Ep. 71 Self Reiki: How to Support Your Own Healing

Self Reiki is very simple and powerful, it can support your body, energy, and emotional well-being.  In this episode, we break down what self Reiki actually is, how to start (without overcomplicating it), and how to deepen your practice over time. Whether you’re brand new or already working with Reiki, this conversation will help you reconnect with your own ability to heal, regulate, and restore from within.

What we cover:

What is self Reiki and Level 1 Reiki

Why a consistent practise matters

Reiki & the nervous system

What self Reiki actually feels like (and why you might feel nothing at all)

Simple way to start your own practise today

Common blocks (and why you’re not doing it wrong)

How to make self Reiki part of your daily life

Our own experiences with self Reiki


Join us on Instagram: 

https://www.instagram.com/living.the.reiki.life/

For more information about us & our offerings:

Amanda:  https://www.instagram.com/reiki_with_manda/

Kristi:  https://www.instagram.com/thebirchsoul/


April Reiki Circle Sign up: https://ReikiwithManda.as.me/?appointmentType=83736771

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:15

Hey, it's Christy and Amanda. Two girls from Saskatchewan, Canada, living the Reiki life while working the nine to five.

SPEAKER_01 0:25

Hey everyone, welcome to Livin' the Reiki Life. You're here with Christy, me of course, and my co-host Amanda. Um, so today we have a solo episode, and we are going to be diving into self-Rakey practice. And we have lots of good little wisdom nuggets to share with you about like our own experience and some tips and things to do. So it's a topic that we've wanted to touch on for a while. So I'm excited about this one. But first of all, I want to check in with Amanda and Callie and see how everything's going.

SPEAKER_03 1:02

Yes, hi. Yeah, recording looks a little bit different at the moment because I have a very fresh baby who is exclusively breastfeeding. So I'm sorry if you hear her a little bit in the background, but we're rolling with what we got here. And uh yeah, so things with me are going well. Body is healing, so it's a really good timing for this episode because I've been doing a lot of self-reiki, right? While I let my body heal from labor and delivery and uh honoring where I'm at here, and uh yeah, for an update for me, so really fine. I've been reikiing my daughter Callie, of course. And it was, I was telling Christy it was really interesting because I was scanning her chakras, and they all kind of felt like rather dim. Like I was expecting them to be wide open and they weren't, but her aura was very uh wide and very far. So I thought that was super interesting. So yeah, I'm gonna keep doing it and see if things kind of change or progress. And you know, she just like working her little energetic system and her, you know, getting into her physical body, right? So she got so much going on. So I thought that was super interesting. If anyone's ever scanned a baby's chakras before, I haven't. I don't even I can't even think I did with Bo. I don't think I mindfully did that. I was probably so in the thick of things I wouldn't even know what end was up at that point, but but anyways, yeah. Yeah, so that's what's going on.

SPEAKER_01 2:32

No, that makes sense about the energy, you know. It's just like I picture like something being built right now. So it's like everything is kind of building in a building phase, so not it's not gonna be like everything's gonna be on and switched on, it's just slowly going to be coming on. So that it's really interesting because I feel like it'd be a cool journey to you know pay attention to as you go and just see like where those chakras, like maybe one will light up before the other one, or yeah, I think it's just it's neat.

SPEAKER_03 3:06

Yeah, absolutely. And and it'll be interesting to see the progression too.

SPEAKER_01 3:11

Yeah, yeah, because I've never I don't think I've ever done Reiki on a baby before. No, no, I don't think I have. I've tuned into like um like their spear guides and stuff before, but I've never actually done actual Reiki, but it's more like you're just scanning, you're just kind of getting a feel of things, hey.

SPEAKER_03 3:31

Yeah, yeah, exactly. And then sending it back, anyways. Yeah, so what's like going on with you, Christy?

