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Art & Philosophy

It’s All About That Ki () Using Reiki to Infuse Treatments

By Teri Calandra, LAc (NCCAOM), a secondary language. You must know Dipl. Acu, MSTOM, LMT how to speak the language that sur- rounds you, but it doesn’t negate the As an industry are we shifting too importance of your native tongue. much toward a Western mind set? We Think back to your fi rst day in acu- strive to understand how acupuncture puncture school. You are learning about works using imaging and extensive this foreign concept of . What is it? studies. We spend numerous hours of How can this esoteric concept be - our training learning Western fi ned, and more importantly how does and learning to speak their language. it pertain to traditional Chinese medi- What happened to our core though? cine? Even today, after you have expe- What happened to the Qi? rienced what Qi is you may not be able to adequately defi ne what it is. THE OF ACUPUNCTURE At some point in your program you I recently had a conversation with may have taken Qi Gong or Tai Qi, but a colleague about the importance of how many of you still practice them? understanding the energy aspect of acu- Our days get busy, we forget, or maybe puncture. The one thing that makes us the self-practice we learned in school unique is that we learn how to subtly just doesn’t resonate with you. This was manipulate energy to put the body into a certainly the case for me, and it's what place where it can heal itself. This is what ultimately led me to Japanese Reiki. It differentiate a healthy practitioner and separates us from a Western medical was the study and practice of Reiki that a burned-out practitioner. It is impor- practitioner that simply inserts a needle. helped me advance my understanding tant to already be consistently doing That knowledge of how energy fl ows of energy within myself, and that helped a daily practice before you get burned through the body allows us to practice me to understand the energy of others. out. Once you hit bottom it is a lot so much more than "cookbook" acu- Regardless of if you refer to it as Qi, more diffi cult to recuperate if you have puncture. Cookbook acupuncture has , Ki, or Universal Energy it refers to to start learning the tools from the be- its place and can be very effective in the same life source energy we utilize ginning. Ultimately, the goal is to live certain situations. However, it in no way in acupuncture. Have you ever con- Reiki. To live in a space where through compares to a treatment by someone sidered how Ki can help both you and your own work your own inner bright that is a master of their own energy. your practice grow? Cultivating and light shines through, and the “storm” My colleague compared it to speaking strengthening your own Qi is what can that happens around you has no effect.

THE HISTORY OF TCM & ENERGY In the beginning Chinese medicine started by observing . This is the reason we use the elements (fi ve phas- es) in TCM. On a base level all things resort back to nature, and those ele- ments reside within us. As all things re- INTEGRATED sort back to nature, so do all things re- sort back to energy. From this viewpoint Doctorate in Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine nature and energy reside within us. "When we really experience the en- A Clinical Doctorate with ergy that fl ows through everything, life makes sense and contentment Convenient Weekend Format appears," from The Light That Shines 2-Year Program Through Infi nity, by Dainin Katagiri. World-Class Instruction WHAT IS REIKI? Hands-On Internships Reiki is considered to be an that utilizes self-development Advanced and self-healing, that can then be uti- Management Emphasis lized in the healing of others. There are many different styles of Reiki. For ease, we will only discuss the Western style and the Japanese style. Reiki is bastyr.edu/DAOM around 100 years old and has its basis

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in Buddhism. Rei can be translated as just being whatever space is necessary. from self and others. Once you start Spiritual and Ki means energy. In the More importantly, the tools that you to remove those points of views you early 1900s there were many different learn through out Reiki Level 1,2, 3, are left with the beautiful bright light types of energy medicine being prac- and teacher can help you in everyday that is you. It’s being that higher vi- ticed and taught in Japan. However, it life. They can help guide you through bration and working on yourself that was that taught more the diffi cult situations, aid in business and allows for someone else’s energy to aspect of it. All of his teach- negotiations, and so much more. choose to rise-up to meet yours. When ings are guideposts to help you on your Most practitioners in the U.S. prac- the energy fl ows freely through you so journey to rediscovering true self. tice a lineage that was brought to Ha- too does that of your patients. It is through utilizing daily medi- waii by Mrs. Hawayo Takata. There is a tations, chanting, and utilizing the lot of debate as to who and when Reiki OPENING THE CHANNELS precepts that will help you on that turned into what we see now. In some Originally, before the use of needles journey. Rediscovery of true-self allows styles it is taught that you require crys- practitioners used Qi, , and for healing to happen. Once that has tals, grids, and other tools. Please know anything sharp to open the channels. happened you are able to become the that is exactly what they are; tools or We have come a long way since then. “space” with which to help others fi nd training wheels. You are universal ener- We have scientifi c studies that have the path to healing their selves. There gy, it already resides within you. It’s just shown how acupuncture points re- is no giving, no judging, no receiving, covered up by limiting points of views spond to stimulation with a needle. We learn Qi Gong in school is because when you place a needle in someone the energy fl ows through you and then through the needle. You are not just

