Each of us is born with intuitive or psychic abilities, but often, especially as we grow older, these abilities seem to diminish, occurring less frequently or not at all. Is this natural, or is there something we are doing (or not doing) that causes it?

Below are some things that may be filtering or blocking psychic messages or insights from reaching your conscious mind.

1. Surrounding yourself with negative people or energy

When we have to deal with negative people, we learn to put our protective shields up. This helps protect us, but it also becomes a barrier to our abilities, especially when we deal with these people or situations a lot – the barrier almost never comes down, becoming more of a permanent block than we actually intended.

2. Not spending time in Nature

Even if we live in the city, finding and relaxing in nature is a healing experience. For example, studies have shown that walking in nature changes blood flow to the brain, resulting in us being more attentive and reducing our stress hormone, cortisol.

Walking along a highway, according to researchers, resulted in increased anxiety and depression, which certainly can create a block to receiving psychic or intuitive information.

3. Not taking stress seriously

Most of us understand that high levels of stress are not good for us, but research has shown us that hormonal imbalances are caused by high stress levels. Since our pineal gland is part of the endocrine system, these imbalances have a direct effect on our third eye, which is thought of as the link between our physical and spiritual selves. That’s why it’s more important than ever when you are under extreme stress to try to set aside some time for rest or time spent in nature.

4. Maintaining your health

There are many ways to be healthy, including eating better, exercising, and limiting alcohol and drug use. The bottom line is if the body is running on empty from a health standpoint, it can be difficult to open or expand your psychic abilities.

One doesn’t have to be on a strict diet or regimen, but consuming a lot of junk food daily, for example, can definitely block your abilities.

5. Not grounding yourself

Having psychic abilities isn’t always easy! The pull of the spiritual world feels incredible, but a lack of grounding in reality can also take its toll. Many of us carry grounding crystals with us or do “earthing” to stay connected and grounded to the Earth. Doing so allows us to replenish our energy so that we can be open to our abilities. Another way to ground yourself is to meditate, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Download a meditation/relaxing app that you can listen to for just a few minutes when you need a pick-me-up or just before bedtime. This will help you feel calmer and more grounded right away! Now it’s your turn. Make a plan for ways to diminish the issues or blocks in your life. Then check in every few days and see how you’re doing. Comment below and let us know your thoughts!