The History of Reiki: Its Origin To Modern Practice Pt.1
Reiki, a Japanese form of energy healing, traces its roots back to the early 20th century. The practice was developed by Dr. Mikao Usui, a Buddhist monk who, after years of spiritual study and meditation, sought to rediscover ancient healing techniques. In 1922, after a profound spiritual experience on Mount Kurama, Dr. Usui founded what we now know as Reiki—a system of natural healing that channels universal life force energy to promote balance and well-being. Initially practiced in Japan, Reiki gradually spread across the world, evolving as it integrated into various cultures and traditions. Today, it is recognized not only as a spiritual practice but also as a complementary therapy that supports physical, emotional, and mental health.
Last December I went to Thailand and was attuned by a Reiki master so that I could help bring this type of healing to others. I am a Generation 3 Reiki Practitioner. I have always been passionate about not only healing our physical selves but our energetical selves. At Vital Touch it is my goal to support all aspects of our lives so that we can truly live in Bliss. Becoming attuned I am now able to channel healing energy through my hands. This energy is believed to flow into the recipient's body, helping to clear blockages, balance the chakras, and promote overall health.
Today, Reiki is practiced in a variety of settings, from private studios to hospitals and wellness centers. It is often used alongside conventional medical treatments, valued for its ability to reduce stress, alleviate pain, and enhance emotional well-being. In contemporary practice, Reiki is applied to a wide range of issues, from managing chronic conditions and recovery from surgery to improving mental health and fostering spiritual growth. It has gained particular popularity for its non-invasive nature, making it accessible to individuals of all ages and health statuses. Moreover, many find Reiki to be a deeply relaxing and meditative experience, often describing a sense of warmth, calm, and emotional clarity after sessions.
As our understanding of holistic health deepens, Reiki continues to gain respect within the medical and wellness communities. Many studies have begun to explore its potential benefits, particularly in reducing anxiety, improving quality of life for cancer patients, and supporting overall mental health. While more research is needed to fully understand its mechanisms, the growing body of evidence and widespread anecdotal support underscore Reiki's relevance in contemporary health practices.
At Vital Touch, I offer the combination of a Reiki and Massage session. The benefit of having both of these in the same session is undeniable:
1.Releasing Emotional, energetical and PHYSICAL blockages
Reiki helps energy flow freely through the body and sends a energetical balance through your body. Massage helps breakup physical blockages in the body helping restore circulation and joint mobility.
2.Improves Sleep Quality
The Combination of these two practices can help calm the mind and body and help you prepare for a great night sleep.
3.Support the body's natural healing process
We have amazing bodies that have incredible systems that can help us do amazing things and heal in amazing ways. However, sometimes we need a little help. The combination of Reiki and massage can aid in the body's natural healing process by providing the energy and relaxation that we need.
Reiki is a energetical massage that when combined with other forms of massage can be life changing. The History of Reiki is vast, and it is an honor to be a third generation practitioner, sharing this beautiful energy with the world and clients of Vital Touch. Its continued evolution and integration into modern life ensure that Reiki remains a vital part of the wellness landscape, providing a bridge between ancient wisdom and contemporary healing.
Foraging Our Future…Pt.2
Sooo, some of you guys may be confused by reading part 1, because “isn’t this a massage website??!” In Fact it is a massage website. However, one of the biggest reasons I started Vital Touch is because I am an EMT. The other week, during EMS week, the theme this year was “Honoring our past. Foraging our future.”
A part of honoring the past is to see where your failures have been, you honor yourself by learning from those failures. If you look into the past and only honor the great, it's doing the people who came before you a disservice and not cultivating a space where you can forage for a better future.
In EMS, and the world as a whole has a history of ignoring mental health, and avoiding self care. There is still very little research on mental health in EMS, and alot of the research that has been done, is often not fully correct due to the fragility of reporting such a difficult issue.
When creating Vital Touch, I wanted to find a way to bring awareness to the ongoing issue of mental health. It is my goal to create a space that fosters a place where first responders make their mental and physical health number one priority. I created that space through Vital touch, offering massage and Reiki to heal .
Massage is great for your mental health. It has long term effects of lowering stress and anxiety levels. By increasing the secretion of serotonin and melatonin it helps cure insomnia and regulate our sleep cycle. Massage alleviates chronic pain, muscle tension and discomfort, which in turn helps our mental health. No one deserves to live in pain.
Massage has an endless list of benefits when it comes to our physical health. Here are just a few examples:
Pain Relief: Massage alleviates chronic pain and discomfort by targeting specific muscle groups and reducing tension.
Improved Circulation:Massage promotes blood flow, which helps deliver Oxygen and nutrients to tissue and organs, supporting our overall health.
Reduced Inflammation:Massage helps to decrease inflammation and swelling in the body, which can speed up recovery from injuries.
Enhanced Immunity:Regular massage can boost the immune system by increasing lymph flow, which helps the body fight off infections.
