The Power of Routine in Reiki

Drawing from my own daily practice, I begin each day with Reiki, often before even opening my eyes. This routine grounds me, preparing my mind and body to face the day with enthusiasm and peace. I urge you to reflect on your self-care, especially your Reiki self-practice. If you’re not practicing daily, ask yourself why. Remember, even small adjustments can guide you towards consistent practice.

Consider simplifying your routines if they become too intricate for daily life. On busier days, embrace simpler forms of practice, but strive for consistency, just like daily essential habits such as eating, sleeping, and brushing your teeth. In doing so, you anchor yourself more firmly in your own body and spirit.

As we transition through seasons, particularly approaching the colder months, consider what supports your well-being. Regular Reiki practice can help maintain your energy and creativity even when external conditions change.

Start with basic hand placements:

1. Crown
2. Face
3. Throat
4. Back of the head
5. Upper chest
6. Diaphragm/lower ribs
7. Navel
8. Lower abdomen/hip crease

These simple placements weave vitality and balance into your existence.

A Season of Healing

Let’s dedicate this time to healing. Recognizing when we stretch ourselves too thin is crucial. Realign with your resources, and nurture your healing, rather than giving from a place of overextension. True giving emanates from a place of abundance, not sacrifice.

It’s vital to understand that quick fixes don’t yield long-lasting results.

True Reiki practice requires comprehensive training. Without it, you’re missing out on the full potential this practice holds. In experiencing and understanding its value, motivation follows naturally.

The Importance of Mindful Awareness

Once we’ve finished a group self practice, I ask people to remain still, eyes closed, and notice how they’re feeling before I guide them gently out of practice. You might want to adopt that when you self practice on your own.

Sometimes I ask people to let two or three words come to mind, and then share them with the group. Here are some that are often shared: relaxed, thankful, calm, peaceful, present, grounded.

The words shared reflect the state of being that people commonly feel after practice, and which can become your usual state through consistent practice.

In a chaotic world, peace of mind is invaluable. It’s not something to passively wait for, but rather actively cultivate within. Regular Reiki practice fosters this awareness, allowing you to navigate life with more creativity and productivity.

Reflect on what daily practices you can commit to for inner peace. Explore resources such as my book, “Reiki: A Comprehensive Guide,” for deepening your practice and establishing the vital boundary around your self-care. Remember, your well-being is paramount, allowing you to give genuinely to others.

Together on This Journey

I’m here to support your journey. I have a First Degree class soon, and I write weekly emails to inform your practice. And/or you could join me for Better Boundaries.

Whatever’s a good fit for you, please prioritize your health and well-being. Thank you for being here, and until next time, take care and cultivate love within yourself.

So many people live immersed in complaints about their body. They have very good reasons — lots of them —  yet it’s easier to create powerful change than you imagine.

You can develop a good enough relationship with your body so it reveals its secrets to you. That’s what happens when you practice self Reiki every day.

And it’s very practical, not merely a matter of feeling good about yourself (although that’s good, too!).

A personal story

May I share a personal example of the difference it makes to be in good relationship with your body?

As I was about to leave the hospital after breaking my leg in Provence last June, the delightful and skillful orthopedic specialist checked with me one more time to make sure I understood it would be 6-8 weeks before I could put weight on my leg.

Good thing he stopped by to stress that, as I truly had not gotten that memo. I was aghast. 6-8 WEEKS before I could walk again???

“How will I know when it’s ok to start?” I asked.

He looked me in the eye, and said with certainty, “You’ll know. You’ll feel it.”

I had no idea how that could be true, but his confidence and his words were empowering, and I felt relieved.

A mere 2.5 weeks later, I knew what he meant.

The bone pain — the worst pain I’d had by far — was completely gone. Even though it was much sooner than the norm, I realized the bone had knit.

Because it healed so fast, I waited another few days before starting ever so carefully to put a little weight on it, gingerly at first, and soon standing on both feet.

Is the cost of “being sure” worth it?

Friends asked why not have a CT, just to be sure?

While I didn’t hesitate to have the CT scan needed to diagnose the fracture, which didn’t show definitively on the X-rays, I’m wary of unnecessary radiation.

You should be too. When is a scan unnecessary? That’s a question to take to your doctor, but here’s my reasoning.

