By: Nicole Cook, Reiki Master
Reiki is often described as a holistic practice or a form of energy healing. The word holistic means looking at the whole person rather than focusing on only one isolated part. A holistic approach recognizes that our physical body, thoughts, emotions, experiences, environment, and sense of connection all influence our overall well-being.
If you have never experienced Reiki before, you may be wondering: What exactly is it?
My Practice
I sometimes use the phrase energy healing because it’s a familiar language, but I personally prefer the term energy medicine. The word healing can sometimes imply that someone is fixing something that is broken. I view Reiki differently. To me, Reiki is a practice that supports the body’s own natural ability to restore balance and move toward greater well-being.
One thing that is important to understand is that Reiki is not intended to replace conventional medical care. I view Reiki as a complementary practice—something that can be offered alongside appropriate medical evaluation, treatment, and care.
Our physical bodies are wonderfully complex, and there are many situations where modern medicine is essential. Diagnostic testing, medications, procedures, surgery, and the expertise of healthcare professionals all have an important role in supporting health.
Where Reiki can complement medical care is by supporting the whole person—the physical, mental, emotional, and energetic aspects of ourselves. It creates space for relaxation, self-awareness, emotional processing, and a deeper sense of connection with our own bodies.
I am especially grateful to have the opportunity to offer Reiki as part of an integrative approach, working alongside a medical provider. I believe there is tremendous value in bringing together different perspectives and tools that support the whole person. The goal is not to choose between conventional medicine and Reiki, but to recognize that different approaches can support different aspects of the human experience.
The word Reiki comes from Japanese and is often translated as universal life force energy. The idea behind Reiki is that there is a life energy that exists within us, around us, and between us. Reiki works with aspects of the human experience that we do not necessarily see with our physical eyes but that many healing traditions recognize as part of being human.
Layers of the Human Experience
Different healing traditions describe the human being as having multiple layers or bodies. The names and number of these layers vary depending on the tradition, but the general idea is that we are more than just our physical body.
In my practice, I work with four interconnected layers:
- The physical body
- The mental body
- The emotional body
- The etheric (or spiritual) body
Many healthcare approaches focus primarily on the physical body and may also address mental and emotional health. Reiki takes a broader approach by considering how all of these layers interact and influence one another.
The goal is not to separate these pieces, but to help them communicate and work together in greater harmony.
How Does Reiki Work?
There are many different ways people explain Reiki. I can only share how I understand it, how it feels in my practice, and what I have learned from teachers, books, and my own experience. Other Reiki practitioners may explain it differently, and that’s okay. This is simply the framework that has made the most sense to me.
If you’re unfamiliar with the concept of energy medicine, you might reasonably wonder, How on earth could this work?
One way I think about it is that the human body is not only physical—it is also electrical and energetic.
We know that the body produces measurable electrical activity. For example, an EKG measures the electrical activity of the heart. The heart is not the only part of the body with electrical activity; every cell and system in the body relies on electrical processes to function.
From an energy medicine perspective, we can think about the body as having an energetic field that changes and responds. This field may be influenced by what is happening physically, emotionally, mentally, and environmentally.
Reiki practitioners are trained to perceive changes in this energy through their hands. Some practitioners experience this through sensations, mental images, or intuitive impressions. For me, the easiest way to describe it is that I can feel differences in the energy.
When I move my hands over different areas of the body or energy field, I may notice changes in temperature, intensity, movement, or quality. These sensations provide clues about where energy feels balanced and where it may need more attention.
Why the Hands?
The hands are central to Reiki practice.
In many traditions, the hands are viewed as an extension of the heart. This idea also resonates with teachings from yoga, which describe the heart as developing early in the formation of the body, with the arms and hands extending outward from that central area.
Whether taken literally or symbolically, I find it to be a beautiful way of understanding why Reiki practitioners work with their hands. The hands become an extension of compassion, connection, and care.
Reiki and Chakras
Many Reiki practitioners use the chakra system as a way of understanding and explaining energy patterns in the body.
The chakra system is much older than Reiki and comes from ancient Indian yogic traditions. Reiki itself is a much newer practice, developed in Japan in the early 1900s.
Although many modern Reiki practitioners incorporate chakra concepts, Reiki and the chakra system are not directly linked and did not originate together.
That said, I do use the chakra system as a framework in my own practice. It gives me a way to explain what I am sensing during a session and where I am directing my attention. It also provides language for describing different qualities of energy and different aspects of human experience, such as grounding, communication, intuition, connection, and personal power.
For me, the chakra system is less about defining Reiki and more about providing a map that helps explain the work in language people can understand.
Where Did Reiki Come From?
The history of Reiki is fascinating, although not every detail is universally agreed upon.
The founder of Reiki was Mikao Usui, a Japanese spiritual teacher who developed the system that became known as Reiki in the early 1900s.
There are different versions of the story of how Reiki came to be. One version that became popular in the West describes Usui studying in a Christian seminary and asking why students were learning about Jesus’ healing miracles but not learning how to heal themselves. Another version places this search within a Buddhist monastery. The historical details are debated, but the common thread is that Usui was searching for a deeper understanding of healing and spiritual development.
Traditional accounts describe Usui spending time in meditation and fasting on a mountain, where he experienced a profound spiritual awakening. Different versions of the story vary in their details, but they describe him receiving insights about Reiki, its symbols, and the use of the hands.
What we know more confidently is that Usui taught the method he developed to others, and those students trained additional practitioners. Reiki was passed down primarily through direct teaching and practice rather than extensive written instruction, creating the tradition that continues today.
What Happens During a Reiki Session?
While the history of Reiki is interesting, most people are more interested in a practical question:
What will happen if I schedule a Reiki session?
During a Reiki session, you will usually lie comfortably on a massage table, although accommodations can always be made based on your needs and comfort.
I typically begin at the head and work downward using traditional Reiki hand positions, which happen to correspond fairly closely with the locations of the chakras.
As I move through the session, I pay attention to patterns, sensations, and information I perceive through my hands. If something stands out, I may ask questions to see whether what I’m sensing connects with something happening in your life.
From my perspective, I am not creating the energy or forcing something to happen. I think of myself as a channel, allowing universal life force energy to flow where your body can use it most. Sometimes I also intentionally direct my attention toward areas that seem to need extra support.
In my experience, emotions and physical symptoms are often connected energetically. Sometimes people begin talking about an unspoken emotion, an old sadness, a stressful experience, or a trauma they hadn’t fully processed. When that happens, I often perceive a shift in the energy through my hands. Whether you think of that as energetic movement, emotional processing, or simply becoming more aware of yourself, it can be a meaningful part of the session.
What Might You Experience?
One of the first things many people notice during Reiki is deep relaxation.
The body often shifts out of a stress response and into a calmer state. When we are no longer operating primarily from fight-or-flight, we have more capacity for rest, restoration, and balance.
Every person’s experience is different.
Some people notice warmth or coolness. Others feel tingling, waves of energy, heaviness, lightness, or the sensation that something has lifted away. Some people experience emotional release, while others simply enjoy a peaceful sense of calm.
Some people also report improvements in areas of discomfort, headaches, stress, or anxiety. Others simply leave feeling rested.
One thing that continues to surprise me, even after years of practicing Reiki, is how often people are amazed that they actually feel something during the session.
The Intention of a Reiki Session
Ultimately, my intention is to help create an environment where the whole person can reconnect and rebalance.
That may include:
- Supporting balance between energy centers
- Releasing stagnant patterns or energy that no longer serves you
- Creating a greater sense of grounding and connection
- Supporting communication between the physical, mental, emotional, and energetic aspects of yourself
- Bringing awareness to emotions or experiences that may be asking for your attention
Sometimes a physical symptom may also have emotional or mental components that deserve attention. Reiki is not about replacing appropriate medical care, but about acknowledging that we are complex human beings whose experiences often span multiple layers of ourselves.
Every session is different. Some are quiet and subtle. Others bring insight, emotional release, or a profound sense of peace.
At the very least, nearly every client I have worked with has left a session feeling calmer, more grounded, and more relaxed than when they arrived.
To me, that is the heart of Reiki.
It’s not about replacing medicine or promising miraculous cures. It’s about creating a safe, compassionate space where the whole person can reconnect with themselves, restore balance, and support their own natural capacity for healing and well-being.
Reiki is considered a complementary wellness practice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. It is offered as part of an integrative approach to support overall well-being and should not replace appropriate medical care.