Healing is a personal journey that involves our mind, body and spirit. Learn about energy healing so you can decide whether it's right for you.
Energy Healing is a term used to describe methods of healing that support the body’s own self-healing mechanisms. There are many forms of Energy Healing you may have heard of: Reiki, Acupuncture, Homeopathy, Crystal Therapy and Chakra Healing to name a few.
Different forms of energy healing have different interpretations of our energy systems, and different ways of working with energy, but generally it's thought that healing can occur by restoring balance in mind, body and spirit.
We all have an energetic field surrounding our physical bodies. It is commonly called an aura, scientists call it our electro-magnetic field. Energy Healers are trained to sense disturbances in this field which may be contributing to ill-health. They use various techniques to heal these disturbances and get energy flowing freely again.
The Principles of Energy Healing
Energy healing is based on the premise that we are all made of energy. The same energy that makes up our entire universe also makes up our physical body, therefore there is a Oneness in all things. We are interconnected to each other, and all life.
Our thoughts, emotions and beliefs are also made of energy. They flow through our energy body, and can affect our health and wellbeing in positive or negative ways.
The relationship of our thoughts to our physical health is called the mind-body-spirit connection, and is a vital component of holistic care.
For example, thinking the thought “I don't want to be late!” may lead to an emotion of anxiety. The anxiety will set off the Fear Response in our brain, releasing a concoction of hormones preparing our body to fight or flight. Our thoughts have just affected our physical body.
On the other hand, thinking “my dog is so cute!” leads to the emotion of love. Our body responds by releasing the “love” hormone Oxytocin. Again our thoughts have affected our physical body, but this time in a positive way.
Our subconscious thoughts, beliefs and emotions also affect our body but we are not so aware of it happening. This means they repeatedly float through our field unnoticed until our body finally responds with an ache or illness. The pain is a physical manifestation of the thought, belief or emotion and is your body’s way of making you aware of it.
If you are experiencing pain or illness, take a moment to sit quietly and check in with your body. Ask it, “what are you trying to tell me?”, you may be surprised at the response! After asking your question, use any thoughts that arise, visions, memories, dreams and emotions to guide your interpretation. Thank your body for helping you return to balance!
Pain or illness in the body is considered an area of blocked energy. The intention of Energy Healing is to release these blocks and expose the underlying thought, belief or emotion behind it so that the pattern can be cleared.
The Practitioner may work with you to gain a deeper understanding of the source of the imbalance, and it’s personal meaning in your life, then support you in establishing your own path to wellness. This holistic approach allows us to view illness from a different perspective and empowers us to take responsibility of our thoughts and therefore our health.
How Energy Healing is Thought to Work
Every Energy Healing modality has its own unique understanding of energy and applies its own techniques, but we can discuss the general nature of it here.
Energy healing supports the body’s own self-healing mechanisms.
That's right - our bodies already know how to heal themselves, and are in a continuous state of renewal and repair. Just think about the skin cells we shed and replace, broken bones and torn muscles that self-repair, cuts and grazes that form scabs!
Our bodies act immediately and naturally to heal, without any conscious effort on our part. We can trust our bodies to know exactly what to do.
Energy Healing is an act of putting conscious effort into our own healing. This intention combined with the healing energy and techniques, powerfully aides the body's natural ability to self-repair.
An Energy Healing practitioner will use specially trained techniques applicable to their modality, usually combined with their intuition, to detect areas of concern in your physical and energetic bodies.
They work on various “layers” of your being (physical, mental, emotional, spiritual etc), releasing stagnant energy from these layers. This can relieve existing pain or discomfort from the physical body, and remove blocks before they physically manifest in the body.
Once these blocks have been removed, the energy can flow freely through its natural channels once again, enabling your body to heal itself more effectively. You may find that your life flows more smoothly too as everything is interconnected!
Deciding if Energy Healing is Right for You
When deciding if Energy Healing is right for you, my personal opinion is “it’s your body, so it’s your choice” and "knowledge is power".
The beauty of Energy Healing modalities is that they don’t need to be considered as alternatives to conventional medicine, they work beautifully as a complement to your existing health and wellbeing regime.
Optimal health is about taking a holistic approach - that means taking your mind, body and soul into consideration as part of the healing equation.
There is more and more interest around complementary therapies from the scientific and medical communities. Here are a select few examples of the ways energy healing has been proven to complement conventional medicine. It is not an exhaustive list and there are certainly many more examples not discussed here.
The following example highlights a few ways that Acupuncture has proven to be effective. “The British National Health Service carried out a systematic review of the evidence for the use of Acupuncture to treat or manage a range of disorders. They found that there was evidence that Acupuncture is effective to treat dental pain, jaw pain, and to control nausea after operations and chemotherapy treatment”.(2)
Just across the ditch we can see how popular Reiki is in typically conventional settings. “Reiki is a complementary therapy. In Australia, it is currently being provided in many hospitals, nursing homes, palliative care hospices and community service settings. The system of Reiki works in conjunction with all other medical or therapeutic techniques to support the relief of side effects, reduce pain and promote wellness”.(3)
Over in Switzerland the government has been looking into the benefits of Homeopathy. “In late 2011, the Swiss government’s report on Homoeopathic Medicine represents the most comprehensive evaluation of Homoeopathic Medicine ever written by a government… The Swiss report found a particularly strong body of evidence to support Homoeopathic treatment of upper respiratory tract infections and respiratory allergies”.(4)
I advise open communication with your medical team about your chosen complementary therapies, and remember to share your doctor’s advice with your Energy Healing practitioner. This allows everyone to work together for the ultimate goal - improving your health and wellbeing!
You may feel apprehensive about discussing complementary therapies with your doctor, but self-expression, reclaiming your personal power, and taking ownership of your journey to wellness is powerfully healing in itself. So try to experience the conversation as a blessing, and make the most of the opportunity.
I hope this shines some light on Energy Healing, and the ways it can help you or someone you love, as you navigate your healing journey.
If you'd like to experience the healing potential of Reiki for yourself, I offer Trauma Informed Reiki Healing sessions where you're empowered in your healing process.
With love and gratitude,
Charisse