Given that the fracture wasn’t clear on an X-ray, I’d need another CT to confirm that it healed. But CTs involve much more radiation than X-rays.

Many people — even doctors — don’t appreciate just how much more radiation is involved. A chest CT, for example, typically delivers 70 times the radiation of a chest X-ray.

Gaining confidence in yourself, and in life

How could I be so confident the bone had healed?

Because I spend time every day with my self practice — hands-on my body, awareness in-drawn — I know my body well enough to be able to trust the doctor’s words: “You’ll feel it.”

It didn’t seem possible, and I had no idea how it would play out, but I had confidence in the doctor, and I trusted myself.

Many people feel they’re the last to know what’s happening in their bodies. That’s not the case with me, and it doesn’t have to be that way for you, either. Your body doesn’t have to be a stranger.

LET ME BE CLEAR: I’m not saying you don’t need doctors.

I’m saying you don’t need to fret. If you self practice daily, you’re more self aware and body aware.

That means you’re more likely to sense when you need medical help , so you go for the medical attention you need sooner, when your chances to heal are better.

And when you practice daily self Reiki, if/when you need medical help, you’ll respond better because your practice keeps your body in self-healing mode.

My daily self practice is the main reason my fracture healed so much faster than the norm. Of course, there are many reasons, but they all start with daily self Reiki.

Reiki & Medicine

I go into the whys, hows and straightforward science of Reiki practice, healing, and medicine in my Reiki & Medicine Masterclass.

If you’re a Reiki professional, understanding the intersection of Reiki and medicine means you can better serve your clients. It also helps you stand out from the crowd so you’ll likely have more clients, so you can help more people.

If you practice at home — on yourself, family, friends and pets — the information and confidence you’ll get in the Masterclass will help you make better healthcare choices for yourself and your family, choices that help you stay healthier even in the face of chronic illness, choices that might help you avoid chronic illness.

If you have questions, I’m here for you. You can have the benefit of my decades of medical collaboration, so you can stay happier and healthier, and be confident in your healthcare choices.

She wrote, “I was in a half asleep, half meditative state and heard your voice saying: keep practicing.”

BIG SMILE HERE! I was thrilled to learn she’s still practicing. Thrilled because practice is what makes the magic happen.

Reiki magic

Now, I’m not saying Reiki practice is magic; it’s not.

But the results — the transformation — can seem magical.

Your response to Reiki practice — self practice or received from someone else — is rapid, gentle, profound, subtle.

So subtle, you might not notice your response if you’re looking outside for fireworks, or if your attention is preoccupied with expectations you don’t know you have, so paying attention internally will help you notice your immediate benefit during and after a Reiki session.

Notice how you feel before Reiki practice, and notice how you feel after your session. It can be as simple, and as powerful, as “I feel a bit better.” Your better might be more relaxed, calmer, quieter, grounded…it’s very subjective and of the moment.

Can I promise a specific result beyond feeling better? No, because your response to Reiki practice arises from the wisdom of your unique system at that particular time.

Your system knows more about healing itself than the most astute, accomplished medical specialist (which is why combining Reiki practice with medical care is so valuable — a conversation for another day).

Your system will respond in the self-healing way that’s both possible and in your best interests at that particular time, so no specific predictions are possible. I can, however, paint some broad strokes.

What happens to you when you practice self Reiki or receive a session?

In response to Reiki practice, your system will start reorganizing itself in the direction of greater balance. By “your system,” I mean not only your body, but your mind, your emotions, your sense of self. 

Let’s elaborate on that last one: your sense of self.

If you’re in a situation in which you’re being passive and not participating to your fullest, not bringing yourself and your gifts to the table, your response to Reiki practice will likely be to have a stronger sense of self, greater self confidence, a stronger (yet gentle) assertiveness.

If, on the other hand, you’re being stubborn and positional, holding onto a perspective that doesn’t include others’ needs — that might not even include your own, really, but you’re too stuck to see that — you’ll feel yourself soften, not into passivity, but into collaboration and inclusivity.

You know: Team work makes the dream work.

Right now, don’t you agree we need more of that, more balanced presence, a healthier sense of self and an inclination towards collaboration rather than combat?

What are you waiting for? Stop hanging around waiting for someone or something else to create the magic. Here’s what you can do so easily!

How to make your own magic

It takes practice. The good news is that it’s easy to practice Reiki.

