Joe's Healing Restored His Life

THE STORY OF JOE:
Joe is a 70 year old man who came to me to undergo a shamanic journey. He knew that the work required him not to share what he thought the problem was so that the healing information received would come in a pure form by a higher source. In journey work, I always begin with trepidation as to whether or not my client is going to resonate with the information. Part of the journey is shutting off my self-talk so that the guides can take over in the work. Recognizing the importance of my guides doing the work, and experiencing an open connection with them, allows for journey work to be powerful.

RESTORING THE DREAMS OF YOUTH THROUGH SHAMANISM:
While many people come for soul retrievals because of physical or sexual trauma, this work can bring up a variety of issues that require soul healing. The goal of journey work is to restore the spirit of an individual by bringing back the pure essence that was lost somewhere in life. In Joe’s case, I saw a teenager filled with dreams and many, many thoughts. I saw he had a desire to fly but his dreams were squashed by parental type influences. I also saw at that age that he wasn't accepted in the popular crowd so he still carried issues of low self-esteem. I understood the journey’s message to rekindle his youth by encouraging Joe to carry out his dreams regardless of how foolish his parental self and others were telling him. I also saw that he needed to connect with Seagulls and spend time at the beach so that he can create a stronger spiritual connection with his spirit ally’s. As silly as that might sound to those not familiar with this work, it ultimately played an integral role in Joe’s healing.

A PIVOTAL JUNCTURE OF CHOOSING LIFE OR DEATH
Always still to my amazement, Joe’s response was “your dead on” and validated that he did have dreams of flying that were squashed. Later in life, he had become a pilot but due to a divorce, he had to sell his plane. I could see that there was a tremendous sense of unresolved issues over that divorce and the loss of his plane. When sharing the journey, tears welled in Joe’s eyes and he said “I haven’t the spirit to live anymore”. Joe seemed like a very bright individual for his age. He shared that he was an avid reader and was focused on healthy eating. So I didn't feel he was ready to die, but I did feel he was at that pivotal juncture of making that decision for his path.

ADDING REIKI TO RESTORE A MORE YOUTHFUL BODY…  
I also noticed when Joe came into my office that he was in physical pain. It was apparent that he was having difficulties with walking. I could relate to his frustration because I had spent my life dealing with the limitations of bad hips that began in my early childhood. Many things I wished I could have done became limiting and frustrating. But, with the Reiki energy, I created a life that allows me to be fully present without the need of pain medication. I knew my story could help Joe and I offered to give him Reiki treatments so that he too could live a more fulfilling life. Joe shared that he had been putting off a surgery for spinal stenosis because he knew that surgery could be risky and dangerous. The doctors offered no other alternatives to help him heal and he wasn't willing to go under the knife. Learning this, I truly felt Reiki was the only alternative available to help him get through his daily life without the reliance of healing professionals.

THREE MONTHS LATER, JOE IS WALKING WITH MINIMAL PAIN…
Although I felt weekly treatments as well as self- treatments would have accelerated his healing process, Joe came for treatments in the course of three months. He didn't work much with the energy on his own, which I believe would have made even more rapid improvements. I felt this obstacle was part of the process of Joe choosing the life path or the death path he initially came to me for. I also feel that it has become so ingrained in our culture that only a surgery or a pill would help, that Joe didn't believe it himself on some level that Reiki could actually help.

But despite the emotional obstacles within three months, Joe was able to take walks again with his dog with minimal pain. Joe even began going to the beach to feed the Seagulls. For Joe the act of going to the beach allowed him to fortify his spiritual connection with his spirit ally’s as well as with nature. He began to recognize that there was more to life than met the eye. 

JOE RECOGNIZES THE RETURN OF HIS SPIRIT…
Our treatments ended when he made plans to spend the summer with his children up North. At his last visit, he said to me, “I've been thinking about that journey you did and you know I do have my spirit back now”. Joe was not just saying this to please me. I could hear a spark in his voice and saw lightness in his actions. My work was accomplished.

Recently, Joe’s wife came in to see me. She shared with me how much Joe walking had improved. She came to me with Joe’s insistence. During her visit, she reported that his daughter took him throughout a mall, to the farmer’s market along with daily walks with the dog. She shared that his life was indeed becoming very active again.