E OF IN simply sticking a needle in someone. IENC TEG SC RA D T N IV Your energy, as the practitioner, must E A IT M R E I D be fl owing freely. We know what just P S I C E I N inserting a needle can do, now imagine H E T the effects that can happen when you are being Reiki. SOUTHWESTSYMPOSIUM REDISCOVERING TRUE-SELF It is easy to cover up our true-self A USTIN, TX with anger, worry, fear, and judgment. By practicing the system of Reiki you start to peal back those layers of emo- September 21-23, 2018 | Register Now: www.aoma.edu/sws tions, allowing for your own inner bright light to shine through. Which in turn shows our natural state of mind. Japanese Reiki utilizes the Reiki Pre- cepts, chanting the , meditating Ancient Wisdom For Today’s Wellness™ on the symbols, practices, hands on/off healing, and performing/ being a part of reiju (attunements). The Precepts (below) are the foundation of Reiki and are guidelines for how to “be Reiki” in everyday life. By meditating on these, and living them as life principles, your entire being starts to shift.

Reiki Precepts • Do not bear anger • Do not worry • Be humble • Be true to yourself and your way of being • Show compassion to yourself and others

goldenneedleonline.com The benefi ts of Reiki are vast. Both client and practitioner benefi t from each session. Here are some www.lhasaoms.com of the benefi ts:

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• Aids in sleep • Decreases dosage of Reiki has an effect on the parasympa- • Lowers cortisol levels • Decreases healing time after thetic nervous system when applied to • Aids in digestion • Lowers pressure health care professionals with burn out • Decreases pain syndrome.1 It also showed that Reiki can • Decreases stress/anxiety/ REIKI RESEARCH influence rate variability and body /anger A research article written for the Bio- temperature. Prior studies, that they ac- • Decreases obsessive thoughts logical Research for Nursing, showed that knowledged, show an effect on the auto- nomic nervous system because the ANS has a physiological response to stress. For millennia people have practiced diaphragmatic breathing. It is the cor- nerstone to the taught in Shoden Japanese Reiki level 1. Research has shown that deep diaphragmatic breathing can reduced the “fight-or- flight” response of the sympathetic ner- vous system and enhance vagal nerve activity. A study published in the Journal of Alternative & Complementary, shows that slow abdominal breathing can sig- nificantly decreased the systolic blood pressure.2 Slow abdominal breathing combined with EMG could reduce sympathetic activity and could stimulate vagal nerve activity. Even the Department of Defense rec- ognizes the benefits of Reiki as an ad- junct for PTSD.3

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ACUPUNCTURE? Many turn to the acupuncture field be- cause of their desire to help people. Once they start their practice, if not sooner, they might start to notice that they feel like they are taking on other people’s en- ergy or symptoms. They may also feel - tigued, stressed, or have cyclical thinking about clients. Reiki can help you to stay grounded and increase your awareness. Aside from all the personal benefits to studying Reiki it can have profound effects on your patients. Have you ever considered combining acupuncture and Reiki? Acupuncture in and of itself has been shown to lower cortisol levels. When you start to combine the two it allows for deeper and faster relaxation. This then allows your carefully chosen acupuncture points to work their faster. The faster your patient calms their mind the faster the healing begins. As the practitioner you benefit too.

WHY SHOULD YOU ADD REIKI TO YOUR PRACTICE? How frequently have you had a stressed patient on your table, and no matter what you do you are not seeing any changes? As a practitioner, when you step into a Reiki session it is as if you

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are stepping into a . You con- tinue to work the tools you practice every day. You calm your own energy, and in turn their energy will start to calm. It’s a dance. A balancing. You neither judge, give, or remove. Through either hands on or hands off both start to shift. Since you are not judging, you are not claiming any sensations as yours. You are not taking any of their “stuff” on. You simply acknowledge its pres- ence and let it go knowing that healing will take place when ready. As the ses- sion ends you step away full of grati- tude to have been part of their journey. You fi nd yourself calmer and more full of energy then when you walked in. Your patient is calm and full of grati- tude for the opportunity to be in a safe place to heal and “just be.” For the hour that you worked with that person you allowed them to truly relinquish control and let go, and you had the opportunity to calm your own and release your own judgements. How does it get better than that?

REFERENCES 1. Diaz-Rodriguez L, Arroyo-Morales M, et al. Immediate Effects of Reiki on Heart Rate Variability, Cortisol Levels, and Body Temperature in Health Care Pro- fessionals With Burnout. Biological Re- search For Nursing, 2011;13(4), 376-382. 2. Wang SZ, S, et al. Effect of Slow Ab- dominal Breathing Combined with Bio- feedback on Blood Pressure and Heart Rate Variability in Prehypertension. Jour- nal of Alternative and Complementary Medi- cine, 2010;16(10),1039-1045. 3. Miles D. Intrepid Center Marks First Anniversary. U.S. Department of Defense, 24 June 2011.

Teri Calandra is licensed by the state of Illinois in acupuncture, and is board cer- tifi ed through the National Certifi cation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM). She holds a Masters of in traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, and herbology. She graduat- ed from PCOM (Chicago) with her Masters of Science. In 2005, she earned her degree in massage therapy from American Institute of - Columbus, Ohio.

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