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If You Experience a Loss of Energy
after Giving a Reiki Treatment....try this

I have heard numerous complaints from Reiki practitioners that they feel drained of energy or feel very tired after administering a Reiki treatment.  This not only surprises me, but it also intrigues me.

While some Reiki teachers do not teach or stress the importance of building, strengthening, maintaining and protecting energy levels, I strongly believe that when working with universal life force energy, whether it is through Reiki or any other energy-based modality, it is an essential requirement to know the basic steps.  Otherwise, it leaves you wide open to deplete your own energy resources, plus you will be more susceptible to attracting lower vibrating energies (also called negative energy).

One other important aspect to remember is, becoming a powerful Reiki healer has nothing to do with how powerful your teacher deems to be, how close their lineage is linked to Usui sensei, how many Reiki levels you have completed or how many Reiki symbols you may have learned.  As a Reiki practitioner, increased healing power is built upon how strong your connection is to the universal energy source and how well you can maintain pure, focused intention.

Those who have experienced a drastic drop in their energy level after administering Reiki seem to have the same queries….

1. Is this a normal occurrence?
2. Why does it happen?
3. How do you prevent it from happening?

To answer the first question, "Is this a normal occurrence?", the answer is a big emphatic….. "No!"  If you administer Reiki properly, after each session you should always feel invigorated with additional energy, but if you feel drained or tired it is a blatant clue that you are not doing Reiki properly.

So why does this happen?  The reason is simple - you are using your own body’s life force energy to administer Reiki rather than channelling universal life force energy through you to your client.  In other words, you should be circulating the universal energy in through and out of your body, but instead you just use what energy reserves you already have.  Another possibility is that you may have a weak connection to the universal energy source or perhaps you have not properly established a connection.

Another reason this may occur is that you may try to administer Reiki when you are feeling tired or are not feeling well.  If this is the case, then you should avoid practising Reiki while in this condition.

In answer to the third question, "How do you prevent it from happening?", there are several precautionary measures that you can implement into your daily routine.  Of course this will take motivation, commitment, discipline and work on your part.

Whenever a person works with universal energy, I cannot stress the importance for doing grounding, protection and cleansing techniques, as well as deep breathing exercises and meditation.  Since Reiki practitioners are conduits for universal energy, they should take the time to practice these techniques, daily, in order to protect, plus strengthen their own energy flow.

As a Reiki practitioner, it is vitally important for you to take proper measures to keep your body’s energy at a high, pure state.  This is attained through right living practices in which you consciously choose to nourish your body with proper sleep, eat a balanced healthy diet, do daily exercises, change your regular breathing pattern, think and act positively, reduce stress and surround yourself with positive, loving, like-minded individuals.  This doesn’t mean to infer that you must live like a saint; it only means for you to observe your lifestyle habits and then act accordingly by doing everything in balanced moderation.

Your energy state can be affected by many things including your conditioned environment, shallow breathing habits, lack of rest, unhealthy relationships, unhealthy diet, undue stress, drugs, alcohol or emotional issues such as jealousy, fear, anger, depression or resentment; therefore, all the more reason to take measures to protect yourself.

Here are a few popular techniques to practice that will strengthen and maintain your energy level, but feel free to use any other method you feel more comfortable with.  The important factor is that you use or do something, rather than nothing.

Grounding – This should be done before you start a Reiki treatment in order to ground your energy to the earth’s energy field, which will further prevent your energies from "flying" off, so to speak.  If you find that you are "floating", or feel "tired", "headachy" or "spinney" after a Reiki session, it usually indicates that you were not fully grounded beforehand.

Tree Root Method

1. Sit comfortably on a chair or you can also do this standing

2. Close your eyes, take 3-deep belly breaths and relax

3. Your intention and focus is to visualize tree roots spreading from your root chakra (the base of your spine or buttocks) down through the soles of your feet and continuing to the centre of the earth

4. See the tree roots spreading out in all directions, attaching themselves to the earth's centre

5. Feel and know that you are grounded firmly to earth energies

Cleansing – This is especially important to do after each Reiki treatment in order to disconnect your energy from your client’s (this is done apart from washing your hands after each treatment).  Cleansing can also be done during the day, as needed, especially if you are out in crowds – monitor your feelings and thoughts for negative changes to your overall well-being.