SPEAKER_01 3:38

Yeah, so it yeah, Pisces season. I was just before we hopped on here, Amanda and I were just chatting about the end of Pisces season and the end of that astrological year. And I I'm gonna be honest with everyone, I don't follow the moon phases as closely as I did in my journey at the beginning. Like it would be a full moon, be grabbing my crystals, I'd have my journal, what do I want to release? Like all of that. I don't do that anymore. I do like when I go outside and I see the full moon there, I'll just stand there in its glory and just like you know, like a quick little check-in. But I'm not like super intentional about my rituals. But it's funny when I think about it, it's like when we share these new moon and full moon updates, they're always in the back of my mind. And as I was talking to Troy, and as he's moving through things, and I was just like, wow, like dream time's been really vivid, emotions have been high, there's been things coming to a close, and I was like, Troy is like, today's a new moon in Pisces. I was like, this all makes sense. He's always such a mirror to what is going on astrologically, and he doesn't follow any of this, but he's always like very intrigued about what's going on because he's like, Oh, yeah, that makes sense. So, um, so I was like moving through a lot of um, I felt like a cleanup crew was coming through to clean things out before going into the the Aries season. So I was like crying at the most trivial things. Like I was watching Virgin River on Netflix. Have you watched that one, Amanda? Oh, no, yeah, it's just it's a cute little drama, and I don't know, like I watched the finale and I just like balled like these were real people and real stories. And I was like, what is wrong with me? I was like, why am I crying so hard? So I um went into my toolkit, of course, and I have this one homeopathic remedy that was matching my symptoms, and I I took um a dose of it, and the beauty of homeopathy is like it meets you where you're at, and it's gonna help you get rid of things that are no longer needed. That was my intention with taking that remedy. So later, I believe it was that day or the next day, I was driving on the highway and I was going pretty fast on the single lane, and I heard a little voice in my head, it was like, okay, slow down. Like, why are you going so fast? And I was like, oh la la, not listening to it, still going fast, and I seen a rabbit in the ditch, and I was like, Oh no, oh no. And I was like, Don't you stay there? Because I always say a prayer of protection whenever I'm traveling and remove wildlife from my roadways. And for all the highway driving I've done, I've been very fortunate not to have any run-ins with wildlife. But um, this rabbit did dart across the road and I did end up hitting it. And I had to pull over because I was like hyper-ventilating, I was so upset, and I just like I have not cried that hard probably since I was a child. Like I I was like couldn't breathe, and then I phoned Troy, and of course, Troy thinks the worst has happened. And here he's like a rabbit. He's like, oh, okay. He's like, but no, he's like, I'm gonna still hold the space of what you're moving through. And I just like cried. I was like, I'm so sorry. Like I just felt like an awful human and I because I I love animals just so much. And um, but as I moved through and let that those tears flow, um, I checked in with myself and I was like, holy cow, dude, I feel 10 pounds lighter. Like I felt like I released all my stored up emotions from the entire year in that one moment. And it was like, yeah, like an aha moment of clarity. And then I was like, well, like, thanks for that. They I guess like looking back, it's like it I was upset about the rabbit, but of course there was more to it, and there was more stored in me. And I feel like that remedy I took wiggled something loose for everything to come out. And I don't know if it's you and I that have talked about, you know, a lot of people don't know how to cry properly.

SPEAKER_03 8:05

I oh no, I don't think that was me, but I agree with you.

SPEAKER_01 8:08

Yeah, I someone told me that, and I was like think, I was like, what you just cry, but I was thinking, no, like sometimes like I'll have a cry, but it's like I don't feel like I cried it all out. It's like it's like I didn't know if I want to make this comparison, but it's like if you're if you're taking a poop and you don't feel like you fully pushed it out, it's still in there, it's still bucking you. That's what I felt like. That's what I felt like my crying was. You know, it's like it's still like I cried a little bit out, but it's not all coming out. So yeah, an explosive cry, and yeah, bless that rabbit's soul. But yeah, and so that was the end of Pisces season with with a bang. So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 8:56

Well, and then I of course I can relate to your explosive crying, uh, because right, me being so postpartum and so sleep deprived right now, you guys. Like, holy crap! I knew I was tired when I was pregnant at the end there, but like this is all next level stuff, and yeah, just like the crying on and off. I'm sure the Pisces season didn't help. I've like, you know, everything compounds together, but holy crap, me too. And I know exactly what you mean about like pinching it off, because it's like, yeah, get it together, but then where does that go? It goes into my stomach, it goes into my anxiety, just like feeds all those other nerves that don't need to be fed right now, instead of me just allowing myself to fully cry. But yeah, just let it hear you on that.

SPEAKER_01 9:42

Oh, because it just feels so good, and you know, it's like you know, when you have a good BM, it's like yeah, it is good, life is good, so it's just the same with crying things out, just releasing however it has to come out of you because it's gonna go somewhere if you don't release it, exactly, and that that's really fitting for what we're gonna talk about uh on this episode here. So, but before that, let's you know go into the moon. What's going on?

