Not long ago, a client called up about her treatment. I had worried about her, since she made the booking at 2am for the morning after, but then she rescheduled to the next day. But she called in the morning. Should she come? She was feeling absolutely terrible, and couldn’t get in to see her therapist, and was tired and just wanted to sleep.
I was glad she asked. I think if you’re in a crisis, reiki isn’t really going to help. If you know that it will help you in a situation like this, then by all means, book in for a treatment. But otherwise, I think that if a client is too upset to really function then a reiki treatment, which is about tapping into a quiet, healing energy, isn’t going to be possible. And as I’ve written before, reiki is a collaboration. I can’t make you heal, or make you feel quiet or relaxed. You have to be open to healing and being in a state to receive that healing.
Another client weeks before had come, actively hurting from a relationship breakup. While I hoped that a treatment could help ease her pain and relax her, she said there was too much quiet and too much time to think. She spent the whole treatment thinking about her breakup and I’m not sure if the treatment helped in any way.
As a final scenario, I’d recommend not coming to reiki if you’re not familiar with it and you’re hoping for a very specific result (particularly in terms of a physical issue). This reminds me that I had a client years ago who felt a cold coming on and came in to try to prevent it from doing so … which didn’t work. But what I’m thinking of is a person who called up because their parent’s cancer treatment wasn’t working. As we chatted, it became clear that they had no idea what reiki is: they were wondering whether people get blocked energy which causes illness (I’ve written about this and believe no) and it sounded like they desperately just wanted something which could work for their parent. Reiki should never substitute for medical treatment and I also never want to give someone false hope. A person recently called who wanted a cure for terrible headaches that he’s had for four years, that doctors and therapists haven’t been able to help. But he had no idea what reiki was, and I advised him not to come since it didn’t sound like he would be satisfied unless he found his magic cure.
Most of my clients find reiki beneficial and some think it’s wonderful. But I can’t guarantee specific results and you have to be in a state to be able to receive it. So, if you sound like any of these scenarios above, don’t come to reiki! But if you’re interested in a treatment for other reasons, or you’ve had reiki before, do come to reiki! I look forward to seeing you.