Emotional issues

I received some very special feedback a while ago which I’d like to share with you:

“I have to tell you, you have helped to save my sanity. And I believe you have turned my life around.

Thank you.

The healing session itself released a whole ocean of stress, and replaced it with peace and love. Your insightful and thoughtful observations before and after the healing also really clarified the situation for me, and calmed me. I felt the healing release my parasitical fears, and let my ego out of the way for a while. I’m very grateful for that… because something then happened which felt quite miraculous.”

How grateful I feel to take part in people’s healings like this.

I hope that posting this shows the potential of what clients receive from a treatment, rather than setting up expectations for miraculous results. Everyone’s treatment will be different! But still, it’s a good thing when something as powerful as this happens, and good to share it with you!

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment. I’m away until 9 June 2017 but happy to see you after that!
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

Reiki didn’t work!

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

As you’ve seen, I often post the very positive reviews that I receive from clients.

But have I posted any of the negative feedback? Not until today.

One client came with a strained lower back and butt, so painful that it was hard for him to sit down. His friend had had success with reiki for two physical issues, so he was convinced to come try it. But a few days after the treatment when I asked if the treatment helped, he replied:

‘No, mate. No difference whatsoever’.

Another client has had real problems with energy lately, and we were hoping that a reiki treatment might give him a lift. But a few days after the treatment, he said:

‘I’m still pretty low on energy.  Meh.’

I think in November of last year, a client came for some long-term issues of anxiety but reported after:

‘Unfortunately, I really don’t feel a difference.’

And before that, someone who was fighting flu-like symptoms and some sore body parts:

‘ Unfortunately I feel no better or worse than on Thursday. Everything remains about the same without going anywhere.’

I think most marketers would think it’s a bad idea to post one’s negative reviews, but I think it’s useful to present a balance to the positive reviews.

There are many reasons why a reiki treatment might not help someone. It might not be the right kind of treatment for them. It might help them but in ways too subtle to notice.

The particular issue may need more help than one treatment can give. For example, for physical issues like a bad back or a muscle sprain, I’d recommend going to a good physiotherapist, for example, the great team at Active Physiotherapy in Newtown. For long-term mental health and well-being issues, I’ve been recommending lately for people to check out the Indigo Project. For serious health issues, I’d want to make sure that clients are seeing their doctors, and using reiki to complement other medicine, treatments and therapy.

I also think that clients have more success when their intentions are broad (wanting to feel more relaxed or calm, or to develop their spirituality) rather than specific (to fix a cold, to get pregnant). Then again, some clients have come in to address specific emotional issues, and have come away with resolution and resolve.

I’m lucky and hear back from probably over half of my clients. Of those who don’t write in, I’m not sure whether some of them might have not been happy with the resuts, or whether they are too busy to reply (or my followup email goes to their spam). All of these are possible and likely options.

In any case, my message for you is that your reiki treatment may not work. But then again, maybe it will!

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment.
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

Reiki fixes knees!

The first time that one of my reiki treatments fixed a knee problem was for a client who came in to try reiki in general, to see what would happen, and not for anything specific. She certainly hadn’t planned to fix her knee, which she’d hurt only a day or two before at a picnic with friends. Still, she was hobbling a bit when she arrived.

As soon as the treatment finished, she got off the table and said, excitedly, ‘my knee feels better’ and started to walk quickly back and forth in the room, too quickly, I thought! Slow down, we don’t want to push our luck!

Another client, I only heard about four months after the treatment, when she sent her partner for a session. He told me that reiki had, surprisingly, fixed a long-term knee issue. She wrote to me that:

‘I was really surprised. I had a bad knee before I got the reiki done and when you went over my knees, I felt lots of energy and sad emotions which then continued for the rest of the session. I noticed though the next day in work, my knees weren’t sore anymore and then in yoga I could do poses that I used to not be able to do. It’s crazy how it just was fixed, I had been to an osteopath about it and he said my hips are out of line and I had tight hamstrings and it was affecting my knee. So the pain was a physical thing so I’m baffled that the reiki cured it but very happy about it!’

And then another client wrote just recently, three weeks after her treatment:

‘One really interesting thing to note is that I used to have recurring pain in my right knee during to a horse riding incident, which would make itself known throughout the day and was considerably worse in winter. The reason for this pain, such as maybe a torn ligament or something, never really came up in any x-rays or ultrasounds but since this reiki treatment, this pain has completely disappeared! I noticed the day after the treatment that there was no trace of any pain whatsoever. However, I was curious to see how long it would last and whether the pain would come back, but it’s now been over 3 weeks and the pain has completely gone. I have no doubt in my mind that this healing was because of reiki. It was pretty astonishing! Before reiki, I couldn’t do simple activities such as pick something up from the ground or sit cross-legged without feeling the pain in my right knee and now I don’t even have to think twice about this! Thank you so much!’

My conclusion: reiki can fix knee problems! It’s not something that could be guaranteed, but maybe it’s worth a try. Thanks to my clients for letting me use their words above.

