Well-being refers not only to physical health, but also emotional, mental and spiritual health. It has long been accepted that physical health is directly influenced by emotional, mental and spiritual states. If there is a sense of turmoil in those areas, physical health begins to suffer. Just as a physician is often required to heal physical ailments, a spiritual healer may be required to restore spiritual health.
Unfortunately, the pragmatic “Western” mind tends to view alternative methods of healing arts as at least exotic, and often frivolous. But thousands of years of cultural and medical history suggest some techniques offer effective and immediate benefits.
There are many different forms of holistic and spiritual healing including crystals, meditation, chakra and aura balancing and alignment, chakra and aura cleansing, color therapy, Feng Shui, herbal therapy, healing touch, Puja, regression therapy, hands-on healing and clairvoyant healing.
Preeminent among those who blend mind and body conventions is Reiki healing. Our high-speed, intense lives in a wired world often leave little room or resources for personal/emotional healing and health. Reiki healing allows periodic improvement of both emotional and physical health using centuries-old techniques. Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. It is administered by “laying on hands” and is based on the idea that an unseen “life-force energy” flows through us and causes us to be alive. If one’s life-force energy is low, then we are more likely to get sick or feel stress and, if high, we are more capable of being happy and healthy.
In a typical whole-body Reiki treatment, the practitioner instructs the recipient to lie down, usually on a massage table, and relax. Loose, comfortable clothing is worn during the treatment. The practitioner might take a few moments to enter a calm, meditative state of mind and mentally prepare for the treatment, and it is usually carried out without any unnecessary talking.
The treatment generally progresses with the practitioner placing the hands on the recipient in various positions. However, practitioners may use a non-touching technique, where the hands are held a few centimeters away from the recipient’s body for some or all of the positions. The hands are usually kept in a position for three to five minutes before moving to the next position. Overall, the hand positions usually give a general coverage of the head, the front and back of the torso, the knees and feet. Between 12 and 20 positions are used, with the whole treatment lasting anywhere from 45-90 minutes.
It is reported that the recipient often feels warmth or tingling in the area being treated, even when a non-touching approach is used. A state of deep relaxation, combined with a general feeling of well-being, is usually the most noticeable immediate effect of the treatment, although emotional releases can also occur. As the Reiki treatment is said to stimulate the body’s natural healing processes, instantaneous “cures” of specific health problems are not normally observed. A series of three or more treatments, typically at intervals of one to seven days, is usually recommended to address a chronic condition, and regular treatments on an ongoing basis can be used with the aim of maintaining well-being. The interval between such treatments is typically one to four weeks. Many practitioners and recipients of Reiki treatment report improvement in creativity and spiritual well-being, as well reduction in pain symptoms, faster healing of injuries and decreased disease symptoms and progression. Reiki has no side effects and is completely non-invasive and natural.
To learn more about alternative treatments such as Reiki and other non-traditional methods for health and emotional/spiritual healing, contact Gina John, a specialist in emotional and spiritual healing with offices in the 12th Street Gym’s Camac Center, at 610-633-8646 or visit her website, www.YourPsychicAdvisor.net.