Do you wish you could help yourself, friends and loved ones deal with health issues, physical pain, anxiety and stress in a way that is simple, safe and easy? You can. It’s called Reiki, and anyone can learn it.
First Degree Reiki Class (to be continued when safe from Covid)
Learn Reiki in the traditional manner, as an oral tradition where the teaching is passed from the Reiki Master to the student. We meet for 4 separate sessions. You will learn the standard hand placements plus intuitive ways to treat yourself and those you love.
We practice Reiki for our own well being and for the benefit of the people, animals, plants, and situations in our lives. There are no side effects or dangers in giving or receiving Reiki and anyone can learn how. No particular spiritual belief system, special knowledge or gift for healing is required. Reiki helps balance and calm all aspects of life, and is simple and natural. With training, anyone can do it.
First Session: Thursday from 5:30-8:30 p.m.
The story of the history of Reiki and how to do Self Treatment.
Second Session: Friday from 5:30-8:30 p.m.
Doing a standard treatment in accordance withThe Reiki Alliance.
Third Session: Saturday from 11-5 p.m. (includes pot luck lunch together)
Ways to sense energy blocks and offer an intuitive treatment.
Fourth and final Session: Sunday from 12- 4 p.m.
The Reiki Precepts and final treatments.
(times may vary after the first night according to the needs and wishes of the class.)
Each Session includes one initiation, an attunement to the energy, along with plenty of time for Q&A, with stories from the tradition and my own experiences.
Reiki in your massage practice can help increase your sensitivity and effectiveness while decreasing stress on you.
Fee: $250
Repeat for returning Reiki students: $150
Students initiated within this system of Reiki only. (ask if you are not sure.)
Location: Directions on registering.
To register, or for more information, email [email protected] or use my contact page here.
Sukoshi Rice has been a Practitioner of Usui Reiki since 1986 and an Alliance Reiki Master since 2002. She lived in GA and western NC from 1979-2020 when she moved to Boise, Idaho. She has taught classes in massage and Reiki, as well as offering T.A.T. and Reiki treatments.
All federal guidelines regarding The American Disabilites Act (43 USCG Section 12101, et. Seq.) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2000e, et. Seq.) are followed.
Below you will find newspaper columns I have written about Reiki as well as my own and other people's explanations about what Reiki is and what it can do.
Reiki: what is it? by Sukoshi Rice
Reiki, pronounced Ray-Key, is a system of healing from Japan whose name translates as "Universal Life Energy." Reiki is gentle and safe and has no known contraindications, whether physical, mental, emotional or spiritual. Anyone can benefit from Reiki and no special thought process, faith or philosophy is required.
Reiki brings us into balance so that we can heal. It is given in treatment by a trained practitioner or in self-treatment after training by a Reiki Master. Often people feel warmth from the practitioner's hands, and many experience almost immediate relaxation and relief from pain.
Reiki was discovered in Japan at the end of the 1800's and brought to the USA in the 1930's by Mrs. Takata, a Japanese American woman living in Hawaii. From her dedication to teaching this healing art, there are now many thousands of people all over the world practicing Reiki. Many hospitals and especially cancer centers in the U.S. and Europe have incorporated Reiki into their healing protocols for its pain and anxiety relieving properties.
Are there different kinds of Reiki?
Since Reiki has become so popular worldwide, training has changed a great deal in the last 30-40 years. So the answer is both yes and no. No, because Reiki itself, the energy we recognize as Reiki, does not change. It is Universal Life Force, so whatever adjustments we think we are doing to that are negligible. However, training for Reiki ranges from the traditional, thorough approach to a very fast, compressed method.
There are also schools of Reiki with different names. The most traditional practice is known as Usui Shiki Ryoho, the Usui School of Natural Healing, named after Dr. Usui who founded or discovered Reiki. This is the way of Reiki I follow. My students, who have come from other Reiki schools have told me it is a much deeper and more complete connection to the energy of Reiki than they had previously experienced.
What can Reiki do for me?
There are many reasons people seek Reiki treatments. They may be in pain, either chronic or acute, and come for relief. Cancer patients have told me not only does Reiki treatment help with pain, it also decreases or eliminates nausea and anxiety. Other people come for Reiki to relax, to ease stress and tension and to come back into balance and harmony. Often people with busy and stressful lives get regular Reiki treatments to stay calm and centered.
