“We are each gifted in a unique and important way. It is our privilege and our adventure to discover our own special light.” ~ Mary Dunbar

A little over 10 years ago I found myself in a marriage that I knew was a ticking time bomb.

I was at a point where the curtains felt drawn all around me. I felt numb inside and was deeply questioning my self-worth, inner beauty and pure potential. I had started punishing myself by either not eating or stuffing negative feelings down with food and then eliminating it in unkind ways.

My marriage was falling apart and so was I. The person in the mirror didn’t even look like me. This girl had sunken eyes, dark circles, and she looked a little on the verge of death with those bones sticking out. I didn’t know her and yet I was her.

I felt as though I was drowning, sinking to the bottom of the pool with no will to pull myself up…bubbles just escaping from my mouth. I came to realize that the combination of who we were as people was diabolical. I also knew that I had a lot of personal growth work to do.

After being confronted with feelings of worthlessness, and coming to terms with the fact that I was clinging to an eating disorder as the only way to have some control over something in my life, I hit rock bottom. It wasn’t until my mom came to visit, and I saw the heartbreak in her eyes when she asked, “Where’s my daughter?” that it hit me. I knew at that moment that I had to save myself.

I had to stop being a victim and take my power back into my hands.

I had to find my inspiration and reignite my spark.

I had to stop just existing and start living my life.

I left the marriage and set out to heal myself.

As if the universe had heard my cry for help, I was presented with an opportunity to get a Reiki (pronounced Ray Key) attunement shortly after our separation. I had no idea what that even was at the time and had never done any work with energy healing before, but the flyer said I would learn how to apply self-healing techniques to myself, dissolve my energy blocks, reduce stress and tension, and tap into my own intuition and creativity, and that sounded pretty darn good to me.

Once I was attuned (think of it like turning on a faucet) I started applying the self-healing techniques on myself right away and began to heal on an emotional, physical and spiritual level.

I came through the dark tunnel I was in to the light on the other side. Little did I know at the time, that it would spark a passion within me to help others heal themselves too.

Finding Reiki was like coming home. Since I was a little girl I could quickly pick up on the “vibe” in a room and tell you if it felt chaotic, angry, buzzing with excitement, or smooth, calm and peaceful. I pick-up on other peoples vibe’s easily too, and can tell you if there’s something going on with them.

I bet a lot of you do this and may not even realize it. Maybe you’ve felt someone come up behind you while you were listening to some tunes with your earbuds in, and although you may not have heard them, you felt their presence. Or maybe you’ve walked into a conversation two people were having and could sense some tension. You were picking up on their energy. Energy is everywhere.

Reiki is a Japanese energy healing technique that is used to promote healing and stress reduction. The word Reiki translated means, “universal life force energy.” It is the energy that flows through and is in everything from what you and I are made of, to the mountains, trees and cosmos.

Simply put, Reiki is the purest, highest form of energy from the universal source that gets channeled through the practitioner to the client. Since energy is everywhere and we are all made up of energy, Reiki can reach you whether you are in the same room as the practitioner or relaxing comfortably at home.

Receiving a Reiki attunement allows you to open up a channel for you to allow this energy to flow through you to heal yourself and others. It’s kind of like flipping on a light switch in your home.

After I received my first attunement, we practiced sending the energy with other people that were in the class with us. I was amazed and in awe of the warmth that was coming through my hands. When it was my turn to receive, I felt a wave of relaxation wash over me and little tingles in my body.

I started practicing it everyday on myself. I noticed that I was starting to feel more at peace and ease with myself. I no longer felt totally out of control over the circumstances in my life.

I stopped eating emotionally and punishing my body. This powerful tool lies within each of us. It is up to you if you’d like to learn how to tap into it. But, when you do, you’ll find that you’ll always have it, literally at your fingertips. If you don’t feel called to receive an attunement, you can still be on the receiving end of this wonderfully healing technique.

Reiki taught me how to transform the negative into positive and how to work through my issues instead of letting fear take over and do nothing. It helped me get back in touch with my own inner power, become aligned with my purpose and most importantly chill out. Knowing that I can use Reiki at any time to help me feel more calm, cool and connected is so empowering.

Instead of feeling helpless or like I have no control over things that may be happening in my life, I can actually do something to help. Not only did this amazing tool allow me to move forward at a time in life that I had almost given up, it connected me and opened my eyes and heart to a higher purpose and larger vision for myself and the world.

Relephant: 

Reiki: An Empowering Tool.

~

Author: Michelle Matthews

Editor: Travis May

Images: Pixabay