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Nikki Rutledge

Hello, I’m Nikki Rutledge! I’m from Boston and I’m a certified Meditation Practitioner and Crystal Healer. I lead workshops on various topics such as the moon phases and self-care practices. ’m well-versed in many holistic/metaphysical subjects and I also offer Tarot and Oracle card readings. My goal is to help them find comfort and peace through sharing my knowledge and experiences.
Guided Meditation
Mindfulness meditation
Tarot Reading
Oracle Cards Reading
Chakra Balancing
About Nikki Rutledge

Hello, I’m Nikki Rutledge! I’m from Boston and I’m a certified Meditation Practitioner and Crystal Healer. I lead workshops on various topics such as the moon phases and self-care practices. ’m well-versed in many holistic/metaphysical subjects and I also offer Tarot and Oracle card readings. My goal is to help them find comfort and peace through sharing my knowledge and experiences.

On Core Spirit since January 2021
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Nikki Rutledge
What Mindfulness Taught Me About Happiness, Anxiety, And Self-Compassion

A few years ago, I took a class called Mindfulness in Performance. I originally thought I would learn about coping with various performance-based stressors we may face at our jobs and in everyday life. However, I learned a great deal, not only about those things, but also about myself. This course changed my life for the better in so many ways.

On day one, we were told a portion of the course would include meditating both in class as well as for five days on our own, in which we had to journal after each practice. I truly did not know if I would be capable of doing this. I always heard that meditating was about “not thinking,” or “clearing the mind,” and I knew that was just not possible for me. What I didn’t know is that “not thinking” is impossible for almost everybody in the world. No one can truly stop their mind from thinking, without perhaps years of training as a monk or being fully engulfed in the meditation world. In fact, I learned so many things that I never knew and this class opened my eyes to so many false truths I’ve held over the years.

I want to share my experiences from this course in the hopes that anyone out there who is struggling or needs to make sincere changes in their lives will have the courage to begin implementing mindfulness. By doing so, you are taking a good, long look at yourself in the mirror, facing all your demons head-on, and choosing to better yourself and feel happiness.

Here is what I learned…

About Mindfulness:

1. Today, we all move at such a fast pace, we hardly even notice how we never stop to take a second and slow down. Mindfulness is about intentionally being in the present moment and being aware of your surroundings/thoughts/feelings/people around you, so that you can fully be in the “right now,” moment-to-moment experience, instead of thinking about the past, future, or being wrapped up in social media.

2. By practicing mindfulness, you allow yourself to control where you place your attention. You will develop a presence of what’s going on internally and externally to free yourself from denial and avoidance of difficult thoughts or feelings. You face them and learn about thoughts that may be useful to you, versus those that are simply maladaptive.

3. Take the time to stop, slow down, catch your breath, and enjoy the moment because you will never it get back. Not all the pictures in the world could bring you back to that same moment. So if you don’t stop to enjoy it and be present, you’ll one day realize that you let your entire life just pass right on by.

About Facing Our Demons:

1. Mindfulness expert George Mumford was once a heroin addict who grew up in a rough neighborhood with a pretty awful upbringing and home life. We not only read his book in class, but we had the pleasure of meeting him when he visited. His story is amazing. He used mindfulness to change his entire life. He faced his demons head-on, put effort into training his mind to think differently about his past, and travels around the globe teaching professional athletes how to use mindfulness (he once trained Kobe Bryant), and shares his stories and words of advice with the world. My favorite piece of his advice was, “What we hold in our minds becomes our reality. Who are we? Who do we want to be? If you don’t know who you are, you’ll become anybody.”

2. The past is a part of us and always will be, but if we face it instead of suppress or fight it, we will be able to confront the feelings that linger from those memories. We will allow ourselves to grow from it and take it with us, but not let it defeat us.

3. Mumford told us to “get comfortable with being uncomfortable.” Facing your demons is no easy feat, and it took him years to do it. And although these steps are the hardest ones you may ever take, it’ll be the best decision you ever make for yourself. Nothing good will ever come from suppressing or fighting your troublesome thoughts and feelings. You’re just setting yourself up for future struggles because what you do now is creating the next moment.

