At Back to Heart Center we offer a grounded, practical approach to Reiki energy healing; traditional, in-studio Usui Reiki sessions in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, home visits in the southern Berkshires, ongoing Reiki classes and training, and virtual/remote sessions for humans and pets.
About Reiki.
Reiki treatment is an established, effective form of energy therapy. It treats the whole person; body, mind, energy, emotions, and spirit. Its beneficial effects include deep levels of relaxation that facilitate expedited healing of a multitude of conditions, clinical and non-clinical. Regular Reiki treatments not only accelerate healing but also cultivate sustained feelings of balance, peace, security, and well-being.
Here’s what the Cleveland Clinic says about Reiki.
The Reiki system of healing originates in Japan and its founder is widely considered to be scholar and seeker Usui Mikao. Usui Reiki has its roots in the practices of esoteric Buddhism but is not, itself, a religious practice, nor is it affiliated with any specific religion or dogma.
Reiki was brought to the West in the 1930s and has been used in hospitals and clinics throughout the US ever since. In clinical settings, it works as a complement to a wide variety of medical and other therapeutic treatments, relieving side effects, accelerating recovery time, and reducing pain.
Here’s a wonderful overview of the system of Reiki and its Japanese roots.
What to expect from an in-person Reiki session at Back to Heart Center:
Reiki sessions are conducted with the client lying fully-clothed on a comfortable massage table. The practitioner places their hands, very gently, on or above the body, beginning at the head and progressing down the body in a series of locations over the course of the session, often ending at the feet. Experiences during a Reiki treatment can range from a deep, sleep-like relaxation to sensations of heat, tingling, buzzing, twitching, tummy grumbling, vivid dreaming, waves of energy moving through and around the body, and more. Many people don’t experience any of these and simply say they’ve never felt quite so relaxed, restored, at peace, or safe as they do during and after a Reiki session. Reiki can do no harm and serves only to support overall well-being. It facilitates and expedites healing on all levels; physical, energetic, emotional, and mental. Emerging from a Reiki treatment can feel like coming out of a very deep sleep. Ample time is left after each treatment for the client to re-orient, and share any experiences, impressions, or sensations they might have had.
Reiki's Mainstream and Clinical Applications
Reiki is classified by the National Institute of Health as a form of complementary medicine.
• Reiki influences the human bio-field, which regulates everything from cellular function to the function and health of the nervous system.
• Reiki has been integrated into hospital settings with more than 800 hospitals now offering it nationwide, including the Cleveland Clinic, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Spaulding Rehab, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Johns Hopkins, The Children’s Hospital in Boston, and the Mayo Clinic. It is employed in Emergency Rooms, Pre-Op, Surgery, Post Op, Oncology, Cardiology, Orthopedics, and Internal Medicine.
Our data, based on feedback from patients, family members, and staff members who received Reiki sessions, as well as outside research, show that Reiki promotes relaxation, relieves stress and anxiety, reduces pain and fatigue, and improves overall quality of life.
–Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston
• The Cleveland Clinic employs Reiki treatment in support of the following conditions: cancer, infertility, Parkinson’s disease, psychological illnesses, chronic pain, digestive problems, and stress-related diseases. They state the following additional benefits from Reiki: A feeling of security, peace, and wellness; deep relaxation; stress reduction; stimulation of the body’s immune system; stimulation of tissue and bone healing after injury or surgery; general support of the well-being of a patient receiving medical treatments.
• A research study at Hartford Hospital in Connecticut showed that Reiki patients needed less anesthesia, had less bleeding during surgery, used less pain medications, and had shorter stays in the hospital.
• The Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine recently published a completed study conducted at Harvard University by The Center for Reiki Research; the largest prospective Reiki study to date, with a total of 1411 Reiki sessions conducted and included in the analysis. Statistically significant improvements were observed for all outcomes of psychological and physical health, including pain, nausea, shortness of breath, anxiety, and depression, with moderate to large effect. The results from this large-scale multi-site effectiveness trial suggest that a single session of Reiki improves physical and psychological health. The article abstract can be found here. And many more studies can be found on PubMed.
Reiki treatments are one of the top three complementary in-patient therapies offered in over 800 US hospitals. These hospitals include Johns Hopkins, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard, Yale, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and George Washington University Hospital as well as Wounded Warrior Programs and Hospice.
"Individual Reiki energy sessions can help to alleviate long-term stress in our bodies, minds, and hearts that can have great impact on our nervous systems, i.e. the electrical impulse circuitry system. Through achieving a state of deep relaxation we can effectively switch our electric impulses from chaotic to balanced, providing a foundation upon which our neurological, cardiovascular, immune, digestive, and hormonal systems can regain harmony. From this state of relaxation, deeper emotional storage areas held in the energy system of the body can be opened and released as well."
– Reiki Master Pamela Younquist
The word Reiki is made up of two Japanese words "Rei," which can translate as Wisdom, Spirit, Divine, Intellingent, Higher Power, Mysterious Force… and "Ki" which means vital energy.
REIKI
Remote or “Distance” Reiki
What to expect from a remote or session:
Distance Reiki sessions, for the practically-minded, sometimes seem like a bridge too far. But we offer them, not because they make sense, but because they’re effective.
Initially, we connect with clients via phone or video chat for a check-in. The client then lies down in a place where they won’t be disturbed for the duration of the session. After the session is complete we connect again by text, phone, or video - or the practitioner can send session notes via email.
Please reach out to us with questions. And if you’re a curious – or a skeptic – please read Sandy’s blog post below.