If you want to experience the often magical response to Reiki practice, it’s time to make a choice and take action. Here are 2 FREE ways I can help:

• If you want to experience self practice — whether you’re Reiki-trained or a newbie — join my next FREE online guided self practice session. Register and you’ll receive the replay if you can’t join us live.
• If you want to know how to find a Reiki professional or teacher who’s qualified and a good match for you — you deserve both! — read this short article.

And if you like what you see here, I’d love to share Reiki practice with you, or help you deepen your existing practice and clarify your understanding. Read about my small group, live, interactive online First Degree Reiki classes here.

Has Reiki practice magically transformed your life? Please share in a comment below. I’d love to read your Reiki story, and you never know whom you might encourage.

Have a question about Reiki practice? Please leave it in a comment and I’ll respond so others can benefit, or email me, if you prefer.

How do you feel when you’re off to the dentist?

I’m headed there soon, and I’m so happy!

My dentist is a Reiki student of mine, and an overall great guy.

He’s also a biological dentist, meaning he’s fully accredited, but works as naturally and holistically as possible.

He looks at your overall health, educates patients on prevention, avoids toxic materials as is possible, and looks for possible connections between common interventions such as root canals, and medical conditions that don’t heal.

Biological dentists aren’t easy to come by, but it’s well worth your effort to find a good one.

How biological dentists are like Reiki masters

You’ll want to do your research, because as with “Reiki master,” the term “biological dentist” doesn’t tell you everything you want to know before trusting one with your care. Neither term is backed by widely agreed-upon standards, so they basically mean whatever they mean to the individual.

Just as some people consider themselves Reiki masters after an hourlong recorded training, some biological dentists take a short, maybe online, course before identifying as a biological dentist. Their motivation might be simply that they understand patients are increasingly looking for holistic care, and they want more business.

Other people aren’t drawn to be what I call a “faster master.” They practice Reiki for years before embarking on a yearlong Reiki master training, or work closely with their Reiki master in the traditional way, for however long it takes until both masters feel it’s time. And the master who trained them remains a continuing resource.

Similarly, some biological dentists are deeply holistic, engage in tons of training, and make the effort to stay current with breakthroughs. They’re that committed on their own, not just looking to fill continuing education requirements, or create a marketing cachet.

When product recognition is low

Biological dentists and Reiki professionals face a common dilemma: the mainstream public doesn’t know what they do. People know much more about plumbers, accountants, teachers, doctors, etc.

Even those who have some awareness of biological dentistry or Reiki practice, few realize the credentials in those fields have very elastic meaning.

Also, the training of biological dentists and Reiki masters varies enormously. The public understands a biological dentists are dentists, that they’ve gone through rigorous dental training. But what additional training have they pursued to justify calling themselves “biological” dentists? 

Reiki as a discipline doesn’t have a foundation training that is largely agreed upon, not for beginning students and not for Reiki masters (many of whom have, for example, less training and experience than my First Degree students).

If you’re just discovering biological dentistry or Reiki, that’s important for you to know, so you can do your own research and not over-value credentials that aren’t backed by agreed-upon standards.

What biological dentists and Reiki professionals need to know

If you’re a biological dentist or a Reiki professional, realize the public doesn’t understand what you offer, or why you in particular are qualified in your field.

It’s up to us as professionals to educate the public about what we do — about our fields in general — and also about how we as individuals have prepared ourselves to serve them.  The presentation we make helps draw clients to us who are a good match for what we offer, and who we are.

That’s why I created this short article: 5 Tips to Unlock the Power of Reiki. If you take a peek, I’d love to know what you think.

Are you a Reiki Professional? Tap here to discover the resources I have especially for Reiki professionals, and receive a short series of emails written to support Reiki Professionals.

BTW My dentist loved our Reiki Vacay Retreat in Mexico. Tap here to learn details about the next one, and here to get an email when registration opens. 

I have been, and continue to be, a licensed board certified practicing allopathic physician and surgeon for the last 44 years. I am AMA residency trained, and have continuously practiced my specialty since 1981.

27 years ago, I developed an aggressive form of cancer. I treated it with an aggressive form of surgery. And I was cured of the cancer but badly crippled by the necessary surgery. In the recovery, I received Reiki sessions extensively and had an extraordinary recovery, and within six months I was back to full medical practice, surgery, hiking, and camping. Though by training a skeptic, I could feel something unusual happening every time I received a Reiki session. I credit western medicine for my diagnosis and surgical cure, and Reiki practice for my recovery.

