transformation

I’ve been confused by the expression “spiritual healing” for some time now. At first I thought it meant to heal one’s spirit. But over the past few years of spiritual exploration and practice, I’ve come to recognize that spirit can never be damaged or broken. It remains as it was created: perfect, whole, and complete. No healing needed. Ever!

Well then, what the heck is spiritual healing if not healing of the spirit?

I now realize that spiritual healing is about reconnecting with spirit and reclaiming our essential nature of wholeness, worthiness, and innocence. It’s about remembering that we are one with spirit, life, love, the universe, the divine; whatever words you use to describe the eternal source of all that is. Spiritual healing is about removing the blockages that prevent us from experiencing ourselves as spiritual beings.

The blockages come from traumatic experiences, cultural conditioning, and ancestral beliefs; as well as unprocessed feelings of shame, fear, anger, and sadness. They get installed every time we shut down a part of ourselves to escape or prevent pain or to please others. They are absorbed from a society that promotes superficial values. They are presented in messages about not being good enough; being too needed, too sensitive, too whatever; or having too much or too little of some arbitrary trait that the media currently idolizes or abhors.

The blockages arise from not having basic needs met and not knowing how to handle the resulting pain; and the subsequent use of self-medicating behaviors or substances; and the emerging shame, guilt, humiliation, or despair experienced from falling into this destructive pattern yet again. This is a vicious cycle that contributes to separation from spirit almost as much as experiencing violence, neglect, or abuse.

The blockages are ubiquitous. We all have them to varying degrees.

And yet we all have access to the underlying perfection of spirit that is waiting patiently to be unveiled. This is the gift that spiritual healing provides. Reiki is one of the many paths that can lead us on this journey back to our True Selves, our essential natures, our invincible spirits. It’s a journey of remembering who we really are by allowing healing life-force energy to remove all that we are not.

Spiritual Healing

I’ve been confused by the expression “spiritual healing” for some time now. At first I thought…
I’m been mesmerized by a teaching of Christopher Wallis. According to his website, he teaches meditation, yoga and Tantrik philosophy, Sanskrit, mantra-science, and offers spiritual counseling. He teaches about practicing from a three pronged “effective motivation”, called “pure motivation” in Buddhist teachings. My spiritual, massage and Reiki practices are being transformed by adjusting my primary intention to one of effective motivation.

The first piece is to practice out of love for myself, rather than trying to fix the (seemingly) broken pieces. From a spiritual viewpoint, I’m not broken and don’t need fixing, and any motivation from this flawed perspective would be ineffective. Instead, when I’m motivated to uncover my essential nature of wholeness and holiness, I’m tapping into the power of effective motivation. Very powerful stuff!

May I practice out of love for myself.

Second, he cautions about chasing bliss at the expense of what is real. He offers the adjustment of practicing in order to know the Truth. (I use a capital T to signify universal and eternal Truth vs. subjective or temporary truths.) This allows me to experience the sadness, anger, shame, or fear that could be covering my True Self, and to allow for deep healing rather than simple pleasure seeking. He suggests that a greater level of joy is eventually accessible when we chose to honor what is True.

May I practice from a desire to know the Truth.

And finally, rather than seeking special powers (psychic powers or the ability to manifest desires of the ego) or manipulative power over others, he proposes that I practice in order to benefit all beings, myself included. Asking Life, “what do you want to do through me?” instead of making demands of what I think I want (P.S. I’m almost always wrong about what I think I want!) is a more effective motivation, and a simple way to tap into universal life-force energy.

May I practice for the benefit of all beings.

This simple, yet powerful intention is shifting my practice in a fundamental way that feels like it will have profound results over time. Already I’m experiencing more groundedness, connection, and peacefulness. Which is really quite enough motivation for me to continue! Obviously I want to get the most out of all my practices, so aligning with this effective motivation appears to be an easy way to support myself.

May I practice out of love for myself, in order to know the truth,

and for the benefit of all beings.

Tapping into the Power of Effective Motivation

I’m been mesmerized by a teaching of Christopher Wallis. According to his website, he teaches meditation,…
I get this question a lot from clients, often when they are in great pain; either physical, psychological, or spiritual. They come seeking relief, having been sent by a friend or Google search, correctly informed that Reiki and massage are powerful, holistic healing techniques. Recently a young woman jokingly requested that I vacuum out all her anxiety. If only I could! Alas, healing does not work this way.

Human touch and muscle manipulation are potent vehicles of healing, as is the universal life-force energy transferred during a Reiki session. They can provide the nudge that the body or psyche needs to return to alignment with the Spirit. They can also offer the boost in motivation to follow through on lifestyle changes, the release of self-sabotaging beliefs, and the comfort of remembering that we are not merely broken bodies with problems struggling alone in an unfriendly universe. Reiki and massage are some of the most powerful healing tools that I’ve ever come across in my twenty plus years of spiritual awakening.

