What Reiki can do

Today while I was out for a run, I was trying to decide what I wanted to write about on my blog tonight. All of the sudden, I found myself thinking about a man I used to know named Dave. I wondered why my mind had wandered there since I haven't seen him or spoken to him in several years. When I went back to trying to figure out what I wanted to write in my blog, Dave popped into my head again. I considered that maybe it was a sign I should write about him.

I met Dave many years ago when I was volunteering at some Reiki healing services that were held a couple times a month at a church in San Jose. They were opened to anyone who wanted to receive a Reiki treatment and Dave was there almost every time.

He was an older gentleman, a very gentle, soft spoken man. He suffered from tremors that made me think he had Parkinson's disease, although I never asked him. I remember when I first met him, the tremors were mostly in his hands, but as time went on, the tremors affected his jaw and eventually his legs as well. He said he felt tired all the time because he wasn't able to get restful sleep, as the tremors kept him from truly relaxing.

It was the experience of seeing Dave at these healing services that showed me what Reiki could do. When he first got on the massage table for a treatment, his tremors were so severe the table would shake but about 15-20 minutes into the treatment, the tremors would stop completely. I was always fascinated by the fact that the energy could do that. It wasn't uncommon for Dave to fall asleep during the reiki treatments. Once the tremors stopped, he was able to really relax and he would often fall into a deep sleep. When that happened, no one wanted to wake him up because he was sleeping so peacefully. It was a beautiful thing to see.

Dave told us that the only time he ever got a break from the tremors was during a reiki treatment and the relief usually continued through the rest of the night and sometimes into the next day. It was what kept him coming back week after week.

I remember early on feeling a little disappointed that the energy couldn't help his tremors go away completely but Dave had a much more positive outlook on it. He was just happy to have any break from the tremors at all, so that was what he focused on . . . the night of peacefulness he was able to experience every couple of weeks.

It was a good lesson for me, to understand that the energy will do whatever it can. Sometimes it can't do everything we'd like it to, but I do trust that the energy will do what it is meant to do. For Dave, it gave him a respite from the tremors, and that was something he was incredibly grateful for.

We may not always know or be able to see what the energy is doing. It could be addressing issues we aren't even aware we have. It could also address the issues we are hoping it will. I learned that it is best to always keep an opened mind and maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised.

Heaven Has Another Angel

This past week, a very special client of mine made her transition. It hit me particularly hard and I thought it might help me if I shared the story of Jewel with you, as a way of honoring her and sorting through my own emotions about her death.

I started working with Jewel two years ago when she was almost 10 years old. She had been paralyzed for a year when I first met her and she had a tremendous impact on me. She's the one who taught me that animals can lead very happy, productive lives, even if they can’t use their back legs anymore. What I learned from Jewel helped me when Lucky lost the use of her back legs. Over the last two years, I have become very close to Jewel and her mom Tina.

When I first started giving reiki treatments to Jewel, she was having issues with her back legs swelling up and her arms getting stiff. Tina and I were amazed at how well she responded to the reiki treatments. After a few months, the swelling and stiffness went away and Tina was able to eliminate some of the medication that had been prescribed for Jewel. Jewel also had a wound deep inside her ear that would never seem to heal, and even though she would never let anyone touch her ear, but she trusted me enough to allow me to and eventually that healed up as well.

When I think about Jewel, what stands out the most are all the varied and beautiful aspects of her personality. I swear, she is one of the only dogs I have ever known who actually smiled . . . and you couldn’t help smiling back when Jewel smiled at you. And she loved flowers. She loved being surrounded by them and she loved to smell them. Tina would often pick flowers and put them in a vase next to Jewel’s bed. When I would come over and ask Jewel if I could smell her flowers, she’d immediately lift her head up and insist on smelling them too. I had never met a dog before who loved to smell flowers the way Jewel did and it tickled me to see how much joy it brought her.

Jewel was also smart, strong and determined. She believed it was her job to take care of Tina and she took that job very seriously. She loved hearing what was going on in her mom’s life and whenever I was there and our conversation turned to Tina, Jewel would get very quiet and listen intently, looking for clues as to how she might help her. If anyone ever treated Tina unkindly, it made Jewel very unhappy. It was not uncommon for Jewel to bark her head off if Tina was on the phone with someone who wasn’t being nice to her. (And if someone WAS being nice to her mom on the phone, she was as quiet as a mouse.)

There was never any question about what Jewel liked or disliked, if she was happy or unhappy. She was an incredibly clear communicator. Jewel loved her food too. I wrote about her recently, when I told the story of the first time I made a dog really mad over food. It was Jewel who got upset with me when I was talking to her mom about ways to help her lose weight. She did not want anyone messing with her food. :-) Thanks to Jewel’s Grandma, Jewel never experienced a shortage of special food treats. Jewel had a way of “twisting Grandma’s arm” to get her to share whatever she was having and Tina balanced it out by giving her ice cubes as "treats" so Jewel could keep her girlish figure. Jewel loved munching on ice cubes and would eat them all day if she could.

In recent months, as Jewel’s health began to decline, Tina’s ex boyfriend came back into the picture, to help her care for Jewel. Tina wanted to know if Jewel was OK with him being around and when I asked her, her response was, “As long as he doesn’t hurt you, he can come around as much as he wants.” That was Jewel . . . she loved her mom so much and what was most important to her was that her mom was OK.

Tina and Tony were able to put the hurt from the past aside, so they could focus on taking care of Jewel. It was really a beautiful thing to witness, the selflessness they exhibited in order to honor Jewel and take care of her. Since he was being kind to Tina, Jewel was happy to have Tony around and I think it was probably healing for all of them to be together again as a family during this difficult time. They got Jewel as a puppy and had raised her together, along with Jewel’s mate, and two of their puppies. When they broke up, all the dogs stayed with Tina but Tony was always their "dad."

Another thing I will always remember about Jewel was that she wanted to hear the truth, no matter what, which was something that was a little uncomfortable for Tina in the beginning. There were times she wanted to protect Jewel from things that were going on, but Jewel always knew if Tina was keeping things from her and she’d insist on knowing what Tina was afraid to tell her. Jewel liked everything to be out in the opened, as was the case a few weeks ago when I went to give Jewel a reiki treatment.

Jewel told me she was going to be making her transition soon and she wanted Tina to know, so that they could be prepared. The more we talked about her upcoming departure and how she wanted to spend her final time, the happier she got. By the time I was ready to leave, she was so at peace and so happy, giving me one of her big smiles and this sweet little cock of her head that I had come to love. Even though Tina and I were fighting back tears, we couldn’t ignore how comforting it was to Jewel, to have the truth out on the table. Honesty and clear communication were so important to her. She wasn’t one to beat around the bush.

Tina honored Jewel’s wishes and made sure she got to do everything she wanted, got to eat everything she wanted and had lots of fresh flowers around her every day. Tina and I had private conversations about some of the inevitable but upsetting decisions she needed to make, such as whether she would have Jewel buried or cremated, etc. and when I would come to the house, I would say to Tina, "Can I fill Jewel in on what we've been talking about?" and with a slight cringe, Tina would nod and then smile, to let me know I had her approval to give Jewel an update. It made Jewel happy to hear what we had discussed. I always felt it was one of the things she wanted her mom to learn, that she should never be afraid of being honest and putting everything out on the table.

Even though we knew Jewel’s time was coming to an end, it didn’t lessen the pain that came when she made her transition. On Sunday, March 14th, Jewel passed away. She was three months shy of her 12th birthday. She had a wonderful day, which included some of her most favorite things; going for a wagon ride around the neighborhood with Tina and Tony, picking (and smelling) fresh flowers on their walk and sharing the last bite of Tina’s dinner with her later that evening. Around 11pm, Jewel left her physical body and went on to the spirit world. She passed on her own, which is what she wanted, and she passed while her mom was home with her, which is what she wanted as well. She didn't want any strangers around, she just wanted to be with her mom in the end.