4. The best way out is through. It’s difficult but 100% doable. Get motivated and be interested in the process. And if you can face and get through your demons, you’ll find that you will be able to get through just about anything that comes your way.

About Meditation:

1. Meditating does not mean to sit without having any thoughts – it is actually quite the opposite. There are various ways one can meditate, and it’s all about finding what works best for you. We had a few guest speakers during the class and each of them had a different style of meditating. One guest told us that it is okay to explore the thoughts that arise, as long as you are aware of them, you are kind to yourself, and you remember to come back to your breathing or to a focal point like soft noises in the room. It’s like a bird leaving it’s perch to go explore those thoughts, but then always coming back to it’s perch, or to the present moment.

2. You can use meditation to rehearse difficult situations so that when they happen in real time, you will be prepared to respond in a way that is most beneficial. A guest told us he once rehearsed a difficult situation during his meditation practice and let himself feel the anger arising and envisioned the outcome of that. When it came time to truly handle the situation, he was able to avoid becoming angry, and instead, had a very successful experience. Letting himself run through the emotions and feelings first was very beneficial for when it came time to face the actual situation.

3. Before sitting down to meditate, have the intention to be kind to your experience, tolerant of your experience, and interested in your experience. By tolerating certain thoughts that arise, you are learning to be patient with yourself and to have these thoughts but to not let them fully takeover. It’s not easy, and takes a lot of time to practice and learn what works best for you. Trust in the process.

About Anxiety & Acceptance:

1. We all feel anxious or overwhelmed at times, some of us moer often than others. But next time those feelings strike, try saying “this is anxiety,” rather than “I am anxious,” so that you don’t internalize those feelings.

2. Mumford told us to remember that “Anxiety is not mine, it’s not my anxiety. Anxiety is a thing that is happening. Don’t attach yourself to it.“

3. There are countless things in life that we can’t change: the past, mistakes we’ve made, the way people treat us, the anxiety we feel…the list goes on. But what we can do, is accept that and choose how we respond. We can choose to react differently. Before this class, I didn’t realize I even had a choice. But we all do. If someone is mistreating us, rather than yelling at them or being overcome with anger, we can react differently. We can choose to walk away or to confront them respectfully. Rather than getting swept up in our anxious thoughts, we can try to act as an observer into our own lives, like we are on the outside looking in. We can be aware of those thoughts and situations, accept them, and move on.

4. Truth vs. Comfort can be a battle you may not even know you’re fighting. Facing the truth is painful, but it will set you free. If you stay in your comfort zone you will never leave, you will never grow, and you will never reach your full potential. Don’t let the fear drag you down.

About Self-Compassion:

1. Practicing self-compassion could change your life, if you let it. Having self-compassion isn’t just about taking the time to relax or doing something good for yourself. It is so much more than that. It’s centered on three main pieces: having self-kindness, common humanity, and being mindful.

2. Self-kindness is not being so hard on yourself, and having self-love. Common Humanity is knowing no one is perfect, and that you are not alone. There are others out there going through their own struggles, you are not the only one. Find comfort in that. Having a strong support system in your life could truly help you through this process. And being mindful will allow you to notice your struggle, instead of avoiding it or reacting to it, and being with it without self-judgment.

3. Self-compassion is all about treating yourself the way you would treat a really good friend. Learn more from the expert, Dr. Kristin Neff here.

About Changing Your Mindset:

1. Your self-talk reflects your attitude. If you are constantly seeing things in a negative light or if you’re very self-critical, that will become a part of your everyday life. When you feel anxious or overwhelmed, think of having a reset button in your mind. Take a minute to slow down and breathe. Reset. Re-focus. Change your way of thinking, change your entire outlook on life.

2. A fixed mindset is believing this is “just the way you are” or that you are stuck and that you cannot change. However, learning to have a growth mindset will create positive changes. It will allow you to challenge yourself, to continue learning, growing, and developing as a person. You can look in that mirror and begin to defy all the odds against you.

3. Stop thinking happiness is something that just happens. Happiness is a choice. We can always choose happiness, and although this takes time and patience, by practicing mindfulness that choice becomes much easier.​

4. In difficult situations, stop and ask yourself: what is the best possible choice I should make to respond successfully?

