With everything that is happening, the Spiritual Karens are coming out in full force and this is a direct response to them. If you feel triggered by what I am going to say, you may be a “Spiritual Karen”. I apologize in advance if your name is actually Karen and you are not an a hole. 

Yes, it’s 2020 and it feels like the world is burning, but for many of us, it’s the start of something new. Even if these are just the embers that start the revolution, we are all part of it and in 30-50 years when you get asked where you stood and what you did, you should be proud of your answer. 

Many still compare this to a rebirth or a transformation in our collective. While there are obvious injustices that we are fighting against, there are still other issues that are coming to light and being addressed, sometimes in a public forum. As a member in the spiritual community, I’m here for it! Change is necessary for growth. Being comfortable and inert is not what we came here for. If we dare call ourselves “light workers”, “witches”, “brujxs” or even “healers”, we are already sitting uncomfortably outside of what our society considers “normal”(ugh, that word) and are ready to stand up for the betterment of our community. 

I also want to acknowledge, that if right now, you feel helpless, anxious, sad, upset, or flustered, know that your feelings are valid and expected. Be gentle with yourself. Acknowledge what you are feeling and if you need to step back to take care of yourself, please do just that. The rest of your brothers and sisters will fight for you and keep your spot warm for whenever you are ready.

With that being said, there are loads of so-called “gurus”, “teachers”, “leaders” and “workers” who are taking advantage of the events happening and how people are feeling to hock their courses, judge and suppress the marginalized and fill their pockets and their egos. I am done with these people. Just absolutely DONE! And before the attacks and the messages start coming, yes, there is a clear difference on making a living from your work and taking advantage of a situation. 

The “spiritual Karens” HAVE TO STOP too! Whether you know it or not, you “let’s stop fighting and love each other”  or “just focus on love” is another form of suppression and exactly what we are fighting to stop. If you don’t want to fight or even be vocal, step aside and stop telling people to stop their protests or their posts.

There are several ways to recognize suppression and greed within our spiritual community. Here are a few.

Love and Light Toxicity

I know, I LOVE a good “Love and Light”, I say it all the time. It’s literally how I sign all my e-mails and how I usually end my blog posts. I say it because it’s my wish for everyone and I wish it rains upon you in your daily life. What it doesn’t mean is “ignore all your other emotions and ignore any other feeling that don’t feel good and just focus on the positivity”. That’s literally impossible and a surefire way to go into full blown mental and emotional breakdown. Some people calls this “Positivity Toxicity”, it’s the same thing and it’s not okay!

I cannot tell you how many members in our spiritual community recommend just that! Or even police others to “stop spreading their opinions and just focus on positivity”. Being positive all the time is not the human experience we came to this planet for. We are here to learn and feel and express and have an adventure that our souls will say “Phew…what a rush, see what I did? See what I learned? See how I left it a little better?’ or “Crap, I felt all these things, it was hard, I lived, I knew how to survive and overcome. Wow!”

For those who are telling others to “just be positive”, “love each other” or “just spread love”, yes but no, especially if you are telling this to a BIPOC. You are literally telling them to just stay in their place and not argue or ask for the equal treatment we all deserve as humans. I’m telling you, this is how it is being received, and I am doing you a favor by telling you gently before you get told off by a stranger. Love  is great, yes, I know, but ignoring the injustices, the prejudices and the cries for equality is not. Please stop with the “positive toxicity”, especially if you are encouraging others to be calm or quiet. If you don’t understand the frustration or the overflow of emotions, I highly recommend you ask a trusted friend or google. You can start here.

“Buy My Course”

This one was what sent me over the edge. Somehow, thanks to the lack of privacy on Instagram, my email is constantly added to Newsletters and email lists without my permission. I usually don’t have the energy to write a strongly worded email so I just simply hit “Unsubscribe” and place my carefully budgeted energy some where else (like thinking what the heck to make for dinner later). As I was scrolling through my flooded inbox, one email caught my eye. I don’t know why it did but against my better judgement, I opened it. It was a self proclaimed “coach” or “spiritual teacher” or something like that. Anyways, the email was trying to sell me a course, what the course was I don’t remember either but the email was a big rant and rave about racists and being uncomfortable and that if you are comfortable in making a change or believing you can make a change you should buy the course and if you are racist or prejudice then you also need the course to learn. In addition, if you UNSUBSCRIBE from her mailing list then you are definitely a bigot and have a lot to learn and need to buy her course. In essence it was a giant guilt trip to buy her course. No matter where you stood on the issue, buying her course would fix all your problems. 

