My Reiki Awakening

References Reiki  - Articles, Clinical Studies, Research and Hospitals Where Reiki is Used https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/real-healing/201107/energy-healing  http://www.reiki.org/reikinews/research.html#1 http://lightandsage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Reiki_Really_Works-A_Groundbreaking_Scientific_Study.pdf http://dahlc.mayoclinic.org/2015/12/29/9-facts-about-reiki/ http://chicagoreikicenter.com/reiki-in-hospitals.ht 

Reiki - Clinical Studies Anxiety and Depression Richeson NE, Spross JA, Lutz K, Peng C. Effects of Reiki on anxiety, depression, pain, and physiological factors in community-dwelling older adults. Research in Gerontological Nursing. 3(3):187-99, 2010. Twenty older adults received Reiki as an additional treatment for symptoms of anxiety, depression, and pain. After regular Reiki sessions, patients showed lower anxiety, depression, and pain while improved mood, well-being, physical symptoms, curiosity, and self care. 

Cancer-related Fatigue Tsang KL, Carlson LE, Olson K. Pilot crossover trial of Reiki versus rest for treating cancer-related fatigue. Integr Cancer Ther. 6(1):25-35, 2007. Sixteen patients with cancer-related fatigue were randomly assigned to either the Reiki then rest group or the rest then Reiki group. Results suggest that Reiki is effective in decreasing tiredness, pain and anxiety as well as improving quality of life compared to rest alone. Further research is needed to confirm the impact of Reiki due to small sample size in this study. 

Chronic Illness and Reiki Dressen LJ and Singg, S. Effects of Reiki on Pain and Selected Affective and Personality Variables of Chronically Ill Patients. Subtle Energies & Energy Medicine. 9(1): 51-82, 1998. One hundred and twenty participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups: 10 sessions of Reiki, 10 sessions of Progressive Muscle Relaxation, a control group receiving no treatment, and a placebo group receiving 10 sessions of false-Reiki. Pain, depression, state anxiety, trait anxiety, belief in personal control and other parameters were measured pre-test, post-test and at three month follow up. Based on significant results of the study the following conclusions were reached: Reiki is an effective modality for reducing pain, depression and state anxiety; Reiki is effective in enhancing positive personality changes such as decreased trait anxiety, increased self-esteem and a greater sense of internal locus of control; Reiki enhances one’s faith in God’s help; and gains made by Reiki tend to persist over longer periods of time. 

Depression and Reiki Shore AG. “Long-term effects of energetic healing on symptoms of psychological depression and self-perceived stress.” Alternative Therapies in Health & Medicine.10(3):42-8, 2004. Forty-six partiicpants were randomly assigned to one of three groups: hands-on Reiki, distance Reiki or distance Reiki placebo control. Each participant received 1 to 1.5 hour treatment each week for 6 weeks. There was a significant reduction in symptoms of psycholgoical distress in treatment groups as compared with controls and these differences continued to be present one year later. Immune Function and Reiki Hartwell, B and Brewitt, B. The Efficacy of Reiki Hands On Healing: Improvement in Adrenal, Spleen and Nervous Function as Quantified by Electro-Dermal Screening.Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. 3(4): 89,July, 1997. This study studied the effect of 11 Reiki treatments on the immune function of patients with chronic illness. Five patients with either multiple sclerosis, lupus, fibromyalgia or thyroid goiter were given 11 one-hour Reiki sessions. During that period, patients received no other conventional or alternative therapy. Initially, patients received 3 consecutive Reiki treatments and then were treated with one Reiki session per week for 8 weeks. Measurements of patient’s electrical skin resistance were taken 3 times (prior to the first session, after the third session, and after their last session). Out of 45 skin conductance points measured, 3 showed significant differences before and after Reiki sessions, now measuring well within the normal range exhibited by healthy individuals. The authors concluded that Reiki seemed to benefit the organ acupuncture meridians that would be affected by chronic illness and believe that further research with a larger sample size is warranted. 

Mechanism of Action Wardell, DW, Engebretson J. “Biological correlates of Reiki Touch healing.”  Journal of Advanced Nursing. 33(4):439-445,2001. A single group repeated measure design was used to study the effects of Reiki on a sample of 23 healthy subjects. Biological markers related to stress were used including state anxiety, salivary IgA and cortisol, blood pressure, galvanic skin response, muscle tension and skin temperature. Results showed that anxiety and blood pressure were significantly lowered after treatment, skin temperature increased during treatment, and IgA levels role significantly post treatment. These findings suggest both biochemical and physiological changes in the direction of relaxation, supporting the theory that relaxation or stress reduction is a mechanism of action in Reiki Touch therapy. 

Social and Health Characteristics of Reiki Patients  Kelner M and Wellman B. Who seeks alternative health care? A profile of users of five modes of treatment. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 3(2):127-140, 1997. This study compared the social and health characteristics of patients of five types of practitioners. Family physicians were used as a baseline and compared to chiropractors, acupuncturists/traditional Chinese Medicine doctors, naturopaths, and Reiki practitioners. Three hundred interviews (60 from each type) were conducted in a large Canadian city between 1994 and 1995. Striking differences between family practice patients and alternative therapy patients were found. Differences also were found between the groups of alternative therapy patients. For example, Reiki patients were found to have a higher level of education and are more likely to be in professional or managerial positions than other alternative patients. The profiles indicated that users of alternative therapies should not be considered as a homogenous population. 

Post-operative Pain Wirth DP, Brenlan DR, Levine RJ, and Rodriguez, CM. The effect of complementary healing therapy on postoperative pain after surgical removal of impacted third molar teeth. Complementary Therapies in Medicine. 1(3):133-138, 1993. This study examined the effects of Reiki and LeShan therapies in combination on pain experienced after an extraction of the lower third molar. Two separate operations were performed on 21 patients with bilateral, asymptomatic, impacted lower third molars. The patients were randomly assigned to treatment or control groups for the first operation. For the second operation they crossed over to the opposite conditioning. The treatment group received Reiki and LeShan healing post-operatively. The patients assessed their pain using a 100mm visual analog scale for postoperative hours 3 to 9 and a 5 point scale for hours 4 to 9. A statistically significant difference between the treatment and control groups was seen in both the level of pain intensity and the degree of pain relief for post-operative hours 4 to 9.  Source: www.healthandhealingny.org/research/reiki_clinical.asp