And yet it is up to each of us individually to decide if we wish to receive the many benefits these tools have to offer. We are ultimately the ones in control of our own healing and well-being. Providers like myself can offer support to our clients, but until emotions have been fully acknowledged, felt, and released there is no shortcut. Our pain is very often an indicator that we have gotten off-track. It serves the function of reminding us of our greater purpose, our true nature, and our mission in this lifetime.

My compassion allows me to dream of taking away the discomfort everyone experiences, but my inner knowing counsels that this would indeed be a disservice to the evolution and ultimate wellness of others. Being human is a difficult job. But we have been blessed with countless systems of support, transformation, and integration. If you’re wondering if a treatment with me might be helpful, please check out my website! I offer a free 15 minute phone consultation for this very reason. If you’re just not into massage or Reiki, that’s cool too. I hope you seek out one of the other alternative options so readily available today.

Can You Fix Me?

I get this question a lot from clients, often when they are in great pain; either…
“You’re Teaching Me to be Kind to Myself.”

A client said this to me during a massage treatment a few weeks ago. The concept of treating our bodies with kindness is somewhat uncommon in our culture of harder/ faster/ deeper/ push-through it mentality. In this particular case, I was working on an inflamed tendon that had been causing quite a bit of pain for over a month and interfering with her quality of life. I was using gentle pressure to soothe and comfort the entire area to encourage circulation and the release of muscular tension.

She had been braced for a painful session and was quite surprised at the results she experienced from my gentle approach. During the treatment she noticed how various body parts connected to one another and then began to see a bigger picture. While it is true that one particular tendon was inflamed due to overwork and a moment of excess strain place on it, all the surrounding muscle groups had been recruited to assist and protect the injury. Tension spread out from the source and had enveloped the entire quadrant. As relaxation settled in and muscles began to release, she could feel the internal structure settle into a more neutral position and breathed a sigh of relief.

When she returned two weeks later for a follow up treatment, she reported much less pain, more ease of movement, and a greater sense of harmony in her body. The persistent pain had been downgraded to a dull ache and the surrounding muscles were no longer locked in defensive contraction. Again I worked gently; this time spending a greater portion of the session integrating the limb with the torso while explaining how the whole body works as a team. She became intrigued with the idea of this one small tendon affecting distant areas and realized how she had adapted posture as well as movement to accommodate the injury.

She left that day encouraged to be more aware of her body mechanics and overall attitude towards her body. Introducing clients to the transformative belief that treating ourselves and our bodies with kindness produces lasting and deep effects is perhaps the most helpful input I have to offer as a bodyworker. I could explain this in terms of the nervous system triggering the fight-or-flight reflex vs the relaxation response and get into the biological effects of an aggressive approach vs a more gentle on; yet I think that deep down we can all intuitively grasp this concept. Be kind to your body; and it will respond by letting go of stress and pain.

You’re Teaching Me to be Kind to Myself

“You’re Teaching Me to be Kind to Myself.” A client said this to me during a…
Over the years of practicing mindfulness, I’ve come to recognize the warning bells of my mind whirling uncontrollably. It’s a sign that I need to stop everything and Just Be. Just for a few minutes, until I get realigned with my peaceful, harmonious nature. Otherwise I’m prone to accidents, mistakes, and attracting unpleasant people and situations.

Been there, done that. No need to repeat those lessons, thank you very much!

So I forced myself to sit on the couch for five full minutes and sip a cup of tea before I left for work. Man, was it uncomfortable!

I didn’t respond to a potential student’s inquiry about studying Reiki considering her religious beliefs. I didn’t craft an email to another student who wishes to apprentice with me about forming a student clinic. Both are exciting projects and dear to my heart. They can wait, however, till I’m more centered and grounded.

I took several deep breaths and a sip of my tea. I ignored the dust in my bedroom that is such a nuisance and soooo not a priority. I fought the urge to make a shopping list to prepare for the lunch I will serve my parents in a few days when they visit or a list about what to pack for an upcoming trip.

A few more breaths and several sips later and I felt my shoulders relax. I did not engage in calculating the edits I need to make for the article I’m writing for my neighborhood food co-op or to my website. I absolutely did not allow myself to second guess my decision to go out to dinner and the theater last night for some much needed fun that kept me out late. And I certainly didn’t make notes about this blog and the ideas I wanted to share here.

I just sat there, drinking my tea, and focusing on my breath. It didn’t matter that I had already meditated, practiced yoga, and flooded myself with Reiki healing energy. I needed an emergency intervention to keep myself from spinning out into an anxious mess.