My curiosity led me to learn more about this. I studied it by taking the courses and receiving the full spectrum of training. After 9 years of extensive Reiki training, I was given permission to teach Reiki as a master teacher. I then traveled around the country and studied with many of the senior Reiki Masters and practitioners of the United States. I observed that they walked the walk and helped and comforted many people that western medicine failed. They helped many more people like me who benefited from western medicine but needed something more for full recovery.

Reiki practice is not something that lends itself external organization, or certification. It is much more akin to spiritual healing. It cannot be organised and taught; it can only be learned.

Our country was founded on the principles of religious freedom of individuals to find their own spiritual path. We do not have a state religion in the United States. Nor should we have a state sponsored spiritual healing industry. Whatever money and power touch, they eventually corrupt. Whoever is in charge will try to remake everything in their own image, and sadly, too often for their own profit.

I have never seen people harmed by Reiki practice, and I have seen hundreds healed with it.

Reiki practice is safe and for many, very effective.  Of course it doesn’t cure everyone; neither does penicillin or heart surgery.

Recently, political powers in Washington are cutting access to health care for millions of Americans.

Please do not take away this form of health care as well.

Please oppose bills such as S261 that attempt to regulate Reiki and similar healing practices.

Allow people to make their own decisions.

Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

Craig J Brown MD FACS

Un-American, in a good way

What Reiki represents isn’t a cultural value in either the U.S, or in other English-speaking countries, or in European countries.

Hawayo Takata did the best she could — thank you! — and that’s why we’re able to have this conversation. 

If you think about it, how can anyone understand something that isn’t part of their culture?

Well, it takes commitment and an openess to learn. And in this case, it takes practice. 

Let’s continue this conversation in January. If you missed the first two installments, you can catch up here and here. 

Meanwhile, you might contemplate this: if rather than “universal life force energy,” the Reiki kanji points to something more like Oneness, how might that change your understanding of Reiki practice, and how you talk about it? 

Free I Love MySelf Reiki Session

Shall we practice together in 2025’s first free online I Love MySelf Reiki Practice on January 7? 

You can register here, and then please share the invite. All your people are welcome, whether they’re Reiki trained or not. 

The free self practice sessions are a great way to take the pressure off while introducing family and friends to Reiki. 

Sometimes that’s an easy conversation, but sometimes it gets…complicated. 

Maybe you’ve been there, and gotten discouraged. Or felt sidelined.

Talking about Reiki is way harder than practicing Reiki. I’ve had decades of practice, so you can shift the burden to me. Just keep in mind these are practice sessions, not a proper Reiki training. 

If you’re wondering about training, my short article 5 Things You Must Know about Reiki will help you make a choice that’s a good fit for you.

And of course I’d love to train you — or help you fill in the gaps, if you’ve taken a training that didn’t feel complete, or didn’t inspire you to self practice daily. 

Daily, as in every day. That’s how you get the most value from your practice.

My next comprehensive, traditional First Degree Reiki training is in January. 

And there’s still a spot in Mexico.

This is the 3rd in a series that starts here.

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Two of my favorite names for Mystery are Timelessness and Oneness. (Please share yours in a comment below.)

It’s intriguing to explore Mystery through the lens of Oneness, because Oneness is where science and spirituality merge.

Spirituality and science, again

Sages and mystics from all traditions tell us Oneness is the ultimate reality.

Physicists agree. A single fundamental reality seems so obvious to them that they gave it a name — unified field — even though physics doesn’t have equations for that reality.

Or even a comprehensive theory. String theory moves in that direction, but isn’t a complete unified theory (according to my physicist friends).

(Full disclosure: I’m not a physicist, not even close, so if you have an advanced physics degree, and you disagree with anything here, please educate me.)

Basic Oneness

One thing fundamental to Oneness is that whatever it is, there’s only one.

When you experience even a glimmer of Oneness — whether during self Reiki or meditation or prayer, or out in nature, or any time your mind stops and your heart opens — the Oneness you experience is the same Oneness I experience.

It’s the same Oneness everyone who experiences Oneness experiences.

Even the people you have a beef with. Because there’s only one One.

Oneness is not material

Physics tells us about the material world. It explores the “there” that’s “there.”