I fucking HATED that email. I was so upset and angry how this woman would manipulate people in to buying something from her. I do believe she felt that her course is amazing and the best thing in the Universe and she poured her heart into it, but there is no way in HELL I would EVER entertain anything she has to say because of the the way she presented it. How she communicated it and how it was received was not great at all. I quickly unsubscribed (yes, guilt trip and all) and hoped others didn’t fall prey to her tactics. Taking advantage of death and despair of many to sell your “woke” course IS NOT OKAY!

I compare it to a larger company saying “Wow, you are a horrible person and don’t give a shit about your family if you don’t buy this toothpaste. Oh, you think you already have a great toothpaste, then you are definitely a POS and need to buy this toothpaste because you don’t know what you are missing. Oh, walking away, you are worthless, learn how to brush your teeth right before walking away and buy this toothpaste. Ah, I see you were already looking at buying this toothpaste, amazing, maybe your breathe wont stink so bad now because only we know how to make good toothpaste”. 

I really wish I kept her email. I don’t even remember her name now. I have looked in my inbox for a good hour now and seems gmail has deleted her from my life. I can’t say I’m too mad about it. 

In short, don’t buy into cheap guilt trips and poor tactics to line someone else’s pockets, especially when it is on the backs of people fighting and dying for justice. 

Make my Ego Nice and Big Please

I know you have seen it. Those social media influencers posting themselves at protests waving a sign as they look off into the distance, to only quickly hand off the sign to an actual activist as soon as the camera shuts off and walk away to continue their daily lives. They are doing it for the ‘gram baby!

Or better yet, those posts in lingerie and a deep post about the BLM movement or similar narrative on how they support but literally don’t do a single thing. Yeah, these are so common there is a whole IG dedicated to these called Influencers in the Wild.

Its crazy what people post to feed their egos and the spiritual community is no different. I know I have said this before and I will say it over and over again: If you are coming into your own spiritual independence and the teachers or leaders or coaches you follow don’t feel right, or even worse, their energy seems self-serving, you have full permission to unfollow them. You don’t need to feel bad if you let them go. You have every right to feel comfortable with the people you look to for guidance. 

Resonating with someones energy and recognizing the energy is your first lesson on this spiritual road. There are SO MANY in our community who are just in it for the notoriety and feel that the bigger their following the better it is for them and  heaven help them if their follower count drops or worse if they get questioned deeper on their beliefs. 

I’m not saying only find people who agree with you, not everyone is going to agree with how you think 100%, but find those who make you ask “Hmmm, I never thought of it like that, let me explore this and see if it resonates with me” or “Hmmm, I am not there yet on my journey, but maybe later or never and that’s okay, I still enjoy this person and their energy and their overall message”. I always say if you don’t feel comfortable with me or don’t like my message, that’s okay, I hope you find the right person to assist you on your journey, trust I won’t be offended, I only want you to be empowered and if you do have questions, I’m an email away. Remember Love Healing is my own spiritual journey expressed and what I say today may change in a year as I continue exploring and learning. We should all explore and learn to reflect our Highest Self and adopting a new opinion is necessary and expected if we are to grow and evolve 

So, don’t think the more of a following someone has the more “right” they are. Recognize the self-serving personalities who are just hoping on a “trend” they can exploit right now. Be especially mindful if they are trying to get paid, either with money or your energy.  

Don’t be a Spiritual Karen

In conclusion, if you are exploring your spirituality and looking for guidance, do your homework, no one person will have all the answers and you are completely entitled to protect your energy and not engage with someone, especially if they are self-serving. Fight the good fight and be present in this human experience. This is one of the many reasons to chose to reincarnate in this lifetime. 

If you are one of these coaches, teachers, leader, healers, energy workers and feel triggered by this post, good! That’s the point. If you feel that you are doing anything of what I mentioned above, you need to take a real good look at what you are doing and figuring out how you can fix it. None of this is okay on any level. Don’t be a spiritual Karen or worse, an a hole who scares those looking for help.

Love and Light (but not in a toxic way),