Amethyst has long been revered both for its physical and metaphysical traits. It is a variety of quartz popular for its purple color. This coloration is a result of the presence of iron impurities and other trace elements within the stone. Its purple/violet hues can also be a result of irradiation- whether natural or synthetic.

Amethyst is the birthstone of February and is also commonly associated with St. Valentine as he was known to wear an Amethyst intaglio ring carved with the image of Cupid.

While characterized as a semi-precious gemstone in today’s standards, it used to be treasured as a precious stone in ancient times, especially by the Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians because of its deep purple color.

Purple is a color associated with nobility, power, wealth, wisdom, creativity, and luxury, among other traits. While Amethyst is not a rare crystal- it’s found all over the world-  its color is not something you see very often in nature. This is part of the reason why it was considered a precious stone in ancient times- valued as much as rubies and emeralds even until the 19th century before diamonds took over the precious gems industry.

When it comes to spiritual healing, particularly healing with crystals, nothing is quite as effective as Amethyst. In Ancient times, aside from preventing intoxication, it was used by travelers as amulets, particularly by soldiers to keep them safe while in transit.

Even until today,  people wear Amethyst jewelry when traveling as it helps strengthen intuition, something that is necessary during long travels, especially if you are traveling alone.

Amethyst is a stone that resonates with the Third Eye and Crown Chakras. Both these Chakras are associated with improving one’s intuition and cosmic perception.

As a healing crystal, Amethyst has often been called the “All Healer” due to its ability to help with a multitude of issues, both physical and spiritual. It is also called the “Stone of Sobriety” and several other monikers due to the many healing properties it possesses.

Some of the finest Amethyst stones are used by Bishops on their Episcopal rings as the stone is said to have been used as an emblem by one of the Apostles of Jesus Christ.

With such a rich history for its use as a protective stone, it’s no wonder that Amethyst remains to be one of the most popular healing crystals today. It is a stone that easily attracts people and as such, many people start their crystal collections with an Amethyst crystal- whether in its raw form or as jewelry.

Many healers prefer to use raw forms of Amethyst, such as clusters, geodes, and small unpolished stones because their healing energy is believed to be a lot more powerful. However, polished stones, such as tumbled stones, energy wands, and Amethyst beads can just be as powerful when properly charged.

As alluded to earlier, one of the many famous monikers of Amethyst is the “All Healer”. This is because the crystal helps with a wide-range of issues, even those that don’t necessarily involve the crown or throat chakra.

Anxiety and Insomnia

For instance, Amethyst is an excellent stone for people suffering from anxiety disorders (particularly, obsessive compulsive disorder and social anxiety). It is a soothing stone and it helps with stress, anxiety, fear, and hyperactivity. Its calming energy is also why it is often recommended for people who have trouble sleeping.

How to Use if You Suffer from Insomnia:

If you suffer from insomnia or recurring nightmares, taping an Amethyst stone on the side of your bed where your head rests is an excellent remedy to get rid of excessive energy and bad dreams. You can also opt to place a smaller stone under your pillow for a restful night’s sleep.

Addiction

As a sobriety stone, Amethyst doesn’t just help with intoxication from alcohol consumption, it is also widely used as a cure for people suffering from addiction of all kinds- be it substance abuse, gambling problems, or those with a propensity for overindulgence.

As a gemstone that resonate with the Third Eye and Crown Chakras, it helps people with addiction problems fight their urges, act with foresight and wisdom, and connect with their higher selves. 

Connecting with one’s higher self (the subconscious and the Divine) helps you realize what’s best for you. And while simply wearing Amethyst jewelry will not help you get rid of your addictions, meditating with Amethyst while repeating a mantra will help keep and strengthen your resolve to quit what doesn’t serve your long-term goals. 

Doing this as often as you need to whenever you feel the urge to “use” or engage in addictive behaviors can help recondition your addicted brain. You'll find that the more you turn to meditation with the help of Amethyst stones or beads, the less power your addictions will have over you.  You may even lose the desire to do the addictive behavior entirely. 

Negative Energy

When a place, such as your house, has too much negative energy, it can be very difficult to keep the peace within your walls. This is especially problematic for the more sensitive members of your family, as they tend to feel the brunt of the negativity.

How to Use Against Negativity:

To combat negative energy and direct positive energy into an area of your home, I recommend placing a medium to large Amethyst cluster in a strategic location. Amethyst’s calming energy can help ease the negativity in the most problematic areas of your home.

As a bonus, it’ll also help you become more intuitive to the feelings of others, as well as keep you calm during arguments. 

Placing an Amethyst cluster in a place that is exposed to too much energy from multiple people (such as in the case of the living room, kitchen, or family room) helps decrease tension, facilitate better communication with wisdom and intuition at the forefront, and soothe negative emotions.

Decisiveness and Prosperity

Most crystals associated with the Crown and Throat Chakras help with perception and intuition. And, as such, crystals like Amethyst can help anyone who’s facing a major decision. Hold a piece of Amethyst in your non-dominant hand as you ponder on the decision you are about to make.

Amethyst is also known to help with creativity. As such, it is an excellent stone for writers, painters, poets, musicians and anyone involved in the arts. If you want to expand your career in a particular creative field, keep an Amethyst crystal on your desk or wear it as jewelry to help you prosper in your professional life.

Physical Ailments

Amethyst, just like other healing crystals, can be used to help physical issues as well. For instance, Amethyst (like most purple crystals) are effective in treating headaches, especially migraines. It also helps with eye problems, such as astigmatism and Glaucoma.

Since it is also a stone of the Throat Chakra, it is an excellent add-on treatment for people who go through intensive drug therapy- such as in the case of cancer patients, people who take antidepressants and other psychotropic drugs, and those undergoing dialysis for kidney problems.

Amethyst helps boost the immune system, as well as keep one’s head clear, which is especially beneficial for people who take medication that fogs their mental clarity (e.g. sedatives, antihistamines, antidepressants, etc.)

How to Use:

If you suffer from migraines and headaches, rub an Amethyst stone on your forehead or leave it on your forehead until you feel the pain gradually go away. Instead of using over-the-counter pain relievers, try using Amethyst instead. Or use it in conjunction with your regular pain medication.

You can use Amethyst alternately if you don’t want to stop taking pain medication completely. Lessening your intake of chemicals to treat your pain will help prevent liver problems later on as most medications are processed in the liver.

Keep Amethyst clusters and geodes where you spend your time the most to relieve stress-related headaches.

Please note, however, that you should not stop any medication or medical treatment without the advice of your physician. Healing crystals are not meant to replace traditional medicine especially in patients with serious medical issues. 

Pairing crystals is an excellent way to enhance their individual energies. If you browse through our collections, you’ll notice that most of our pieces contain more than one crystal; each piece is chosen because they complement the energy of the other crystals they are paired with. 

Some examples of crystals that work best with Amethyst include: Clear Quartz, Citrine (for boosting creativity and prosperity), Smoky Quartz (for counteracting negativity), and Labradorite (for boosting Amethyst's calm energy and enhancing intuition). 

Amethyst is the perfect starter crystal for anyone. Many people are drawn to it when they start collecting crystals or even when just shopping for crystal jewelry- perhaps a testament to the powerful energy of the stone.

As we always recommend to those who are looking to start a crystal collection, listen to your intuition and go for the ones that call out to you. However, if you want to start with a crystal whose beauty is rivaled only by its powerful healing properties, then Amethyst is an excellent option.