Kundalini is our life-force – the very force that keeps us alive. People vary dramatically in how much life-force is flowing through their system with depressed people and the very elderly on the low side and people who had a kundalini awakening on the high side.
Many people may assume that more energy is a good thing but unfortunately, more energy is not always better. We only need to think about what happens to a light bulb if we put more than the recommended amount of electricity through it – it will burn out. The same thing happens to us – metaphorically speaking – if we are suddenly flooded with more energy than we can tolerate. The resulting symptoms are as varied as there are people and take place on the intellectual, emotional and physical levels and are called kundalini syndrome.
I have been specialized as a therapist for people suffering from kundalini syndrome and in my experience the most difficult problem for my clients is over-sensitivity. Situations that could be tolerated quite easily become suddenly quite unbearable because people start feeling intense negative emotions like anxiety, disgust and anger. For example, one person told me that the sight of litter at the road-side made her feel physically sick. Another could not tolerate hearing people swear and yet others could not endure their work conditions anymore and had to leave their jobs. Adjusting to this heightened sensitivity can be confusing and difficult.
Why do people become over-sensitive during a kundalini awakening? It is because, in essence, kundalini energy is awareness – it makes us much more conscious. Again, more awareness may seem desirable but in reality only a few of us want to know our innermost nasty thoughts that we have kept well away from our conscious awareness. We do not like to remember childhood traumas either, nor do we like to be able to perceive the hidden selfish motivations of the people around us – particularly not those from our loved ones. Some people may even have visions of ghosts, hear voices and have all sorts of paranormal perceptions. It takes a very grounded and experienced person not to freak out in such situations.
Awakened kundalini is challenging on the physical side, as well. I always encourage my clients to get checked out by their doctor if they experience symptoms of sickness but it often happens that kundalini mimics symptoms of illness without anything being wrong. For example, one of my clients had the textbook like symptoms of gallbladder disease but luckily an ultrasound examination showed that her gallbladder was in perfect condition. Other typical physical symptoms are head pressure, pain in the heart area, sexual over-arousal, shaking and sensations of tingling and pulsating anywhere in the body. While all these symptoms are essentially harmless they can be very painful, frightening and uncomfortable.
All the symptoms of the kundalini syndrome must be patiently worked through one by one. The more we understand and accept this process, the easier it will be and then we will finally harvest the profound rewards of kundalini, which ultimately lead to enlightenment.
Tara Springett M.A. is a fully qualified and licensed psychotherapist and is specialized in helping people with kundalini problems. In 1997 she received encouragement from her Buddhist teachers to teach meditation. Tara is the author of several self-help books. She has been featured in numerous publications and has appeared on various radio and television shows in Europe and the United States. Her website is: www.taraspringett.com.
