Think it’s strange to have a complete stranger place their hands on you and channel universal life force energies throughout your body in order to promote physical, mental, and emotional healing?

Okay... it’s strange. We’ll grant you that. But before you condemn Reiki as just another example of New Age hogwash, consider the historical precedents. The laying-on of hands is a practice that originated millennia ago in countless cultures—there are even Biblical examples of Jesus placing his hands on the sick to heal (a practice still performed by various Christian sects, notably the Pentecostals). Also, consider that your belief or disbelief in any form of treatment can make or break the efficacy of it—any rigourous scientific medical study requires control groups to account for the placebo effect.

With all this in mind, I headed downtown to the StillPoint Healing Centre for my first-ever Reiki session. Reiki works under the principle that there are unlimited universal life force energies that we can tap into. The Reiki practitioner essentially acts as a gateway for these energies. Once the energies enter you via the practitioner, they go to work healing you and unblocking any areas that may have been obstructing the flow of energy. Think of Reiki as the medical equivalent of feng shui, the strategic placement of furniture within a room to maximize the flow of chi.

Before my session, I filled out a brief form outlining my basic medical history, along with a diagram of a body on which I was to circle the areas where I felt pain. After I completed the form, the Reiki practitioner welcomed me into a dim, incense-heavy room lit by the rosy glow of candles. A CD of quiet, mantra-like chanting muted the sound of traffic along Jasper Avenue (although I was grateful motorcycle season hadn’t started yet).

The practitioner instructed me to lie face-down on the massage table and cover myself with the blankets if I liked. She began the session by vigourously rubbing her hands together. After standing at the head of the table for a minute, she placed her hands gently on my head. As the session progressed, her hands moved to my shoulders, back, stomach, and feet.

While Reiki doesn’t typically entail any dramatic physical sensations, the practitioner’s hands do get very warm—even hot. And the heat only gets greater; during my session, the practitioner’s hands were warm enough for me to feel them through the blanket and my clothing.

Many people experience a sensation of warmth as the Reiki energy flows through their body, but I was just the opposite: towards the end of the session, I felt coldness spreading through me, to the point where I started shivering. Maybe I just got a case of the chills... but that seems unlikely, given that I was in a warm room, fully clothed, and lying underneath a blanket.

I also noticed a strange, tingly-numb sensation, almost like my legs were asleep, which occurred immediately after the practitioner placed her hands on my feet. It became so intense that for a moment it was almost more than I could take. However, I focused on breathing and the feeling subsided. The same thing happened again in the second half of the session when she touched my feet after I had flipped onto my back. The practitioner later informed me that tingling, numbness, muscle twitches or spasms, and even seeing colours are not uncommon during a Reiki treatment.

I left feeling deeply relaxed. While the price of a Reiki session ($70 for an hour) will prevent me from getting addicted, I will definitely treat myself to another one in the future. There are several practitioners at StillPoint who offer different rates, so it is possible to get a cheaper deal.

Even if you’re skeptical about the existence of “universal healing energies,” a Reiki session still provides you with a full hour of absolute relaxation, and how often do you get that? Many practitioners are also registered massage therapists, so they can infuse a regular massage with Reiki for an added healing kick. Just try to schedule your Reiki massage for a day when you don’t have to work—you’ll be so relaxed that going back to the hectic, mundane world is unpleasantly jarring.

The StillPoint Healing Centre (2nd Floor, 11209 Jasper
Avenue) offers holistic healing
services, classes, and workshops. Call 452-9388 or visit
www.stillpointhealing.com.