What Is Reiki and How Does It Work? My Experience With Energy Healing
Updated: Oct 5
My journey into Reiki began years before I ever knew I would become a Reiki practitioner.
It began with a moment that changed my life forever.
“Hey Mom”
“Heather, Chris is dead”
In that moment I felt the blood rush from my legs.
I couldn’t cry.
I was just… numb.
Full body numb.
How is this even possible? How could this happen? What in the actual f*ck?
Was this some kind of joke?
I was trying to process what my Mom said, wishing there was a rewind button I could press.
There was no turning back.
There was no re-do.
This was final.
I could never pick up the phone again and call my brother
There would never be another birthday celebrated together
There would never be…
Later that evening as I was laying in bed, eyes wide open, my mind racing.
Still trying to process what happened
I wanted to know more than anything if he was OK
And so I said…
“Chris, if you can hear me, I just need to know that you are OK.
Send me a feather, a feather that is beautiful and unique so I know that you are OK”
… I eventually drifted off to sleep
The next morning I was out walking my dogs
About a half mile into my walk, sun shining on my face
I felt a sensation in my body and
Something caught the corner of my left eye
And there it was…
A beautiful blue and black striped feather with a white tip
Sticking straight up in the grass
Literally a needle in a haystack kind of find.
I felt a surge of energy run through my body as I found that feather
My face lit up and in that moment I knew he was OK
And from that moment on, thousands of feathers have found their way to me.
This was my introduction to energy.
It would be years before I understood energy in a completely different way and eventually found my way to Reiki.
What Is Reiki and How Does It Work?
So what is Reiki anyway?
Reiki is a Japanese energy healing practice.
The word Reiki is commonly understood through two Japanese words: rei, referring to universal or spiritual energy, and ki, referring to life-force energy.
Reiki is a practice of working with energy.
In my experience, I work with the body's energy centers or as you might know them -- chakras.
I think of these energy centers almost like little communication hubs.
You know that gut feeling you get that you can't ignore?
Our bodies are constantly giving us information, and I am fascinated by learning how to listen to it.
During a Reiki session, a practitioner places their hands lightly on or just above the body, allowing Reiki energy to flow through their hands to the person receiving it.
You might notice:
Warmth
Tingling. Heaviness or lightness
A change in your breath
Emotion moving through you
Deep relaxation
Or you may experience something entirely different.
Every session is different.
For me, this is also where Reiki and somatic awareness meet beautifully because I am interested in energy and I am also interested in emotions, the physical sensations of them and what the energy they carry. (I'm slightly obsessed with this).
As well as the physical body.
My relationship with my emotions has changed over the years, and now I view them as signals... information.
Something for me to feel when I need to feel them and to also get curious about their meaning.
My take on this is that emotions govern our internal state of being (how you feel at any given moment).
And so if emotions influence our internal state, and I can experience those emotions through sensations in my body...
What happens when I intentionally work with the body and energy?
My Journey Into Reiki
I've heard of Reiki. My Aunt is a Reiki Master, though I didn't fully grasp what was happening when she did reiki on me.
I was doom scrolling one day and saw a post that someone local was offering Reiki I training.
As a movement instructor and coach for over 20 years, I get excited about new modalities.
So I did a little more research and decided...
This is something I want to learn.
Figured it would expand my knowledge of energy and the power of this universal life force energy that I would be able to transmit through my hands.
One of the first people I practiced Reiki with was a lovely 80-year-old woman who had never experienced Reiki before.
Before we started, she told me she'd been experiencing constant ringing in her ears for weeks.
The next morning, she sent me a message that stopped me in my tracks:
“I woke up this morning and my tinnitus is gone. I am blown away!”
I was blown away too.
I can't tell you exactly what happened in her body that day. But experiences like this made me even more curious about Reiki, energy and the connection between what we feel emotionally and physically.
At first I was also surprised by this, but the more I work with Reiki, combined with somatic awareness, the more I realize how powerful this work really is.
We experience physical tension in the body.
I'm talking about the chronic kind.
Tightness in your back or hips that just won't go away.
There can absolutely be a physical aspect to this. But on my own journey, I've gotten curious about my chronic hip and back pain and what else might be happening in my body.
I'm very physical. I lift. I walk. I've put my body through a lot over the years.
But for about 18 months, I had pain that would not go away.
I went to physical therapy. I went to the chiropractor. I was doing the physical work, but my body still felt like it was gripping.
So while I continued doing the physical part, I started experimenting with Reiki combined with somatic movement, which for me often means allowing my body to move the way it wants to move instead of telling it what to do.
And that's when I started paying attention to something else.
Gripping.
I was gripping.
Physically, yes.
But there was emotion there too.
Loss. The death of my brother. Years of living in fight-or-flight mode. Experiences my body seemed to brace against without me consciously telling it to.
So instead of trying to force my body to release, I started getting curious about what I was feeling.