But Oneness isn’t there, or anywhere. It’s everywhere. All the time. Timeless.

Oneness has no substance. Oneness is not material.

Oneness expresses as (among other things) the material world.

But Oneness itself isn’t material, and doesn’t have any of the limitations associated with matt.

Oneness is limitless and timeless; it’s spiritual (not metaphysical).

Oneness is transforming

Because Oneness is without limits, you don’t have to have a full out experience of Oneness to be transformed.

Even a glimpse of Oneness moves you, making pettiness less interesting, and opening your vision to ever-deepening Truth.

You move into Oneness incrementally, one practice at a time. That’s why daily self practice brings you so much more benefit than occasional, when-you-feel-like-it practice.

Reiki spiritual practice

It really wasn’t a leap for me to practice self Reiki every day because I was a meditation teacher when I learned to practice Reiki.

A meditation teacher pregnant with her second child. A meditation teacher who remembered well the impossibility of meditating daily with a newborn.

And a meditation teacher who understood that as a mother of two young children, I’d have greater need for the resilience that comes with daily practice, that it would make me a better, more loving mother.

My leg up

I brought everything I’d come to know about the benefit of daily spiritual practice to my Reiki practice from the beginning.

I didn’t practice just when I felt like it; I practiced every morning (the easiest time for me), no matter how I felt.

I self practiced daily because I knew that’s what it takes to open the spiritual support I needed and longed for.

And my self Reiki rewarded that commitment.

What about you?

Do you struggle with daily self practice? I probably would have at first if I weren’t already a daily meditator.

I came to Reiki with some knowledge of the commitment needed to get the most from spiritual practice.

And it’s easy to commit to daily self practice because you start to feel the benefits immediately. At least that’s what my students tell me.

If your practice isn’t opening you spiritually in the way you want, please know there’s more.

That more isn’t a matter of more bells and whistles. More likely, it’s a matter of less.

Less distraction, more immersion. More delight. More steadiness. More peace.

But how?

Two possibilities come to mind.

The first: consider taking my comprehensive, traditional First Degree Reiki training online, in small group, live, interactive sessions.

My next class is on the afternoons (NYC time) of January 11, 12, and 18, and right now, there’s space available. Details here.

The second possibility for Reiki immersion is the Reiki Vacay Retreat in Mexico February 15-22.

I call it a Reiki Vacay because it’s fun and relaxing with a small group of like-hearted people. I’m talking dedicated downtime.

And it’s a retreat because it’s dedicated downtime with 2 group practice sessions each day, a communal guided self practice before breakfast, and table practice before dinner, watching the sun set over the Pacific Ocean. That alone is transforming.

Transformation doesn’t have to be hard, you know. In fact, sometimes your belief in hard is what’s in your way.

If that rings true for you, it can be challenging to get out of your way, because hard can’t help you there, can it?

Dedicated downtime with spiritual practice and heartfelt community — and did I mention fresh, delicious food? — does what hard can’t do. That combination sets the stage for transformation.

All you have to do is step in. That’s the only way a good idea becomes your reality.

Email me to share your thoughts because we have only a couple spaces left.

I do hope you’ll join me as we retreat into Mystery, retreat into Oneness, and emerge transformed, and happy.

Reiki Vacay in Mexico details here.

I look forward to practicing with you soon.

This is the second in a series that starts here.

Sign up for my free weekly ReikiUpdates here. I’ll never share your data, and I will share only thoughtful, credible Reiki information and perspective.

Somehow having scientific support just rings those credibility bells, doesn’t it?

It’s real, it’s really REAL!

I’m laughing because as much as I love and revel in Mystery, I still feel that science validation twinge on occasion.

The reality of mystery

What’s mysterious isn’t measurable, but it’s still REAL, maybe Realer than Real if there is such a category.

But Mystery, by definition, can’t be supported by science.

Mystery is the realm of spirituality — that reality you live with constantly that has no science to even support its existence.

You experience your spirituality as your inner reality. While you might have valued mentors and guides, you, like everyone else, have to navigate your inner reality on your own. It’s a solo flight. No parachute.

It’s in your inner reality — your spirituality, your mystery — that you make choices you have to take full responsibility for, with no science to support your choice.

But how?

Mystery and knowing

The Mystery is Knowing; it knows itself. And Knowing is how we feel safe.

