Last week, I was gifted a selenite tower and I was ecstatic. Selenite is a type of gypsum crystal that reflects light and brings the owner good luck and protection as well as cleanses negative energy. As I sat in my bedroom, I began contemplating why holding the small white tower evoked this emotion in me. It made me feel warm, relaxed and protected.

At the European Congress of Psychology in Rome, it was reported in a study that “lots of people claimed that they could feel odd sensations while holding the crystals, such as tingling, heat and vibrations,” said psychology professor Christopher French.

In the study, medical researchers said the majority data presented showed a placebo effect. “A lot of people will say science hasn’t proven that crystals work, but science hasn’t proven that they don’t work either,” said Heather Askinosie, author of “Everyday Rituals to Tune into the Real You.”

While I’ve never felt compelled in the past to share my knowledge of crystal healing because of the harsh skeptics, as an avid crystal enthusiast, I can say with certainty that my reaction to crystals isn’t a placebo and that crystals help me.

“There’s a popular saying among doctors: ‘There’s no such thing as alternative medicine; if it works, it’s just called medicine’,” said Ed Yong, author of the book, “I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life.”

Crystal healing is the belief that a person can cure or ease an ailment by having a crystal with them. There are seven main crystals used in crystal healing: quartz, amethyst, rose quartz, citrine, black tourmaline, carnelian and aventurine. These stones are said to bring balance, happiness, and love into a person’s life by working with chakras, the body’s energy field.

Over the summer, I was ill with a mild form of pneumonia and along with a prescription from my doctor I turned to my crystals. The prescription worked but when I put my tumbled amethyst stone and my raw piece of fluorite next to my bed, I felt even better.

After about a week of putting these two stones next to my bed, my condition drastically improved. One of my family members earlier on in the year also had my same illness and took the same prescription and it took her over two months to recover.

I use crystals like daily reminders for my body. When I hold one up against my skin I think of the duty that crystal is supposed to uphold; my body automatically responds to that reminder. I feel how the crystals suggest I feel.