SPEAKER_03 10:11

Yeah, so we got the full moon on April 1st, actually, and it's gonna be a pink full moon in Libra. So it's actually funny because it's a really cool time because it's lands right on the start of the astrological new year, right? Right. So like heading us into that Aries season. Um, but yeah, so Libra is a air science all about communication. Um a lot of the themes are on relationships and harmony. It's also the um balance card in uh the tarot deck. Balance, sorry, the justice card. I always want to call it balance because it's a woman who's usually holding two way scales, depending on which tarot deck you're looking at. And I always think of like energetic balance or you know, people getting justice. But anyway, so yeah, justice card as well. And uh for this um full moon, it's a really good time to like really bring our relationships to the forefront and work kind of feels like the balance has been lost. So just like justice card and tarot, this moon really like invites honesty and energetic recalibration and deeper alignment in how we give and how we receive love. And it's a really powerful time to start releasing people or patterns or anything to help us return to that harmony within ourselves. So I'm actually really gonna take advantage of this full moon right now because I just want to release all the other hormones and everything else and emotions, right? And being able to even just communicate with myself what I need in this moment as I'm going through a really big transition, and I want to make sure I'm releasing that out before we go into this new year that we are heading into with the April season. So I highly recommend anyone else feeling like that right now, especially after we came out of that Pisces season. We're just like, all right, time to start fresh and talk out what I want to bring in. And then we got the new moon on April 17th, and this one is an Aries, so we're going into that fiery energy. So Aries, of course, is a fire sign. Um, it is the Emperor in the tarot deck, so it can hold a lot of like a lot of masculine energy, right? Because it's like how we get stuff done, um, how we kind of take uh our lives like forward and things like that. But uh with this new moon ignites a power, obviously, of new beginnings, right? We're heading into that new year, so calling you to really step into your sovereignty and take action. So the emperor and that male energy is that action energy. Um, this energy supports bold leadership and self-trust, and it also sparks like new ideas and desires. So get creativity going. And this is an invitation to obviously a fresh start, so guided by courage and not fear. So use this fiery energy, it's a really fast moving energy, too. Usually, usually fire has to do with the wands in um in tarot as well, which is a pretty quick moving energy. So, yeah, definitely move from a place of courage and strength and not fear.

SPEAKER_01 13:21

Not fear, yeah, yeah. Cool, I love that message, and I love Aries season, it's just so needed after the winter we go through in Saskatchewan, and I just like feel like the days are longer, there's more sun, and just that that energy just shifts, and I just really freaking love it. So I'm looking forward to that.

SPEAKER_03 13:41

Yeah, and it's a really good way to like kind of get self-empowered again, yeah. You know, especially if you kind of feel lost after like that longest winter month of life, so it's just like time to regain who we are and remember who we are and get stuff going, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:58

Because when you think of like the Aries season and then like the first house, it's all about self. And it's really funny the timing of our episode here. It's going, we're talking about self-reiki going into self, and yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's get into that. Okay, yeah. So I, you know, if you're here listening to this podcast, you are most likely a Reiki practitioner and you do know about what self-reiki is, but we just wanted to give like a quick rundown in case someone is brand new to Reiki and this is the first episode um you're tuning into. And self-reiki is essentially just a simple practice of placing your hands on your own body and allowing that energy to flow where it needs to go.

SPEAKER_03 14:45

Absolutely. And like you obviously learn uh self-reiki when you get your level one, and it's really important that people really commit to doing self-reiki after they get their level one just to get really familiar with the energy. And of course, the more we practice doing self-reiki, the more we get familiar with the energy, and the stronger the sensations and everything get, and we get more connected to the flow of the energy as well.

SPEAKER_01 15:11

Yeah, yeah. And I I was just reading in one of my books here before I hopped on about the importance of self-reiki. And this one author, she believes that the you know, the most clear, best or I don't forget the word she used, but like I I guess you could say the best Reiki practitioners are the ones that have a consistent self-reiki practice themselves because we're keeping our vessel clear so then we can be able to channel and clear and help other people, right? So we're filling our cup up first. And she also had a really good analogy for um the Reiki energy flowing, and she said it was about like if you think of a sponge, a dry sponge, and it gets wet. So that water knows where to go. You're not like telling the water where to go on the sponge. So if you think of that Reiki energy flowing through your body like water on a dry sponge, it's gonna go where it needs to go. Reiki is so intelligent that we can just trust that when we are doing Reiki, it's gonna flow. And the other beautiful thing is like, you know, instead of always outsourcing our healing, it's like I feel like things are shifting where we need to focus inward. And it's like you have the power to heal yourself, and it's like you're tuning into yourself. What makes you feel better? Like what messages does your body have for you today? You know, like if you have a neck ache, it's like, is somebody like being a pain in your neck today? Is there something going on? Is there a message there for you? And it's just, you know, instead of like popping the tile and all and walking out the door and running to work, it's like taking that extra five minutes and placing your hands on that on your neck and just tuning into your body and being like, okay, what what do you need to move through this in this moment? And it's just like hearing those whispers of your body before they turn into screams, like, of course, physically, mentally, spiritually, like it's all connected. So I think it's just such an amazing practice to always go back to, but also to build consistency.

SPEAKER_03 17:28

Yeah, and then too, when you're doing that self-reiki on a regular basis, you kind of clear out the stuff before it can compound and get really into physical pain, too. Another benefit, of course, right? So even if we don't really notice maybe a huge shift because we're just getting rid of all the dust before it turns into grime, you know, sticking. That's a good way to put it. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And we're not, of course, talking about you having to move through all the hand positions and make sure you're spending five minutes at each one and and doing that. Like, we're talking about you can give yourself Reiki at any time, like going through, like if when I'm having my coffee in the morning, or like if I'm stopped at the traffic light, like all those little things that we do, like really do count. Um, and like I can share right now, like when the importance of like when I'm teaching level one and going through um self-reiki, like it is really important to get familiar with that energy, and whether that's scanning your chakras just to kind of see where they're at, or if you want to just do spot treatments on yourself because your neck is sore, or because you know your wrist hurts. My wrist was weirdly flaring up yesterday, actually, Christy. And I of course I'm like overanalyzing it. I'm like, okay, it's the right side. What am I trying to control? Why is my wrist aching? And I'm like, I feel like I'm in like no control right now, and I feel weirdly okay with it. It's just funny that it that it was happening. And today was fine because I was like giving it Reiki. I didn't have to go through my whole body, but I was like, hey, well, like I can help myself and place my hand on my wrist and give myself some Reiki. So it's just a really good practice, too, especially if you got your level one, like get in there, get take, start taking care of your own body.