Ideally, once a person experiences relief and increased well-being from Reiki sessions, he/she becomes initiated in Reiki by attending a First Degree class. This enables a person to give self treatments, preferably daily, which are the foundation of a healthy practice and reason enough to learn Reiki. Once we are familiar with the feeling of Reiki we can give ourselves treatments as we fall asleep and as we wake up, or any time in between. Reiki becomes a great and reliable support that only requires our hands, and it works for the rest of our lives.
The Degrees of Reiki:
First Degree enables us to treat ourselves and our friends and family. The foundation of all Reiki practice is self-treatment, which is learned the first night of First Degree teaching. I generally teach First Degree over four days, with classes on Thursday and Friday evenings, most of Saturday and several hours on Sunday. With First Degree you are able to treat yourself, your friends and your family. Along with the actual initiation to Reiki energy, I share the history of Reiki and plenty of anecdotal information gathered over nearly 40 years of Reiki practice. The fee for First Degree is $250. If you come with a friend/partner, the fee is $200 each.
Second Degree is recommended for public practice of Reiki. In Second Degree we learn 3 symbols which offer more energy, mental clarity, and distance healing. Second Degree is highly recommended for anyone who plans to establish a professional practice of Reiki and is offered after practicing Reiki at the First Degree level for at least 3 months. When you feel ready to deepen into this level of Reiki, contact your Reiki Master. The training requires 3 sessions of roughly 2 hours each, with a 4 day to 2 week interval between, and can be taught either one on one or in a class. Your investment for Second Degree Reiki is $650 and if you come with a friend, $500 each.
Reiki Master is a life path for someone wishing to teach Reiki. It involves intensive one on one training with your initiating Reiki Master, over a period of at least one year, but often longer. Several years of committed Reiki practice and attendance and assistance at Reiki classes are required, and your investment for Reiki Master initiation is $10,000 plus additional training fees.
First Degree enables us to treat ourselves and our friends and family. The foundation of all Reiki practice is self-treatment, which is learned the first night of First Degree teaching. I generally teach First Degree over four days, with classes on Thursday and Friday evenings, most of Saturday and several hours on Sunday. With First Degree you are able to treat yourself, your friends and your family. Along with the actual initiation to Reiki energy, I share the history of Reiki and plenty of anecdotal information gathered over nearly 40 years of Reiki practice. The fee for First Degree is $250. If you come with a friend/partner, the fee is $200 each.
Second Degree is recommended for public practice of Reiki. In Second Degree we learn 3 symbols which offer more energy, mental clarity, and distance healing. Second Degree is highly recommended for anyone who plans to establish a professional practice of Reiki and is offered after practicing Reiki at the First Degree level for at least 3 months. When you feel ready to deepen into this level of Reiki, contact your Reiki Master. The training requires 3 sessions of roughly 2 hours each, with a 4 day to 2 week interval between, and can be taught either one on one or in a class. Your investment for Second Degree Reiki is $650 and if you come with a friend, $500 each.
Reiki Master is a life path for someone wishing to teach Reiki. It involves intensive one on one training with your initiating Reiki Master, over a period of at least one year, but often longer. Several years of committed Reiki practice and attendance and assistance at Reiki classes are required, and your investment for Reiki Master initiation is $10,000 plus additional training fees.
What Some People have shared after taking Reiki classes with me:
"Sukoshi walks the walk. She makes you want to do what she does...there is much to be gained from access to her knowledge and the energy she exudes."
"I enjoyed the training and have found a personal benefit."
"Being able to participate in the First Degree class while taking Second Degree was priceless. It allowed me to review, refresh and share."
"We both practice Reiki regularly and it has transformed our life."
"I am still thinking of all that happened during the workshop. It was an experience I'll never forget. Not knowing what to expect, I let you guide me and what a guide you were. At times it was as if you were in my head- in a positive way. What a wonderful experience. Thank you."
