5 Reasons to Learn Reiki (Even If You Never Want to Become a Reiki Practitioner)

When people hear the words “Reiki training,” they often assume it is for someone who wants to become a Reiki practitioner.

And yes, Reiki can absolutely be something you use professionally. I work with private clients and teaching Reiki trainings is one of my favorite things to do. But becoming a practitioner is only one reason to learn Reiki.

In fact, Reiki can become a practice that you use throughout your everyday life: to connect with Spirit, deepen your relationship with yourself, work with your energy, bring intention into experiences and travel, and offer support to the people, animals, plants and spaces around you.

I had never even heard of Reiki when it found me. After my first Yoga Teacher Training in November of 2005, I simply knew that I wanted to comprehend more about the energetic part of yoga because I found the concept rather abstract. Less than a year later, I saw an advertisement and just knew, and between you and me, it has shaped my life in ways I did not know were possible.

Here are five reasons you might want to learn Reiki, even if you have absolutely no intention of becoming a Reiki practitioner.

1. Reiki gives you a tangible way to connect with Spirit

A lot of people want a deeper spiritual connection but don't necessarily know what to do with that desire.

How do you connect with Spirit? How do you know when you're receiving intuitive guidance versus simply thinking? How do you create a practice that helps you step out of the noise of everyday life and into something deeper?

For me, Reiki provides a system.

When I begin a Reiki practice, I start essentially the same way every time. I invoke the Reiki symbols and place them around the room. I ask for protection and surround the space in pure white light. I connect with my Reiki Ascended Masters, and I may invite other spiritual figures or energies that feel meaningful to me and appropriate for that particular time and place.

That's the nice thing, it gives you structure, but allows for flexibility.

I was confirmed Episcopalian as a youth, and my Holy Fire Reiki Training (an upgrade I got after my traditional Usui Master Training) introduced another layer of Christ-centered imagery that resonated with me. Someone else might connect with Buddha, a figure from the yogic tradition, an ancestor, or another spiritual presence meaningful to them. Reiki itself does not require you to subscribe to a particular religion.

When a session begins, my brain turns off (it just happens).

There is a deep reservoir I feel within myself that somehow also feels much larger than myself. I feel whole,  safe, centered, and I can allow sensations, images, thoughts or intuitive information to arise without analyzing them.

When I took my first Reiki Level 1 training, I remember feeling something like a warm, pulsing light in the palm of my hand, almost like a tiny flame. It was (and still is) very subtle, but you develop a relationship with it over time and understand its way of communicating.

One of the (many) beautiful things about self-Reiki is that you actually sit down and take time for yourself.  

2. Reiki gives you something to reach for when you want to feel safe and supported

I use Reiki in ordinary life all the time, particularly when I'm traveling or entering a situation where I want to feel protected and safe.

For example, before a trip, I set an intention for safe, smooth travel. 

I don't need to visibly draw Reiki symbols in the air. With experience, I can invoke them quietly in my mind's eye. I ask for protection around myself, the plane, the people traveling with me and the journey itself. Then I might set an intention for a safe flight and for everything to unfold smoothly.

This practice became particularly meaningful to me because I learned Reiki only a few years after September 11th, when air travel was still highly regulated (no knitting needles, those could be weapons!), emotions were heightened, and you just generally felt less safe then you ever had before.

Reiki gives me a way to meet situations that are outside of my control. Instead of sitting in fear and thinking, I hope everything is okay, I have a practice.

And I don't reserve it just for airplanes.

I've used Reiki before road trips, gatherings, events and everyday situations. If I'm going to a dinner party, for example, I might set an intention that the evening be drama-free, enjoyable and fun.

I cannot tell you how many times I've been sitting in traffic, started Reiki, and watched it clear. 

3. Reiki helps you deepen your relationship with yourself

One of the biggest misconceptions about Reiki training is that it's primarily about learning how to give Reiki to other people. Reiki Level 1 is deeply rooted in self-practice.

Giving yourself Reiki is very different from simply asking yourself, “How am I feeling today?”

During a self-treatment, I experience myself simultaneously as the practitioner and the receiver.

I may notice that one area feels warm while another feels cool. Something may feel open, stagnant, active, comfortable or simply different. I can notice where I naturally want to linger and where my body seems to be asking for more attention.

Instead of thinking about my body, I'm witnessing it without judgements, and sending it love and light.

4. Reiki works with your energetic sensitivities so you're not as overwhelmed by them

Have you ever walked into a party or event, and quickly left because you could just tell it wasn't your vibe? Or maybe you're having a great day, then you're around someone that's in a mood, and suddenly now you are too? 

What about the saying “the tension is so thick you could cut it with a knife”? That's energetic, you feel it.

If this is you, I'm also willing to bet you are a movie crier...and I'm not saying it's bad, I am too. Just some of us feel more intensely than others.

Whether you call yourself an empath, highly sensitive, intuitive or simply very perceptive, receiving that much input can be exhausting when you don't know what to do with it.

I was sensitive before I learned Reiki. But Reiki gave me a framework for understanding and working with that sensitivity. (Hate to break it to you, but Reiki will also simultaneously make you more sensitive, but more in a superhero type of way.)

Instead of sensitivity being something that simply happens to you, Reiki gives you practices for engaging with it intentionally.

As you continue into more advanced Reiki training, there are additional techniques for clearing, creating boundaries and releasing energy that you don't need to continue carrying.

For someone who spends a lot of time absorbing the world around them, it can feel like learning energetic hygiene.

5. And yes, you can use Reiki to support others

Once you've learned Reiki, your practice doesn't have to stop with you.

You can offer Reiki to other people, animals, plants, physical spaces, events and so much more. 

I once had a very sad plant that had been dying a slow death for a while...One day, I decided to give it Reiki. At first it felt ice cold, but eventually it warmed up, and I felt that spark of life force deep within it. I swear to you, within a day or two it had a new leaf.

Animals are another adventure entirely.

One of the principles I teach is to ask permission before offering Reiki. With another person, that's fairly straightforward. With an animal, or with someone who isn't able to communicate verbally, Reiki practitioners  ask them soul-to-soul. Yes, there will be times you get a NO, and you will not mistake it.

I remember giving Reiki to one of my dogs for the first time. She turned around and gave me the biggest side-eye, and that was so confirming for me because I thought, 'well, you must have felt something.' Lol

You don't have to become a Reiki Practitioner

You absolutely can if you want to. But you don't need a professional goal to make Reiki worth learning.

You can learn Reiki because you want a spiritual practice.

• Because you want to know yourself differently.
• Because you're sensitive and want tools for working with that sensitivity.
• Because you want something tangible to reach for when you're anxious or uncertain.
• Because you want another way to offer care and intention to the beings and spaces around you.

Or simply because Reiki keeps showing up and some little voice inside you keeps saying, I think I'm supposed to learn this.

Sometimes that's enough of a reason to follow the breadcrumb and see where it leads.

Ready to explore Reiki?

Learn Reiki for Yourself
If something in this article made you think, Yes, I want to know how to do this, check my Schedule of Events for upcoming Reiki Level 1 trainings.

Experience Reiki Personally
Not sure you're ready to learn it yet? You can experience Reiki with me through a private Spirit Session, available in person in Chestertown or remotely. This gives you an opportunity to receive Reiki and experience the practice for yourself.

Explore Reiki at Home
If you'd rather begin quietly on your own, my Reiki Meditation Library is a simple place to start. You'll find guided Reiki experiences for relaxation, grounding, seasonal support and working with crystals. You don't need to know Reiki or own any crystals to receive.

Follow the path that feels right for you (always).