SPEAKER_01 19:16

Yeah, a hundred percent. And you know, I I was also thinking about like a way to remember to do self-reiki is call or I wanted to call it like a Reiki snack. Instead of like, you know, sitting down for a whole Reiki meal, like a 30-minute full-body treatment, do the Reiki snack at sitting at that red light, like the one book I was reading by Lisa Campion, she said she'll like she's at a red light, she'll place one hand on her heart. And it's just those simple snacks that just over time are you know gonna make a difference. And you know, when I think about calling my own self out here, about that release I had. If I would have done self-reiki consistently and you know, take out the trash at the end of the day, maybe I wouldn't have had to have that massive release to release all of that. So it's like, yeah, yeah, it's just really inspiring, yeah, to do self-reiki because I it's like with myself, I don't do something until something happens. Like I'm not proactive. You know, it's like, oh okay, now my neck hurts. Now I'm gonna do self-reiki. It's like, but why don't we do it proactively so it doesn't get to that point? So I'm sitting here, I'm human, I'm I'm not perfect, and I'm just I know a lot of people can probably relate to what what I'm sharing.

SPEAKER_03 20:45

Yeah, it's actually the best when I'm teaching regularly because it reminds me, right? I've been forcing this into my students, and like, okay, yes, and then I get into like a good rhythm. Yeah, and then it yeah, yeah. But of course, right now I'm I'm in a different rhythm, but yeah, the self-reiki is is super important. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 21:06

Yeah, and I guess the next thing we could talk about is like why why this practice matters. And of course, we can talk about like the many health benefits for having that consistent Reiki practice, but I feel like my favorite part is tuning into yourself and building that trust and relationship with your own mind, body, and spirit, and just like lowering your stress levels. It's funny, like as I'm sitting here, like I before this, I drove on the highway home and I had um a coffee, and I usually don't have a coffee at this time of the day, and like I have anxiety from all this caffeine. So I've been sitting here with my hand on my heart and hand on my belly, just trying to process this energy out because it's just like it's a little intense right now. But um, but what else I want? To talk about was uh also our nervous system, how beneficial Reiki is to the nervous system. Like, of course, when you go for a Reiki treatment, that's always my focus, and my goal is to calm that nervous system down so the healing can happen. And the healing journey that I went through with um a naturopathic doctor that specializes in um acne, because I dealt with acne for like 10 years, and right off the hop, she told me, we gotta calm your nervous system down. I have a meditation that you need to listen to every day before we do anything else. Because she said, You can eat all the clean food, you can do the training, you can do everything, but if your nervous system isn't calmed down, this isn't gonna do anything. And you know, when I first heard that, I was like, Yeah, yeah. Like I know a lot about the nervous system, but I like didn't wanna I don't know, I was just kind of being stubborn, I guess. And um, she was right, she was very right until I shifted myself out of that fight, flight, or freeze into like the more um like more calm and not like on edge all the time, that is when the dial moves. So if you're trying to find your why for yourself, Reiki, just ask yourself like if you want to go down like the nervous system path, like that could be your why, trying to calm everything down. And and also like when you have that why and say it's like, oh, I'm running late this morning, I don't have time for my Reiki practice. It's like tuning into that why and tuning into yourself is so essential, like having that why. Why am I doing this for myself?

SPEAKER_03 23:48

Yeah, and it's it's really important to have those quiet moments and to listen to your body too, just to even just hit up that one or two spots, too, right? Yeah, I agree with I agree with that lady about having to get control of your nervous system. Like, holy man. I just think of someone who's like, you know, really spiky as opposed to somebody who's more smooth, right? And calm and collected, like water. And it's just it even the Reiki would, if you're trying to give yourself Reiki and you're hyperventilating, imagine what that's trying to push through as opposed to someone who's just kind of taken a few deep breaths and have calmed everything out.

SPEAKER_01 24:28

Yeah, 100%. Like your body is like worried about something else. It's like, I I'm not gonna heal, I don't feel safe. Like, what what do you want me to do here?

SPEAKER_03 24:39

I know, and I've had clients like that too, right? Where it's almost like like I think I've used this metaphor before, but it's like trying to give somebody a hug, but their arms are like crossed in front of you, like, don't hug me. You know, it's kind of that same thing. It's like we need to calm everything down and open ourselves up first.

