Excerpt from: A Guide to Gem and Crystal Therapy
by Karen Ryan, Crystal Energy Therapist
Crystals are truly gifts from the Earth. Children seem to have a natural attraction to pick them up and fully explore any kind of stone or crystal. They will often use all their senses, seeing what the crystal looks like, feeling the texture with their fingertips, or even rubbing the crystal against other parts of their body. They are curious to know what it sounds like when the crystal drops on the ground or plops into water, what it smells like and tastes like. Some children use their psychic senses, telling what the crystal is saying to them; or they will mysteriously use the crystal for healing without any instructions. Children can respond very quickly to the healing energy of crystals. However, please consult the best available qualified medical help on the care of your children and use your common sense in regards to your children's health and wellness.
Take your children to a rock shop, gem and mineral show, museums as well as to areas of high mineral content (check a geological survey map) such as quarries, caves and mines. Let your children pick crystals for themselves. Often they will select a crystal that is helpful to their healing process. One four-year-old girl I met selected an Apache Tear, used for the grieving process. The little girl, clutching it in her hand, remarked, "Oh, I want to wear this all the time!" I asked the mother if there had been a death in the family recently. Astonished, she replied, "I just lost my brother four weeks ago, but we didn't tell her". The girl was obviously sensitive to the family's sorrow and needed some protection from the feelings of others around her.
I have listed some crystals to help in your child's healing. Let your child carry the crystal in his or her pocket, or place 1 or 2 in a small medicine bag around the neck. Let your child even sleep with his or her special crystal. Crystals often get lost or misplaced by children, so you might want to have a few extras on hand.
Amethyst
A "Master Healing Crystal". Amethyst's most noted healing quality is its ability to purify and transmute all forms of negativity. For children "in transition", whether it be a growth spurt, a major disappointment such as failing a grade, or even hearing the devastating news of divorce or death, Amethyst accepts all negative emotions and provides comfort through spiritual acceptance. For children with various disabilities or with either physical or emotional pain, an Amethyst cluster in the room will help clear unwanted discharged energies, bringing the room back into a balanced state. For local pain, hold an Amethyst directly on or over the area for up to 20 minutes.
Apache Tear
The "Grief Stone". Apache Tear is actually Obsidian and is very dark but transparent. When you hold a small piece up to the light you can see through it. However, if you have been using the Apache Tear to absorb negative emotions, you will see it cloud up and become opaque. Sometimes it will clear up after the grieving is over.
Aventurine
The "Leadership Stone". Aventurine strengthens and restores the Heart energy, providing a balance of male and female energies. This crystal is green and very loving, embracing, and protective of the Heart. Many children who are shy, timid, or suppressing their leadership qualities need a crystal like Aventurine. This stone helps the individual to become active and to initiate action on their own accord. Asthmatic children seem attracted to this stone as it opens up the lungs and they experience a sense of relief.
Carnelian
A "Self-Esteem Crystal". Carnelian is used to help restore feelings of inadequacy and low self-esteem. The deep orange colours relate well to strengthening and blending the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd chakras, promoting self-security and self-love. The pinker shades relate to enhancing love between child and parent, through self-acceptance. This crystal is also used for dermatological ailments such as acne, by holding the stone over the skin and moving it in circles for several minutes, several times a day.
Clear Quartz
The "Healing Crystal". Clear Quartz is a general all-purpose healing crystal. Each Quartz crystal has its own energy signature and healing mission. When a child makes contact with the right crystal, the energy is discharged either very slowly, or quite suddenly so it feels like a very mild electric shock. This natural energy can be just enough to transform a disharmonious thought pattern, burn off some negative emotional state, or even place the spiritual seeds of one's future into consciousness. Using a cluster of Clear Quartz crystals for children is particularly nice, as so many different types of crystals (record-keepers, transmitters, channelers, etc.) are included. There's a crystal for any occasion! Crystal clusters are also helpful to organize scattered thoughts and to deflect negative energies.
Rose Quartz
"The Love Stone". Rose Quartz is another terrific general healing crystal for children especially for those who have a lot of hurt feelings or aggressive tendencies. Rose Quartz can soothe a broken heart shattered by seeing raw Reality - the ways things are, rather than the way one wants them to be. For hyperactive children Rose Quartz soothes erratic emotional states, anxiety, fear, compulsions, and many other mental disorders. Some neurological benefits have also been noticed with muscle spasms relaxing when Rose Quartz is guided over the nerve centres. For young hearts, Rose Quartz helps to keep the Heart chakra open, vital and protected, filtering in good energies and keeping out the bad.
Lapis Lazuli
A "Psychic Balance Stone". Lapis Lazuli is an incredible stabilizer for children who show psychic gifts early in life. The deep blue colour stimulates expansion of consciousness in a supportive way, promoting purification and clarity of spiritual insight. Lapis Lazuli provides self-acceptance of one's given gifts and encourages openness of one's spiritual awareness. This stone is highly prized for its protective powers and stimulation of all psychic senses.
Jade
A "Soother of Emotions Stone". Jade is easily obtained and can be openly worn by children as regular "jewelry". Emotionally sensitive children often need a supportive system to ensure that their feelings do not overwhelm them. Jade enhances confidence, self-assurance, and self-reliance. Jade is very inspirational in helping one achieve one's desires in life. This stone is often available from a Chinese goods merchant and is often sold in the shape of thin coins.
Tiger Eye
A "Grounding Stone". Tiger Eye has thin rutile inclusions, and when rocked back and forth the light reflects in a certain way as if the tiger's eye were winking at you! Let your children explore this fascinating stone and help them find the flashing Tiger's Eye. This stone is excellent for grounding psychic energy and providing security for opening up the psychic centers. Sometimes children get carried away and get lost in their dream world. Tiger Eye helps to pull them back into their bodies (after astral travel). This stone is very useful to put action to one's thoughts. Tiger's Eye is about being practical. Perhaps every parent needs one for their child before trips to the shopping mall.
Pyrite
A "Protection Stone". Iron Pyrite comes in many different shapes, from sun discs to cubes. Children are attracted to its shiny brassy surfaces. Pyrite is like a small mirror; negative energy is relected away. The terror of being unprotected is reduced. There is also a feeling of physical empowerment, that life in the physical form is perfect, and love is abundant.