My Reiki journey: I first encountered Reiki in 1986 and was immediately drawn to it because the practitioner was so happy and light. I was initiated into First Degree in 1986 by Kalsa Krishni Borang of Sweden and Second Degree in 1997 and as a Master in 2002 by Bernard Morin of Canada. As a Master I teach and initiate others and hold First and Second Degree classes wherever I am invited to teach. My lineage can be directly traced to Mrs. Takata through Phyllis Lei Furumoto, the late Lineage Bearer, GrandMaster of Usui Shiki Ryoho and granddaughter of Mrs. Takata.
This is a column I wrote for our local paper about Reiki as a treatment for cancer:
In the world of medical treatment options, complimentary alternatives are known as CAMs. They include Reiki, massage, Touch for Health, other touch therapies and non-touch energy therapies, herbal treatments, water treatments, diet, exercise programs, and many mind-centered therapies. The word complimentary indicates a use of these therapies in addition to standard medical therapies, while alternative would generally indicate “instead of.”
The Wall Street Journal, a bastion of conservative thought, this week has an article about using Reiki as a support for people with cancer. The article presents the opinions of several doctors, and the findings of several studies, while generally advising the need for a larger study to examine the possibilities of Reiki use in palliative cancer care. What this means is that while no one is making the claim that Reiki “cures” cancer, indicators are very strong as to its effects in relieving pain, nausea, anxiety and depression, among other mental, emotional and physical side effects of both cancer and treatment.
What is Reiki, and what would a session be like? Reiki is a form of energy healing that came from Japan about 100 years ago. It is taught by trained Reiki Masters and anyone can learn it and do it. It requires no special aptitude or skill, just the desire to help other people feel better and the willingness to put hands on (or just off in cases of severe pain.)
We like to give Reiki in a clean, quiet place because it is meant to be relaxing. The touch is light as the Reiki practitioner puts his/her hands on a series of places on the body, generally starting at the head and working down the torso. The recipient remains fully clothed, either lying down (ideally) or sitting in a comfortable chair. There is generally a warm blanket for cover as needed and sometimes soft music, as the environment allows.
Ideally when someone is undergoing cancer treatment, they and their caretakers learn Reiki so they can give themselves treatment every day. It can be learned, in my system, in a weekend class that gives everything anyone needs to give treatments and self-treatments in a non professional setting.
If you or your family is dealing with cancer and its effects, please feel free to investigate how Reiki might help you. I am happy to do a presentation for any interested group. Ask your oncologist if cancer treatments might include hands-on Reiki, either during chemo at the center, which is done at some cancer centers, or after. If enough people are interested, Reiki might become a part of our local CAMs, bringing relief to many more people.
and another:
Reiki: What can it do for me?
The first time I ever heard of Reiki, I was working for the summer as a massage therapist in a tiny wellness clinic in upstate New York. On my table was a muscular man about 6’8”, and as I bemoaned my fate, having to move and work such heavy muscles, I heard lovely melodious laughter from the next room. The laughter went on much of the day and when our day ended, I waited for the practitioner from that room, because I wanted to find out what made her sessions so much fun and mine such hard work.
Out came a smiling, dimpled woman from Sweden, who answered me that what she did was called Reiki. This was in 1986, and I had never heard of it, but I knew right away I wanted to learn to do it, too. Luckily, she was a Reiki Master and put together a little class the next week that started my journey with Reiki.
Since then, I have gone on to become a Reiki Master, too, so that I could teach other people to treat others and themselves.
Throughout the world, Reiki is used in many hospitals and other medical facilities as a complement to mainstream treatments. It has been used for many illnesses and for self care for caregivers, who often find themselves at the brink of burnout. On my website, www.sukoshirice.com if you go to the Reiki page, you will find my own writings about Reiki and an article taken from the Internet that names all the hospitals currently using it, and the results of trials done on the efficacy of Reiki in treating different disorders and illnesses.
Reiki is free of any religious affiliation and requires no special “gift” or belief, yet seems to help in every situation. If you’d like to find out more about it, and whether it can help you or someone you know, please contact me at [email protected].
- Complimentary Alternative Medicine
In the world of medical treatment options, complimentary alternatives are known as CAMs. They include Reiki, massage, Touch for Health, other touch therapies and non-touch energy therapies, herbal treatments, water treatments, diet, exercise programs, and many mind-centered therapies. The word complimentary indicates a use of these therapies in addition to standard medical therapies, while alternative would generally indicate “instead of.”
