"Alternative Medicine Goes Mainstream"

Mention of reiki in an AP article today. I don't think this is the way to popularize it, though.

Bruce

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_med_unproven_remedies

"At one of the nation's top trauma hospitals, a nurse circles a patient's bed, humming and waving her arms as if shooing evil spirits. Another woman rubs a quartz bowl with a wand, making tunes that mix with the beeping monitors and hissing respirator keeping the man alive.

"They are doing Reiki therapy, which claims to heal through invisible energy fields. The anesthesia chief, Dr. Richard Dutton, calls it "mystical mumbo jumbo." Still, he's a fan.

"'It's self-hypnosis' that can help patients relax, he said. 'If you tell yourself you have less pain, you actually do have less pain.'"

Bruce wrote:Mention of reiki in an AP article today. I don't think this is the way to popularize it, though.

Bruce

*******************************

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_med_unproven_remedies

"At one of the nation's top trauma hospitals, a nurse circles a patient's bed, humming and waving her arms as if shooing evil spirits. Another woman rubs a quartz bowl with a wand, making tunes that mix with the beeping monitors and hissing respirator keeping the man alive.

"They are doing Reiki therapy, which claims to heal through invisible energy fields. The anesthesia chief, Dr. Richard Dutton, calls it "mystical mumbo jumbo." Still, he's a fan.

"'It's self-hypnosis' that can help patients relax, he said. 'If you tell yourself you have less pain, you actually do have less pain.'"

"humming and waving her arms as if shooing evil spirits"
"rubs a quartz bowl with a wand"
"'It's self-hypnosis' that can help patients relax."


Doesn't sound like Reiki to me!

But it does precisely illustrate the point that when practicing (and teaching) Reiki then only Reiki should be practiced (and taught) - unless a very clear distinction is made that a certain technique which may be used alongside Reiki is NOT part of the Reiki system itself.

As you say, Bruce, this is definitely not the way to popularize Reiki or get it recognised by the majority of mainstream institutions (or even the general public)! It just gives so much ammunition to those who don't really know what Reiki is about to further spread misinformation.
I despair sometimes, I really do!

Ai to Hikari
Colin

You know what the next devlopment will be? Folks within the hopsital will see this as some kinda arcane magic of sorts, and the next thing will be Reiki will be took completely out of the hopsital, as the powers that be won't wanna offend anyone with archaic practices.

Then of course, the Reiki community will go 'up-in-arms' when professional bodies begin to 'oppose' Reiki. Course, what we won't realise, is whilst we thought we were living in the 1960's in Reiki-land and portraying Reiki as this multitude of things, and learning the 'original' supposed buddhist ways of Reiki, what we were actually doing was alienating Reiki to a sizeable portion of the world.

It's a fact..

some folks want nothing to do with Hinduism. Chakras in Reiki? Reiki isn't for us!

Some folks want nothing to do with Buddhism. Symbols represent deities? Reiki isn't for us!

Some folks want nothing to do with new age stuff, or wicca, etc? Crystals & sage? Mumbo jumbo, Reiki isn't for us!

I'm a major fan of all religions, but for something that's meant to be non-religious, i see a heck a lot of religious aspects folks tie it in with.


Whilst it's everyone's personal right to express their own spirituality as they wish, (and that should never be curtailed by anyone), the lines were'nt clearly drawn between a teachers personal spirituality, and what is actually Reiki. It's quite easy to teach Reiki without all the unnessary 'bulking' add-ons. All one has to do is self-educate themselves a bit.

And. if folks want Reiki in hopsitals, which, hehe, is of course the type of palce it would be useful, then let Reiki be portrayed in a neutral format, free from all the personal trappings that's been passed down in lineage. Like i suggested, it's easy for us to self-educate ourselves. If we care enough to...

.

Take care
Wayne

And here is exactly the type of article I was expecting, from a less sympathetic medical viewpoint but using all the erroneous ammunition the AP article gave!

http://roguemedic.blogspot.com/2009/06/shock-trauma-infested-with-evil-spirits.html

Mind you, this particular "rogue medic" seems also to have another axe to grind in relation to helicopter rides which means that many patients bypass other trauma units just to get to the one where Reiki is practiced. Maybe there is something in this Reiki thing, after all!

Ai to Hikari

Colin