I'm agreeing with you on the Empath thing, BIG TIME. one of my friends that talks about how hard it is for her as an empath once phoned me up. I'd just had one of my rats put to sleep, and I said, sorry, I can't really talk, xxxx has been put to sleep. it's like she didn't even hear me, started offloading about how awful her day was, unloading and unloading and unloading, not even noticing that I was just crying while she did that. got to her bus stop, she said bye, and hung up.
I love her to bits, she's a really kind person, but she talks over me, doesn't hear me if she's focused on her own thing, and definitely ISN'T an empath, if she didn't notice the person she was talking to was crying, and too fragile to take on her burdens of the day on top of losing a much loved pet.
as for the first point. I practice Reiki myself. I love sound therapy. but I'm completely honest with people. there isn't any scientific proof. I can only go by how I feel during and after a treatment both giving and receiving it, and how people I've treated tell me they feel.
if people ask me if it's real, I tell them. there is no proof. but this is what a lot of people say about having a treatment. and there is, of course, every possibility that it might be the placebo effect, but that IS still an effect. if having a Reiki treatment helps induce the placebo effect enough to make you feel better, have a better nights sleep, experience less pain etc. then that can only be a good thing. I can't tell you it's definitely real. I can only tell you how it feels to me, and to others. it won't cure anything, but it might make you feel better than you were, and there's no harm in trying.
but if someone isn't interested, then you shouldn't keep pushing it at them.