The Wall Street Journal, a bastion of conservative thought, this week has an article about using Reiki as a support for people with cancer. The article presents the opinions of several doctors, and the findings of several studies, while generally advising the need for a larger study to examine the possibilities of Reiki use in palliative cancer care. What this means is that while no one is making the claim that Reiki “cures” cancer, indicators are very strong as to its effects in relieving pain, nausea, anxiety and depression, among other mental, emotional and physical side effects of both cancer and treatment.
What is Reiki, and what would a session be like? Reiki is a form of energy healing that came from Japan about 100 years ago. It is taught by trained Reiki Masters and anyone can learn it and do it. It requires no special aptitude or skill, just the desire to help other people feel better and the willingness to put hands on (or just off in cases of severe pain.)
We like to give Reiki in a clean, quiet place because it is meant to be relaxing. The touch is light as the Reiki practitioner puts his/her hands on a series of places on the body, generally starting at the head and working down the torso. The recipient remains fully clothed, either lying down (ideally) or sitting in a comfortable chair. There is generally a warm blanket for cover as needed and sometimes soft music, as the environment allows.
Ideally when someone is undergoing cancer treatment, they and their caretakers learn Reiki so they can give themselves treatment every day. It can be learned, in my system, in a weekend class that gives everything anyone needs to give treatments and self-treatments in a non professional setting.
If you or your family is dealing with cancer and its effects, please feel free to investigate how Reiki might help you. I am happy to do a presentation for any interested group. Ask your oncologist if cancer treatments might include hands-on Reiki, either during chemo at the center, which is done at some cancer centers, or after. If enough people are interested, Reiki might become a part of our local CAMs, bringing relief to many more people.
and another:
Reiki: What can it do for me?
The first time I ever heard of Reiki, I was working for the summer as a massage therapist in a tiny wellness clinic in upstate New York. On my table was a muscular man about 6’8”, and as I bemoaned my fate, having to move and work such heavy muscles, I heard lovely melodious laughter from the next room. The laughter went on much of the day and when our day ended, I waited for the practitioner from that room, because I wanted to find out what made her sessions so much fun and mine such hard work.
Out came a smiling, dimpled woman from Sweden, who answered me that what she did was called Reiki. This was in 1986, and I had never heard of it, but I knew right away I wanted to learn to do it, too. Luckily, she was a Reiki Master and put together a little class the next week that started my journey with Reiki.
Since then, I have gone on to become a Reiki Master, too, so that I could teach other people to treat others and themselves.
Throughout the world, Reiki is used in many hospitals and other medical facilities as a complement to mainstream treatments. It has been used for many illnesses and for self care for caregivers, who often find themselves at the brink of burnout. On my website, www.sukoshirice.com if you go to the Reiki page, you will find my own writings about Reiki and an article taken from the Internet that names all the hospitals currently using it, and the results of trials done on the efficacy of Reiki in treating different disorders and illnesses.
Reiki is free of any religious affiliation and requires no special “gift” or belief, yet seems to help in every situation. If you’d like to find out more about it, and whether it can help you or someone you know, please contact me at [email protected].
And from the Internet: Reiki Really Works; A Groundbreaking Scientific Study
See all 7 photos
After decades of often disputed validity, the effectiveness of Reiki, a holistic energy treatment is gaining new respect within the medical community. Not only are highly reputable medical facilities throughout the U.S. offering patients alternative healing programs such as Reiki, those facilities are analyzing the benefits of their programs and are submitting them for review and compilation. The results are nothing short of remarkable.
A Brief Explanation of Reiki Reiki is an energy healing treatment that works holistically; on the whole body, mind and spirit. Not a system of religious beliefs, Reiki is simply a relaxing treatment whereas natural healing vibrations are transmitted through the hands of a Reiki practitioner (acting as a conduit) to the body of the recipient. The purpose of a Reiki treatment is to relieve stress and pain, induce relaxation, release emotional blockages, accelerate natural healing, balance subtle bodies energies and support other medical modalities including traditional therapies.
The International Center for Reiki Training has estimated that there are 4,000,000 people throughout the word who have taken at least one level of Reiki training. There are three traditional levels of expertise.
Today, Reiki is offered free of charge in more than 800 American Hospitals as a means to accelerate the healing process and to alleviate pain.
