My Reiki Testimony
I believe Reiki is magic.
It soothed my nervous system and eased my depression at its height.
It helped me to dispel the negative thought patterns I was clinging to.
It allowed me to distinguish my own inner voice, separating intuition from a sound track of criticism.
It affirmed I could believe in both Science AND Spirit.
Reiki helped me see my value as a person, already whole.
It encouraged me to seek joy, rest, and creation, and affirm my existence outside the structures of capitalism and white supremacy.
Yes, there is a mystic quality to reiki. Healing opens up our emotional cabinets and exposes the dust on old issues. They need resolving, after all. But it also guides us to implement practical solutions that improve the quality of our lives. It encourages us to eat better. Sleep more. Find solace in nature. Be of service, hold space for our others, and recognize their humanity above all. To forgive ourselves and others.
For many, energy healing may seem like it isn’t real. How could it possibly work? But for me, it was the first time someone was able to fully see my energy as a whole. During my first reiki session, I finally saw the culmination of my stress and how it affected my physical being. Energy work uncovered the trauma I carried in my hips and lower back, the stomach pain I developed as the result of my anxiety, and the constant brain fog due to insomnia. It was all connected. Stress, negativity, and the like affects our physical and mental health (and that is just the tip). We know that the energy of our emotions can manifest in our body with aches, pains, and chronic conditions
WE KNOW THIS.
(Here is a good read about it. And another.)
But with support from energy work and a change in habits, I know how to recalibrate myself and restore balance. If we want to feel better and stop feeling drained, we have to look at the source. THAT is shadow work, my friends. And shadows only exist because of the presence of light. This is the duality I have come to embrace.
Reiki, this channeling of universal life force energy, is a beautiful practice, and one that goes so well with more common forms of self care. It doesn’t work against medicine, rather, it complements it. It is healing that is ancient among many different cultures and belief systems. It isn’t about dismissing your pain or problems away, or spiritually bypassing- that shit doesn’t work. Please know that.
It’s about giving yourself grace, and seeing the value of taking care of yourself. What behaviors or narratives aren’t serving you well? Release them. When we are in a better place, we begin to show others what healing can do for them, too. Then it becomes community work.
That is the magic.