It doesn’t help to think you’re safe, does it? You have to deeply know it.

Knowing is a spiritual experience.

That’s why it’s helpful to recognize Reiki as a spiritual practice. Our physiology responds to the experience of spiritual knowing that develops with consistent self practice over time.

Slowly, incrementally, as you persist in your daily self Reiki practice despite life trying to pull you away, you come to KNOW you’re more than the human limitations you grapple with, to KNOW you’re not merely part of something greater, you are that great Mystery in human form.

And slowly, incrementally, and often unexpectedly, the stranglehold of fear weakens.

You know you’re safe because ultimately the Mystery is all, and you are that Mystery.

That’s the essence and goal of mystical traditions.

Don’t you love the irony that the ultimate transformation brings you home to being yourself, but with so much more love and freedom?

And that’s why I self practice every day.

What about you? Why do you practice? (Seriously, please share in a comment.)

Retreat into mystery

That’s why I practice every day — to retreat into Mystery — and why I put so much time and energy into encouraging (ok, nagging) you to also.

That’s also why I offer a range of retreats. Everyone needs and deserves retreat, a time to let yourself be transformed by the silence and stillness within you.

Retreat is when you make feeling safe a priority, to dip into your inner mystery, and transform your experience of love, and how you live your life.

Yes, your daily self Reiki practice is a daily retreat, and yes, you need more from time to time.

I offer retreats in many forms to make retreat accessible to you, but all I can do is invite you and encourage (ok, nag!) you.

Only you can make your retreat actually happen; only you can choose to transform.

Below are the possibilities I offer you, with love.

Retreats for all

The Usui Virtual Retreat is online, always available, completely at your pace, totally free, and you’re welcome to share.

If you need help with commitment, gather a few Reiki buddies so you’re accountable to the group (in a sweet, supportive way of course!).

Write Reiki and Better Boundaries are innovative online retreats you do mostly on your own schedule (plus 2 live online calls with replays).

Both Write Reiki and Better Boundaries include significant mentoring from me for any participant who wants it (people are in different places, and there’s always the option to participate incognito).

If either are of interest, please join the waitlist on their respective pages to get an announcement when I schedule them. I usually lead Write Reiki in April or May, and Better Boundaries in November.

Reiki Vacay in Mexico is the crème de la crème of my retreats, usually half filled with past participants who got so much last time, they came back for more.

The combination of ease; comfort; practice; nature (beach, ocean, forest); delicious, fresh food; charming accommodations (400-count cotton sheets); various free or paid options for healing (massage/bodywork, cacao ceremony, Aztec sweat, community acupuncture, nature outings) and like-hearted community empowers you to drop into your mystery, savor your inner stillness and silence, and return home not simply renewed, but enlivened, supported, and transformed by your deeper relationship with Mystery.

We have only a couple spaces still available. I’m here to answer your questions.

The conversation about spirituality and safety continues here.

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I was so moved by what Tiziana shared about how powerfully her Reiki self practice is supporting her that I asked permission to share her words with you.

Here’s how Tiziana expressed the profound healing she’s experienced from decades of anger, and how her Reiki practice led to self mothering:

Reiki Self Mothering

“It was lovely to attend the practice session again!! Really beneficial to me!

Thanks for asking about my mother. You are offering me the opportunity to express my gratitude to Reiki self-practice and to you, my mentor, my guide.

My mother has had a strong influence on my life, all my life.

When I was a teenager, I suffered from her strict, conservative, religious-driven discipline. All of my friends had more freedom than I did, and I grew up feeling oppressed. I strongly desired to grow up to become free, to be able to choose what is meaningful to me.

When I got older, my mother got sick, and I had to become her caregiver, again losing my personal freedom! I felt life had betrayed me.

For many years, I felt anger towards her, blaming her for all my frustration, blaming her for reducing my freedom, my life opportunities, my happiness. Her dementia has made it all even more difficult by keeping us from clarifying, from finding our peace, from healing ourselves and our past.

The miracle that (consistent) daily Reiki self-practice brought me was a new and powerful awareness: I suffered a lot from my mother’s education, and it was not my fault (maybe, it was not her fault either…). Nonetheless, now I am the only one responsible for my mental health. Continuing to blame my mother won’t help me to achieve a more meaningful life!