Those hospitals are listed on this PDF document which may be downloaded here.
Reiki healing treatment - joaonelson.net
Why Reiki Has Been Discounted For years: Reiki, along with other methods of holistic therapies were looked upon with disdain, even contempt from medical associations, practitioners, mainstream scientists and clerics. The idea that the human body was permeated or surrounded by an invisible, etheric body of “life force energy” was considered to be no less than nonsense.
These negative conclusions were formulated on the premise that “life energy” fields such as those accepted in China as Chi or qi, in Japan as ki and in India as prana , were “unseen” and “immeasurable” by traditional research or scientific instrumentation.
But now all that is changing.
Controlled Experiments, Improved Reporting There's never been a comprehensive list of controlled, evidence-basedresearch that was accessible to the holistic, medical, and scientific communities. It wasn’t until 2005 when William Lee Rand, founder and president of the International Center for Reiki Training and a pioneer in worldwide Reiki awareness formed the Center For Reiki Research and developed what is now known as The Touchstone Process.
What is The Touchstone Process? The Touchstone Process is actually a peer review method for analyzing the current state of scientific studies done on Reiki programs in hospitals, clinics and hospice facilities throughout the United States. The process of critique is rigorous, impartial, and consistent and incorporates the best practices for scientific review.
William Lee Rand began formulating The Touchstone Process after developing the Reiki In Hospitals website, considered to be the most comprehensive compilation of hospitals offering Reiki treatments throughout the world.
The Touchstone Process is unique. Never before have there been so many worthy studies of Reiki gathered, analyzed and evaluated within a single source.
What Are The Findings? The most recent data analyzed (during 2008-9) shows strong evidence that Reiki is indeed responsible for a positive biological response in both humans and animals.
The strongest evidence (rated “excellent” in the Process) was reported in the most carefully controlled of all experiments; non other than laboratory rats. In both 2006 and 2008 stressed-out lab rats received Reiki treatments and they all showed significantly reduced stress, anxiety and depression responses. “Sham” or bogus Reiki treatments were given to the placebo group and they showed no reduction in stress, anxiety or depression.
Testing in humans performed between 1993 and 2006 showed ratings from Satisfactory to Excellent, all suggesting that the benefit of Reiki treatments were positive in controlling pain levels in humans. There were some “confounding variables”, which is typical in hospital (as opposed to laboratory) studies; however, the placebo Reiki treatments in this experiment were by contrast ineffective in controlling pain.
Other examples of Reiki studies performed in hospitals and universities may be found on this related site for Reiki research.
Reiki practitioners treat faculty and staff from Columbia University Health Sciences and New York-Presbyterian Hospital at Employee Health and Wellness Day
Vital Signs New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Campus conducted one of the first studies ever performed to determine the effectiveness of Reiki treatments on the autonomic nervous system. This “blind, random study” included a Reiki treatment group, a “sham” treatment group and a “control” group. The testing began with all participants at “baseline” autonomic nervous systems levels. The results within the Reiki treatment group showed a lowering of these levels including heart rate, respiration and blood pressure. These positive results led the team to recommend further, larger studies to look at the biological effects of Reiki treatment.
It’s interesting to note that Columbia/Presbyterian was one of the first hospitals to offer Reiki as part of their Integrative Medicine Program (CIMP). The now famous cardiovascular surgeon, Dr. Mehmet Oz brought tremendous attention to Reiki when he invited Reiki practitioners to treat patients during open heart surgeries and heart transplant operations. Dr. Oz is often quoted as saying, "Reiki has become a sought-after healing art among patients and mainstream medical professionals."
Words of wisdom from an internationally recognized Reiki Practioner and author who had been published in peer-reviewed medical journals
Reiki: A Comprehensive Guide
Here's Pamela's lovely book
Amazon Price: $7.49
List Price: $16.95
Reiki Passes Tests with Flying Colors: There have been many other controlled studies submitted to peer-journals and to The Touchstone Process for review. Ailments and disorders that tested favorably to Reiki treatment include:
1. Post operative pain after tooth extraction
2. Cognition in elderly, related to dementia/Alzheimers
3. Pre-operative relaxation and post-op pain
4. Pain in chronically ill patients
5. Depression and stress
6. Well-being in Reiki practitioners
As of 2009, The Touchstone Process has evaluated 25 test studies that appeared in peer-review journals evaluating the merits of Reiki Treatments. Taking into consideration only the most rigorously controlled studies, the team reported that 83% showed moderate to strong evidence in support of Reiki as a viable, therapeutic healing modality.