Dry Brush Method

1. From a standing position, use the palms of both hands to gently brush or dust yourself off starting from the top of your head and working down to your feet

2. Your intention and focus is to feel and know that you are cleansed from all debris, toxins, impurities, energy blockages or lower vibrating energies (also called negative energy)

3. Feel and know that these will flow to the centre of the earth to be transformed into higher, finer vibrating energy that will be re-used by the universe at the appropriate time

 

Waterfall/Shower Method

1. Sit comfortably on a chair or you can also do this standing

2. Close your eyes, take 3-deep belly breaths and relax

3. Visualize standing under a waterfall or shower (this can be clear, a specific colour or a rainbow)

4. Your intention and focus is to feel and know that the water is washing and cleansing away all energy blockages, all lower vibrating energy, plus all toxins and impurities from your body. Know that these will flow to the centre of the earth to be transformed into higher, finer vibrating energy (also called positive energy) that will be re-used by the universe at the appropriate time

5. You can cleanse several times per day if you feel that you have absorbed outside energies (E.g. you may start to feel a headache, or your energy may feel drained or you may become irritable or uneasy, etc.)

Protection – This helps to separate your energy from your surrounding environment or from the energies of others.  After giving a Reiki treatment, make a habit of putting your client in a soothing, protective bubble of colour to induce further relaxation, protection and healing.

Bubble of Colour

1. Close your eyes, take 3-deep belly breaths and relax

2. Visualize surrounding yourself in a bubble of colour – any colour that you are attracted to use; don’t be concerned about the significance of the colour’s meaning

3. Visualize surrounding the other person in a different bubble of colour

4. This separates your energy from the other person

5. Know and feel that you are always protected from outside lower vibrating energies (also called negative energies)

Many deep breathing techniques are influenced by martial art teachings and if you recall, Mikao Usui sensei was an expert aiki jutsu martial artist; therefore he would have utilized this knowledge and skill to strengthen and maintain his energy state while practicing Reiki.

Other benefits for practicing deep breathing are that it helps reduce stress levels by lowering your heart rate, blood flow and the amount of adrenaline produced during your "fight or flight" mode.  You become calmer, less agitated and more focused with increased clarity as your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual bodies become aligned and balanced.

Change Your Regular Breathing Pattern - most of us are used to breathing in quick short breaths from our chest, otherwise known as shallow breathing.  But you can actually control and protect your energy level through conscious awareness in which you take deeper slower breaths.  It takes time to change from old habits, but once mastered, you can then consciously move or circulate Ki or energy throughout your body at all times.

1. With your inhalation, slowly push your stomach out and then pull the air up into your diaphragm, hold for a moment

2. On your exhalation, slowly push the air down from your diaphragm and then contract your stomach inward toward the small of your back

3. Continue breathing like this slowly and rhythmically

4. Your goal is to adapt this method of breathing as your new, regular breathing pattern

Circulating Earth and Universal Energies (Daily 10-minute exercise) - This helps to ground you, plus it strengthens your ability to draw in energy from both the earth and the universal source, thus increasing your energy level.

1. Close your eyes

2. Connect your tongue to your palate (this temporarily increases your energy level by connecting your back energy channel to your front energy channel, which increases your energy circulation)

3. Take three deep breaths to relax your body

4. With intent, as you breathe in, you will breathe in a column of white light from the universal source down through your crown chakra, to your heart centre, hold your breath to the count of three

5. With intent, as you breathe out, you will release the white light from your heart centre through your foot chakras (soles of your feet) to the centre core of earth, grounding you to earth energies

6. Repeat two more times

7. Now reverse the procedure

8. With intent, as you breathe in, you will breathe in green earth energies up through your foot chakras (soles of your feet) to your heart centre, hold your breath to the count of three

9. With intent, as you breathe out, you will release green earth energies to the universal source through your crown chakra
   Repeat two more times

10. Repeat the alternating process for the allotted time period

11. Feel and know that you are fully grounded

Expanding Your Energy (Daily exercise 5-minutes to 30-minutes) - This exercise will help to build your energy vibration frequency level (expands your aura or energy field), which will give you a stronger connection to draw in greater amounts of universal life force energy.  It also reduces stress, promotes relaxation and revitalizes your energy level.