5. A glass can truly be both half empty and half full, but if you see it as half empty that means you are in survival mode and not growth mode. You can’t do both. You cannot grow if you’re simply just trying to survive each day.

6. If you don’t believe or think positive things about yourself as true, they will never be internalized. Make your mind your friend, not your enemy.

Bottom line: You have to start somewhere, so start by taking these baby steps. You could truly change your life for the better. Stop waiting for happiness to show up, because it won’t. You have to choose it. Mumford told us to “Learn how to learn. Investigate these teachings to experience it for yourself. Do the activity for the sake of doing. Take the journey.” Enjoy the journey and the process of discovering yourself. It won’t be easy, and it’ll take time and effort, but you will be forever grateful that you did.

Nikki Rutledge
7 New Moon Self-Care Rituals

The new moon is a blank page, a fresh start. It marks the beginning of a new lunar cycle, and is viewed as a rebirth, or a reset, with unlimited possibilities. This is the perfect time to sit and reflect on setting your intentions for what you’d like to manifest, work on, or create for the new cycle. This is the best time to write down your goals, plant seeds, tend to plants, and banish what no longer serves you, or what you no longer want to carry with you into the new cycle.

The new moon’s energy is strongest on the day of, but it also can be felt two days before and two days after. Here are some simple self-care rituals you can practice during those times:

1. Intention Setting Candle Ritual

• Use a white candle for newness and purity. You can also use a colored candle that corresponds with what your goal or intention is. For example: red for love, green for money, blue for health, yellow for joy.

• Using a toothpick, knife or athame, carve your goal into the candle. Remember to be realistic – chances are, you won’t become a millionaire overnight – make sure your goals are reasonable. To carve, you can use a word, multiple words, full sentences, or symbols to represent your intention.

• Before lighting the candle, sit with the it for a moment and visualize this goal coming to life. Perhaps meditate with it.

• Once you feel ready, go ahead and light the candle. Let it burn all the way down.

2. Burning Release Ritual

• Take a piece a paper and write down 1-3 things that you no longer want to carry with you into the next lunar cycle, such as a bad habit, a negative thought pattern, or something that holds you back.

• Take the paper and burn it in a safe place, like a fireplace or a fire-safe cauldron or bowl. Watch as the smoke rises, burning away and releasing into the universe.

• If you can, toss the ashes into the wind and watch them drift away.

3. Banishing Candle Ritual

• Just as you would use the burning ritual to release, you should also use this time to banish negative energy.

• Take a black candle, as black is best for protection and banishment purposes.

• Take a moment and truly feel all of the negativity energy you have within you. Visualize this energy leaving your body and going into the candle. Let the candle hold all of that energy for you.

• If you’d like, you can carve any words or symbols that represent what you want to banish.

• Light the candle and let it burn all the way down, as it melts watch it banish all of the negative energy that you poured into it.

4. Cleansing

• Use sage, palo santo, or other herbal incense to cleanse your home during this time. Make sure to get in the corners of each room and the doorways. Sage is an antimicrobial, so not only are you cleansing the space, but you’re disinfecting it at the same time!

• You can also sprinkle sea salt or saltwater around the boundaries of your home for an added barrier against negative energy.

5. Plant a seed

• Take a seed of your choice and place it in your hands. Meditate with it and visualize your intentions for growth. Then plant it! The new moon energy is perfect for planting the seeds that will blossom beautifully, both in a physical and metaphorical sense. Take care of it, and as this seed grows, so will you.

6. Give yourself a tarot reading

• Pulling tarot cards during the new moon is a way to start fresh and gain a sense of what lies ahead for this moon cycle. You may be able to learn what you can manifest, where your focus should be, and how to best heal and grow.

7. Decorate an altar or space to honor the new moon

• You can decorate your altar, or set up a new altar or space for yourself that will bring you peace whenever you’re near it. This space will allow you to work with the energy of the new moon and other lunar phases. A small table, a shelf on a bookcase, or even a dresser drawer will work just fine if you’re tight on space.

• To decorate your altar for the new moon you can include items like:

- White candles for newness and purity and black candles for protection.

