Experiences of a Japanese Reiki Practitioner

[Willis Belushi]

I wouldn't say that I'm a Japanese Reiki Practitioner. I do have Reiki
I certification, having been attuned and learned the basic hand
positions of Reiki, and having practiced doing Reiki on my teacher, my
children, and myself. Still, I went into my lessons with a healthy
dose of skepticism and a real desire to feel something - anything -
that would make me believe in its truth.
I'm the kind of person who is on a continual spiritual search, never
having found something totally believable in religion. I also have
always been interested, though never believed, in the idea of psychic
energies and the like. So learning about Japanese Reiki healing was
interesting to me, especially because my Reiki Master is the parent of
one of my daughter's friends. She offered to teach me Reiki I, and I
accepted.
I was pregnant at the time, and interested in anything that would help
me relax and deal with the stresses of pregnancy and the upcoming
onset of labor. So, I went in with an open mind. She talked to me
about the history of Japanese Reiki, and how she became a Japanese
Reiki practitioner. She is a very spiritual person, and absolutely
believes in what she is doing and saying. I was fascinated. She did an
attunement on me, and though I sat very still and willed myself to
feel something, I can't really say that I felt much, though her hands
were very warm.
I also felt a little silly trying it on her, though she said that my
hands felt very warm to her, which meant that I had the Reiki energy
in them. I really wanted it to be true. She showed me hand positions
that were good for the baby, and good for relaxing me. I tried them,
and promised to do Reiki on myself and my belly every night before
going to sleep.
I did practice, and relaxing and laying my hands on myself was
soothing each night. The baby seemed to settle when I did the Reiki
too, though I can't verify that it was the Reiki or my relaxing that
made her relax in there. My hands did get warm after a few minutes of
doing the Reiki, but I wondered if the warmth was a result of my hands
absorbing and reflecting my body heat, or real Reiki healing energy.
I do believe that my Reiki teacher really has the ability of a true
Japanese Reiki practitioner, and she calls herself a Reiki Master. She
is remarkable. I just wondered if I could do Reiki and really have the
Reiki energy in me to do actual Japanese Reiki healing treatments. Or
did I just have warm hands?
The turning point for me, or at least a moment when I felt that it was
most real, was when I was in labor. There I was in the hospital,
nearly ready to push, when the pain was very intense. I had an
epidural, which was placed when I was at about 7 centimeters.
Transition and the effects of the epidural made me shake rather
violently and uncontrollably.
I was trying to calm the shaking, because it was bothering me. So I
called the Reiki energy, and placed my one available hand (the other
was hooked to an iv), on the center of my chest. Immediately, the
shaking stopped. I breathed easier and more evenly. It was very
amazing to me, and a great relief.
My birth experience wasn't great; the baby got stuck during pushing,
went into distress, and I ended up with an emergency c-section. But, I
used the Reiki to help me relax during and after the surgery, and when
I was healing. Also, the Japanese Reiki healing may have had some
effect on my beautiful daughter - she is a remarkably calm and
easygoing baby with a very sweet disposition.
My labor and my daughter are the best arguments for believing in the
validity of Japanese Reiki healing that I've ever experienced. And,
though I don't consider myself a Japanese Reiki practitioner, I will
be starting my Reiki II training in the coming weeks.