All of the above tasks are important to me and clearly need to be accomplished in the very near future. Except for the dusting. Seriously, I can’t seem to give a hoot about that! Yet none of them are more important than my peace of mind or well-being. So forcing myself to be still was a valuable remedy.

It was mental torture for about 4 1/2 minutes. Then I was able to sink in and let go and the last 30 seconds got me ready to face the world. I’m feeling much more like myself and prepared to give my clients excellent service. I’d say that was five minutes well invested! Knowing that the rewards will ripple out and benefit everyone who crosses my path makes me doubly sure that this is true.

Don’t Just Do Something- Sit There!

Over the years of practicing mindfulness, I’ve come to recognize the warning bells of my mind…
Generally speaking people book Reiki sessions with me because they are struggling with some area of their lives; health, prosperity, sense of belonging, stress, and relationships are the most common concerns. As we work together and they become willing to release this struggle, very often peace quickly descends. This does not mean that they remain inactive; rather they choose to accept the circumstances as their current reality and pursue a path to the outcome they desire. They stop fighting against something and instead work toward something else.

The current trend I’m noticing among not only my clients but also in my own life as well as those of many of my friends, is that even after the act of surrendering struggle, forward movement stalls. Despite clear intentions, decisive action, and heartfelt desire, progress seems blocked. Plans get revised, investment in creating change gets boosted and … Nothing happens. Master manifestors are stuck treading water.

I’ve begun exploring the possibility that while MY plan is completely off the rails and seemingly at a dead end, perhaps I am experiencing a different plan. A plan that supersedes MY plan. A Divine Plan. Perhaps THE PLAN- the optimal position gifted to me to support my soul’s purpose, my personal healing, and spiritual growth.

As I let go of my well-reasoned and deeply investigated plan (less than graciously more times than not!) I am coming to realize that MY Plan was actually a distraction, a tangent, heck it’s really a detour from The Plan. As I release the resistance to this awakening, I feel incredibly comforted by a knowingness that I’m back on track. Now I simply sit back and watch as the resources I need appear as if by magic. And in much greater ways than I ever could have planned on my own.

Not MY Plan

Generally speaking people book Reiki sessions with me because they are struggling with some area of…
Last week a client reported that his girlfriend had really enjoyed the Community Reiki Clinic they attended a few months back. I was delighted to hear this; it had been her first experience with Reiki healing and I hadn’t gotten a chance to check in with her afterwards. He went on to tell me, “She quit her job soon after that.” What? That was certainly unexpected! I joked that I would not be using this as a testimonial on my website.

He then explained that she had been wanting to leave her job for some time and just hadn’t found the motivation. Apparently the Reiki session helped her to get clear that it was time to move on and she started looking for new employment. Once the wheels were in motion, it didn’t take long to find a position that was better suited to her. He claims she’s much happier now.

Actually, this story isn’t uncommon. Very often people report that they feel stuck in uncomfortable situations; jobs, relationships, housing, and health are the most common scenarios I hear about from my clients. They know something needs to change, but they just aren’t sure how to begin. Reiki can quickly help them see the bigger picture, and align themselves with the improvement they seek. Somehow the disharmonious circumstance drains a person’s energy, leaving them floundering and uncertain. Once they get a Reiki recharge, focus and stamina are boosted, and the way is made clear.

This is the same phenomenon that prevents me from answering “yes” to the common question, “Can you heal me?” Sometimes what people mean when they ask me that is if I can magically make them happy in an environment or relationship that is not serving their highest good. I’ve seen Reiki change lives in dramatic ways to support the recipient. Indeed it is not always convenient, but it is a powerful energizer. When our lifestyles are not in alignment with our highest good, Reiki seems to attract the necessary circumstances to motivate us to seek change.

Reiki: it will make unhappy circumstances intolerable. If you’re feeling stuck, in your job or elsewhere, it can give you the nudge you need to transform your life. It always supports our highest good. I’m considering a new tag line: Get Reiki and Say Goodbye to Everything that Holds You Back. Nah, too many words. I’ll stick with Relax, Renew, Restore.

Letting Go, Moving On

Last week a client reported that his girlfriend had really enjoyed the Community Reiki Clinic they attended…
Today as the U.S. celebrates Independence Day and freedom from the tyranny of foreign rulership, I am celebrating freedom of Spirit. As I focus on using Reiki self-treatment for spiritual healing, I have come to realize that I have total freedom to choose my thoughts. When I am not feeling the comfort of a joyful, loving, peaceful inner experience; I can choose again. Today I commit to choosing Truth and expressing My True Nature. This allows me the freedom to escape from the tyranny of fear, judgment, sadness, and sense of separation. And what a wonderful gift this freedom is!

Blessed Freedom

Today as the U.S. celebrates Independence Day and freedom from the tyranny of foreign rulership, I…