Experience of a Reiki session.
BACKGROUND
Touch therapies, including Reiki, are increasingly popular complementary therapies. Previous studies of touch therapies have yielded equivocal findings.


OBJECTIVE
Exploring the experiences of Reiki recipients contributes to understanding the popularity of touch therapies and possibly elucidates variables for future studies.


METHODS
Descriptive study with quantitative and qualitative data. This report focuses on qualitative interview data. Thematic analysis was used to discern patterns in the experience.


METHODS
All Reiki treatments were given in a sound proof windowless room by one Reiki master. Audiotaped interviews were conducted immediately after the treatment in a quiet room adjoining the treatment room.


METHODS
Generally healthy volunteers (N=23) who were naive to Reiki.


METHODS
Standardized, 30-minute Reiki session.


METHODS
Interview data supported by quantitative data.


RESULTS
Participants described a liminal state of awareness in which sensate and symbolic phenomena were experienced in a paradoxical way. Liminality was apparent in participants' orientation to time, place, environment, and self Paradox also was seen in participants' symbolic experiences of internal feelings, cognitive experience, and external experience of relationship to the Reiki master.


CONCLUSIONS
Liminal states and paradoxical experiences that occur in ritual healing are related to the holistic nature and individual variation of the healing experience. These findings suggest that many linear models used in researching touch therapies are not complex enough to capture the experience of participants.
Engebretson
Joan
J
University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, USA.
Wardell
Diane Wind
DW
D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy*; D001364:Awareness; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012107:Research Design; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D019124:Therapeutic Touch; D016896:Treatment Outcome