JOE RECOGNIZES THE RETURN OF HIS SPIRIT…
Joe’s a good example of the blending of these two modalities Shamanism and Reiki. The soul retrieval brought back pieces of Joe’s vitality lost in youth whereas the messages from the journey work gave Joe the insight and inspiration to lead a more active and exciting life. While the Reiki healing helped move out stagnant energies that were barring him from living a more fulfilled and complete life.

Healing Severe Anxiety

REIKI AND HEALING ANXIETY SYMPTOMS
One of the most common issues I see as a Reiki Practitioner is on-going stress that leads to varying degrees of anxiety and depressive-type symptoms. When I worked as a Social Worker doing talk therapy, I felt limited in being able to move my clients towards better health in a rapid pace. Yes, therapy is useful in addressing solutions to situations and identifying obstacles created in our thinking; but, I didn’t find counseling an avenue that considers the impact energy has on our emotional states of being. I was somewhat surprised by my own experience as a counselor in how long it takes for people to recognize what type of mood or emotion they were actually experiencing.

REIKI AIDS HELPING TO IDENTIFY WHERE ANXIETIES ARE LOCATED IN THE BODY
As an energy healer, I typically notice clients with anxiety symptoms being unaware of pain and feelings when they begin Reiki treatments. They are unable to tap into their body’s tensions and blockages that actually are at the root of feeling anxiety. By moving through these energy blockages, many of my clients and students quickly begin to learn what these feelings feel like and learn how to manage them by moving through them energetically.

THE STORY OF MY STUDENT ANNIE WHO SUFFERED FROM CONVERSION DISORDER
One of the most remarkable cases I witnessed was a student who came to take my classes. She had stated that her guides wanted her to train with me. Of course, I was flattered that the powers that be recognized me as a good teacher for her; but I didn’t understand why until the she went through the Reiki 1 empowerment. After I give the empowerment, I normally let people integrate the energy in private for a short while as I did for her. About 15 minutes had passed and she still had not joined the rest of the group. When I returned to check on her, I found her still sitting in the same position that she was in for the Reiki 1 Empowerment. I asked her if she was ok and she calmly replied, “I forgot to tell you I have Conversion Disorder.” I recognized then that her guides may have directed her towards me because I understood that Conversion Disorder was an anxiety disorder that leaves a person in a state of paralysis. Because of my awareness of how energy flows through the body also, I was confident that I could assist her in having her relax out of this state, which happened within a few moments.

NEGATIVE SYMPTOMS LEADS TO A POSITIVE PLAN FOR HEALING… 
As frightening as this might be for some individuals to see, I took it as a positive sign because it gave me the ability to identify and recognize what she would need to do for her healing. I gave her a variety of coping skills and energetic protocols to help her address her stress and symptoms of anxiety. During this particular course, this student returned back east to visit her family over the holiday season. Understanding her history, I was somewhat concern that she would take a step back in her healing.

HEALING TOOK PLACE WITHIN 6 WEEKS…
Upon her return she contacted me to let me know that during a stressful interaction with a close relative she began feeling her energy state turning into the paralysis she had suffered with for years. But, to her surprise, she was able to manage and control her energy so that it did not create a full blown onset of her previously debilitating symptoms. She had shared how she had been on medications for years in trying to control this problem, but with working with the energy it became apparent that there are other means in managing these types of problems.

ANNIE’S STORY ALSO SHEDS LIGHT ON THE IMPORTANCE OF WORKING WITH A QUALIFIED TEACHER…
While this is an out of the ordinary type of situation, it reflects the power of energy work and its influence on our emotional state. One final comment about this example is that it can not be emphasized enough the importance of seeking out a teacher who has a true understanding of energy healing. Reiki has been abused by marketing it with the promise of reaching the Master level within a matter of weekends. It is unfair to everyone involved when someone has a power that they don’t understand, nor have taken the time to integrate and learn. Therefore, I highly recommend that you inquire of Reiki teachers background and training prior to committing in taking the Reiki attunements or empowerments from them.

Family In Need Of Healing, Cured.

