Health Benefits of Energy Healing
On this week’s episode of the Cancer Education Series, founder of Above + Beyond Cancer Dr. Richard Deming welcomes April Wyett. April is a practitioner of reiki and other energy healing arts. She discusses the role reiki has in her life, and the role it plays improving an individual’s health.
The practice of reiki was founded in Japan by Mikao Usui over 100 years ago. Wyett defines it as promoting wellbeing through the mind, body, and emotional state, evoking a relaxed state of being. April explains her interest in reiki began at a time in her life when she was looking to “build a foundation” of support for herself. Someone recommended reiki to her, and after her first session she felt a deep sense of calmness and peacefulness. She describes how reiki works with universal life force energy, with the practitioner serving as the bridge between that energy and the recipient.
A typical session involves the practitioner holding their hands on or slightly above the body. Recipients are usually lying down or in a seated position. The practitioner then moves their hands along the body, channeling energy into the body. During a session, one can focus on their breathing, repeat a mantra, or even the phrase “reiki” to minimize distractions and internal noise.
Wyett delves into the scientific benefits of reiki. She explains that having an approach of open-mindedness and curiosity can help to shift bodies out of the sympathetic nervous system that controls feelings of anxiety and stress, and move into the parasympathetic nervous system. April describes this as the “rest and digest” state where someone is able to naturally heal. Reiki is useful in promoting those feelings of healing and relaxation.
Healing practices that involve energy work are not limited to reiki. Healing touch, massage, mindfulness, healing sound, access bars, and breath work are all examples of these practices. April touts the benefits of these for people with cancer, citing the continuum of their healing process. “Our bodies are like filters. When we’re in different environments - different food, different people - we have these filters and it’s nice to get them cleaned out. Reiki is a gentle and noninvasive practice that brings balance back to the mind, body, and emotional state,” she explains. The gentle nature of these practices makes them suitable for those currently in treatment, recovery, or remission.
To hear more about April’s experience with reiki, watch this installment of the Cancer Education Series on Above + Beyond Cancer’s YouTube channel. To get involved with reiki at Above + Beyond Cancer, check out the calendar of events.
Blog written by:
Shona Heywood
(she/her/hers)
BS Administrative Management, MBA Marketing
shonaheywood@gmail.com