SPEAKER_01 24:57

Yeah, that's a really good visual. Yeah, yeah. I like that. All right, so let's get into what it can feel like. So from your experience, Amanda, like what what do you feel when you're doing self-reiki?

SPEAKER_03 25:15

You know, I feel like a lot of um like hot and cold for sure, like when I'm doing Reiki and on myself, but I can also feel where like my energy is and in my body, so it's almost like a like a magnetic pole, kind of. And I can even gauge like how open my body is and things like that, but it's almost like a current, if you will. So I can feel that energy like whooshing. Sometimes it's even like waving underneath my hands, and I can either feel like my body sucking the energy into it, or I can feel like um um not really the opposite, but yeah, I can just feel when my body is pulling energy in. It's almost like a throbbing, it's really quite interesting, but I know for a lot of people it can feel like many different things, hot or cold, or like even like static y, they can feel it like that. What about you? What are what are you feeling?

SPEAKER_01 26:14

I always feel a lot of heat, especially around um like the hand play, like if I'm doing the traditional hand placements, like around the head, like there's always a lot of heat there. And you know, sometimes when I have the intention to do the traditional hand placements, before you know it, it's like I'm standing and doing like qi gong and just like flowing the energy out. It just really depends on the day and my intention. But I feel like it's my hands are always moving if I'm doing like an intuitive Reiki session, I guess, with myself. But uh, if I'm laying in bed and I'm trying to clear my mind before I'm going to bed, I think like my favorite thing is just doing like the hand placements around the head and on the temples. And you know, it's funny, like as I'm thinking about, like, I'm not really tuning into the feeling. Like it's funny because you you're feeling what's going on in your hands, but then it's also your own body. So it's like, what am I paying attention to? So I I don't really focus too much on how it feels. I just trust that however however it's flowing, it's going where it needs to go, I guess.

SPEAKER_03 27:31

Yeah, that's funny, hey. You're trying to feel it, yeah, being the practitioner and the receiver at the same time. That's funny. Yeah, fair. Yeah, you have both hats on there, so yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, and how about like when we're like getting started? What it like, what do you recommend for people who are just trying to get started and self-reiki?

SPEAKER_01 27:56

Yeah, I think like if you're a newbie and you just have your level one, or say you are a Reiki practitioner and you are coming back to this practice after a while, I would start with the traditional hand placements and get a feel for what that feels like. Because I think sometimes when we don't go in with a plan, we don't know what to do. So if you go in with the traditional hand placements, you're doing what you need to do and just kind of I feel like that would be a really good place to start. Or you could also scan your chakras and just kind of get a feel for how all of that goes. But I think starting with those hand placements would be the best place.

SPEAKER_03 28:44

Yeah, I think a lot of people kind of want something like more structured, like, no, just tell me what to do. So I'm not like, am I doing this right? Like, is this okay? You know, I feel like there could be a lot of that, especially if you're really trying to take it on by yourself. And it's like, okay, I went to the class and I took my one, now I'm out on my own, and it's just like, Am I doing this right? kind of comes up, right? So it is probably a really good idea just to have some guidance. And like, if you didn't get standard hand positions, like pictures of what they look like, you can Google them. There's like even the ones that I give out to my students, they're from like 1980, they're really old school. So I even found some newer ones that are look more modern that I also give suggestions to as well, because there's no right or wrong for the Reiki hand placements, but it's just to give you an idea of where to go, what you could do. And then if you want to be guided to go somewhere else or adjust accordingly, by all means, we always encourage that.

SPEAKER_01 29:47

Yeah, yeah, 100% to always like trust that intuitive sense. Like if I'm over my eyes and I feel like my hip is like twinging or like doing something, it's like maybe I put one hand on my hip and still keep that one hand over my eye, and maybe something's connected there that's moving through. And yeah, you just never know. And I think also if you meditate or if you do breath work, I feel like you can always weave Reiki into anything else that you do as well. And you know, being in the bathtub is actually another really good place to do Reiki. I really like doing it there.

SPEAKER_03 30:23

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Well, because water is so healing, especially, right? But I've really enjoyed uh doing Reiki at night before bed on myself, and so I'm like literally laying in bed, and especially just with me healing my body, and then Callie's like in the bassinet beside me, and I am like sending Reiki to me and her, and then I have my hands like my palms face up, so I can receive the Reiki coming into my hands, and then I literally am talking so nice to my body. I think that's key too. Like, I'm just like so much gratitude to my body for healing like it can, and it's healing so quickly, and it's amazing, and then I'm feeling the Reiki flow into all the areas of my body, just kind of like go into wherever they need to go, and then allow my hands kind of to move so wherever they want to go. So, right now, a lot of it's like near my sacral and my solar plexus, but you know, it's another thing you can do is scanning your body too, and this comes maybe when you've done a lot of self-reiki and you feel comfortable doing this, is just allowing your hands to kind of glide over your system and just see what where they get sticky and what maybe needs your attention if you're unsure. So you can always do that as well. But for a lot of the time, I'm even just laying with my hands down by my side and I'm pulling that energy down into me and allowing it to go wherever it is while my hands don't move at all. So just keep that in mind.

