Hi Faye, So the causal body works (from my exploration) like this: when you pass on from a previous life, the lower three bodily vehicles fall away - physical body, emotional body and the lower mind. Now the soul rises into the next density - the fourth, and is held in the angelic realm therein. Whereupon it goes through a rest and reflection of what took place in the previous lifetime - you get to see the challenges the soul was dealing with beyond the veils. However, if the soul has not self-realised (realised the One Self) through the challenges that were created for that incarnation, then this is stored as 'karma'. The karma (in the fourth density causal body) then begins to draw the soul (by the Law of Attraction) 'downwards' through the dimensions into another incarnation. As it descends, it already starts to weave the circumstances of the new incarnation based on what is to be discovered and learned at a soul level. Karma draws all the circumstances of your new life together: families, living corcumstances, location, jobs, etc etc etc. The new life is created as an outward projected reflection of the karma held in the causal body. Then there's the invitation for the soul to engage in the 'movie' until it realises the One Self in those situations where the illusion of reality would 'wrong-foot' it. So just as you described...

"This happened because I had an unsightly bunion on my foot, and in my twenties, I was preoccupied with how my body looked, It actually functioned fine!! So I literally kind of shot myself in the foot by having the operation mainly out of vanity. I learned the hard way that i need to love my feet and my body even if they do not look perfect-they were and still are."

When something happens to the left side of the body, I observe it usually reflects a distortion on the physical plane. When on the right, usually it signifies a distort on the spiritual - etheric - planes (relating more to higher connection). So yes, I would say it was about learning to love yourself inspite of what appears in the physical. But....

What might "loving oneself" really mean?

The "oneself" that we're being invited to love is the deeper sense of connection, way beyond the physical. Through acceptance of the physical, how ever it may be, we transcend into the abode of the soul and experience love for the One Self - which is beyond form altogether. And then there's a deep appreciation of the soul also - which is multidimensional, having countless gifts, beingness and potential which is beyond the limitation of fixed form. So the ego is caused to confront it's separation from the soul (and ego here would be fragments of soul 'broken off' from the souls mainstream due to attachment), which happens through the reflections that constantly happen in life (like what our bodies look like). We're caused to confront and feel into the pain, to let go and transcend it. Thus the fragments of soul reintegrate and the karma dissolves. A surpressed sacrum bone would potentially suggest that there were emotional challenges in a past life. So maybe you'd like to share a little about the emotional challenges you're having in relationships? With love Open :-)