1. Close your eyes

2. Connect your tongue to your palate (this temporarily increases your energy level by connecting your back energy channel to your front energy channel, which increases your energy circulation)

3. Take 3-deep breaths to relax

4. Slowly inhale through your nose to the count of six.…1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and 5 and 6 (expand your abdomen by pushing it outward (like a balloon) and then pull the air up into your diaphragm, just to your comfort level)

5. Hold to the count of three...1 and 2 and 3

6. Slowly exhale through your nose to the count of six.…1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and 5 and 6 (contract your abdomen by pulling it toward your spine, just to your comfort level)

7. Hold to the count of three...1 and 2 and 3

8. Repeat pattern starting with the inhale breath

9. As you continue with this pattern, visualize energy building in your solar plexus/sacral area (E.g. visualize this as increasing sunlight or light-bulbs lighting up or a swirling funnel of coloured energy increasing in size, etc.)

10. Be aware of any intruding thoughts, but don’t dwell on them, just allow them to pass – instead, concentrate on your counting
    If you lose your count, start over at number one

11. Keep your breathing in a slow and steady rhythmic pattern

While Administering Reiki – during your healing session, in order to consciously direct channeled energy down through your body, it is important to breathe deeply and to avoid old bad habits of shallow breathing.

1. As you begin your healing session, take 3-deep breaths to relax

2. Connect to the universal energy source (E.g. you may see this as a column of white light connected from your crown chakra to the universe)

3. For better concentration, close your eyes if you wish, but be sure to do a periodic visual check on your client

4. Inhale slowly and deeply, it might sound like a wind or a rushing, gravelly noise in your throat

5. Your intention is to bring in healing energy (or white light) from the universal energy source and to hold it in your heart chakra; visualize and feel the flow of this energy (your hands or body may noticeably heat up)

6. Exhale slowly and deeply, again it might sound like a wind or a rushing, gravelly noise in your throat

7. Your intention is for the healing energy (or universal energy) to flow down both arms and out through the palms of each hand; visualize and feel the flow of this energy

Meditation – if you can practice this daily and preferably at the same time of day, whether you allot 10 minutes or 60 minutes, it will have a huge impact on the quality of your energy level maintaining it at a higher, optimum frequency level.  As well, it is another excellent way to protect your energy level from dwindling throughout your busy daily schedule.  Just think, 20 minutes of light meditation is like having a 4-hour power nap.

Simple 1-2-3-4 Counting Meditation

1. Turn off your phone and sit upright in a comfortable chair

2. Dim the lights and play soft music if you desire

3. Put a light covering on (your body temperature will drop)

4. Close your eyes, take 3-deep belly breaths and relax

5. Inhale deeply through your nose to the count of four seconds 1 and 2 and 3 and 4, (as you silently count, visualize each number before you - this helps to hold your focus)

6. Hold for the count of four seconds 1 and 2 and 3 and 4

7. Exhale through your nose to the count of four seconds 1 and 2 and 3 and 4, (as you silently count, visualize each number before you - this helps to hold your focus)

8. Hold for the count of four seconds 1 and 2 and 3 and 4

9. Each time a thought comes in, acknowledge it and allow it to go – don’t dwell on it or build upon it with another separate thought

10. Continue breathing and visualizing in this fashion for the allotted time period

11. Don’t worry about intruding thoughts, acknowledge them and then let them go; eventually they will stop. Avoid building upon the intruding thought

12. If you lose count, start again at number one

13. If you fall asleep, don’t worry, your body needed additional rest

Hopefully the above information will prove helpful to Reiki practitioners experiencing loss of energy problems.  However, it is also wise for students to consult their own teachers whenever something unusual arises.  Most teachers will be able to offer suggestions or nip the problem in the bud before further problems erupt.  Don't ever feel that you are intruding on your teacher or feel silly or are intimidated by asking what you may view as "trivial" questions, after-all, it is far better that your teacher is aware of problems just in case their teaching curriculum needs enhancing.  Remember....teachers are also human and what they teach is only as good as their own knowledge base or beliefs.  And no what you may have been taught or are led to believe, the fact remains that whether you are a student or a teacher, we all learn from each other, as well as teach each other.

© Written by Margaret I. Jang, Apr 8, 2007

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Disclaimer
The above information is not intended to replace, diagnose, prescribe or treat any ailment or to be used as a replacement for medical treatment or consultation.  It is only intended to enhance your knowledge or general interest and is offered as an alternative and complimentary source of information.   In all cases, it is recommended that you continue to follow medical treatment as prescribed by your medical physician.