Here’s Why November Is the Perfect Month to Embrace Your Spiritual Side

As we mentioned earlier this week, November (in our humble opinion) is the best month of the year.

One of the many reasons is because it's the best month to get in touch with our spiritual side. While the end of the year isn't officially here until December, November is still a month filled with reflection and gratitude—whether that be in our family life, our friend circle, our romantic relationships or our success and future.

Aside from distractions out of our control, November has us at our most peaceful, and we're naturally the most selfless. The chilly weather and changing of the leaves is calming, Thanksgiving provides feelings of love and belonging, and with a whole month still ahead of fun activities, we're in really upbeat moods. It's the perfect time to deal with personal issues we may have put off earlier in the year.

(via Unsplash)

There's really no better time than now to emotionally heal and get in touch with who we are below the surface. This is a special time for you to focus on you. Spirituality isn't about your friends and family—it's about improving your own life, your own way, and figuring out which natural practices will lead you there.

We reached out to Southern California-based spiritual healer Vanessa Petronelli, who broke down everything you need to know about how to get in touch with your spiritual side. Should you have any questions or want to set up a healing session in person or by phone, she encourages you to reach out directly, either by website or Instagram.

Keep reading for your crash course on how to embrace your spiritual side:

Sweety High: What is spiritual guidance?

Vanessa Petronelli: Spiritual guidance is simply the act of getting support, wisdom and perspective around your own connection to your soul, your purpose and life overall.

(via Unsplash)

SH: What are its importance and benefits?

VP: Like with any important area of life, getting perspective from outside of ourselves can help us become aware of what we cannot see on our own. It's about becoming aware of our blind spots and limitations. The tools, wisdom and practices that a teacher or guide can provide, can help accelerate one's personal growth journey.

And all that said, I always mention that, at the end of the day, it's our own individual guidance that needs to be listened to the most. A teacher or guide can help remove the noise and confusion that often gets in the way of hearing our own true essence and inner voice.

SH: What are some tips you can share for anyone feeling emotionally overwhelmed?

VP: Mental and emotional health and well-being is such a crucial part of our overall health and well-being. Too often we prioritize physical health only and ignore mental and emotional health, until it becomes overwhelmingly important and urgent to address, like after some kind of crisis. That's why I'm a huge advocate of investing time and energy into all areas of well-being.

Two of the biggest tools I can recommend are breath and silence. So many of us are rushing through our lives from one thing to another, with no breaks. Or even when we take a "break," we're scrolling through our phone or listening to music. There is tremendous power in silence. Especially deliberate silence, where we consciously choose to eliminate the noise and distraction and just be with ourselves completely. Setting a timer for five minutes a day of sitting in silence can be very powerful.

(via Unsplash)

The next tool is putting deliberate focus on the breath. The breath is a great tool because it's always with us. And, again, deliberately choosing to slow our breath down has countless benefits to our body, our nervous system, our emotional well-being and our mind.

Even right now, as you're reading this, pause, close your eyes and take five full, deep breaths, where you allow your belly to expand as you inhale and contract as you exhale.

SH: How can people explore their spiritual side if it's something they haven't done before?

VP: A genuine curiosity for spirituality is always a first step. Heading to a meditation class; going to the bookstore and hanging out in the new age/spirituality section while perusing books; attending a convention or going to a new age shop. These are all great initial ways to begin to explore spirituality. And following those intuitive breadcrumbs along the way.