Friday Favorites Vol. 3: “Woo-Woo” Reiki Healing, Corny Romance TV Shows & More

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I literally cannot with Outlander.

What a whirlwind of a week. I’ve been busy working on writing content for my second blog, The Magic of Soul, which is a website for all things mystical and will be launching on March 20, 2020. Please follow The Magic of Soul on Instagram so you can stay connected on social media!

I also went to my first reiki healing session this week and have been spending a lot of time meditating. It’s been a pretty spiritual one for me, to say the least!

More Friday Favorites:

Beauty: Banish Acne Scars Starter Kit

$195.00 ~~$263.00~~

I’ve raved about Banish Acne Scars in the past, as I’ve been using their kit for years now to reduce my acne scars with much success. However, I’ve never used it on my body until recently: my chronic mystery illness has developed severe nonstop itching on my legs as well (even though I had blood tests done and it’s not being caused by allergies, eczema, or psoriasis). I’ve been scratching my legs so much this past month that I’ve basically been cutting my legs up and they now have lots of scabs, scars, and hyperpigmentation from so much trauma.

I started using the Banish Oil followed by the Banish Vitamin C Creme before proceeding with my body creme, and I’m so happy to say that the vitamin C treatment is working pretty well on lightening my scars. Once my active cuts and scabs heal, I’ll start using my Banish derma roller to really tackle the darker scars. I highly recommend the Banish Starter kit if you’re dealing with acne scars or even body scars like mine. It might seem costly, but as an esthetician, I’ve seen people come in and out of my spa paying so much more for multiple acne treatments. The Banish kit costs about as much as 1-2 spa treatments but offers long-lasting and effective results.

Style: Adidas Originals Crossbody Bag

$24.93

Although I love my leather handbags, sometimes I just want something casual I can wear, especially to places like the gym. I’m a huge fan of Adidas so I figured I might as well get this crossbody bag to match my Adidas track jacket and track pants. It’s really cute, under $25, and I love the large logo on the shoulder strap.

Food: Knorr Sinigang Sa Sampalok Mix

It’s been really cold this week and I’ve been warming my body up with warm foods to prevent Raynaud’s flare-ups, so soup was on the menu this week. I’m Filipino, so it’s a no brainer that one of my favorite dishes is Filipino Sinigang. It’s a sour chicken soup, like Thai Tom Yum Gai lemongrass soup. All you need to do is fill a stockpot with 2-3 lbs of chicken wings and drumsticks, fill it with water until the chicken is covered, and let it boil. Then add chopped tomatoes, chopped green beans, lots of spinach, and a whole bag of this soup mix. Add more water as needed for the soup. Sinigang is so good when you serve it with jasmine white rice!

Health: Reiki Healing

I’ve been most excited to share my first experience with reiki healing I had earlier this week! Reiki is a Japanese healing modality that focuses on energy work. A Reiki practitioner moves their hands over your body to transfer energy to your body. It’s great for physical as well as emotional healing.

I went to my general doctor last week to review another set of lab results and of course, they couldn’t find anything, and all my lab tests came back normal. Because of this, I felt like I needed to do something different. I’ve always been into alternative healing, so one of my best friends referred me to Trina Tang of OC Healing in Tustin, CA for Reiki.

Trina is also a mental medium and was able to pick up a lot about my health issues as well as some trauma that I’ve been working on healing over the past few months without me telling her upfront. She was very insightful and triggered a lot of spiritual epiphanies for me, but the physical experience of the reiki session was the most mind-blowing: she passed her hands over my body, and I felt so much intense heat being generated from her hands. I snuck a peek to see if she was touching something to keep her hands warm, but she wasn’t.

I’ve been waking up with numb arms from my shoulders down every morning for the past 2 months, but after my session with Trina, my arms haven’t been numb upon waking up! It’s truly been a miracle for me, and I can’t wait to go back for another session later this month!

Home: Target Threshold Warwick Wood & Rattan Side Table

$94.99 ~~$99.99~~

We’ve been using my parent’s old set of end tables as our bedroom nightstands since we moved into our home last year, but I really want to upgrade to a nightstand with drawers to hide all of my books, essential oils, and overall clutter on the nightstand. I went to Target earlier this week and saw a few nightstands on sale, but these rattan side tables in particular really caught my eye! They’re on sale for under $100, and I’m really debating on ordering a set now.