Only one study proved solidly negative and that was for the treatment of fibromyalgia-associated pain levels. As is the case with conventional drug treatments, not all therapies prove to be effective.
Thinking Positively Despite these findings and the impressive number of highly reputable hospitals offering Reiki Treatments to patients, there will be those who continue to deem Reiki and other forms of energy-medicine as being “nonsensical”.
As recently as 2009, reviews of randomized studies”of Reiki research conducted by Edzard Ernst, M.D., Ph.D. and his colleagues at the University of Exeter, concluded that most were poorly designed and presented insufficient evidence to suggest that Reiki was an effective method for healing any condition.
That same year, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops came out with a statement urging Catholic health-care facilities and clergy not to promote or support Reiki therapy. They issued a statement emphatically concluding that Reiki cannot be an effective method of healing “within the findings of natural science or in Christian belief".
One can only look to the future of science and the evolution of scientific testing, evaluation and responsible reporting which began with The Touchstone Process to alter these perceptions.
imra.org
The good news is that in a press release dated Sept. 15th, 2008, The American Hospital Association President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock stated, “"Complementary and alternative medicine has shown great promise in supporting and stimulating healing. It's one of the many tools hospitals look to as they continue to create optimal healing environments for the patients they serve."
According to a 2008 AHA the survey, 84 percent of hospitals indicated patient demand as the primary rationale in offering complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) services including Reiki and 67 percent of those surveyed stated “clinical effectiveness” as their top reason.
65 of those hospitals are listed on the Center for Reiki Research’s website including-
· Duke Integrative Medicine, Durham, North Carolina
· New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center Campus, New York, New York
· Yale–New Haven Hospital, New Haven, Connecticut
· Sharp Memorial Hospital Inpatient Cancer Support Services, San Diego, California
· Children’s Hospital Boston, Boston, Massachusetts
· Citrus Valley Medical Center Cancer Resource Center, Covina, California
In addition, the American Medical Association (AMA) has added Complimentary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) treatments to their directory of billable procedures.
Here are links to other medical journal articles on the positive effects of Reiki · Herbert Irving Child and Adolescent Oncology Center - New York Presbyterian Hospital
Herbert Irving Child and Adolescent Oncology Center
· Healing emotional pain and stress leads to healing physical pain and illness.
· Healers in the Operating Room - Article from healthpoints E-newsletter
Breast program welcomes alternative practitioners before and during breast surgery. Physicians, surgeons, and nursing staff at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia understand that emotional well-being plays an important role in healing, and they do as much
· Reiki - Medical Research
Medical research and other papers on the benefits of Reiki treatment
Conclusion A spokesperson from Columbia Integrative Medicine Program at the New York Presbyterian Hospital (CIMP) perhaps expresses it best, saying,
“I find the practice of Reiki very rewarding, as a practitioner. Patients have reported deep relaxation and a sense of profound healing, after one session. I feel that Reiki is a huge asset for any hospital setting, because patients sense that they are in a truly caring environment."
As Reiki continues to become "a huge asset" for the hospital setting, analytical reporting such as The Touchstone Process continues to add to the much needed pool of evidence that Reiki is indeed a worthy, effective method for facilitating the healing process; one that can contribute to the betterment of patients everywhere and to the betterment of our health care systems.
© Copyright Green Lotus, 2011. All rights reserved
If you reproduce this article, please credit Green Lotus with a link to http://greenlotus.hubpages.com. Thank you!
See all 7 photos
After decades of often disputed validity, the effectiveness of Reiki, a holistic energy treatment is gaining new respect within the medical community. Not only are highly reputable medical facilities throughout the U.S. offering patients alternative healing programs such as Reiki, those facilities are analyzing the benefits of their programs and are submitting them for review and compilation. The results are nothing short of remarkable.
