What is Energy Work?
What is it that makes us, us?
There is more to a person than just a physical shell, the body. In the same way that massage brings the body into homeostasis - optimal function of physical systems - energy work modalities such as Reiki, Reconnective Healing© and chakra balancing facilitate the same goal on levels encompassing the physical together with the mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of self.
The client is treated as a whole person, not a collection of malfunctioning parts.
What is this energy, exactly? What it is not, is my own energy. My job as a practitioner is to "get out of the way." The client is the master of his or her own healing. Through energy work, blockages to optimal health are released or abated to some degree. Practitioners serve as facilitators between the client and the universal source of all energy, however one chooses to think of this concept. And by the grace of this connection, healing can occur.
The beauty of energy work is the capacity to restore balance on multiple levels. The process addresses what is needed - whether relief from arthritis pain or emotional stress from arguing with a loved one - without effort on the part of the client. I always tell my clients, your only job is to breathe.
There is a spiritual component to this work for those who seek it. Time and again in my practice, proof has been given that we are not alone in our journeys through life.
About Reiki
Reiki is a system of stress relief and healing, passed down from teacher to student in formal classes of study culminating in what is called an attunement, where the knowledge and ability to facilitate healing is taught. Reiki was developed in 19th- and early 20th-century Japan by Mikao Usui, who believed the ideas he discovered were actually a rediscovery of ancient healing methods. As a Certified Usui and Karuna Reiki Master, I am authorized to teach Reiki. Classes can be arranged on request.
The philosophy that Reiki practitioners follow, as taught by Usui Sensei, is about respect for self and all living things based on a foundation of compassion, and ultimately, the source from which all healing comes - a sense of universal gratitude and love.
What does a Reiki treatment look like? Clients are welcomed to lie on a heated table with blankets
and remain fully dressed except for shoes. I place my hands on various points of the body, mainly joints and chakra points, in succession for about an hour. Chakras are discussed in more detail below.
Reiki is not a religion and nothing is asked of clients but an open mind. The great thing about this modality is that it meets clients where they are. If someone needs an hour of peace and quiet for a mind overloaded with worries about their workday, for example, a Reiki session facilitates that. If someone wants pain relief, good results have been obtained using Reiki for conditions ranging from menstrual cramps to osteoarthritis, to stress relief for cancer survivors, and in many other situations.
The effects of a Reiki treatment vary, but typically include deep relaxation, and clients may experience relief from pain. These beneficial results may last from hours to days.
Over the course of my practice I have found that Reiki is not something that we occasionally do. It becomes who we are. I use it gratefully everyday, on myself, loved ones, friends, and pets. Last year on vacation I met someone suffering from a broken ankle and depression, and it seemed the natural thing to do to offer her a treatment. The look of gratitude on her face when we were done told me that in that moment, all was as it should be.
Chakra Balancing
Chakra balancing, a 2,000 year old tradition of ayurvedic healing from India, holds that there are "wheels of energy" emanating from 7 major (and additional minor) areas of the body, from the base of the pelvis up to the crown of the head. The practitioner's hands are held above, not touching, the body, but clients are frequently amazed to find that they can feel the work being done! By encouraging the flow of energy in the correct direction, the chakras are opened and the flow of one's energy, or prana, is strengthened, and the body feels renewed.
Chakra balancing is something I perform on myself every day and is one of the modalities that I am most excited to share with my clients. For example, if I am tired in the afternoon but don't have time for a nap, I can do this and am always gratified to find my energy levels raised and my mood elevated so as to enable me to complete whatever task is before me. I am also happy to teach clients to perform chakra balancing on themselves as part of our session, upon request.
About Reconnective Healing® and The Reconnection®
Reconnective Healing® is a modality made famous by Dr. Eric Pearl, who gave up a successful chiropractic business in Los Angeles after his clients began to report amazing, unexpected healings, all received while he was not touching them, but working above the body in a way that resembles chakra balancing. Dr. Pearl now travels the world teaching this healing modality to people from all walks of life. I am a certified Reconnective Healing® practitioner and am authorized to perform The Reconnection®, a type of attunement process that connects us with powerful universal energy frequencies. For more information on Reconnective Healing®, please visit:
My Reconnective Healing® practitioner profile can be accessed from that website by choosing "practitioner directory" and entering my name, Julie Payne-Funk, and zip code, 21043.
This is an overview of these modalities, and I encourage clients to ask any questions they may have, or better yet, to experience this work and decide for themselves whether it is an effective choice for their needs.
