What is Reiki?

You can find plenty online if you want a deep dive into the whats and hows of Reiki, but long story short, it's a Japanese hands-on practice that helps promote a deep state of calm and balance.

Why Reiki vs other healing practices?

There are many reasons—it’s relaxing, it’s comforting, it brings a little magic and ritual into your life, and it can help in the healing process. It also encourages creativity, clarity, and renewed energy towards one's personal and professional lives. 

For me personally, the most powerful benefit is that Reiki gets me out of my head and into my body more simply than almost any other type of practice. 

I run into a lot of people who—like me—benefit from meditation but then find it difficult to take action once they're off the mat. And of mindfulness modalities I’ve tried, this is the one that has had the most tangible benefits, with the added bonus of opening me more fully to collaboration and community.

In very short periods of time, I've worked through long-standing issues involving relationships with women friends, untangled complicated family rifts, and I’ve even felt maybe like 4 moments of actual surrender, during which I actually stop resisting the fact that it is the universe and not me who is in charge. (Which is much better than my previous record of exactly 0 times.)

And it all just gracefully unfolds. And a lot of it happens without words—it's the result of energetic exchange in a healing space. 

What exactly should I be thinking about during a session?

Ha, like you can stop thinking about work. Just let your mind drift—but steering it gently with the movement of your breath, with the music, with the vibe. Focusing on patterns of sensation you feel through the body or the smell of essential oils. 

Reiki is truly a meditative practice—a full-sensory one, for both the patient and practitioner.   

What are the origins of Reiki?

The art of Reiki is the result of a man’s search for wellness, success, and happiness in a culture that didn’t particularly see, value, or recognize his talents. If Instagram had existed in 1900s Japan, I think we would’ve seen a chain of pictures of @mikao’s fairly quotidian life, but always with thoughtful, witty captions. 

Then one day, he’d post a picture of an adorable cat with the kanji for “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired” written over it, disappear for 21 days (during which time he would climb the nearest mountain, fast and meditate, as one does), upon his return, he’s suddenly got 10K followers, and his feed is all pictures of nature, sacred geometry, and happy selfies with friends. Like someone who just went to their first Burning Man. 

An artist and a seeker, Mikao Usui’s curiosity and discipline led him to find and teach a new method of advancing health, happiness, and success. 

But isn’t Reiki, like, weird/evil/scary?

I’ve always found kinship with Daniel, the prophet and metaphysics expert of the Old Testament. Raised in the Jewish faith but immersed in the Egyptian culture, his solid upbringing allowed him to use the advanced metaphysical tools cultivated by the Egyptians, but in a balanced and heart-centered way. 

How that translates for me, is that a solid spiritual foundation gives us a framework through which we can work with various tools fearlessly, no matter their associations or provenance. (Except for Ouija boards. I’m not vouching for those.) 

As for Reiki itself, as an art and practice that was designed to advance the highest good, there’s not a whole lot of reason to fear. 

How does Reiki work?

This is something that has about as many different answers as there are practitioners. 

Here are some somewhat educated guesses:

Physical effect: gentle touch works to stimulate the nervous system in ways that promote homeostasis within the body, including a decrease in cortisol production and an increase in oxytocin. In other words, it uses physical interaction to help reduce conditions of stress and inflammation.

Placebo effect: intention and practice lead to positive results. 

Ecological effect: the earth and its inhabitants are part of an holistic network and Reiki attunement helps us access it without interference.

Wait, did you say attunement?

Yeah, this was a sticking point with me for a long time. It's a weird concept, but it helps me to think about it from a musical perspective. Reiki is like middle C—you might have perfect pitch and be able to hit it every time. But most of us can’t, especially with the din of our surroundings. Attunement at each level of reiki—plus practice—gets you closer and closer to perfect pitch. Clients like it because that middle C note is really soothing, and a soothed body is key to wellness and success.

In yet other words, it’s like WD-40 for your whole scenario—making things feel smoother, gentler, and easier to process. 

What is the Five Elements part about?

I’m trained in traditional Chinese medicine, which I admire for its targeted use of points—resulting in accuracy, reduced waste, and maximum efficiency. It’s an elegant and powerful system that restores balance in a real way. 

Ok, that’s enough questions for here—if you want to know more, let’s talk in person!