SPEAKER_01 31:55

Yeah, yeah, something I discovered. I like that, and just like we forget how important or powerful intention is. If you set that intention for the energy to flow that way, that's what's gonna happen. I really love that. Just like open to receiving, and of course, like with our hands, and when we talked about the mudras, when you have your hands open, it's like, yeah, okay, I'm ready to receive. So, yeah, that's a that's a beautiful practice. I like that. Yeah, and then with the 21-day practice, is this something that you tell your students to focus on with level one?

SPEAKER_03 32:36

I do, yeah, I do. It was taught to me that way, and it's again it's because of the 21 days Dr. Usui spent at on the Mount Kor Koriyama when he spent in the cave for 21 days meditating. So that is the symbolism between the obviously the 21 days they want you to practice, and then it's 21 days between levels one and level two. That's how my traditional usui is. I think a lot of usui practices are like that. If you're learning level one and two, I know there's a whole like people fire it out in all of a weekend or they group one and two together. Mine really wanted that 21 days in between, and honestly, I kind of like it. I'm sorry if people maybe don't agree, but really you need to like get familiar with the energy before you start working on others. So, right, level two, you're really taking on clients and working and holding space for others. But like, if you can't even scan your own body and feel the energy in your own body, how are you gonna work on someone else? So I really think it's important to get familiar with that energy by working on yourself. And Christy and I have said this before: you can only take people as far as you've taken yourself. Yeah, so and you mentioned first thing in the episode if you're a clear channel, you're a better space for others too.

SPEAKER_01 33:53

Yeah, 100%. You're not gonna get triggered when things happen. It's like taking that accountability of your own self and your own energy is just so, so important. And yeah, it's just it in this whole conversation, it's like I want to start a 21-day practice and I want to journal it and just see see where this goes. Because I, you know, as I've shared before, consistency isn't my best friend, and it's like I'm always, you know, starting something and not finishing something. And I was thinking about that today, and you know what somebody um somebody linked it to if someone has a problem with consistency, is the energy of birth control. So when you're on birth control, your body is thinking that you're gonna be having a baby, right? So you're going through all these things, your body's like, yep, we're gonna have a baby, it's gonna be great, and then no baby comes. So it's like you're not finishing that cycle. So it's like your whole body is tuning into like, let's start something, but we don't have the power to finish it, we don't have the energy to finish it, we're not worthy of finishing something. So that's always stuck with me. That that's something that um interesting to think about. Food for thought if that resonates with anybody else, but uh, but yeah.

SPEAKER_03 35:18

That's so interesting. I'm just like thinking, I mean, I haven't been on birth control in years, like both both Christy and I we ditched that a long time ago because we didn't like the hormone shift, right? And what it does to a woman's body. But I mean, I definitely, you know, I get it for a lot of women, it's very convenient. But yeah, interesting. Yeah, if that resonates with you, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 35:47

And there is um there is a homeopathic uh treatment to clear the energy of the birth control out of the system as well, which is really, really fascinating. Um, and then I remember you read a really good book on birth control as well.

SPEAKER_03 36:01

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:02

Yeah, yeah, I do.

SPEAKER_03 36:04

I think it's so interesting. It's even like it even disrupts how you pick a partner in life. Yes, the pheromones. Because your hormones really aren't your own. So yeah, there's a lot. It's a lot to it. So it's very good. I wish I could remember what that book was that I read. Yeah, it was years and years ago, but anyways, yeah, it sold me and I cut off a bit. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 36:27

Yeah, yeah, that's a whole other, whole other rabbit hole, of course, we could go down. Totally. Yeah, okay. We'll get back to um our topic here. So the other thing we wanted to talk about was like common blocks. So, what what could come up that could stop us from being consistent or like being like not perfect enough, or what am I doing? And it's just, I think, well, with myself, I always want things to be perfect. I won't start unless it's perfect. And it's like, I really needed to surrender to that and just trust that to do those Reiki snacks whenever I had the time to do it, instead of being like, I need to do it at 7 a.m. every morning. It's like, no, squeeze it in when you can. And it's yeah, when like the coffee's brewing, do a little self-treatment. And then I even heard of people like when they're on the toilet, do a little check-in, like just those little things or brushing your teeth. It's just all these things that you can habit stack with other things, I think would be a great way to set yourself up for success. And the other thing I wanted to touch on was if you don't feel anything, it's like that's okay. If you don't feel anything, just trust that the Reiki is doing something. And I feel like also like with a consistent practice, things are gonna start to shift and change, and maybe you will start feeling something.

