My shift at Crisis as a Natural Healer

For the past few Christmases I have been out of the country, but for Christmas 2017, I stayed in the UK. One Sunday afternoon in early December, I was browsing the Crisis website. In addition to other skilled workers (Doctors, Hair stylists, Massage therapists etc), I saw that they requested Natural Healers to volunteer over the Christmas period.

I applied for the volunteering position and provided the relevant documentation. A few days later I received confirmation of acceptance. I had never helped Crisis over Christmas before but it had been on my mind to volunteer for some time. I was excited about helping out, meeting new people and was mostly looking forward to giving back. I drove into London on Boxing Day. The roads were clear and quiet so it was a pleasant and peaceful drive in. Appointments were being booked once we arrived that morning so at at first, the treatment sessions were a little slow. However, as the clients spoke to others, it was quick to pick up.

For most, clients, it was their first experience of natural healing so I spent some time talking about Reiki. During the sessions, I became aware of the need to really listen to the clients and to stay present. It's something so very little for me to do but I felt it meant a lot to them.  At the end of their treatments, some clients wanted to talk - about themselves and their life. Upon hearing some of their stories, it dawned on me how unexpectedly and quickly life can change. The experience left me feeling slightly subdued, but humbled at the resilience of some of the clients. At the end of the shift, I was packing up to leave and I spoke to another volunteer. I mentioned that it was my first shift at Crisis over Christmas. He laughed and said, “Be careful, it may get addictive”. 
Who knows, perhaps it will?

"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted"
-Aesop

How I met my Reiki Teacher

At the same time that I saw the Reiki poster in the bookshop in Pai (see Blog below), I also saw a poster about a retreat in Pai. I was curious about this, so emailed the listed contact. 

"Hi Judith, I am in Pai and saw your poster in a bookshop. When is the retreat for?"

"Dear Jaz, Thank you so much for your email inquiring about the retreats. However I am no longer in Pai, I am now living in Goa, India and am conducting workshops here. Are you coming to India?"

I was intrigued by her reply as I was heading to India. So I replied: "Hi Judith, I am actually coming to India in two weeks time. I'm planning to head north first and am thinking of heading to Goa for New Years. Do you have any tips? I have heard that Arambol beach is nice?"

"Jaz, with such a joyful laugh I read your email, the world is truly amazing and magical. I am in Arambol. Would be very happy to meet you and share the Shamballa teachings".

About a month later, I arrived in Delhi. At the airport, I met the taxi driver that I had pre-booked. I was informed we were waiting for another person. Brett was staying at the same location as me. Over the next few days, I found out that he was a Reiki Practitioner. Brett explained "anyone can become a Practitioner, you just need to be attuned to the energy". 

About three weeks into my trip in India, I flew to Goa and met Judith in Arambol. She was relaxed and very friendly. We talked through Reiki, how she discovered it and why she enjoys teaching it. Through our conversations over several days, I decided to complete the Self-Healing and Practitioner course.

Two years after my return to the UK, I went travelling to Myanmar and Thailand. I knew Judith was in Chiang Mai, so we had pre-arranged to meet. On the day of my flight for Chiang Mai, I messaged Judith to arrange the specifics of meeting up the next day. During our exchanges, it suddenly occurred to me to inquire about the Reiki Master level course. I was to be in Thailand for a week.

"Hi Judith by any chance, are you still teaching the Reiki Master course?"
"Yes I am Jaz. It is three days. Are you interested?"
"Yes. I just thought about it. When is the earliest you could start teaching? 
"How about in two days time? We can talk more about it when we meet tomorrow?"
"Sounds great Judith. See you tomorrow".
And so we did. We met on Saturday, had a wonderful catch up and I started the Reiki Master level course the very next day. Almost exactly two years after the first course.

“There are no coincidences. The Soul seeks its own path.”
Angela Gwinner

My first ever Reiki treatment

During my travels, I had heard about a small town in the north of Thailand called Pai. It is a four hour bus ride from Chiang Mai and quite famous as it has 762 curves on the road (re-think that heavy meal beforehand!). I had planned to spend some time in Pai, before travelling to India. 

On the day that I arrived in Pai, I walked into a bookshop and saw a poster regarding Reiki. I became intrigued. I had heard about Reiki in the UK but had never had a treatment, nor understood how it worked. How does someone provide this I wondered? In any case, I was curious and open to new experiences, so decided to send the person an email. Ann - a Reiki Practitioner in Pai, was available to give me a Reiki treatment. After a few email exchanges we arranged to meet.

Ann's house was quite a walk outside the main town. It was a beautiful day and was a lovely stroll. I rang the doorbell and she answered. I followed Ann to the room where she provided treatments. I sat on the side of the bench and we spoke. Originally from Germany, Ann was living in Pai at that time. When we were both ready, I laid down on the bench,  she played some soft music and began the treatment.

At first I didn't feel anything  - just a strong feeling of being relaxed. About ten minutes into the treatment, I felt some warmth and tingling throughout my body. At the end of the treatment, I felt so relaxed I didn't want to get up! She went to get me a warm drink as I sat up. She returned with the drink and I sipped on it as we talked about the experience. Ann mentioned that a lady called Judith taught her. "That's interesting. I might be seeing her in India" I mentioned (see next Blog). I paid Ann, thanked her and left. I didn't entirely understand how Reiki worked, but I strolled back to Pai with a feeling of lightness and feeling refreshed.

"If you want something you've never had, you must be willing to do something you've never done."

Thomas Jefferson

Benefits of Reiki

Here is a list of some benefits of Reiki

1. It's relaxing
   Reiki relaxes the body, muscles and can releases any tension. It can promote a peaceful mind set thereby reducing levels of stress.
2. Acts on all levels
   Reiki can clear blocked emotions and encourages emotional release. It works on all levels including the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual.
3. Balances energies
   Life events and general pressures of modern life can bring our energies out of balance. Reiki can help to restore this balance.
4. Adaptive & safe
   Reiki is gentle yet powerful and it adapts to the individual. As it is safe, it can be given to all individuals including babies and the elderly.
5. Stimulates spiritual growth
   Reiki reconnects to your true self and so can help in stimulating your spiritual growth.

"We are not physical beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a physical experience."
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin