Photo by KoolShooters from Pexels

Photo by KoolShooters from Pexels

Tarot is the rage because more and more people are using it for many reasons beyond predicting the future. Plenty of people uses it for insight into situations and self-reflection. Some people use tarot to spark their own creativity. Tarot is a great tool to help clear out writer’s blocks, but that topic is up for discussion in the future. What else can tarot cards be good for beyond doing predictive readings? Tarot cards can be an excellent tool for mental health. So what? What does that even mean, and how can that really work?

Here is the thing. When it comes to mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and so on, you need to be medically treated. You need to get the proper treatment prescribed by your doctor or psychiatrist. And you need to seek therapy. That is the only way you can be treated effectively for mental illness of any kind. However, what about using tools in addition to that? Those are the tools you need to use to keep working on your mental health between therapy sessions.

Some people rely on meditation, others rely on meditation and journaling, and you can also use tarot cards. Tarot cards can be an excellent tool for mental health.

How Can Tarot Cards Be Helpful When It Comes To Mental Health?

Think about this. When you pull a card, you will not just look at the card itself, but you are going to look at the imagery and the symbols around it. Those are what stimulate your intuitive and emotional side. And the cards you pull will act as a prompt for getting in touch with your emotions and feelings. So you will explore it even more and process it as well.

In fact, using tarot for psychological purposes is not a new thing as the well-known psychoanalyst Carl Jung saw tarot cards as the perfect tool for tapping into the subconscious part of the mind. You don’t even have to have ever taken a course in psychology or even know the tarot too well to benefit from this way of practice. Tarot can still be quite beneficial to you when it comes to helping keep your mental health in check.

Tarot can help you understand your feelings and not look at your feelings from a place of judgment which leads to acceptance. It will help you figure out what you want and understand your values and what is important to you. You can find out through tarot what is really holding you back from achieving what you want.

For instance, if the card you pull is the Eight Of Swords, that is the card representing seeing yourself as trapped and not seeing a way out. But the reality is you only believe you are trapped when it comes to this card. Being trapped is all in your mind. You really are not trapped. So when this card comes up, the first thing you will see is the imagery of someone being barricaded by swords sticking through the ground if you are using Ryder-Waite-Smith-styled tarot decks.

There is a good chance that you relate to this card. Then you will start to explore what you feel is trapping you. Then you will realize that this card represents the feeling of entrapment that is all in mind. You see that it does not have to be that way, and then it will stimulate some ideas on how you can begin to feel unstuck. Chances are, you won’t be able to come up with this on your own if you are really struggling with a mental illness. This is something to take to your therapist. And if your therapist is not open to tarot cards, you will want to question the therapist you are using for the sake of having a lack of open-mindedness. With that said, your therapist does not have to believe in tarot cards, but a good therapist will understand they help you and will work with you regardless.

The tarot can really help uncover a lot within your psyche, so you can go and explore it even further. The tarot can really help you understand your motivations, behaviors, and experiences in a non-confrontational way. There is no judgment which is why it is also quite helpful. It enables you to understand why you do the things you do and can lead you to solutions to better your habits in the long run.

I’ll provide another example. You pull the Nine of Swords. This is known as the ‘nightmare card.’ This is the card that is indicative of excessive worries and fears as well as intrusive thoughts. And these thoughts can cause a lot of anxiety within. You want to resist these thoughts, but you know the saying, what resists persists. So perhaps it is time to examine the thoughts and find out why you have them. Talk about these intuitive thoughts with a therapist as they can help you understand them better and give you tips on how to work with them.

You already know that tarot cards are beneficial for your mental health because they help you understand what is happening within. In addition to that, there is no judgment by utilizing this method whatsoever. That is only one benefit of using tarot cards for your mental health. Another excellent advantage of using this method is developing a ritual.

