Retraining as a reiki practitioner

[Mydogpongs]

I woke up again this morning so unhappy about work, my boss, my workload, my bank balance, time away from my family and home and decided I need to do something about it.

I got a very odd ball of energy feeling my tummy when the thought of training in reiki popped into my head. Now I'm not a hippy or anything and have never had reiki and i know little to nothing about it but I can't shift this feeling. It feels like it's the universe telling me why has ut taken so long to realise this is what I'm meant to do!

Would I be mad to do this? Could I make a living doing this? I'd there anyone willing to give me the lowdown on this sort of work? Any pointers or reality checks are welcome but please be kind.

Do you have reiki therapy? I would imagine it's like most alternative therapies, it depends how well you market yourself and where you live.

Isn’t it, you know, absolute nonsense?

I have reiki once a month. It's lovely! I just use it as a form of deep relaxation much to my practitioner's disappointment - I think he'd prefer it if I was more at one with the universe during the sessions rather than snoring gently!

My friend is a practitioner. She does reiki, and other things like reflexology, massage etc - holistic approach to wellness basically. Reiki isnt for everyone (including me tbh), but some people swear by it. If you fancy it, do your research re costs of training etc and see if you think you can make it work in your area.

Yep, complete and utter nonsense with no basis in science at all. It's basically the massage equivalent of homeopathy.

I believe so. I was referred (by my GP, on the NHS!) for therapy with regard to my IBS - this was the late 90s. She practised hypnotherapy (didn't work on me at all) and Reiki (ditto). I quite liked sitting and listening to her soothing voice in a nice, calm, aromatherapy environment for an hour every week for 6 weeks but I can't say it did anything for my IBS.

To be honest with you I don't think you could earn a living wage doing this treatment . You could use it alongside another job . I have friends who have treatment rooms in their homes , they also work another jobs . I'd like to wish you all the best.

I'm a 'qualified' reiki practitioner! I should say upfront that I think it's all bollocks - any good that comes of it (and it sometimes does) comes from the person getting your full attention and goodwill for an hour or so. You can achieve this with any alternative therapy; reiki's the easiest to deliver because you don't actually do anything.

There are plenty of reiki trainers and self-accredited 'professional' bodies that will give you a certificate after you've paid for the training. Mine was three days in person, with a lot of bullshit health education, some quasi-therapy content and some pretend 'energy' rituals with bell-ringing and air signs. Just find one that seems convenient to you.

Can you make a living from it? Probably not. Most practitioners offer a range of holistic therapies; most of their income comes from the massages and reflexology, etc. You need to be good at helping people feel calm, centred and contented.

You may as well go for it, in your spare time to start with. See if you can start building a good reputation among friends and friends of friends. Wishing you best ... and sending success energy your way, of course 😉

The fact that a friend of mine who is a reiki practitioner said I don't even have to be there for the session to help my back, should be enough to tell you it's nonsense.

Placebo has a 50% success rate ...

Waste of your money
It's more woo

It's bollocks.

Can I ask who you trained with and woukd you recommend them?

Can't remember her name. She was a somewhat overbearing Australian with, apparently, a strong reputation but this was quite a while back. Frankly, it doesn't matter! That course cost about a grand - you can find much cheaper ones, some only take a couple of hours over Zoom.

How miserable for you to do a job that involves lying to people about that you believe.

It's not my job?

Anything that requires the client to use discretionary spending choice on it will always be the first thing to suffer in a downturn of economic fortunes.
Do you find you are really good at creating a soothing energy in a room, when others are jittery or going ten to the dozen, are you the one who can centre people's focus and make things become steady and calm?
I wouldn't quit my job and go and learn it... Start it as a side hustle, and see what demand is like, if you're beating clients off with a stick (not literally, pretty sure that's not good reiki practice) you could quit your day job then.
Nothing worth doing labs on your lap overnight, so if you think it's a good idea, take step one and go from there.
Have some reiki done on you
Learn how to do it
Practice on others...

Somewhere along the way it will become clear whether it's just a will'o'the wisp or a serious contender for your income. Meanwhile don't resign yet.

Yes, so the OP needs to research whether there’s an appetite for paying for this precise brand of nonsense locally.

Check out the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology website

If you can live with the dubious ethics of selling unconditional positive regard and the placebo effect as something tangible, go ahead. Why not combine it with other nonsense practices such as tarot, crystals and chakra cleansing whilst you're at it?

Don't forget you'd need to sell or market your practice, it doesn't just fall into your lap.

Lots of people forget about that part of it.

You're taking the words out of my mouth. Was going to suggest reiki-cum-palm reading.

The placebo effect is tangible. This year's Ig Nobel prize for medicine went to research proving that a fake medicine with painful side effects is more effective than one with no side effects. www.newscientist.com/article/2447781-ig-nobel-prizes-2024-the-unexpected-science-that-won-this-year/ www.newscientist.com/article/2447781-ig-nobel-prizes-2024-the-unexpected-science-that-won-this-year/]]]] Query the ethics of it all you like, but the placebo effect absolutely exists and is tangible!

Would you be easy in your conscience making a living from snake oil?

I know the placebo effect is tangible, but how many reiki practitioners are saying to their clients that this is not what it purports to be, it's just the placebo effect? The dubious ethics is in lying to people, though I'd suggest most reiki practitioners are not trained in psychology, so probably just benevolently ignorant.

Hypnotherapy would be a better avenue to go down OP. It is the placebo effect used in a more explicit way.