A Brief Explanation of Reiki Reiki is an energy healing treatment that works holistically; on the whole body, mind and spirit. Not a system of religious beliefs, Reiki is simply a relaxing treatment whereas natural healing vibrations are transmitted through the hands of a Reiki practitioner (acting as a conduit) to the body of the recipient. The purpose of a Reiki treatment is to relieve stress and pain, induce relaxation, release emotional blockages, accelerate natural healing, balance subtle bodies energies and support other medical modalities including traditional therapies.
The International Center for Reiki Training has estimated that there are 4,000,000 people throughout the word who have taken at least one level of Reiki training. There are three traditional levels of expertise.
Today, Reiki is offered free of charge in more than 800 American Hospitals as a means to accelerate the healing process and to alleviate pain.
Those hospitals are listed on this PDF document which may be downloaded here.
Reiki healing treatment - joaonelson.net
Why Reiki Has Been Discounted For years: Reiki, along with other methods of holistic therapies were looked upon with disdain, even contempt from medical associations, practitioners, mainstream scientists and clerics. The idea that the human body was permeated or surrounded by an invisible, etheric body of “life force energy” was considered to be no less than nonsense.
These negative conclusions were formulated on the premise that “life energy” fields such as those accepted in China as Chi or qi, in Japan as ki and in India as prana , were “unseen” and “immeasurable” by traditional research or scientific instrumentation.
But now all that is changing.
Controlled Experiments, Improved Reporting There's never been a comprehensive list of controlled, evidence-basedresearch that was accessible to the holistic, medical, and scientific communities. It wasn’t until 2005 when William Lee Rand, founder and president of the International Center for Reiki Training and a pioneer in worldwide Reiki awareness formed the Center For Reiki Research and developed what is now known as The Touchstone Process.
What is The Touchstone Process? The Touchstone Process is actually a peer review method for analyzing the current state of scientific studies done on Reiki programs in hospitals, clinics and hospice facilities throughout the United States. The process of critique is rigorous, impartial, and consistent and incorporates the best practices for scientific review.
William Lee Rand began formulating The Touchstone Process after developing the Reiki In Hospitals website, considered to be the most comprehensive compilation of hospitals offering Reiki treatments throughout the world.
The Touchstone Process is unique. Never before have there been so many worthy studies of Reiki gathered, analyzed and evaluated within a single source.
What Are The Findings? The most recent data analyzed (during 2008-9) shows strong evidence that Reiki is indeed responsible for a positive biological response in both humans and animals.
The strongest evidence (rated “excellent” in the Process) was reported in the most carefully controlled of all experiments; non other than laboratory rats. In both 2006 and 2008 stressed-out lab rats received Reiki treatments and they all showed significantly reduced stress, anxiety and depression responses. “Sham” or bogus Reiki treatments were given to the placebo group and they showed no reduction in stress, anxiety or depression.
Testing in humans performed between 1993 and 2006 showed ratings from Satisfactory to Excellent, all suggesting that the benefit of Reiki treatments were positive in controlling pain levels in humans. There were some “confounding variables”, which is typical in hospital (as opposed to laboratory) studies; however, the placebo Reiki treatments in this experiment were by contrast ineffective in controlling pain.
Other examples of Reiki studies performed in hospitals and universities may be found on this related site for Reiki research.
Reiki practitioners treat faculty and staff from Columbia University Health Sciences and New York-Presbyterian Hospital at Employee Health and Wellness Day
Vital Signs New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Campus conducted one of the first studies ever performed to determine the effectiveness of Reiki treatments on the autonomic nervous system. This “blind, random study” included a Reiki treatment group, a “sham” treatment group and a “control” group. The testing began with all participants at “baseline” autonomic nervous systems levels. The results within the Reiki treatment group showed a lowering of these levels including heart rate, respiration and blood pressure. These positive results led the team to recommend further, larger studies to look at the biological effects of Reiki treatment.
It’s interesting to note that Columbia/Presbyterian was one of the first hospitals to offer Reiki as part of their Integrative Medicine Program (CIMP). The now famous cardiovascular surgeon, Dr. Mehmet Oz brought tremendous attention to Reiki when he invited Reiki practitioners to treat patients during open heart surgeries and heart transplant operations. Dr. Oz is often quoted as saying, "Reiki has become a sought-after healing art among patients and mainstream medical professionals."