– Any crystals you feel connected to. Great ones for the new moon are smoky quartz or obsidian, both for grounding, protection, and dissipating negativity. Howlite will help you receive messages from the universe. Citrine is for new beginnings, and attracts abundance and positivity. Clear quartz is for meditation, centering, and cleansing. Amethyst will help you connect to your intuition and third eye chakra.

– Any or all aces in a tarot deck, and/or an oracle or tarot card that corresponds to what your goals are for this cycle.

– Images or representations of goddesses you’d like to work with during this moon phase. Hecate and Persephone are great choices for the new moon, as they are often associated with it.

– Flowers or plants.

If you’re unable to do one of the rituals above, or are looking for something simpler, try these:

Take a calming bath, make a vision board, organize and clean your space, set new healthy habits, write down all of your goals for the next cycle and put them in a jar, hone in on your third eye chakra, and practice self-care in ways that allow you to feel rejuvenated.

Happy New Moon to you!

Nikki Rutledge
Full Moon Self-Care Rituals

The full moon is the most energetic and powerful part of the lunar cycle. The intentions you set during the new moon may be coming to fruition, or the things you aimed to manifest may now feel within reach. This is a time to reflect on our growth and what we’ve accomplished since the new moon and to focus on what still needs improvement. The full moon allows us to look back and determine what no longer serves us, and what we would like to let go of.

An energetic time – emotions, intuition, and thoughts tend to become heightened. We typically carry deeper feelings and are more sensitive to other people’s energy. Things become intensified, and therefore, this is not a good time to start new things, but rather, it’s best to use this time to reflect and plan ahead. This is also the perfect time to give yourself some extra love.

Here are some self-care rituals you can do during the full moon:

1. Let Go:

– Write down anything you want to let go of (a habit, person, negative thought pattern, trait) and burn it.

– Watch as the paper burns and the smoke wafts. Visualize what you wrote down drifting into the wind as the smoke rises, releasing into the atmosphere.

2. Release by Candle:

– Instead of writing down what you want to release, you can simply use a candle. Ground yourself and light your candle.

– Gaze into the flame and start naming out loud everything you wish to release from your life.

– Take the time to be mindful of how your body responds, try to feel your mind and heart getting lighter as you release the words.

– When you’re ready, blow out the candle. This is symbolic as you’re extinguishing the flame and all the things that no longer serve you.

3. Ask for More

– During a full moon, the Earth’s tides are amplified, so use this ritual to amplify results for your desires.

– Write down your wants, needs, or anything you would like an abundance of in your life, on small strips of paper.

– Take a cup or bowl of water and float those pieces of paper in the water. Leave it under the light of a full moon overnight.

– The next day, you can bottle the moon water and use it in another ritual. You can also keep the pieces of paper or dispose of them.

4. Have a heart-to-heart with the Moon

– This ritual is best done outside under the light of the moon, but you can also look out a window just as long as you can see the moon.

– Sit under her rays and gaze for at least five minutes. Breathe and connect to her light.

– Speak out loud, or visualize, all the things you want to release or let go of. Ask the moon to kindly take those things from you. Visualize the moon’s rays pulling the negative energy out of you, taking with it all the things that no longer serve you.

– Take a moment to feel that weight lifted from your body and soul. Thank the moon for her kindness.

5. Take a Full Moon Bath

– The full moon has detoxifying properties that draw out mental, emotional, and physical toxins.

– Fill a bath with warm water and add 1-2 cups of Himalayan sea salt, or regular sea salt. Himalayan sea salt has a number of detoxifying benefits including balancing pH levels and reducing inflammation.

– While in the tub, breathe and ground yourself. Really feel the warmth of the water on your body. Indulge yourself with a glass of wine or a good book, or use this time to meditate and disconnect from technology.

Other Ways to Celebrate the Full Moon:

– Treat yourself to a nice meal or bake something sweet.

– Fill a room with candlelight.

– Make a cup of tea and savor every sip, feeling comforted by the warmth of the cup.

– Cleanse all your crystals by leaving them out overnight under the moonlight.

– Pull a tarot card.

– Make a list of all the things you’re grateful for.

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