Smoky Quartz has the ability to make us just happy to be alive and therefore it is often used to alleviate depression, exhaustion, or feeling limited and unable to realize dreams.

One of the ways smoky quartz helps us to accomplish this is through disposing of psychic waste. Old beliefs and emotions are often held onto without realising and thus prevent us from experiencing life fully. By helping us to process and release these blockages, we find that we have more space in which to grow.

A common suggestion to use smoky quartz in meditation is to hold clear quartz in one hand and a smoky in the other. You may want to think about the conditions in your life which you wish to release or change while mentally focusing on the smoky quartz, then ask for inspiration regarding accomplishing these changes.

Obsidian is born of volcanic glass and has been used by many native cultures to make knives and like a knife, obsidian cuts to the heart of the matter, making it a challenging crystal to work with.

When stagnation has taken over, then obsidian is the crystal to help jolt life back on track and can help show you where the blockages are that are preventing you from growing and continuing your journey. Because it helps you see your own blockages, the process can be painful however clarity is far more healthy than self-deception and through breaking down the barriers, it is more likely happiness will be found.

Hematite comes from iron oxide, and due to iron's traditional association with Mars, warriors used to rub their bodies with this crystal in the belief that it would protect them.

Therefore hematite has become a protective stone, though perhaps not in the way the ancient Romans imagined it to be. Rather than protect from physical harm, hematite is ideal to help prevent the absorption of negative emotions from other people or stress from difficult situations.

Taking on someone else's mood causes us undue stress, and wearing hematite in these situations helps deepen the connection between our own spirit and body and thus maintains our own sense of self and reflecting other's emotions.

Also tourmaline, jet