written by: Kathy Best, Intuitive Life Coach, CRM, CNT, CRRC

Reiki, a Japanese form of energy medicine has been practiced for thousands of years. A reiki practitioner works with a patient’s energy using light touch or by hovering their hands over the body to activate the natural healing process and promote peace and balance. Modern science and allopathic medicine still remain skeptical about its therapeutic benefits. Many therapies including reiki, healing touch and sound frequencies are used to treat energetic imbalances that can lead to early aging and disease.

Did you know that humans have voltage capacities that regulate cell function? These energy elements are enmeshed in the therapeutic effects of healing energy.

The purpose of energy medicine is to bring the body back to homeostasis or balance by treating energetic imbalances. Energy medicine proposes that disturbances or imbalances in human energy patterns correlate to disease and aging.

According to research published in Global Advances in Health and Medicine mentioned above:

“If Western medicine applied the principles of modern physics, it would understand human beings are composed of information (energy) interacting with other energy (environment) to profoundly impact our physical and emotional health.”

I’ve been an energy healer practitioner for over 20 years incorporating angel invocations, color, crystal, quantum touch, EFT, sound and intention into my in-person and distance energy sessions. I wasn’t really interested in the specifics of Reiki until about 7 years ago when I did an angel card reading for a massage therapist whom I connected with and she offered me some reiki sessions in exchange for more angel card readings. Wow, was I blown away! She was phenomenal and helped my body start the recovery process from a severe health crisis that had forced my out of my 15 year career in accounting. I also discovered that I could tune into her energy while she was working on me and receive messages from the angels about her personal challenges. I started studying everything I could find on Reiki and eventually got my attunements and Usui Reiki Master certification. I went on to study some quantum reiki symbols and developed my own version of quantum reiki.

Some scientists propose that stimulating the human energy field should be combined with common modern medicine practices to treat the entire human body in a more holistic approach.

Reiki used to be considered make believe in Western civilization, but according to e-online and the Washington Independent  Gwyneth Paltrow, Cameron Diaz, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Ellen DeGeneres, Dr. Mehmet Oz and Angelina Jolie are among the celebrities who have praised the therapeutic treatment of Reiki  for emotional suffering, pain, fatigue, and other illnesses. Web.archive.org lists Halle Berry, Sharon Stone, Uma Thurman, Helen Hunt, Naomi Watts, Kate Hudson, Macy Gray, Sandra Bullock, and Nicole Kidman as other celebrities who find Reiki useful in their busy lives.

Golfer Phil Mickelson has been undergoing Reiki treatments to help him deal with his arthritis and depression at tournaments. The New York Times recently ran an article “When in pain, PGA players turn to healers.” The article includes a photo of golfer Phil Mickelson receiving Reiki from practitioner Jim Weathers.

Dr. Mehmet Oz credits Reiki for keeping his life calm and safe which he practices daily. Dr. Oz believes in the healing power of Reiki and often hires Reiki Masters to help his patients relax and feel more at ease when he’s performing surgery. He also believes that the patient’s positive attitude, which he attributes to Reiki, supports successful surgical results.

Well known singer, actress and television host, Christina Aguilera started seeing a Reiki Master three times a week, in 2013, to help her deal with the stress of her hectic celebrity life. According to Aguilera, Reiki aided her weight loss by improving her mood and supporting her in maintaining a healthier eating schedule.

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow began using Reiki in 2014 after she and her husband of ten-years decided to separate and eventually divorce in. Paltrow found that Reiki could be a helpful tool in the healing of a relationship, both during and after her divorce.

Reiki treatments can help you feel more balanced about your life. The sense of balance can result in:

• A stronger feeling of calm and resilience.
• Better quality sleep (which may helps you lose weight!).
• Better personal decisions, particularly in including diet, exercise, and day-to-day living.
• Reduction in stress and anxiety levels.

Top Benefits and Uses

1. Reduces Pain

Research on forms of energy healing like Reiki suggests that energy medicine may help relieve numerous forms of pain. Healing energy can help alleviate headaches and migraines; back, knee, shoulder and neck pain; and arthritic pain.

2. Used as Complementary Medicine

Studies suggest that Reiki is a beneficial form of complementary medicine to help boost immunity and speed recovery for patients dealing with serious health conditions, including cancer and chemotherapy treatment, childbirth and postpartum recovery, and healing after surgery.

3. Promotes Mental Health

Using healing energy can help boost brain function and promote balance. Energy treatments are meant to purify and balance the body’s life force energy, thus boosting your ability to concentrate and focus.

Research indicates that many forms of energy medicine, including reiki, music therapy, touch therapy and light therapy and aromatherapy can be helpful as an alternative treatment for stress, depression and dementia.

Many forms of energy healing promote relaxation and a sense of well-being. Spiritual healing, in particular, supports peace and resilience, thus reducing stress on the body and helping to prevent disease. Reiki has been shown to have both psychological and physical benefits.

Healing prayer, meditation, reiki and mindfulness independently can have a major impact on hormone balance, helping lower cortisol levels, improve sleep and anxiety.

4. May Improve Healing

Many forms of energy medicine are known to promote healing and support immune function because they help improve your mood and induce a relaxed state. The healing benefit is likely due to the ability of energy work to reduce cortisol levels and induce relaxation, allowing the body to recover, repair and heal naturally.

Risks and Side Effects

Reiki appears to be generally safe when practiced by a trained professional. Reiki should not be used to replace conventional care without a thorough understanding of its limitations, so be sure to find a knowledgeable health care professional who can offer a holistic or functional approach, especially if you are struggling with a health issue.

Make sure to use a reputable practitioner or therapist who has been trained and can offer referrals to minimize potential risks and side effects.

The status of the research

Research attempts have been and continue to be made while the debate on how best to study integrative therapies such as Reiki is gaining traction. Nonetheless, research into Reiki is just beginning. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has completed five studies looking at Reiki’s ability to benefit people with fibromyalgia, stress, prostate cancer, diabetes and advanced AIDS.

Other published studies have looked at the effect of Reiki on measures of stress hormones, blood pressure, heart rate, and immune responsivity, and on subjective reports of anxiety, pain and depression. The studies to date are typically small, and not every study is well designed. However, overlapping data from some of the stronger studies support the ability of Reiki to reduce anxiety and pain, and suggest its usefulness to induce relaxation, improve fatigue and depressive symptoms, and strengthen overall wellbeing. A five-year clinical experience study from a 396 bed rural hospital was released in 2018 showing symptom relief in patients receiving reiki or massage. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews contains a review on the use of touch therapies (including Reiki) for pain, depression and dementia.

Reiki and other holistic treatments has been increasingly offered as part of workplace wellness programs, in university wellness center and healthcare industries to address burnout and improve skills.

Conclusion

• Healing energy is the therapeutic applications of subtle energies that works to promote the balance and flow of human life force energy force and treat energetic imbalances to bring a patient’s body systems back to homeostasis.
• Practitioners and patients of energy medicine believe that disturbances in human bioenergetic fields are a source of disease and aging. By balancing energy meridians and fields, a patient can experience a relief from pain, mood disorders, insomnia, chronic stress and early signs of aging.
• There are many types of energy medicine, including reiki, healing touch, healing prayer, sound frequency therapy and EFT. Each one works to balance energy and promote homeostasis.
• If you’ve been dealing with general health issues like pain, chronic stress, fatigue and irritability, it may be time to explore the numerous varieties of energy healing that have been practiced by healers for centuries.