I used Reiki. I noticed the sensations. I allowed my body to move. I worked with what was there.
And after a few sessions, something shifted.
My body released.
After 18 months of feeling like the muscles around my hip and back were constantly gripping and bracing, I finally felt something let go.
And this opened up an entirely new question for me:
What if working with the physical body is only one part of the conversation?
How I Work with Reiki and Somatic Healing
My approach to Reiki is a little different because I combine energy work with visualization and somatic awareness.
If you want to learn more about somatic awareness and how your body communicates with you, I share more about it in this blog post: When I Started Listening to My Body: An Introduction to Somatic Healing.
I start with an intention or mantra. Something that grounds the session and gives us a place to begin.
From there, I ask questions and guide you through visualization to see what your body has to say.
Let's use I am free as an example.
I might ask you to imagine yourself walking down a trail.
How does your body feel?
Maybe you say heavy.
Now we have something to get curious about.
Where do you feel that heaviness in your body?
If it had a shape, what would it be? What color is it?
We've taken something that started as a feeling and given it a physical form we can work with.
This is where I bring in Reiki, working with the area of the body where you're experiencing that sensation while continuing to guide you through the visualization.
Then we begin to shift the experience.
What would it feel like to put down what you've been carrying?
Imagine taking another step without it.
And another.
What does freedom feel like in your body?
Maybe it's lighter.
More expansive.
Maybe your breath changes.
Maybe you notice something completely different.
This is where Reiki, visualization and somatic awareness come together in my work.
We're working with the energy while also giving your body an experience of the state you're exploring.
While you are thinking I am free.
You're also exploring what it feels like in your body to be free.
What to Expect From a Reiki Session
Reiki can be experienced in person or from a distance, and I offer both.
For an in-person session, you'll remain fully clothed and lie comfortably on a Reiki table. I work with my hands either lightly on or just above different areas of your body.
For a distance Reiki session, you can be in your own space while I guide you through the experience virtually.
We work with intention, visualization, somatic awareness and Reiki energy in the same session.
You don't need to do anything other than allow yourself to experience whatever comes up.
You might notice warmth, tingling, heaviness, lightness, emotion, changes in your breath or deep relaxation.
You might feel very little at all during your first session.
There is no right way to experience Reiki, and every session can feel different.
And no, you don't need to understand Reiki or energy work before experiencing it.
You just need to remain open and curious.
Afterward, we'll take a few moments to talk about what you noticed, what I noticed, and anything that came up during our time together.
Experience Reiki for Yourself
Reiki is something I can explain, but it's also something you experience.
Release & Restore is my 45-minute 1:1 Reiki session designed to give you space to slow down, receive, and experience energy work for yourself.
We'll begin with what you're feeling and what you want to work with, then allow the session to unfold from there.
Come curious and open. Book Your Release & Restore Reiki Session →
My Beautiful Friend...
When I found that feather, I knew exactly what it was.
My brother answered me.
And that moment opened me up to an entirely different way of experiencing energy, my body, and the unseen.
Since then, I've learned to pay attention.
To the sensations in my body.
To the energy I feel.
To what shifts when I get curious and work with it.
Stay curious. 💜
Heather Alice-Marie
About Heather Alice-Marie
Heather Alice-Marie is a somatic healing + Reiki practitioner and the founder of Uncage Your Life.
Her work explores the connection between body, mind and energy, helping women understand what their body is telling them and become more curious about what’s happening beneath the surface.
Through somatic practices, Reiki, energy work and guided experiences, she creates space to notice, explore and work with what you’re feeling.
Reiki & Energy Healing FAQs
Q: What is Reiki?
A: Reiki is a Japanese energy healing practice that works with life-force energy. During a Reiki session, a practitioner places their hands lightly on or just above the body, allowing Reiki energy to flow through their hands to the person receiving it.
Q: What does Reiki feel like?
A: Everyone experiences Reiki differently. You might notice warmth, tingling, heaviness or lightness, changes in your breath, emotion, deep relaxation, or something entirely different. Every session can feel different.
Q: What happens during a Reiki session?
A: During a Reiki session, you remain fully clothed while resting comfortably. I work with my hands lightly on or just above different areas of your body. In my sessions, I may also incorporate intention, visualization and somatic awareness to explore what you're feeling and experiencing in your body.
Q: Can Reiki be done from a distance?
A: Yes. Reiki can be experienced in person or from a distance. During a distance Reiki session, you can relax in your own space while we connect virtually and work with intention, visualization, somatic awareness and Reiki energy.
Q: Do I need experience with Reiki or energy healing before a session?
A: No. You can experience Reiki whether it's your first session or something you've explored before. You can simply come curious and pay attention to what you notice and feel during the experience.
Q: Can Reiki and somatic healing be used together?
A: Yes. This is actually how I approach much of my work. I combine Reiki with somatic awareness, visualization and the physical sensations you're experiencing in your body. This allows us to explore your energy while also paying attention to what your body is communicating.
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