SPEAKER_03 37:52

And and honestly, I've had a lot of students too, and like even myself included, you know, I'll be scanning my chakras, and then all of a sudden, like one spot, I'll be like, Oh, this either feels like nothing really, or maybe it's just really dim. But then move on and keep going. How keep going down, keep yeah, it's very common for people maybe not to feel as much energy somewhere as they do at other places, especially when you're working on yourself, yeah. Um, or even on a client, really, for that matter. But uh yeah, I know it's hard to kind of uh dedicate yourself, and I know what you mean, Christy, about like finding a routine, right? Because then it's just it's easier when we have structure to fit it in. Because it's almost like we forget that oh, I could have used that time to do Reiki, or I could have used that time to do something else. But yeah, try to get it in whenever you can, and even like for me, I have little reminders on my phone. If you have an iPhone, there's a little reminder tab, and I just have one that pops up at 10 o'clock, and it's just like do so and so. Right now, it's for me, it's do Kegels. Yeah, that's a good idea. Trying to restrain my pelvic floor, but for you, it could be like, hey, do five minutes of Reiki because it's 10 o'clock, so a notification will pop up in your phone. You know, you could do things like that too to help you kind of overcome those blocks. And then, you know, when you get into the habit of stuff, then it becomes routine and it's constantly in your mind. So things like that could definitely help, or you know, even if you did a generic like do it in the morning or at night, you know, even that could help. So then it's you're not limiting yourself to a certain time, but you know you need to do it before your day really starts or before it ends.

SPEAKER_01 39:33

Yeah, and just flow into what feels right for you. Like maybe you're not a morning person, maybe you'd rather do it at night time, and it just yeah, it's just not being perfect about it. I guess, but you know, as I say that, it's like people work with different, thrive in different environments. Some people like Virgo Energy, like love schedule, love consistency. And then like someone that is like kind of scattered, like me, it's like I really feel into the moment. It's like, oh okay, in this moment I feel like doing Reiki, so I'm gonna do it, rather than like having that structure. So it's really tuning into yourself and what feels best and that consistency. I can't stress that enough, and I feel like I'm being a big hypocrite right now, but it's just like those little consistency um moves the dial. And this makes me think of um one of the women I work with. She had a group chat of us going, and every hour we would get up and do 10 squats, and I was like, Oh, this is dumb. So I like kind of left the group chat. I was like, I'm out, I don't want to do this. And this was probably about a year ago, and she consistently followed those little movement snacks, and then she was so inspired by the way it it was helping her body and her strength by just doing those little movement snacks that she ended up working with a personal trainer, and like she's lost 40 pounds and she's killing it. So it's like you don't know where those little consistency, consistency little breaks in the day are gonna take you. So it's just kind of a way to show that you know, it's not these grand gestures that move the dial. It's uh the things that you do for yourself day in and day out, those little moments that you show up for yourself. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 41:27

I love that she did that, right? Because that's how they say you can have it built, is like those little things stacking. Yeah, that's amazing. So motivating.

SPEAKER_01 41:37

It is, it makes me think I was like, damn, if I would have stuck to a load eye, you know, it's like, damn, yeah, quads of steel you'd have now. Yeah, yeah. Even the girls the other day, there's a group of them still doing it. They get up and do um do squats or just walk in place or go do the stairs. And I was like, Yeah, because working at a desk job, you can't become pretty sedentary where it's like, oh, three hours has gone by and I haven't even got up. Like, this is not good.

SPEAKER_03 42:05

Especially if you're in a zone, yeah, it's yeah. Next thing you know, you like go to sit straight and it's like crunching everywhere. Oh man, yeah. But you know, I've really been relying on self-reiki right now, especially. And even when I was in labor and delivery, like I was trying to pull on that, even though the pain was fast and furious. I was still trying to be conscious about it, which I don't know. Maybe it helped. I I don't know. It went pretty quick, but uh especially now with recovery and even my recovery, because I've been conscious of talking nice to my body, because I remember last time when I was healing with Bo, I remember being so annoyed and like kind of angry that it was taking forever and I just wanted to get back and feel good. Well, I'm sure that only slowed down my healing process, so I'm very conscious about it now. Um, and it's it's way better. I also had a natural delivery or vaginal delivery as opposed to a C-section. So that's a game changer in its own. That's like comparing apples to oranges, but uh yeah, just uh giving myself Reiki too, just even when I have headaches or I'm fatigued, right? Even just like helping with my energy levels, like it's it's a really good thing. So even if you're tired and you don't want to do it, you know, giving yourself Reiki can really help boost your energy. And even my dad's been sending me Reiki at night, he loves to do his Reiki at night, and just like sending me energy for the for the day, which is wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 43:38

Yeah, that is wonderful. I love that he's doing that.

SPEAKER_03 43:42

I know me too. Yes, yes, please, dad. Yeah, to recede now.

SPEAKER_01 43:48

That's right, yes. Yeah, I love that you have that positive dialogue with yourself because that can go a long way. Like, holy cow, that makes a big difference, and it's just It's cool to think about, you know, pairing Reiki with like the positive talk and then like doing other things. It's like Reiki can just like pair with so many different things. It's like ranch or ketchup. You know, it's like good on so many different things. It's just like I must be hungry. There's so many food references today. But um that's funny. But yeah, I I feel like, yeah, I feel like that's a good good place to end. Um, do you have anything else to share?

