…short treatments are just as marvelous

Sometimes I observe people at work or in coffee shops, and they unknowingly display actions with hidden notes of stress.  They don’t tell me they’re stressed; but I can hear them breathe long and deep or the direction they walk is swift and uninterrupted.  These actions don’t always signify stress, but for a friend of mine they did.

I mentioned to my friend that she looked busy; and she responded by listing off the things that needed to get done.  She then divulged to me that sometimes she suffered anxiety attacks when things got that overwhelming.  As soon as my friend mentioned this to me, I realized that I had to offer a Reiki treatment.

I’ve treated my friend before, so I didn’t spend time introducing Reiki as a form of stress relief.  But I did have to guide her with this decision.  She was already overwhelmed, so I knew it would be difficult for her to agree to adding another commitment to her full day.  So, my approach was to let my friend have control of the length of treatment.  I informed her that the Reiki treatment could be any amount of time.  Further, I encouraged the idea that she owed herself some personal down time.  My friend took me up on my offer for 20 minutes.

At the beginning of the treatment, I promised to watch the clock for the length she agreed to.  This way, I decreased any additional anxiety that would come from worrying the treatment would run over.  By doing so, my friend devoted this time to herself by just relaxing.

And for me, 20 minutes gave me a limited amount of Reiki hand positions to choose from.  I decided to first focus on the feet to ground and balance.  Secondly, I focused on the head to slow the spinning wheel.  Lastly, I placed one hand on the solar plexus and one hand on the heart for control and love.  And as promised, I closed up the session after 20 minutes passed.

Although the treatment was brief, my friend gave me immeasurable feedback that validated the healing of her Reiki treatment.  Those short Reiki treatments are just as marvelous as hour-long treatments!

Since you interact with so many people each day, give yourself time to interact with yourself.  You deserve some self-time to breathe, to quiet, to calm down.  ~Christine

…I too experience stress

My work week was only four days long, but that meant that there was more work to do with less days to do it in.   Moreover, a project that was recently discovered and took somewhat high priority needed to be finished.  This meant that I came in early, worked more hours, and without lunch.  I did this not because my employer made me, but because that is the type of worker I am.  I am Vata dosha ( http://www.chopra.com/ayurveda), which means that I like to be busy and work on projects for hours on end without stopping.  And although this type of work is great because it is prompt with quality and perfection, it means that I become imbalanced because I skip lunches, drink too much coffee, do not drink enough water, and do not take breaks.  I am aware of this imbalance all the while I work, so I don’t hit the extreme—although to some, this is their extreme.

The stress that my body experienced I did to myself, but fortunately I am a Reiki Master.  I came home Friday night knowing that I wanted to relax- watch a movie, dress in comfy clothes; but first…..give myself Reiki.

Temporal lobes position - Image from smithcenter.org

Occipital lobe position - Image from smithcenter.org

For quick treatments, I focus on three main hand positions; head, heart, and solar plexus.  For this quick session, my head was going round and round with work, so 3/4 of the time was focused on several positions on my head.  Both my left and right hands were placed in position 1, above my eyes, but after a few minutes the busyness did not lessen.

So I moved my hands to position 2, above my temporal lobes (temples).  (See pictures for placement.)  At this position, I felt so much pressure release from my head, and it felt like my body was sinking into the couch I was lying on.

After the pressure became less, I moved my hands to cover my ears; then lastly, position 3, over my occipital lobe (base of the skull.)  (See pictures for placement.)

I didn’t have enough time to give myself a full treatment, but even 20 minutes of Reiki left me feeling floaty and light.  I felt more relaxed than a movie, glass of wine, or massage would have given me.  Look into finding a way to give yourself Reiki.  ~Thank you, Reiki, Sally & Mikao Usui