experiencing constant peace and healing with each and every breath. See them also surrounded by a bubble of light that gives them peace and protection at all times.

Question #2: "I am a single mother of a boy with multiple issues: Down Syndrome, chronic seizure/movement disorder, behavior problems including unprovoked aggression and anxiety. I give him salt baths and Reiki every day. He will not let me give him hands-on Reiki, so I have resorted to distant healing each evening when he is asleep. I keep rose quartz, citrine and kyanite in his room. I put 2 plants in his bedroom to absorb any negativity and keep him grounded. I surround him with prayer, Angels and Light. I most recently taught him to affirm, "I am safe" and "I love me". He has baffled doctors and intuitives for 15 years. I welcome any guidance you may have for us. Why doesn't he like or want the Reiki? Why don't my guides answer my questions regarding my son? Can you explain karma and the mentally challenged?"

"Psychic Advice":
I can feel the depth of your desire to help your son; caring for mentally challenged people is a true labor of love, but it can be physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually demanding and exhausting. Both you and your son are experiencing a great deal of frustration as the inability to effectively communicate impacts the social competence of children with mental retardation.

You are doing many things that help with mental disability. Aromatherapy could also be helpful: using essential oils such as lavender or orange in the bath, or in a diffuser in the house or in his bedroom could be calming, soothing, reduce stress and promote mental clarity for you and for your son. When using crystals, I would suggest having only green stones in his bedroom, such as jade, aventurine, or green calcite; turquoise would also be great to have on him or around him. Ideally, the stones should be soft and smooth.

The plants in his room are good for absorbing negative energy, especially if you put them on either side of the door. It would also be a good idea to visualize his doorway as a shower of light that cleanses away all negative energy from anyone who passes through it. This can help him and you to be more calm and peaceful.

I sense that your son does not like to be touched, and that he feels trapped in his body, as if he is wearing a straightjacket. He is wrestling within himself and fighting with himself constantly, struggling against the reality of his present condition. He is behaving as if his body is a prison, and this feels like a karmic balance for judgments he has passed over people like himself in other lifetimes.

Continue to do distant Reiki with him, and work with the visualization of the pillar of light that I described at the end of the previous question. Doing Chi Gong with him would also be excellent. You can talk to his higher self while he is sleeping, asking his higher self to help him to be more co-operative and communicative. Tell his higher self that you just want to love and support him in this life, and that you want to help him heal his body, mind, heart and spirit. Ask for his higher self and his guides to give you guidance as to what he needs and how you can best help him.

There are certain things you can do physically to promote more peace and calm for him. He should avoid sugar, caffeine and other stimulants. Jumping on a rebounder or mini-trampoline would help him to release a lot of pent up energy, and move the lymphatic system (it would be good for you as well). It could be helpful for him to have a punching bag, or some way to safely direct and release his negative emotions.

Playing music and listening to music, particularly classical music, could be soothing for him and maintain a more peaceful energy in your home (he should not listen to aggressive music). Working with clay is also a good way to express and release emotions and energy. Working with color would be good, so encourage him to draw or paint. He should wear gentle colors, especially greens and blues - no reds, stripes or patterns.

As mentioned above, animals can be great therapy for mentally disabled people, but you would want to make sure he was not aggressive with them. Stuffed animals could let him have a sense of affection, love and nurturing.

When using affirmations, use pictures, visuals or imagery to convey the message, because using visuals is one of the best tools for how to teach mentally retarded children. Try asking him to hug himself, especially when he feels frustrated, or tell him to imagine angels hugging him and loving him.

You have been doing a great job of taking care of your son. Now you also have to take care of yourself. Your guides may not give you information about your son very often, but you can ask your own guides for keys to understanding mental retardation and what gifts this situation is giving you. The more you can receive those gifts, the more empowered you will feel, which will give you a greater sense of strength, peace and gratitude.

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