Lifestyle: Archangel Power Tarot Cards

$18.48

I’m extremely interested in tarot cards and all things mystic (hence why I’m starting my second blog The Magic of Soul) and have been building my tarot deck collection this past year. Many people have told me to connect with my angels to aid me with healing my mysterious illnesses. I picked up this archangel-themed tarot deck since I’m familiar with the tarot system already, and had one of the best tarot reading I’ve ever had to date. It was really insightful and full of hope and really restored my faith in healing my illness.

I realize tarot may frighten some people and some religious folks may brand tarot as a tool of the devil, but I highly recommend learning how tarot works before spreading more blind fear about it – it’s a psychological tool for self-introspection and the system is designed to solidify possible outcomes that your subconscious mind has already considered. From a practical side, tarot isn’t really magic as much as it is a deck of cards that guides you towards seeing a problem through new perspectives. For me, tarot has been a therapeutic source of both mental and emotional support through my developing health issues, and I highly recommend it for anyone looking for tools to help with self-improvement.

Entertainment: Outlander on Starz (Amazon Prime Video)

I got a 3-month Starz subscription on Amazon Prime Video for $0.99/month back in December, so I’ve been binge-watching everything on Starz before my subscription expires, haha. I’ve heard a lot about the Outlander books and I’m a huge historical fiction romance junkie, so I gave the Outlander show a try, and boy am I hooked. It’s a story of a woman from the 1940’s accidentally traveling back to Scotland in 1740, where she meets a Scottish soldier and falls in love with him.

I can’t recommend this series for everyone, especially if you’re 1) not into historical fiction romances and 2) you don’t like shows with slow-moving plots. Season 1 also had a lot of unnecessary sex scenes (in my opinion) and I found myself rolling my eyes through a lot of it, but as the show progresses you really can’t help but fall in love with the main characters. Their love is so pure and endearing and I cannot cope. Season 2 punched me in the gut and ripped my heart out and I’m still recovering. Outlander is definitely a slow-burning show, but once it gets you in the feels, it gets you good.

You can catch seasons 1-3 on Netflix, but Starz (available on Amazon Prime Video) has up to season 5. They’re currently having a promotion where it’s $5/month for 3 months, so sign up and binge watch Outlander!

Blog: Joanne Sacred Scribes Angel Numbers Index

This past year I’ve been studying numerology, which is basically the belief that certain numbers represent certain events. Have you ever looked at the clock and seen 11:11? I’m sure someone has probably told you to make a wish, without really understanding where this belief comes from. In numerology, seeing 3 or more 1’s in a row represents manifestation, which is why we are told to make a wish when we see this number on the clock.

Angel numbers are based on numerology, but it is believed that when you see certain repeating numbers in a row, these numbers are really messages from our angels who are telling us something. When I see a series of repeating numbers, I take note of the thoughts that were going through my mind or what was happening at the moment when I saw those numbers. It’s really fun to analyze.

Joanne Sacred Scribes has an index of angel numbers which I keep bookmarked on my phone so that when I see repeating numbers, I can pull out my phone, find it in her index and then discover the meaning behind those numbers. It’s been a really insightful practice that I’ve been incorporating into my life over the past few months, but as of recently, I’ve been seeing 111 or more. My friends have also told me they’ve been seeing repeating numbers lately (like 333 or 888), and coincidentally they are seeing the same numbers over and over again.

This Week’s Mantra: “Respond, Don’t React.”

There has been a lot happening emotionally in my recent life that has been really challenging my responses. I don’t remember where I read this, but I recall reading the vast differences between responding and reacting to a situation. Reacting to something is emotional, impulsive, and oftentimes not thought-through. When we react to a person or a situation, it’s an instinctive knee-jerk reaction that is initiated when we feel attacked or cornered and feel obligated to take immediate action to protect ourselves. This is our ego taking the reigns.

Responding, on the other hand, is a choice. When we choose to respond, we are offering a reply that is thoughtful, rational, and genuine. It speaks from the honest heart, and not from the ego. Responding to a situation often requires patience, tact, and openness, which is something I feel like we collectively aren’t taught enough of.

Reframing my actions from a responding vs. reacting perspective has really allowed me to be more patient in how I respond to situations. I’ve been able to pause, take the time to process the situation and think of the healthiest way I can respond to the situation in such a way that is constructive, rather than destructive.

That’s it for this week’s Friday Favorites! If you liked Volume 3, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter below so you get informed as soon as I hit publish on a new Friday Favorites post. And don’t forget to follow me on Instagram!

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1 Comment

LA Homes
/ 4:04 am
I am curious with the Reiki healing and would like to try it very soon!
Reply