Some natural health practices are more difficult for allopathic physicians to accept than others. Take for example, herbal extracts. Herbs and prescriptive drugs are essentially composed of one or more chemical substances which are responsible for their therapeutic activity. Western medicine is largely based on this model and very comfortable with it. “Energy” therapies such as acupuncture, Qi Gong and Reiki are a different story. The concept of access to the power of healing energy just does not jive with the modern, Western view of medicine.
The fiery disbelief that some conventional doctors have with regard to energy medicine has lead many of them at all to dismiss these modalities. Some go so far to collect against an investigation on the subject. Indeed, allocating precious resources on a lost cause, well, a lost cause. This is not the position that I take and, fortunately, it has not stopped a small group of open minded scientists assessing the merits of this mysterious practice.
The modern interpretation of Reiki is a relatively recent entry into the field of energy healing. According to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Reiki was first popularized in the late 1930′s by Hawayo Takata, an American of Japanese descent. In a typical Reiki session, a practitioner places his hands “light on or just above the person’s treatment, with the aim of facilitating the person’s own healing response.” (1)
There are five studies on Reiki published in prestigious, peer-reviewed medical journals since the beginning of 2010. The most recent appeared in the September 2010 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. In it, 49 patients recovering from acute coronary syndrome (ACS) were randomly assigned to receive: a) Reiki therapy b) “A classic musical intervention” or c) rest during the course of 72 hours. During the 3-day trial period, all participants were studied by continuous monitoring and electrocariographic interviewed about their emotional state. Those who have a Reiki treatment demonstrated favorable changes in heart rate variability (HRV) and emotional state – a decrease in negative emotions (anger, fear, frustration, sadness) and an increase in positive emotional states (peace, happiness, relaxation). Improvements in the HRV suggest a protective effect in patients with acute coronary syndrome. What’s more, the authors of the study concluded that the observed effect may provide a safe and viable non-pharmacological approach to treating this patient population. (2)
One of the most encouraging aspects to the current batch of studies about Reiki is that the benefits impact of a wide variety of people, young or old, sick or healthy patient or healer. The August 2010 edition of the Journal of Holistic Nursing shows that registered nurses can effectively use “self-Reiki” to stress at work to reduce and minimize the risk of “burn out”. In July 2010, researchers from the University of Southern Maine published a study showing that Reiki is a significant decrease in anxiety, depression and pain scores in a group of older adults living in a nursing institution granted. Among the seniors, a more thorough analysis described five categories of physical and psychological reaction: curiosity and a desire to be more improved self-care improvement in physical symptoms, mood and well-sensory relaxation and cognitive reactions to learn Reiki. (3,4)
The two other studies, the following: 1) the mind-body effects of the ten 20-minute Reiki sessions over a period of 12 weeks in a group of “35 healthy psychology students” – 2) the impact of an intervention on Reiki colonoscopy-related anxiety. In the first experiment, the participating students receiving Reiki treatment “was a trend towards reduction of disease symptoms” during the academic year, while the comparison group undergoes relaxation / self hypnosis is not. In the second experiment, the use of Reiki prior to colonoscopy resulted in a reduction in diastolic and systolic blood pressure (-4 mmHg and -10 mmHg), heart rate (-9 beats / minute) and respiratory (-3 breaths / minute) . All these findings indicate a decrease in the physical manifestations of anxiety. A trend towards a reduced need for pain medication was also demonstrated. (5,6)
The Impact of Energy Work on various mental and physical symptoms
Source: January 2004, Vol 94, No. 1 | American Journal of Public Health 50-52 (a)
To ensure a balanced perspective on Reiki to offer, I must also pay attention to the fact that some studies have shown no benefit of this therapy to find. Two widely publicized clinical studies on the effects of Reiki on fibromyalgia and stroke recovery are examples where an absence of affect has been reported. In addition, a systematic review of November 2009 noted that: “The serious methodological limitations and reporting of the limited existing Reiki studies preclude a definitive conclusion to their effectiveness. High-quality randomized controlled studies are needed to evaluate the effectiveness of Reiki compared placebo to tackle. ” (7,8,9)
I can not say with certainty whether the healing energy of Reiki is real or not. But I do know that some people’s ability to influence others positively profound via touch or even just by their presence to have. Most of us have experienced that very phenomenon in a medical setting or elsewhere. So maybe, just maybe, these unique individuals are capable of these positive qualities in a highly health-promoting way send. Some call this a placebo effect, practitioner influence or various other terms that are normally regarded as pejorative. I do not buy into that frame of mind. I definitely like more scientific studies that examine the benefits of Reiki or lack thereof, and other energy work. However, given the current level of evidence and understanding of Reiki, I feel comfortable enough to recommend as a promising modality that may just help and is unlikely to harm.
Be good!