The next morning, Tina and Tony had me come over and talk to the other dogs. They wanted to make sure the other three understood what had happened and wanted to give them a chance to say their goodbyes to Jewel before they took her away. It was one of the most deeply touching experiences I have ever had . . . speaking with each dog individually to help them understand what was going on and then bringing them in, one at a time, to pay their respects to Jewel.

The love and respect that Tina and Tony showed for all their animals moved me to tears. Many people don’t realize that animals grieve the loss of a loved one but Tina and Tony did and they knew how important it was to give each of the dogs the opportunity to start the healing process.

I am going to miss Jewel in ways that are hard to put into words. She was such a remarkable dog and I suppose her similarities to my own sweet girl Lucky have made my heart ache even more this week. Her intelligence, her strength, the way she cared for and protected her mom, her pride and determination . . . she and Lucky were so much alike. I know what a positive impact Jewel had on Tina's life and how deeply she is grieving now over Jewel's departure. My hope is that Tina will always remember that Jewel is watching over her and making sure that Tina is remembering all the things she taught her while she was here.

Intuition

Many people believe that everyone is born with intuitive abilities, that we all have the ability to get guidance from some other source, whether you define that source as the Universe, angels, a connection to your 'higher self', etc.

Working from the assumption that we really all do have it, the question is, do you pay attention to it? When that thought pops into your head that you should call someone, that you should double check the stove before you leave the house, that you should confirm an appointment or a hotel reservation before venturing out, etc . . . do you heed that little voice? or do you ignore it?

Intuition can come in many forms . . . it can come as a 'knowing' - just something that pops into your head, it can come in the form of dreams (or nightmares) or through something that catches your attention, whether it's an ad in a magazine or on TV, or a conversation you overhear. It doesn't really matter how the message comes in, I think the important thing is whether or not we pay attention to it. I personally believe that the more we pay attention to our intuition, the more active it becomes and the more it can assist us.

Last night, I went to a friend's birthday party and during dinner, the conversation turned to intuition. I was pleasantly surprised to hear everyone at the table recounting times their intuition had 'spoken to them' and how glad they were that they paid attention. It was really cool to hear how opened people were to listening to that 'inner voice.'

Story after story was shared around the table . . . people who got a 'warning' and had the good sense to listen. One man told a story of a time he was stuck in heavy traffic on Hwy 17. He said he kept looking at the little dog in the car in front of him, that had his head out the window, and as he watched the dog lean farther out the opened window, something told him the dog was going to fall out of the window. Trusting that inner voice, he slowed down and made sure he put extra space between he and the car in front of him. Within minutes, sure enough, the dog came out the window and landed on the highway. Fortunately, the dog wasn't injured and because this man had paid attention to his intuition, he was far enough back and going slow enough, that he was able to stop immediately and help get the dog back in his guardian's car.

After a while, the subject turned to dreams and whether or not our dreams are also giving us messages or if it's just a sign we shouldn't eat so close to bedtime when we have strange dreams. :-) A woman shared a story of an ongoing nightmare that she has . . . that her house catches on fire and they aren't able to get out because all their bedrooms are on the second floor. She said she kept wondering if she should get ladders that can be rolled out from the upstairs bedroom windows but she never has. Her husband playfully teased her about what a worrier she is . . . that she would worry if she didn't have something to worry about. :-) My sense was that if the dream (nightmare) was recurring, maybe it was a sign that since she hadn't taken action yet, she hadn't gotten the message yet. She promised us all that she was going to go out today and get the ladders. I look forward to finding out if the nightmares finally stop, once she is 'prepared.'

So my question for you today is: Do you pay attention to your intuition when it 'speaks' to you? If not, I hope you'll start paying attention. And if you already do listen to your intuition, I hope you'll keep listening. The way I see it, we can all use a little extra help to navigate this journey we're on, so every little bit of guidance can help.

