We understand how hard the holidays can be when you are processing grief. It would be our honor to assist you through your difficult time.

WHAT IS REIKI?

Reiki is is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. Reiki is given by the “laying of hands” that has been practiced for thousands of years. In fact, the basis for modern-day Reiki may have started in Tibet more than 2,500 years ago. The word Reiki comes from two Japanese words – Rei and Ki. The word “Rei” means higher knowledge or spiritual consciousness. The word “Ki” means life energy. This is the same meaning as in Chi (Chinese), Prana (Sanskrit) and Ti/Ki (Hawaiian). Life energy plays an important role in everything we do. Reiki harnesses that life energy to promote healing, relaxation and a sense of calm.

Reiki focuses on “health and spiritual well-being” and promoted “stress reduction and relaxation”.

RESPONSES TO GRIEF

Maintaining “health and spiritual well-being” when you are grieving can be a top priority. Once grief hits everything seems to go out of whack. Our minds can’t compute fast enough anymore. We feel like we are in a fog. Our bodies also go through a difficult time. Sometimes we feel completely disassociated from them. Just like our hearts, they too may begin to feel broken and battered. I am sure if you have ever grieved, you may have experienced symptoms like:

• Insomnia

• Headaches

• Loss of appetite

• Difficulty falling asleep

• Weakness

• Fatigue

• Feelings of heaviness

• Rollercoaster of emotions

• Aches, pains, and other stress-related ailments

Since the above list shows that grief affects us physically, it’s important to understand what is happening and why. A body needs energy to be healthy. Energy from food, energy from exercise and energy from being outside in nature. Grief however is an energy-depleting emotion. If you aren’t replacing and/or balancing the energy your body loses when grieving, you begin to feel awful. It you don’t do anything to replenish the energy being removed from your body, over time you feel worse and worse. A person’s body, mind and soul can only take this for so long before any number of unhealthy things start to happen. It’s not unusual to get sick when you are grieving. It’s not unusual to have some sort of accident when you are grieving. These two outcomes can almost have worse consequences than if we just emotionally felt our grief from the beginning.

BENEFITS OF REIKI

As humans, we are made up of energy. When the energy paths of the body are blocked or disturbed, the result can be illness, weakness, and pain. Reiki balances and strengthens the flow of energy within the body, which may decrease pain, ease muscle tension, improve sleep, and generally enhance the body’s ability to heal itself. Energy flows through a Reiki practitioner’s hands to the recipient. Reiki activates or enhances a person’s natural healing processes. Reiki provides us with physical, mental, emotional and spiritual benefits by balancing our energy. Some of the benefits of Reiki include:

• Promotes relaxation

• Improves sleep

• Reduces stress and tension

• Helps with pain management

• Reduces anxiety

• Soothes digestion

• Improves circulation

• Enhances healing

It’s not a coincidence that the symptoms associated with grieving and the benefits of Reiki almost match each other one-for-one. Reiki energy knows right where to go to balance and heal.

Reiki doesn't magically take the sadness associated with grief away, but it does make it physically easier for you to deal with grief’s ups and downs. Having a sense of calm and balance gives you the courage and stamina needed to tackle your journey through grief.

So consider trying Reiki. Don’t wait until you are grieving to receive its benefits.