I had never heard of Reiki two years ago, but when I read about it in a post on HippyMom.com I was intrigued.  I asked questions and learned enough to know that I wanted to experience what is described in the following way on reiki.org:

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 is what 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 it is high, we are more capable of being happy and healthy.

The word Reiki is made of two Japanese words – Rei which means “God’s Wisdom or the Higher Power” and Ki which is “life force energy”. So Reiki is actually “spiritually guided life force energy.”

I was fortunate enough to find a Reiki Master in my area and receive my Level I training several months ago and noticed that my whole perspective on life began to change.  I have always been a scientifically minded person, but Reiki gave me a piece of the puzzle I had been missing.  I found that since Reiki is spiritual but not religious it is a perfect fit for me to balance the science with what we feel and experience  as humans who love, hurt, heal, and learn with not only facts, but with our instincts, emotions, feelings, and energy.  I thoroughly enjoy helping others, and when I experienced how much Reiki soothed my children when they were ill or upset I knew I wanted to learn more and become a Reiki Master so I could share this amazing energy with others.  I thought about how different my life would have been if I had known about Reiki, and I want to share the peace and relaxation I find when I share this marvelous energy with others or give myself a treatment.

I received my Level II training last month, and I have found that Reiki is an important part of my life now.  It doesn’t replace traditional medicine but instead works with it, and that means that I have found a balance between the medical science that has fascinated me since childhood and the energy that I always felt flowing through all creatures.  Since I have been sensitive to this energy all of my life and have often felt overwhelmed by the feelings of those around me, I was a bit concerned that learning Reiki and becoming attuned to the energy would make this worse.  Instead since my Level II training I have found that my perspective changed yet again in ways that I didn’t expect.

My relationships with those around me have changed and I see priorities differently now.  The wait in line at the traffic light or a possible slight by a loved one just doesn’t upset me as it used to, since I am learning to let the energy flow through me without trying to direct it as I always did in the past.  I am learning that this connection I always felt to the natural universe is even more amazing and exhilarating then I knew it could be, and I feel it now in a peaceful and more balanced way then I did before I was attuned.  Now I can heal myself and help others in a way that combines all the wisdom of the wonderful women at HippyMom.com, my Masters who have taught me so much, the hours I spent in classrooms learning about how people feel and learn and in therapy groups seeing how profoundly life events can affect our energy levels and physical health, and at bedsides giving medical treatments and comfort on the more physical level in the hospital.

I will be 50 years old in February, but I feel I am just now at the beginning of the path I was meant to walk in this life.  I hope to have a Reiki practice at some point and teach others to let this relaxing and soothing energy flow through them, and I am fortunate enough to have wise Masters, family, and friends to share with and learn from as I travel this path.  Reiki has indeed changed my life, and although I am at the very beginning of my education I know that there is so much more to learn than I ever envisioned before I read that first post.  The Universe is infinite with us each as unique and amazing parts of it, and for me the Reiki experience has given me a new perspective from which to view life, death, and everything in between.

Ruth Anne (a/k/a “MamaBirdie”) details more of her spiritual journey at The Inside Life. Go check it out!

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