Healing for Humans

When I first started my energy healing business, I was working primarily with animals, as it felt like that was what I was being guided to do. Over the last few years, more and more humans have been coming to me for healing as well. Some weeks, I even have more human clients than animal clients. I find it as much of an honor to work with humans as I do with animals and I have enjoyed seeing how my work has continued to unfold.

Quite a few of my human clients are the guardians of my animal clients. Often, they have seen how much their animals benefit from a reiki session and they are interested in trying it themselves. Some of my human clients met me when their animal was in the last stage of their life, and I worked with their animal to help them through the final part of their journey. When their animal passed away, they began getting reiki treatments themselves, to help deal with the grief they were experiencing. Some of my human clients don't have animals at all. (It's not a prerequisite) :-)

People often ask me what inspires people to explore reiki as a healing modality, and the answer is . . . just about anything. My own experience with Reiki began when I was having a lot of back pain and went to a massage therapist who incorporated reiki into her massages. At the time, I didn't know what reiki was, but I had never felt so good after a massage, so I was inspired to learn more. When I realized how much it could help not just me, but Lucky as well, I was even more motivated to explore reiki and all it could do.

People come to me for a vast array of reasons. Some are looking to just feel more peaceful and find that reiki treatments help them relax, sleep better, feel more at ease about what is going on in their lives. Some people have physical pain and get reiki treatments to help ease that pain. Others also see a chiropractor and find that having a reiki treatment after a chiropractic appointment helps them feel even better than a chiropractic appointment alone.

Some of my clients call me when they are starting to feel sick and find that they get better before they get any worse, if they get a reiki treatment. (It is believed that reiki can help boost the immune system so our bodies can more easily fight off illness). Recently, I went to see a client who was not feeling well. When I arrived at her house, I was concerned, as it sounded to me like she could have pneumonia and I wondered if she should be going to the hospital instead of seeing me. She was sure reiki was what she needed and much to both of our delights, by the next day, she was feeling better. (We thought she only seemed like she had bronchitis.) :-) She had me come again the next day to give her another reiki treatment and we joked that maybe by the following day, she'd just have a regular old cold, and sure enough, that was how she felt the next morning . . . like she just had a regular old cold.

Some of my other clients are people who feel that they want more out of life. They want more peace, they want more calm, they don’t want to be burdened by the past any longer and want to start creating a life that brings them more joy, more happiness.

In these cases, the goal is often to help them release what their body holds . . . whether it's the cell memory of experiences from the past, the aches and pains that come from stuffing their emotions for years on end, and the old, unhelpful tapes that run in their head that tell them they aren’t good enough, that they don’t deserve more, that it's selfish for them to take care of themselves, etc.

I don't believe there is a right or wrong way to approach a reiki treatment - I believe we can all get as much or as little out of energy healing as we want. The effects of reiki are not something that can be scientifically proven, yet I have seen enough "proof" myself to make me believe it can definitely be a positive addition to wellness.

If you want to feel more peaceful, I have seen it help people with that. If you have some aches and pains that are bringing you down, I have seen it help with that. And if you are looking to release old memories and hurts, I have seen it help with that too. Is it the answer to everything? No, it's not.

Is reiki a substitute for western medicine? No, sometimes we still need western medicine. I learned this myself . . . for as much as I wanted reiki to heal my thyroid disease, and eliminate the need for me to take a thyroid pill every day, it didn't. On the plus side, it did help improve my thyroid function enough that I was able to go on a lower dose of medication. That made me happy, even if I do still have to take a pill every day. ;-)

I remember when I first started getting reiki treatments, I was thrilled to just get a good nights sleep after a treatment. It was a good place to start for me and I am glad that I kept being opened to what else it could do. If you've never had a reiki treatment, maybe it's time to give it a try. You never know what it can do and how it can help you.