This is part of the “Doing New Things” series where I’m trying to get out of my daily routine and explore newness by – you guessed it – doing new things. 52 new things in one year to be exact. Read more about my intention behind it here and view the complete list of things here. Today I’m writing about my first ever Reiki session (#37 on my list).
Why Reiki?
As far as I can remember, I got the desire to try out Reiki when I watched an episode of the TV show “The Affair”. In the episode, Noah – one of the main characters – has a Reiki session with his girlfriend’s mother, Athena. For those who want to know, it was episode 6 of the 2nd season (watch it here). He doesn’t really believe in the whole thing but gives it a shot in an attempt to overcome his writer’s block.
In the episode, Athena talks to Noah during the session and moves her hands a few inches above Noah’s body without touching it. She talks about his chakras and kundalini and makes a gesture as if she’s pulling something out of his body. This also reminded me of a friend of mine who had a similar experience at a healer she saw in Costa Rica. My friend went to this woman because of her constant hip pain. The healer said to her that there’s a person in her life that is a “pain in her ass”. Then she proceeded to move her hands over her aching hip as if she was pulling the pain out of it. And guess what; my friend is pain free ever since!
The Reiki also seems to work for Noah in the TV show. At least, you can see that he has a strong reaction to it. I know, it’s a TV show, but you know how it is. You see something on TV and get an itch to try it out. Of course, I didn’t expect it to “work” how it did for Noah in the show or for my friend. But I was curious what it would do for me.
What Is Reiki?
Reiki is an alternative medicine. Japanese buddhist Mikao Usui invented it in 1922. According to Reiki.org, it is a
technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. It is administered by “laying on hands” and is based on the idea that an unseen “life force energy” flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. If one’s “life force energy” is low, then we are more likely to get sick or feel stress, and if it is high, we are more capable of being happy and healthy.
The word Reiki is made of two Japanese words – Rei which means “God’s Wisdom or the Higher Power” and Ki which is “life force energy”. So Reiki is actually “spiritually guided life force energy.”
A treatment feels like a wonderful glowing radiance that flows through and around you. Reiki treats the whole person including body, emotions, mind and spirit creating many beneficial effects that include relaxation and feelings of peace, security and wellbeing. Many have reported miraculous results.
Reiki is a simple, natural and safe method of spiritual healing and self-improvement that everyone can use. It has been effective in helping virtually every known illness and malady and always creates a beneficial effect. It also works in conjunction with all other medical or therapeutic techniques to relieve side effects and promote recovery.
However, others say that Reiki is pseudoscience. First, it is based on a “life force” for which there is no scientific evidence of existence. Also, clinical studies have not shown Reiki to be effective for medical conditions (source).
I wanted to find out for myself.
My Reiki Experience
A couple of weeks ago I was in Nosara, Costa Rica. Almost every day I went to the Bodhi Tree Yoga Resort to attend yoga classes. One day I came across their spa menu and saw that they also offer a few Reiki treatments. Since I was there every day, I thought why not check another thing off my list and try out Reiki. I decided on a “Double Reiki” session. The description sounded promising:
“Two Reiki Practitioners in one session creating a transformational experience for your body, mind and spirit. Re-balance your energies and unlock blockages with this unique offering by Angela & Robert. One hour of Double Reiki is a profound experience that is even more intense than two hours of Reiki. ‘The Whole is More than the Sum of it‘s Parts.’ “
Before I booked the session, I talked to one of the practitioners. She told me about her training to become a Reiki practitioner and what I could expect from the session. Essentially, she said that I would lay down and that her partner and her would perform the Reiki at the same time. She said that everybody reacts differently to it. Some would have a sudden body movement during the session, but not everybody. Also, I could expect to have a certain mental clarity after the treatment.
I had my session the next morning. After filling out some paperwork including a health questionnaire, we went into a room with a massage table. I laid down on my back and they put a light blanket over my body and a cover over my eyes. They put on gentle, soothing background music and started the 60-minutes long session.
Basically, the treatment consisted of the two practitioners laying their hands on different parts of my body (head, arms, stomach, legs, feet) and left them there for a few minutes. Also, no one talked during the treatment. So it was quite different from what I had seen in the TV show (who knows they portrayed it correctly in the episode).
After the session was over, the two practitioners left the room after and gave me some time alone. After I left the room, they asked me how I felt. They also told me to drink plenty of water and to not do any strenuous activities that day in order to not exhaust the energy I had received “from the universe”, which would be with me for the next 24-48 hours.
The Result
To be honest, I didn’t feel any different after the session than I did before. I didn’t have more energy or a “clarity of the mind” or anything in that regard. I get that some people might find the touch of the hands calming and relaxing. However, I’m leaning towards believing it to be pseudoscience. I don’t know. Maybe for some people it makes a difference. For me, it didn’t.
Have you ever had a Reiki session? How did it work for you?
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