Most people are born with a first sense, a “baby” sense, mine was visual. That was not a big surprise to me having two artistic parents who are both very visual people. Aesthetics played an important part in my childhood years. Even behavior was referred to as “beautiful” or “ugly”.
Fast forward to shaman school and creating a mesa (a sacred personal altar) which was a cloth that held different symbolic stones. In working with other shamans in training and choosing stones from their mesa’s with which to work, I chose visually; whichever one appealed to me the most. 
When we learned how to track energy however, suddenly I realized I could not always depend on my sight, literal or psychic, so I had to develop my kinaesthetic ability. I’m right-handed so naturally, I used that hand but was not receiving any information so I tried out my left hand – moving over the energy field of my colleagues and “feeling” blockages. It wasn’t an emotional feeling, it was energetic in a very physical kind of way!
I realized that in order to be able to trust this new way of receiving information, I would have to close off my visual safety net. So I started to choose stones with my eyes closed and started to track energy on people only by what I was feeling through my hand. It was a fascinating experiment and now I consider myself to be more kinaesthetic than visual. I get a feeling about things, and regardless of how it looks on the surface, it’s the energetic feeling that I pay attention to.
In later years of working with clients, I decided that in order to fully utilize all of my senses I ought to try the same experiment again to see what I could receive. So I shut down my kinaesthetic receptors, along with my visual and waited until I “heard” the answers I was looking for. This challenged my patience level considerably, waiting and waiting to hear words from spirit. But sure enough, spirit answered and I started receiving information in a whole new way! It was so exciting! Not only was I developing a new skill set, but it really made me tune in to my intuition at a much deeper level, as well as forcing me to surrender and trust Source Energy.
I practiced that for months determined to feel secure with my new auditory ability. I decided that I would skip the olfactory sense. I noticed I could smell when someone was sick, or toxic, but I chose not to depend on that. I have always been very sensitive to strong aromas so I didn’t fancy having to inhale something malodorous.
Instead, I focussed on the “sixth sense” of knowing. This time I shut down all of my other senses when working with clients and simply relied on just knowing. Intuiting, not from hearing a “voice” or having a feeling, or something I saw, just relying on Source energy channeling through me.
This process was rather amusing as I would be working with a client and have a knowing about whatever I was seeing, not attempting to ask what it was about, not needing to receive any more information about it, yet, in checking up on myself I would begin to visually or kinaesthetically investigate and the voice would interrupt me abruptly, “WHY ARE YOU CHECKING WHEN YOU KNOW?!” It would surprise me and then I’d have a little giggle at myself. 
Each time I practiced working with one sense or another I would do it for months on end to really get secure with my process. In so doing, now I predominant work kinaesthetically, however, I regularly receive answers auditorially and I know when I get a “hit” of intuition, or knowing, that I can absolutely trust that. The best part was the realization that I am in a constant dialogue with God, and that Source speaks to me and through me in a variety of ways.
So much goes into the mix when working with clients. We incorporate our intellect and knowledge which are integral senses in themselves, and we get connected to Source Energy however that manifests for each of us. I didn’t want to miss out on receiving information which is why I practiced developing each sense individually.
Maybe you could give it a go too? You can develop your visual skills by using cards and intuiting what the images mean. You can expand your kinaesthetic sense by practicing feeling the subtle energies in your own auric field and noticing temperature changes or “soft” or “spiky” areas. The more you pay attention and practice out of your comfort zone, the more you will master coming to all of your senses.