Tarot Cards Are Beneficial For The Development Of A Ritual

When caring for your mental health, developing a healthy daily ritual is essential to keep it strong. The idea is to start your morning off by pulling a card and looking at the message it brings. If you end up with a challenging card such as the 10 of Swords or the Tower, there is work you need to do to reframe your perspective on them. Instead of assuming you will have nothing but losses, upheavals, and challenges for the day – perhaps there is another reason you are pulling any of those cards. It does not mean you will have a bad day.

Maybe those cards tell you it is a good day to prepare yourself for any unforeseen challenges that could emerge. For instance, this could be a good day to head over to the bank and create a savings account for emergencies. Then, if a considerable unforeseen expense runs your way, such as an expensive medical bill that cannot be insured or a huge home repair, at least you will have savings to cover at least some of it.

Therefore, if you develop the ritual of pulling a card each morning, you can reframe your day based on the message your card brings to you. You may be wondering what you need to do before you begin to read your cards. Let's delve deeper into this.

Let's Delve Deeper Into How You Read Your Tarot Cards

The way you read your cards and do your ritual is entirely up to you. However, there is a rule of thumb, and that is to clear your mind. Once you do, lay out the spread of your choice facing down. If you have decided to do one-card readings, pull that card and lay it face down. Take a deep breath and open up your mind so you can absorb what the cards say to you. This is the message that the Universe has to deliver.

Once you get the message from the cards or the card that you pulled, sit with it. Pay attention to your initial response to it, and begin to reflect on the message the cards or card brought to you. What is the first thing that comes to your mind? Is it uncomfortable, and if so, why? And does it reflect on any critical situation you are facing right now? If it does, what is the message? Then, write it in your journal to reflect on it later in the day or at another time.

For instance, you are eager to start your business right now, but you are struggling with different obstacles that are not making it easy for you to get it off the ground. This is causing nothing but frustration for you. Finally, however, you do the one-card reading, and the card you pull is The Hanged Man.

The Hanged Man is the card that represents surrender and putting things on hold. The message would explain why you cannot get your business off the ground, let alone established. It is a time to wait to do that, and perhaps you need to work on something within before you do. If your mental health is not being in a good place, you need to focus on that before starting anything new. You won’t like being told to wait and to put things on hold, but there is an important reason you are guided to do so.

And these obstacles that are coming your way are sending you that message as well. Maybe your mental health is under control, but you might be setting up the business for the wrong reasons. Only you have the answers within, and you need to use that time to discover what they are before going ahead with getting your business off the ground.

If the message is not relevant to a situation you are facing right now, then it may be relevant to a problem that you could be facing soon. Therefore, write the message down in your journal. Because the situation does arise where the spread or the card meaning is relevant, you can look back at your journal and remind yourself of the cards that came up. You can then reflect on that and find a way to best deal with the issue you are facing. You may also be wondering if any particular decks can work best.

What Type Of Tarot Decks Should You Use?

The tarot deck you want to use for mental health purposes is entirely up to you. You want to go with a deck that speaks to you and that you relate to and that has imagery you appreciate. There is no rule for this. If the tarot deck is not appealing to you, it will not work well with you, and you may throw in the towel and believe that this method does not help your mental health. Instead, go onto Amazon or Etsy or your local metaphysical shop, and browse the different decks for sale. If you like penguins, I have my own penguin deck if that interests you, but no pressure! You have to choose the deck that calls to you!

If you like a particular deck that you see from one of those outlets, go to Google Images, and type the deck's name. Then you will see samples of the cards in the deck, and you can judge from there if it is right for you. If it jumps out at you and resonates, then it is an excellent deck to try out.

The great thing about this practice is that it is entirely up to you on how you want to use it. If you prefer to pull a card at the end of the day before you go to bed to see what message it brings for the next day, then do that. There is no rule with this. Just use it to help yourself, give you the guidance you need, and it is an excellent tool for your mental health. In the next episode, I will tell you the story of a woman named Risa Green, who has experienced plenty of trauma and struggles with CPTSD and Major Depressive Disorder. Her story will be referenced when I go over the card's meanings.