REIKI IN HOSPITAL’S HAS ITS LIMITATIONS…
More and more hospitals are beginning to establish volunteer Reiki programs where practitioners come intermittently on a weekly basis to do Reiki. While this is an important breakthrough in the integration of Reiki complementing western medicine, time does not allow for achieving significant healing results. From a Reiki perspective, people going through serious illnesses need to have continual, consistent Reiki treatments in order to accelerate the healing process. When this is done in this manner, miracles have a greater chance for happening and peace prevails regardless of the outcome.

MADAME TAKATA CLAIMS OF DISSOLVING TUMOR’S-A COMMUNITY EFFORT…
In her book, Reiki: Hawayo Takata’s Story, Helen Haberly included Madame Takata’s claim that a walnut size tumor could actually dissolve within three weeks. While this may sound preposterous to us Westerners, Madame Takata’s approach incorporated family and community in her healing work for people undergoing chronic or serious health issues. Currently, this is not a model we use in our western medical system.

CARE-GIVERS ARE IN NEED OF HEALING ALONG WITH THEIR ILL LOVED ONE…
Another aspect of healing that oftentimes gets neglected is the impact illness has on family members and significant others. Through my Medical Social Work experience, it was not unusual to see family members in shock, feeling powerless and frustrated over their own inability to help their loved one. Because alternative healing is still minimized, family members and significant others find their role limited to simply sitting at the bedside, maybe getting refreshments or handing something from the bedside table . In considering the entire family system, I feel a better approach is to offer Reiki empowerment’s to family and loved ones so that all can receive healing during these crisis periods as well as to actively participate in the healing process.

A MOTHER HEALS HER SON IN A COMA… 
One powerful healing I witnessed regarding this approach was when I empowered a mother whose son was in a coma after having many strokes due to a bacterial infection. The day I arrived at the hospital, the mother had just received news that her son would be transferred to a facility for him to live out his life in a vegetative state. The mother looked exhausted and depleted. But she vowed that she would heal him through their heart bond with her loving energy. When she shared this, she had been working on him for well over a week with very little results. His arms were beginning to contract, yet he did seem to be distantly present despite the doctor’s medical evaluation. 

When I gave her the empowerment, her energy instantly became vibrant. She felt energized and restored. Shortly after giving her the empowerment, I began teaching and demonstrating ways for her to work with the energy on her son. She commented on how easily the energy seemed to now flow from her without exhausting her own energy. Even to my surprise, we were able to get her son’s arms straightened out normally within 10 minutes of treatment. I didn’t see them in person after this experience since he was transported across the country. But the following year, I learned that while he was still quadriplegic he was attending school for pre-law and able to go to church.
I’m sure this mother included everything she possibly could in order to promote his healing. But what is important to realize is that because of the immense love for her son, her conviction and her availability, she truly was the best healing source in providing Reiki energy to her son.

GIVING REIKI HEALS GRIEF WHEN TRANSITIONING IS INEVITABLE…
Another story that comes to mind regarding families healing potential, relates to a close friend’s grandson who was born with three holes in his heart. It was apparent that the odds were against his survival. Silvia shared with me the powerlessness she felt in helping her daughter and grandson. At the time, I would not have considered her an open individual to alternative healing methods. But out of deep concern over the situation, I offered to give her a Reiki empowerment so that she could give Reiki to her grandson. Without knowing her reaction to the offer, I was happily surprised when she eagerly agreed to the opportunity. This taught me to never withhold from making the offer of sharing Reiki healing, especially in times of deep need. For many people, the empowerment is a life altering experience. In Silivia’s case, she stated she did not want the moment to end, because she never had experienced such a blissful state of peace.
Weeks later, I learned that her grandson did die peacefully. It wasn’t until speaking to her at the funeral that Silvia shared her sense of completion over her grandson’s transitioning. Because she was able to do Reiki on him every day, I believe her efforts made his transition peaceful. In this work, sometimes the outcome of healing does occur with the individual transitioning. This is not seen as a bad thing as we need to understand that all life ends, and in some cultures, death is viewed as liberation. What is important, however, is how the process of dying is handled. When families have the ability to ease the suffering, the sense of regret for families can be greatly reduced and the grieving process lessened by the understanding assurance that they were able to provide comfort and aid to their loved one.