Does Reiki Healing Work or is it a Scam?

A Reiki review from the outside, looking in.

This is a belief system. There are online and offline courses (some quite expensive). So, does Reiki work or is it a scam?

Interestingly enough there are many medical practitioners who practice Reiki, and many others who say it is pseudoscience.

However, there are no uplines/downlines, and some head honcho at the top taking all the cream off your hard work.

According to some, it is a mindset of belief (like religion I guess), others say that once money starts changing hands, then it becomes a scam.

Why do People Practice Reiki?

Obviously, there are many reasons.

The primary one people tell me is so they can heal emotional wounds from the past, and strengthen their minds to handle anything that may confront them in the future.

Other reasons include repairing physical problems and taking care of their physical health.

Eastern culture is very robust and diverse.

Some aspects of it may be confronting, but a large number of Eastern techniques including self defense, have been adopted by Westerners over the years.

Reiki is another in a long list.

What is Meant by Reiki Healing

Reiki practitioners use a technique called palm healing or hands-on healing through which a “universal energy” is said to be transferred through the palms of the practitioner to the patient in order to encourage emotional or physical healing.

It is based on qi (“chi”), which practitioners say is a universal life force. Clincical research though does not show Reiki to be effective for any medical condition.

Wikipedia.

Despite all that, Reiki is available as a treatment on many health insurance policies, and about 70% of Canadians regularly use “alternative health care therapies.”

Hospices and aged care facilities in many countries also provide Reiki treatments for their patients.

Although there is clinical research that says Reiki treatments are not beneficial for medical conditions such as cancer or other serious illnesses, there is a lot of anecdotal evidence that Reiki has helped people suffering from these ailments.

In this article on Death Doulas, of the eleven businesses reviewed, many (nearly all actually), of the carers had some certification in Reiki, as well as having nursing or higher qualifications.

Another statistic I found from 2021…

In the USA, 15% and growing—of U.S. hospitals offer reiki healing specifically. Leading institutes like Yale, Harvard, the University of Minnesota, the University of Arizona, UCLA and others offer reiki as a complement to medical interventions.

Forbes Health

The benefits mentioned in various journals include:-

• Maximize patient care and minimize recovery time
• Makes a patient relaxed, calm, and cooperative
• Relieves acute and chronic pain
• Decreases the need for pain medication
• Allows the nurse immediate stress relief and relaxation, after just a few minutes of self-treatment on the job.

Is Reiki Fake?

As something that is considered safe and free of side effects, Reiki has garnered quite a conflicted reputation among health researchers, and medical professionals…

Back in 2009 the Roman Catholic Church:- Said “A Catholic who puts his or her trust in Reiki would be operating in the realm of superstition.“

I doubt that their position has changed.

Make of that what you will, but I see lots of Christian groups practicing mindfulness, either with prayer or meditation.

Let’s face it, mindfulness is generally considered to be a part of eastern culture, which they incorporate into the healing process.

Still, there are others who just call it out as quackery, administered by mystical quacks.

One of my favorite sites for information is Quora.

I typed in “Is Reiki Fake“, and the majority of the answers were that it works.

There was something about it that defied physics.

To find out for myself I spent about $30.00 and went and bought a course on traditional Usui Reiki.

So will I become a Reiki practitioner?

Highly unlikely.

Have I felt any benefits?

I am being told it will take more time before I feel the benefits.

I only bought the book (course) last week.

But, I have seen and read more esoteric things in MLMs, that have people maxing out their credit cards in the hope of striking it rich.

So far as I can see it has more to do with health than money.

There are things I found in it that most of us have probably heard of before. Visualization, being aware of consciousness, 3rd eye, (Reiju) meditation for self.

There are deeper topics as you get into the book, Attunements, Symbols, and Hand positions, and it is all explained in simple language with diagrams.

Probably (apart from the lessons), the biggest takeaway is that you do not diagnose or prescribe, and in your life, you will strive not to be judgemental or react.

I see nothing wrong or quackery about that.

I guess the main thing is how much should you be paying for a course.

I have read that Reiki Grand Master Teacher Hawayo Takata, charged $10,000 when she introduced Reiki to Western culture.

Obviously, there was no point in teaching it to those who would not value the teachings.

Conclusion.

Is Reiki a Good Work-from-Home Opportunity

Yes! It has potential. Although I haven’t included it in my list.

If you have a deep interest in self-healing or work in an environment such as a Hospice or aged care (or live in Canada ?), then it might work for you.

I do have a friend of a friend, who made his wife a trailer (shaped like a mini house).

She tows to various markets to ply her trade and also does Reiki work at home.

So the possibilities are there. Building up a clientele is going to be the hard part.

There are opportunities with health resorts, aged care, hospice/palliative care, and in-home care.

The money being paid to provide a Reiki service varies from $50.00 to $230.00 an hour.

Often other qualifications will likely be required though.

Nurse, nurse’s assistant, aged care nurse, hospice nurse, etc.

For many, it is a self-care thing, and building a business is not necessarily the reason they learn Reiki.

It appears to be something that brings them relief from stressful occupations and helps them become more resilient people.

The cost of the training, and steering clear of someone with a multi-thousand dollar course claiming miracles, is the thing to look out for in this occupation.

Thanks for reading.