Words of wisdom from an internationally recognized Reiki Practioner and author who had been published in peer-reviewed medical journals
Reiki: A Comprehensive Guide
Here's Pamela's lovely book
Amazon Price: $7.49
List Price: $16.95
Reiki Passes Tests with Flying Colors: There have been many other controlled studies submitted to peer-journals and to The Touchstone Process for review. Ailments and disorders that tested favorably to Reiki treatment include:
1. Post operative pain after tooth extraction
2. Cognition in elderly, related to dementia/Alzheimers
3. Pre-operative relaxation and post-op pain
4. Pain in chronically ill patients
5. Depression and stress
6. Well-being in Reiki practitioners
As of 2009, The Touchstone Process has evaluated 25 test studies that appeared in peer-review journals evaluating the merits of Reiki Treatments. Taking into consideration only the most rigorously controlled studies, the team reported that 83% showed moderate to strong evidence in support of Reiki as a viable, therapeutic healing modality.
Only one study proved solidly negative and that was for the treatment of fibromyalgia-associated pain levels. As is the case with conventional drug treatments, not all therapies prove to be effective.
Thinking Positively Despite these findings and the impressive number of highly reputable hospitals offering Reiki Treatments to patients, there will be those who continue to deem Reiki and other forms of energy-medicine as being “nonsensical”.
As recently as 2009, reviews of randomized studies”of Reiki research conducted by Edzard Ernst, M.D., Ph.D. and his colleagues at the University of Exeter, concluded that most were poorly designed and presented insufficient evidence to suggest that Reiki was an effective method for healing any condition.
That same year, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops came out with a statement urging Catholic health-care facilities and clergy not to promote or support Reiki therapy. They issued a statement emphatically concluding that Reiki cannot be an effective method of healing “within the findings of natural science or in Christian belief".
One can only look to the future of science and the evolution of scientific testing, evaluation and responsible reporting which began with The Touchstone Process to alter these perceptions.
imra.org
The good news is that in a press release dated Sept. 15th, 2008, The American Hospital Association President and CEO Rich Umbdenstock stated, “"Complementary and alternative medicine has shown great promise in supporting and stimulating healing. It's one of the many tools hospitals look to as they continue to create optimal healing environments for the patients they serve."
According to a 2008 AHA the survey, 84 percent of hospitals indicated patient demand as the primary rationale in offering complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) services including Reiki and 67 percent of those surveyed stated “clinical effectiveness” as their top reason.
65 of those hospitals are listed on the Center for Reiki Research’s website including-
· Duke Integrative Medicine, Durham, North Carolina
· New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center Campus, New York, New York
· Yale–New Haven Hospital, New Haven, Connecticut
· Sharp Memorial Hospital Inpatient Cancer Support Services, San Diego, California
· Children’s Hospital Boston, Boston, Massachusetts
· Citrus Valley Medical Center Cancer Resource Center, Covina, California
In addition, the American Medical Association (AMA) has added Complimentary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) treatments to their directory of billable procedures.
Here are links to other medical journal articles on the positive effects of Reiki · Herbert Irving Child and Adolescent Oncology Center - New York Presbyterian Hospital
Herbert Irving Child and Adolescent Oncology Center
· Healing emotional pain and stress leads to healing physical pain and illness.
· Healers in the Operating Room - Article from healthpoints E-newsletter
Breast program welcomes alternative practitioners before and during breast surgery. Physicians, surgeons, and nursing staff at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia understand that emotional well-being plays an important role in healing, and they do as much
· Reiki - Medical Research
Medical research and other papers on the benefits of Reiki treatment
Conclusion A spokesperson from Columbia Integrative Medicine Program at the New York Presbyterian Hospital (CIMP) perhaps expresses it best, saying,
“I find the practice of Reiki very rewarding, as a practitioner. Patients have reported deep relaxation and a sense of profound healing, after one session. I feel that Reiki is a huge asset for any hospital setting, because patients sense that they are in a truly caring environment."
As Reiki continues to become "a huge asset" for the hospital setting, analytical reporting such as The Touchstone Process continues to add to the much needed pool of evidence that Reiki is indeed a worthy, effective method for facilitating the healing process; one that can contribute to the betterment of patients everywhere and to the betterment of our health care systems.
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