SPEAKER_03 44:31

Yeah, no, I'm good too. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 44:34

All right. So should we get into the card poll to absolutely see shift things around over here?

SPEAKER_03 44:47

All right. So I'm using my psychic tarot deck, and I honestly don't know if I've used this recently or not, so bear with me. Cards came planet. Oh wow. Okay, so we have the moon card, the world, the universe, patience, and at the bottom of the deck is triumph. We got all major arcana cards, which is hilarious. And you know, it's actually really fitting because we're in April and we're going through this new beginning and new year energy. So we, you know, major arcana cards is all about like major shifts happening in life. So we have the moon card, so it's like that shadow self and really looking into yourself. And we're all about completing cycles with the world card too. It's like things are finally becoming full circle and are being closed off. So a lot of you who are trying to get like a new beginning and get things going, uh, you could be holding on to some old stuff that hasn't fully been able to kind of complete yet. So honestly, even if it's like um something like that needed to close off, like even like a breakup or a friendship that just, you know, you needed to have that last conversation, or they needed to finally get that CD out of your car. Ha, CD. They needed to get like whatever out of your car. And and it's like that finally happened, so now that's wrapped up. And so now you can get ready to go ablazing into the new. So I know people who can get really frustrated when things aren't moving fast enough. I have the chariot card showing up as a flip card at the bottom. So that's all about that quick movement paired with the patience um card. So it's just like, you know, we want things to move at a pace that we think we should. And we're two, we're in a time of like instant gratification, right? So it's really hard when things take, you know, four to six weeks to heal, which is me right now. And it's like we want those things now, but we have to know that once we get clear on our intentions, so really work with this the moon cycles coming up. That's the other thing with this moon card. Work with these moon cycles in April, get really clear on what you want and just hold the faith and then practice the art of being patient and knowing that what you're asking for is already here, it's already here. You just need to put it out there and then allow it to manifest in. And then things will get more accelerated and will come through. And even if you're speaking it out loud, too, that's even gonna help uh quicken things up because you know we can think it and we can hold it into our belief system. But even if we talk about it and voice it out even louder, it almost brings a stronger punch into what we want and what we want to manifest, especially if we're trying to create a new beginning, yeah, and and get our new path going. So think about what that wants. Let the old stuff really finally clear out, which is really good timing going into April, and then we're going into this brand new energy that will happen. Just get clear on what we want here.

SPEAKER_01 47:59

Yeah, major arcana.

SPEAKER_03 48:01

Wow, yeah, a lot of yeah. So I actually really like that energy, so it's like big shifts are happening, not just like subtle little things.

SPEAKER_01 48:10

It's like, all right, time to take out the big guns and getting shifted, and that just is so in line with everything that we talked about and the whole Aries season, clearing things out, releasing in that Pisces new moon. Now we're ready to move in. So yeah, and being um intentional about the full moon too. Maybe that's it. I need to get back into my full moon um rituals here, like maybe just like a journaling practice or doing even say self-Rakey with letting things go on that full moon. So yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 48:46

I you know what? I actually well after we talked about like the moon cycles, I really want to make sure that I am getting back into, especially this month, with like all the changes I've been experiencing to get back into working with those moon cycles for sure.

SPEAKER_01 49:01

Yes, there's so much power right now in the moon. Like I actually have a um homeopathic remedy named Luna that was is made um or it has the moon energy in it to help you with your cycle. So every cycle you're moving through. So it's interesting that I've been taking that remedy, but not listening to the moon cycle intentionally, but following it, like my body's been following it without even me knowing it. So yeah, sorry, I'm just having all of these aha moments for after that reading coming through here. That's awesome, that's good. Yeah, good. All right, so yes, um, you can find us at Livin' the Reiki Life on Instagram, and of course, we have our personal pages, and mine is The Birch Soul.

SPEAKER_03 49:50

Yes, and mine is Rake with Manda. Uh, my bookings are still on hiatus uh at the moment, um, because I'm not taking clients right now, but I am actually teaching a level one in April, April 19th, actually, online. If anyone is interested in joining that, I had someone reach out and I'm like, yes, online teaching I can definitely do right now. I love teaching, so I'm super happy to incorporate at least that back in while I'm just kind of getting back into my flow. So if you're interested in that, check it out. I'm gonna make a creative booking on my online, but for regular clients right now, I am not. But go see Christy if you need a session. She's still taking reiki clients, of course.

SPEAKER_01 50:33

I doors always open, yes.

SPEAKER_03 50:36

Yeah, holding the space while I can't.

SPEAKER_01 50:39

Yes. All right. Well, thanks everyone. Yeah, hope you enjoyed and get ready with your or get started on your 21 days, or just do a little Reiki snacks. So, yeah, thanks everyone for tuning in.

SPEAKER_03 50:53

Love that. Okay, bye.