I really appreciated a couple of your latest articles (Mama Reiki and Mothers Daze).

As you say, mothering is not limited to biology and Reiki self-practice supports me to become the mother (the more loving caregiver) of myself. Reiki self-practice is healing my anger and my feeling of having been psychologically abused by my mother.

Reiki self-practice makes me discover the huge source of love inside my heart. This source shifts my self-perception from “victim” to “people in charge to make decisions.” I feel I can heal the relationship with my mother thanks to my Reiki practice.

I want to express my gratitude to you because the way you teach/explain/live Reiki is the one that allows me to obtain the greatest benefits from this practice, and opened the door to self mothering.

I had my own way of practicing — I learned Reiki practice in 2015, and  am a Reiki Master teacher since 2019 — but only after getting to know you, your blog, your self-paced courses (wonderful Write Reiki and Communicate Reiki), only after listening to your Mainstreaming Reiki Audios, Reiki practice has turned into a concretely useful and meaningful spiritual practice. My daily support.

Thanks for your commitment, thanks for your example and for your daily work. Sooner or later, I’d like to attend one of your online first degree courses… I still have a lot to learn!!!”

Thank you, Tiziana, for your heartfelt, honest sharing of how you’re overcoming a painful mother wound with your Reiki self mothering.

And may all who are reading realize that your Reiki self practice could open the experience of joyful self mothering, and just might bring the healing you’ve been waiting for.

REIKI PRACTICE RESOURCES
Free Online Guided Self Practice Sessions
I offer traditional Reiki training in-person and online in small, interactive groups.

Shalala is a formidable American, then president of the University of Miami, past president of Hunter College of the City University of New York, past chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the longest-serving Secretary of Health and Human Services in US history, recipient of over four dozen honorary degrees and seemingly endless other honors, including our nation’s highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She has since served as president of the Clinton Foundation, and served a term in the U.S. House of Representatives (D-Florida).

As I said, she’s a formidable American. She was speaking at the Academy of Medicine on behalf of the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM) report on the future of nursing, a report sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that aims to improve health care by changing attitudes towards nurses, improving nursing education, and changing restrictions that keep nurses from functioning to the full capacity of their training.

I stepped up to the mike during the Q & A and asked if the report gave any mechanism for including unlicensed health care providers at the table. Shalala’s response was disappointing. She referred to alternative medicine only, did not use the word complementary, and pulled the evidence card.

To paraphrase, Shalala said medicine has to be evidenced-based; give us the research and we’ll consider it. I pointed out what a Catch-22 that is. Unlicensed practitioners can’t do research because we are not in academic medicine, and we can’t get into medicine without research.

During the ensuing back-and-forth, I succinctly and respectfully countered each of her objections with facts, mentioning that:

• complementary healing approaches offer low-cost solutions to support conventional medicine;
• we don’t have financial support for research from Big Pharma;
• if we don’t involve full time practitioners in the efforts to transform health care, we’re not getting the best that these approaches offer.

I also asked for resources to get past the roadblocks. It was made clear that my concerns were not of interest.

I was frankly surprised. She is, as I said, a formidable American, and a well informed one. Yet she knows nothing of complementary care or integrative medicine. She also didn’t seem to know much about what’s actually happening in nursing; she was looking at it academically, from the outside.

Nonetheless, I made a point to shake her hand at the end and tell her how much I respect her work, which I truly do.

Several nurses approached me afterwards to express their support. Their enthusiasm about Reiki practice showed the limits of Shalala’s awareness of what nurses are doing, thinking, and valuing.

The nurses supported integrating Reiki practice into medical care. Their idea was that nurses would practice, but they listened when I asked how overworked nurses could have the time to develop expertise the way a full time Reiki professional does?

We need many more such conversations…

Training nurses to practice Reiki

I wholeheartedly agree with training nurses to practice Reiki.

When I’ve trained at NY Hospital/Columbia and other medical settings, my strategy is always to teach nurses (and other staff) to practice self Reiki first, to quickly improve their well-being, and so they experience directly what their patients will experience. Then they practice on one another before I supervise them practicing on patients.

While nurses have a lot of training and experience that transfers well to practicing Reiki, there are ways in which that experience can interfere. Practicing on themselves first and informally on one another helps them settle into this practice and appreciate it’s a practice, not a medical intervention.

Read nurse Susan Alger’s thoughtful response.

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