Overall, massage therapy contributes to better physical health by enhancing bodily functions and relaxation and recovery.
Reiki is a modality of Massage that deals with the energetical body. Everything around us is composed of energy, including us. Energy cannot be created or destroyed. Reiki is the life force. Reiki is that part of us that is still part of the Universe. It is the conscious energy that flows through me to you. This process clears all negative emotions, memories, and physical pain stored in your physical frame. The result of which allows you to heal.
I honor my past by acknowledging all the things that came with it, the good and the bad. I am forging a future by creating a space that first responders can come heal with massage and Reiki. We all deserve to live blissfully.
With Love and Light,
Emma-LMT
Honoring Our Past…Pt.1
It all begins with an idea.
Welcome to my first blog post and happy post EMS week. I am writing this on EMS week, but I'm not quite sure that it will make it up to the website by then. It is also fitting that I am writing this while sitting in the ambulance. I have a chart I need to finish but I would rather be writing to you guys! In the future I have lots of cool information about massage, Reiki and Self care that I am excited about, but for my first blog and for first responder week I wanted to take a moment to honor all the EMS workers who came before me and who are working today.
This year the Theme of EMS week is Honoring our past, Forging the future. 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of EMS week. This week was a good reminder to slow down and honor where emergency medicine all began and how far we have come. Take a moment to praise the selfless workers who came before us and had a dream to save lives and reduce the suffering we see in the world. There has been a need for medical services since the dawn of human existence, with lots and lots of unique and sometimes terrifying ways that we tried to help them or get them to the hospital. In fact, some of the first ambulance workers were actually Mortuary workers, driving as fast as they could to the hospital in a hearse! Among those people was my grandpa, as a 16 year old boy just learning how to drive. Obviously, we needed a little more help in the emergency medical world.
It wasn't until 1967 that the first ambulance service was created. Freedom House Ambulance Service was formed in Pittsburg, PA. Dr. Peter Safar and Dr. Nancy Caroline created this service and trained some of the first Paramedics in the US. It is important that we recognize this service and don’t forget its huge impact on history in emergency medical services.
This service faced many challenges including racial injustice. The overwhelmingly white police force saw the work of the overwhelmingly Black paramedics as an incursion onto their turf. The Freedom House was staffed with most black men from the neighborhood. These men were the trailblazers of emergency medicine. They continued to serve proudly, even when people would say they were “unemployable”, and “the last likely to succeed.” Patients refused care because they would not take help from a black man. John Moon, one of the very first trained paramedics in the US stated, "because they're the ones that instilled that motivation and that drive into me that I could do something no matter what it is, no matter what the hurdle, no matter what the barrier." Moon is speaking about Freedom House. That is just one small piece of our history that changed everything. I often have the same thoughts that Moon had, working in EMS has shaped me into the healer I am today.
I am a born healer. I have always had a dream of working on the ambulance since I was a little kid. I have pictures of me as a toddler dressing up in fire gear and ambulance gear. To everyone who came before me and forged the future of EMS that I am living in now, I honor them and I am so grateful. The future I hope to forage for the next generation is one that will honor them, teach them, and show them the value of mental health and caring for yourself. The most important thing to do as a healer, is to heal yourself.
Stay tuned for Part two, I will focus on foraging the future and what that looks like to me.
With Love and light,
Emma
For EMS week last year I wrote this poem to recognize all we do: “Failure to prepare”
“The first thing you learn is failure to prepare is preparing to fail.
That's a bit of oblivious and ignorant advice if you ask me,
No matter how many classes you pass and lessons you memorize
You cant prepare yourself for the feeling each time you get a different partner
It feels like a break up with your old one.
Some sad breakups, who you still text everyday hoping they take you back( You know who you are)
Some awkward breakups
And…some breakups you just couldn't wait for.
They can’t prepare you for the way your heart sinks when you pull up to a car crash and see a car seat.
You pray there is no kid in the car seat, but forget about your heart sinking because you ARE prepared to save this baby's life.
No matter how informed I thought I was on how crazy,weird, oblivious, loud, mean, kind , and diverse everyone is,
I don't think I knew the world was
THIS weird.
I wasn't prepared to be told I was a hero and a life saver
But one hour later
Someone wanted to eat my beautiful eyeballs and punch my face.
It's our duty to see what others won't and never avert our eyes.
And…
Sometimes you can't prepare your eyes or ears…
A suicide…
A mother bellowing for her child…
A puppy trapped in a fire.
Why would people ever do a job where preparing is they key part,
But that's actually all a hoax because nobody knows what we are preparing for.
We do it because you also can't prepare for 12 hours of gossip and secrets and support with your partner while waiting for the next call to drop.
The intimacy of being welcomed into a home to care for a stranger.
Seeing a baby take its first breath.
I will continue to prepare everyday, and pretend I know what I am preparing for.”
-E.C.