What is your name and location?
Shelby Moring, San Diego and Washington, D.C.
How do you heal yourself? What is your favorite form of self-therapy?
I feel like I’m always showing compassion for myself, even when I’m not experiencing direct pain. Poetry, crystal meditation, delving deeper into my natal chart’s meanings, and learning about witchcraft have all been incredible methods for helping me embrace who I am. Another really effective, personal and beautiful way that I heal myself is crying. I’ve always been a crier; when I was in elementary school, I was so sensitive to the hurt and pain that others felt, I would just cry all the time. Every man I’ve ever cried in front of has told me to stop, but every woman and non-binary person has provided spaces for me to cleanse myself through crying. And it’s free, too! There’s just so much power in release through crying, you’re literally shedding yourself of the harmful and unnecessary energies and allowing space for new, growth-encouraging ones to harvest.
When/what was the catalyst that made you start?
I’ve written poetry since I was 13, but started seriously making it a regular practice last year. Around the time I started to educate myself about natural skincare, I was also in an abusive relationship. That discomfort, self-doubt and self-shrinking propelled me into writing again. Writing spurred my craving for meditation, which sparked an interest in crystals, which as of this December ignited a love and investment in witchcraft. A lot of hurt has thrown me into my “heal thyself and fuck these men” attitude, but at the same time, my love and fascination with the resilience of women and non-binary people has also strengthened my desire to self-heal. It’s not all because of pain, but a great deal of it is.
How has this form of healing helped you?
I’m happy! I looked at my reflection in the mirror the other day and I was torn between wanting to burst out in tears and flash myself the widest grin. I have so much love for myself and respect for the path that I’m on; it’s impossible to contain. Spirituality has given me so many answers and led me to ask even more questions, but this devotion to the self is certainly because I made it so. I had no choice. I struggle with anxiety and depression (not so much the latter anymore, but it still lingers) and my Virgo self wasn’t here for it. My anxiety really started to emerge last year, during my first year of college, and I wasn’t surrounding myself with enough friends who knew how or cared to help me get through it. So I turned inward. And now I feel like a new, growing woman.
What does your process look like? (Please share what you feel comfortable sharing)
My dorm room is always dark. We keep the blinds open to let in moonlight, but at night, the only light comes from my candles, our twinkling string of lights, and maybe a laptop screen. I set out my crystals on my bed; amethyst is always in the mix. Lately, I’ve been working a lot with calcite, obsidian, citrine, and moonstone.
I sit quietly for a little, holding one or two crystals in my palms. If I need more sensory stimulation, I’ll light incense or rub essential oils over my palms and roll the crystals in it. I let myself feel whatever I need to at the moment. Sometimes I’m overwhelmed with tears, other times I don’t really feel anything.
I like to hover my palms over the crystals, allow myself to feel their energies, then move my palms away from the crystals and feel what “nothing” feels like. This helps me recognize what my crystal’s energies should feel like, especially since I work with the same ones so frequently, their energies are almost personalized to my own.
I’ll also flip through my grimoire, which is a notebook with references and notes for witches. I’ll read through a spell and conduct one or two if I have all the materials I need. Or I’ll practice charging and uncharging my crystals, just to work with energy. This all keeps whatever pain I’m feeling from debilitating me. I’m not taking my mind off the hurt, I’m accepting it and welcoming the lessons it’ll teach me, but it reminds me that I’m in control. I can heal myself and I can heal the women and femmes around me.
I host Moon Circles in my room every Full and New Moon. We brings snacks, sit on my floor, light candles, talk about how men have wronged us, watch Princess Nokia videos, and set intentions for the upcoming weeks. We bounce off each other’s energies and the whole environment is so welcoming and encouraging. I consider collaboration a vital part of my healing process. Without the love from others, I would remain stagnant.
How does it make you feel when you are healing yourself?
I feel like I’m finally in control, while still respecting and working in tandem with the universe’s plan for me. It’s comforting.
Why is what you do so important? Why is this form of self-helping important to you?
Without self-healing, I wouldn’t feel secure in the world. I am already an anxious person, but self-healing has given me a sense of autonomy that I couldn’t find anywhere else. Knowing that there is immense power within me has helped to mend a lot of my wounds.
What is your inspiration to continue doing what you are doing? What is the fuel that keeps you going?
Women of Color are time and time again forgotten, but I’ve seen so much inherent and organic magic in the women/femmes of color who I interact with. They encourage me to continue searching within myself for the answers. I am motivated by love. At the same time, hate has always been present, but we’re collectively entering a period of time where this hatred is acceptable at the forefront. As a queer female witch of color, I understand what it’s like for your communities to hurt and to feel fear. I want to do everything in my power to protect my people.
What are your visions &/or goals?
I want to inspire and encourage people, specifically women of color. We are in a unique position where our art and magic come naturally to us, because we have always been in positions of oppression. From our collective struggle, resilience and healing have blossomed. I want to continue to bring and discuss spirituality and art with women of color. These are our strongest political weapons, too.
Tell us a fun fact about your form of healing, what it is that you do, or something people may not know.
I don’t enjoy verbal spells! Something about them make me feel weird. I do all of my healing in my head. I’ve also found that “witch tumblr” is really accepting of people’s preferences/abilities.
I also only started calling myself a witch at the end of 2016. So this is a recent development! I’ve been practicing healing for over a year, but I didn’t start identifying with witchcraft until about a month ago. I’m a baby witch.
11. In one sentence, what is your message to the world?
Love is the most active form of healing.
12. Is there is anything else that you would like to share about yourself or what your form of self-healing?
My messages are always open, I love talking to people about their spiritual paths and skincare regimes. I try to answer as many skincare/healing questions as I can.
You can contact Shelby @floreashelby on all social media, where she responds fairly quickly! She also has a website, floreashelby.com, where she shares skincare DIYs and healing related posts.