According to tradition, Reiki works by activating and stimulating the circulation of vital energy through the whole body: the practitioner acts as a channel, not as a source. From a research standpoint, what can be said solidly is more modest: a session induces a deep relaxation response inside a context of touch, stillness and attentive listening.
Both explanations live in this article. I am not going to hide either one from you.
Rei and Ki: what is supposed to be circulating
Reiki is a system of healing that activates and stimulates the circulation of vital energy through the whole body. The word is made of two terms: Rei, divine love or universal energy, and ki, the vital energy that animates every living being.
That energy, tradition says, belongs to no one. The practitioner does not manufacture it and it is not used up. It circulates.
When it circulates well, the body rests, repairs and orders itself. When it stalls — through sustained tension, grief, fear, years of never stopping — a person feels drained, contracted, disconnected from themselves.
Reiki does not add anything foreign to the body. It reminds it of a circulation that is already there.
The channel: what the practitioner actually does
This is the most misunderstood part.
During a Reiki therapy the Master channels divine love to the person through the laying on of hands. If we understand that it is God who heals, the Reiki Master acts as a channel: he helps that loving energy reach the one receiving it.
A channel does not generate. A channel allows passage.
So when someone tells me "you have a gift", I tend to answer that the gift is not mine — it belongs to everyone, and what I have trained for years is the capacity to step aside so it can pass. Presence, stillness, no agenda of my own.
And there is one more thing, non-negotiable in Reiki: the receiver is in charge. The energy is offered, never imposed. If your body or your process does not take it, it does not take it. Free will is not negotiable, not even out of love.
What is happening in your body meanwhile
Here I change languages and speak about the observable.
You lie down. You stop moving. Someone places their hands on you asking nothing in return. The room is dim and no phone is ringing.
In those conditions the body does what it always does when given permission: the breath lengthens, the shoulders drop, the jaw releases, attention withdraws from thought and settles into the body. This is the relaxation response, a well-described physiological phenomenon regardless of what anyone believes about energy.
Then there is touch. A still, warm hand resting on the sternum for five minutes is not a neutral gesture for the human nervous system. We are animals who regulate through contact.
None of this diminishes Reiki. It simply puts what we know and what we believe on two separate shelves.
Three possible explanations, and I won't choose for you
| Explanation | What it proposes | State of the evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional / energetic | A universal vital energy circulates and harmonises through the channel | No scientific evidence for the energy field it postulates |
| Physiological | Stillness, slow breathing and touch trigger the relaxation response | General mechanisms well described; not specific to Reiki |
| Relational / contextual | Being heard and held without demands produces real relief | Widely recognised; hard to isolate in trials |
My position is simple: all three may be operating at once. I work from the first and deeply respect the other two.
If you want this discussion with the full figures, it is in the complete guide to what Reiki is.
Why hands, and why those positions?
Hands are the oldest instrument of care. We do it without thinking: a hand to the forehead when it aches, to the belly when something tightens.
In Reiki the positions travel the body in a sequence covering head, throat, chest, abdomen, back and legs. In the Western tradition those positions are fairly standardised. Japanese schools rely more on hand-scanning, byōsen, where the practitioner pauses wherever the sensation changes.
I work with both. I start with the sequence and stay longer where the body asks me to stay. You can see the differences between schools in Japanese vs Western Reiki.
At the second level the symbols also come in, acting as focal points of intention within the channelling. I explain them in Reiki symbols and their meaning.
What if I don't feel anything?
It happens, and it does not mean the session was wasted.
Some people perceive intense warmth, currents, tingling, images, an emotion rising unannounced. Others simply fall asleep. Others spend the whole hour checking whether they feel something, which is the most reliable way to feel nothing.
Sensation is not the measure. The measure is how you get up, how you sleep that night and how you breathe the next day.
I say it before we begin, every time: you do not have to achieve anything in this hour.
What I see in the treatment room
In Medellín most people arrive with the body in alert mode. They lie down and the legs stay tense, as if ready to stand up again. The first ten or fifteen minutes are almost always landing work.
There is a moment I have learned to recognise: a long, involuntary sigh that arrives on its own. It usually comes when the hands are over the chest or the solar plexus. After that sigh the body changes state. The breath slows, the face softens, sometimes the stomach makes a sound.
In Santa Elena — the cloud-forest township in the mountains above the city — that moment arrives sooner. The climb, the mist, the cold on the face: the forest is part of the work. People often arrive already half released.
I have also accompanied people who cried without knowing why and apologised afterwards. There is nothing to apologise for. The body keeps what the calendar never let it process.
What Reiki does not do
Better said here than in small print.
Reiki does not cure illness. It does not treat diagnoses. It does not diagnose. It does not replace medical or psychological care, and it is never a reason to stop a medication.
If someone explains "how Reiki works" by telling you it removes blockages that cause specific diseases, or that it replaces a treatment, they are telling you something neither serious tradition nor the evidence supports.
What it can do: accompany, hold, favour a state of calm, help you inhabit your body again. That is not a small thing.
How to sustain the effect between sessions
The part that depends on you weighs more than the hour on the table.
Breathing slowly for a few minutes on waking. The five principles, one at a time. Real silence — not just absence of noise — even if only ten minutes.
The first training level teaches self-treatment precisely so you do not depend on anyone. There is a self-healing guide on the site with simple practices to begin today.
Frequently asked questions
Does Reiki work if I don't believe in it? You are not asked to believe. The session does not depend on your faith: you lie down, breathe and rest. Many sceptical people describe a calm afterwards they did not expect; others feel nothing in particular. What does matter is not arriving expecting a medical outcome, because Reiki is not there for that and the expectation always ends in disappointment.
Does the practitioner's energy run out, or transfer to me? According to tradition, no: the practitioner does not contribute personal energy but allows universal energy to pass. Practised well, Reiki does not leave the practitioner drained. What I do take great care with is the hygiene of the space and of my own state: arriving calm, unhurried, not carrying the previous session.
Can Reiki be received at a distance and work the same? From within the tradition, the energy does not depend on physical distance, and the second level teaches exactly this way of working. Many people describe sensations very close to an in-person session. From the scientific side there are no solid studies confirming it. I tell you plainly so you can decide with your own judgement.
How long does the effect of a session last? It varies a great deal. Some sleep deeply that same night and notice the calm for days; others feel tiredness first and clear rest on the second day. As a reference point, in the available studies the best results appeared with eight or more sessions. A single meeting helps; a sustained process accompanies better.
Does Reiki stir up emotions? Often, yes. In the stillness, whatever was waiting for room shows up: sadness, relief, old anger, tears with no obvious cause. That is not a problem, it is part of the process. If what surfaces is large or hard to hold, my recommendation is always the same — bring a mental health professional alongside it. Reiki does not replace that help.
If you want to try it and decide for yourself, write to me on WhatsApp at +57 314 811 7561 or through the contact page. Tell me what brings you and we will see whether it makes sense. Sessions can be given in English.
Remembering who you are is the way.
Disclaimer
This article is for educational purposes and does not replace diagnosis, treatment or follow-up by a healthcare professional. Reiki is a complementary practice: it accompanies, it does not substitute. If you are under medical or psychological care, continue it and talk to your treating professional before adding any complementary therapy.
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Sananda Reiki
Spiritual support and Reiki therapies in Medellín and online.
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