What is Reiki?

Reiki is defined as Rei- meaning spiritual wisdom and Ki- meaning life energy. It is the process of “laying on hands.” Reiki is a healing technique where the practitioner channels energy from and into the patient to activate the natural healing processes of the patient’s body and restore physical and emotional well-being. However, because Reiki is dealing with energy, the practitioner does not have to actually touch the client. In fact, the client does not even need to be physically present for Reiki to be utilized and benefit the client. It is performed using intuition and feeling the energy movement in the body. Reiki works off the chakra system, similar to meridians in acupuncture, but with no needles required.

What are Chakras?

There are more than 22 chakras, of which 7 main chakras operate in the body or within the person’s auric field. The 7 chakras from top to bottom are: crown, third eye, throat, heart, solar plus, sacral, and root. There are also secondary chakras in each hand which are directly linked to the heart chakra and in each foot directly linked to the root chakra. The same way that counseling and psychology understand that trauma is stored within the body, Reiki operates similarly. With Reiki, we believe that this trauma can cause energetic blocks within our chakras, resulting in several physical and mental illnesses and complications.

How is Reiki used with Counseling?

Reiki can help release these blockages, rebalance and realign the chakras. This may provide support in discussing trauma in counseling and bring more clarity to the root cause of the presenting problems and make daily life more manageable while continuing to process in counseling sessions. Reiki can help release these blockages, rebalance and realign the chakras. This may provide support in discussing trauma in counseling and bring more clarity to the root cause of the presenting problems and make daily life more manageable while continuing to process in counseling sessions.

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An Example:

The crown chakra rests at the top of the head within our auric field (the pink dot in the graphic above). It is how we connect to our inner wisdom, feel connected to others and life, see the bigger picture, and feel a sense of wholeness, despite outside circumstances of life. When this chakra is blocked or out of balance we can experience depression, alienation, lack of empathy, insomnia, apathy, boredom, nightmares/night terrors, lack of purpose and direction, mental fog, loneliness, and mental illness involving delusions.

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The following therapists have the ability to incorporate Reiki into counseling: