Reiki is an alternative therapy technique using energy to promote relaxation, reduce stress and anxiety through gentle touch. Reiki practitioners use their hands to deliver energy to your body, improving the flow and balance of your energy to encourage relaxation.
Mikao Usui developed reiki in the early 1900s, deriving the term from the Japanese words rei, meaning “universal,” and ki, which refers to the vital life force energy that flows through all living things. Now, reiki is used all over the world, including in hospitals and hospices, to complement other forms of health treatments.
Reiki may promote relaxation by helping people become energetically balanced — physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.
Reiki treatments typically last about 50 minutes. During a session, you’ll lie on a massage table fully clothed, as your reiki practitioner gently places their hands, palms down, on or just above your body in specific energy locations. They use a series of 12 to 15 different hand positions.
The length of time that the practitioner leaves their hands in each position is determined by the flow of energy through their hands at each location.
Reiki differs from other touch therapies in that there is no pressure, massage or manipulation involved.