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment.
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

 

Come From Away

When I was in New York City in May I saw an amazing musical, about a small town, Gander, in Newfoundland, that unexpectedly ends up hosting thousands of people from planes diverted from 9/11. The title of the musical refers to what Islanders refer to anyone who is not from there: they’ve ‘come from away’.

I was thinking about this because of the amazing international clientele I’ve had at Reiki Surry Hills. It’s been like this from the beginning but seems to be a bit more pronounced lately. I’ve also noticed that folks from outside of Australia are more like to have studied reiki themselves or have friends or relatives that have done reiki, and they’ve had treatments. Australians are more likely to never had a treatment before. This tells me that reiki is more known outside of this country.

In any case, lately, I’ve had clients from Ireland, India, England, Serbia, France, Spain, Finland, the USA, and Canada. While I’ve had clients passing through Sydney from Hong Kong, Texas, Germany and Cairns, mostly all of my clients are based in Sydney, and have come to live here from all over the world (and all over Australia), just as I’ve come here from Canada.

This gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling, since I like a city where people come from all over, and it’s a nice gift from reiki to be able to meet some of them and marvel at how complex and mobile the world is and how did we end up here when we came from away.

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment.
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

Away: 9 to 23 August 2017

If you’ve come for a treatment, you’ll recognise this as the place where we have a little chat before and after the session.

Heads up! Just a warning that I’ll be away from Sydney from 9 to 23 August.

So, if you’d like to come in before then, get in contact!

Or you can book in advance for when I come back too!

Book by SMS, email, calling or online!

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment.
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

Not that kind of reiki!

As I’ve been explaining to clients, there are a lot of different kinds of reiki out there. Students of Mikao Usui, the founder of the Reiki system, added their own variations of reiki to their teaching, and then from there, with many generations of new students, some reiki practitioners went on to found their own methods and styles of reiki.

Still other practitioners combine what they’ve learned about reiki with other practices or skills: from massage to crystal healing and often clairvoyance and psychic advice. Reiki, particularly in the United States, became associated with New Age practices (and subsequently made fun of in popular media: there were jokes about reiki in Magic Mike 2!). People often combine reiki with reference to the Indian belief in chakras, the seven centres of spiritual power in the human body.

My teacher, Frans Stiene, and the International House of Reiki, aim at focusing on reiki as it was practised and taught by the founder, Usui, to get back to its purest form.

And I’ve followed Frans’s lead…

Lately, different clients have told me about other reiki treatments they’ve had. During one, a client had to remove his shirt, and had crystals laid on him. During another treatment, the reiki practitioner talked during the whole treatment. What I hear often is reiki practitioners who give messages (psychic or spiritual) or diagnoses (saying what part of the body they think is blocked, or if there are imbalances).

So, I thought it might be useful to say: I don’t do that.

  • When you come to the session, you remain fully clothed (except for your shoes) and if it’s cold, or you feel more comfortable, I can cover you with a blanket.
  • If you really have the need to speak during the treatment, then that’s fine (though I think I’ve only had one client talk a bit during a treatment out of nearly 400 treatments), but I will remain quiet once the treatment starts. I think it’s important to not get in the way of the treatment with chatter or noise.
  • The biggest thing is that I don’t do diagnoses, or give messages. What’s important is not what I feel, but what you feel, during the treatment and in the days afterwards. I actually think it can be harmful if a practitioner tells someone that they have a blockage in their heart chakra, or they are imbalanced. How do they really know that, and what does it all mean? Reiki shouldn’t be about practitioners projecting our ideas, assumptions and beliefs onto a client; it is about you taking from the treatment what you need at the time, and then observing how that plays out afterwards.

And a final P.S.: if a person says they are doing reiki and asks you to remove articles of clothing (except for your shoes)… don’t do it. You might consider questioning them… or reporting them.

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment.
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

The latest reviews

*

Andy is super nice, patient and caring. He explains the treatment, he communicates really well and demonstrates a lot of interest in the patient’s needs, thoughts and feelings. It’s like sharing with a friend, a really helpful friend that makes things flow more, brings more clarity and strength!

*
Reiki treatment

Words can’t describe how i felt after having Reiki with Andy. I have never felt such a shift after my treatment. A+ service.

I’m definitely more Zen!
Thanks for a great treatment! 🙏🏻

*

I thoroughly enjoyed my reiki session with Andy. I am an energy healer myself who has received many healing sessions by various persons and I am very impressed by Andy’s work. He has a relaxed and comforting vibe and his treatment room breaths beauty and tranquility. During the session I could clearly feel my energy moving, shifting and coming back into balance. I left Andy’s feeling refreshed and vitalised and I am looking forward to more sessions.

*

I couldn’t be more happy with the treatment. I’ve been feeling in a good zone the past few days and I certainly feel in a good place now… I’m still feeling calm, my mind feels pretty clear and I feel relaxed. I certainly feel like you’ve cleared some channels, and I certainly would recommend Reiki to anyone who feels a similar way…
Thank you for the treatment and the effect it has had!

*

I felt happy although tired after the reiki & my happiness continued to improve over the following days. I haven’t felt too much stress or anxiety over the following days…

*

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment. I’m away until 9 June 2017 but happy to see you after that!
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

Bring a friend!

 

My aim during a reiki treatment is to make a client as comfortable as possible.

