Reiki is becoming more widely recognized by the general public, although it is not always fully understood. There is a perception that Reiki heals in miraculous ways, which it might do, but more often it is found to be a more subtle form of healing. At the very least, Reiki is an energy therapy that offers stress reduction and deep relaxation. Both can do wonders at relieving pain, at least temporarily. The key to true healing, however, is change.
Typically, a person may seek a Reiki treatment because of pain. This pain could be physical, but might also be emotional, or even mental or spiritual. Quite likely, before this person explored Reiki as an option, she may have tried traditional allopathic methods of treatment. Over time, if she did not see improvement, she may have explored other avenues of healing, such as naturapathic medicine, or received massage, acupuncture, or even hypnosis. If any of these modalities were successful, she would not look further. However, we assume they were not helpful, so she continued her search for relief. When the familiar fails to address our concerns, we look more deeply at alternatives. She may then come to Reiki, hoping to find immediate relief from her physical or emotional pain. This could occur with strong faith and belief in the healing process and her role in it. However, it will very likely be short-lived if she expects to have something done to her, or for her.
It is important to note, although we perceive our world as solid and physical, our bodies are pure energy, as is everything else. When someone comes to a Reiki session to alleviate physical, emotional, or mental pain, they are ultimately there to alleviate an energy blockage. If one looks at the situation holistically, there is an imbalance of energies flowing through chakra centers and meridians of the body, which “show up” as physical, emotional, or mental problems. The problem may be concrete like pain, or a feeling which may be difficult to pinpoint, but which feels like “something is not right”. Additionally, it could manifest mentally or emotionally in life as chronic dissatisfaction, anger, confusion, or anxiety. Make no mistake, a chronic mental/emotional problem is an energetic one. These are problems that do not go away until there is a resolution of the root cause, or a change in perspective. If ignored, they can manifest physically in many ways, such as a rash, headache, flu, allergies, shoulder pain, stomach ache, heart attack, diabetes, or even cancer. The entire body, physical and energetic, is saying, “Listen! Something is wrong! Change this situation!”
A sturdy, healthy immune system enables the body to cope with the intrusions of life. The body and mind are in balance and life flows easily. When this is not the case, it can safely be said the immune system has been compromised in some respect. The goal of true healing is to restore balance to the body and mind. Therefore, energetic blockages must be dissolved in order for the physical/emotional/mental symptoms one feels to be resolved. Reiki energy can help a person understand, and make the connection with the various levels of pain. Over time, the energy can subtly facilitate a personal examination of the self, as well as one’s goals and life expectations. Important questions that start to come up might be: Am I living in integrity? Do I understand my purpose in life? What is important to me? Do I love myself? Or what is true happiness? Asking these questions and searching for honest answers opens a person to more balance, joy and love.
Balance is available through change and change is ongoing. We live in a society that promotes quick fixes. In truth, anything worthwhile that facilitates growth, needs to be examined, tested and allowed to ripen in its own time. One session of Reiki will bring relaxation and stress reduction. It will start a person on the path toward balance. Reiki opens the heart, as well as the mind, to assist in necessary life changes. To be sure, Reiki energy does not make life changes, the person who seeks healing does. Reiki facilitates the process. It is a personal responsibility to bring oneself into balance, not only because life is more meaningful and happy when we do, but because each of us owes one another this state of harmonious being.