But I’ve been surprised over the last years when clients have shown up with their partners or friends.

As Reiki Surry Hills is a private space, I don’t have a waiting room that’s separate from the treatment room.

But in the end, I’ve learned that this is obviously the way that the client feels more comfortable, at least for their first session. I understand that it can feel uncomfortable coming into a strange space with someone you’ve never met before to have a treatment, which you may not have ever had before and don’t know what to expect!

I don’t think it’s a perfect situation as an extra person in the room can be distracting, and can take away from the focus of the energy of the treatment, but I guess if it helps to make a client feel more comfortable, this could balance that out!

So, if you’re coming for a treatment, and will bring a friend, please warn me in advance. At least that way I can have time to put out an extra cup for tea! But more importantly, make sure they understand that they will be in a room for nearly an hour, and will need to be quiet and still. If they’d like, they can bring a book, or read on their phone, or simply be quiet and meditate. The husband of one client came, looked uncomfortable and unhappy for the whole treatment, and fidgeted: not good. But another husband was very still and said after that he loved the energy in the room and felt like he had gotten a treatment too!

At the same time, I have been asked if two people can come at the same time, for a treatment at the same time… The answer is no! Although reiki practitioners can give reiki in most situations, and could practice reiki in a group setting, for someone who hasn’t had a treatment before, I really don’t think it’s the best way to have a treatment to have more than one person at a time. It could be distracting and more difficult for everyone, and the aim of reiki is to make things easier!

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment. I’m away until 9 June 2017 but happy to see you after that!
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

 

 

Protecting yourself from negative and busy energy

One of my clients noted  ‘I am extremely sensitive to the energy around me. I often feel other people’s energy in my physical body, and get overwhelmed, anxious and drained in noisy or busy environments’

She asked how to protect herself from this energy but also shared that guilt tended to make her sensitive to people’s negative energy, and releasing that guilt was helpful.

So, in some ways, I kind of divide this into two situations, the general clamour and noise of city living, and when you are either around people who are negative or they actually aim that energy towards you.

I think there are a number of different approaches that you can take.

1.

When you know you will be, or if you are in those busy and noisy environments, close your eyes momentarily and envision a bubble of healing energy around you, a positive bubble, and imagine that noise and negative vibrations cannot or have a harder time getting through that bubble.

The mind is a powerful thing.

However, this might strike some people as mumbo jumbo and certainly won’t work if you think it’s silly. In that case, what about some detachment

2

One thing that can help when faced with negative energy is to be objective and distant. It helped me a lot in both my working life and my personal life when instead of reacting to co-workers’ bad energy, I thought, at a distance, I wonder why they’re acting that way. Maybe they had a bad morning or didn’t get enough sleep. Maybe they’re worried about someone close to them.

It’s important to try not to take it personally when someone is in a bad mood, and you certainly shouldn’t think it might be your fault. Even if someone might be projecting their anger onto you, this might not be right or justified or anything you can do about. Adopt the slogan, ‘Your crisis is not my problem’.

It can be challenging to try to create distance and objectivity, especially since negative people can sometimes enjoy trying to get a reaction or invading the space of someone who is sensitive or kind… but it is a useful thing to work towards.

Does all of this sound too complicated? A final suggestion is the most practical…

3.

Get earplugs or headphones. I HATE the contemporary arrangements of open plan offices. Way too noisy.

Whenever possible, play your favourite relaxing music and use it try to block out noisy work or other environments!

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment.
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.

Panic Attacks!

Clients come for reiki for all reasons, but recently a client came because she’d been suffering panic attacks. I had to admit that it’s not something that I was familiar with, but boy, did it sound terrible: the physical reaction and anxiety and sometimes feeling almost out of one’s body completely.

By coincidence (or was it?), a friend came for dinner that night. I mentioned the panic attacks and she said that she had had them in the past too, and that she found a video very useful from Dr Bill Pettit.

In the video, Dr Pettit describes that panic attacks are physical reactions, and that they can pass, or get worse if you allow your body to react to it. If you can notice what’s happening, then most of the attack will pass within five minutes. He says, ‘try not to feed it’.

The other interesting and useful thing is that he says ‘a panic attack is your friend’. It’s actually letting you know how you’re feeling and allowing you to examine your thoughts.

So, if one is coming on, then try to notice what’s happening, find a behaviour to not exacerbate the attack, and then ride it out.

My client found the video very useful indeed, and what’s more, after the reiki treatment, she hasn’t been having attacks anymore, and is very happy about it. She said, ‘I’m just so amazed by this.’

I’m not an expert in panic attacks but this really did feel like useful information to share.

Discover the gifts and benefits of a session of Japanese reiki therapy, healing energy from an experienced practitioner. Visit my website or Facebook page for more information and SMS, email, call me or book online if you’d like to make an appointment.
Clients come from all over Sydney to see me, and I’ve also had clients who are visiting Sydney from Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast come and see me while they’re here for business, conferences or meeting families. While it’s easiest to get to me from the CBD, Darlinghurst, Paddington, Kings Cross, Redfern and Potts Point, I’m pretty easy to get to from anywhere in Sydney.