Dr. Oz’s recent endorsement of Reiki on his popular tv show kindled interest among an entirely new segment of the population. Now what?
Think of the people in your (extended) family who are most different from you (and put aside how many times you tried to talk to them about Reiki in the past). Thanks to Dr. Oz, Cousin Vinny is now encouraged that maybe this Reiki thing will relieve the pain in his arthritic joints. Aunt Sally is hoping Reiki treatment will help her sleep after years of insomnia.
They turn to the internet to learn more. Do they see much that speaks to them?
Probably not.
But they trust Dr. Oz, so they soldier on. Now they are standing in front of the community bulletin board at the local health food store, a store they may be visiting for the very first time, looking for a Reiki practitioner, and they see a number of listings. They wonder how to know who is credible. Common sense helps, but still, they’re losing confidence and wishing they had more to go on…
The public expects health-care professionals to have meaningful credentials, but Reiki practice is not regulated in that way. There are no agreed upon standards for Reiki training or treatment. Some people become “instant powerful Reiki masters;” others take longer training, but start charging for their services without having any supervision or professional training. How can people new to Reiki know who is credible?
And without meaningful credentialing in the field, how can serious Reiki professionals distinguish themselves in their communities?
Here’s the current situation. We have three groups in need of help:
- The public needs help finding credible Reiki professionals.
- Credible professionals need help connecting with clients.
- Reiki practitioners need help developing themselves as credible professionals.
I made a short video that can help all three groups. Click here to view it on my Reiki video page.
If you agree with the criteria I mention, please share the link. If you find the video helpful, you are welcome to add the video to your site.
If you have something to add, or you don’t agree with what I’ve said, please post a thoughtful comment so we can discuss it here. Let’s pool our collective wisdom and experience to meet the credibility challenge. We need to raise the credibility of our practice if Reiki is to become available in the mainstream.
Let’s address this challenge as a community. If we do this in a respectful, inclusive way, we can inspire Reiki practitioners of all perspectives and practice styles to raise the credibility of Reiki practice before the public. We want to maintain Reiki diversity so that individuals can make connections that are meaningful for them, and we need to maintain high professional standards if we are to earn the public’s trust and respect.
Hi Pamela,
Thanks for sharing the Dr Oz video as we don’t get that program here in the UK.
Before everyone who saw Dr Oz endorse Reiki on national TV gets carried away, let’s look a little closer about how Reiki was portrayed on that show. Admittedly, the segment was very short (too short) to give a proper understanding about what Reiki is and what it can do for you but despite Pamela’s attempt to give her usual grounded explanation of Reiki, the vast majority of the viewers will remember Dr Oz’s summing up of “things to remember from today’s show”:
“…try Reiki. This alternative medical treatment can manipulate your energy and cure what ails you!”
What is wrong with the above sentence?
“Alternative?” “Medical treatment?” “Manipulate energy?” “Cure?”
Is this accurate information we want the general public to rememeber?
If we saw these claims on a bulletin board in a health food shop would we, as, hopefully, “credible” Reiki practitioners think that is OK?
Don’t get me wrong, it is great that Reiki has had exposure on TV to a huge audience but I think it bears the marks of a sensationalist, viewing figure-grabbing script writer, rather than a serious attempt to educate the public, which unfortunately is all too common in the media.
Colin,
Good to have you with us. I can appreciate why you would focus on these points, especially since you didn’t see the whole “alternative medicine” segment and thus didn’t see the context that was created or the educating that happened within it.
Mehmet knows his audience. He is a skilled educator with a highly tuned sense of what the public is ready to hear. I imagine the producers chose to use the term “alternative medicine” because that is how the public thinks, and that’s what would get their attention. It’s impossible to inform without getting someone’s attention.
What is not included in the short video clip (which I didn’t make) is a discussion by Woodson Merrill, MD the head of the Integrative Medicine Department at Beth Israel Medical Center (where I have a Reiki internship program). Woody spoke about Integrative Medicine, combining science and traditional healing for whole person care (this is from my memory and not his exact words). Mehmet has been a pioneer of integrative medicine as long as I have.
I don’t think we have to worry about the words Mehmet used. The tv audience won’t remember. They are not watching it over and over the way we are!
What they will remember is that their beloved, respected Dr. Oz thinks Reiki can help them. And they’ll start talking about it to their friends. And that’s a good thing.
I see this show as a groundbreaker. It has created a whole other level of public interest and awareness in Reiki. Practitioners around the country are seeing an uptick in the number of calls they receive, and Janet Dagley Dagley of The Reiki Digest is inundated with requests for Reiki practitioners in various parts of the country.
We cannot control the media. The best we can do as practitioners is to develop our ability to represent our practice credibly, being sensitive to the mindset of the people we speak to.
Pamela,
I am unable to view the videos (old computer; getting a new one next week!). Would it be possible to provide a written version of your suggestions regarding credibility?
On your Facebook pages, some posters have been tossing around the idea of certification, an idea I do not personally care for. Who would do the certifying and who would run the accredited schools? This just doesn’t seem like the appropriate route to take when dealing with a spiritual healing art.
But professional standards are crucial in my opinion, standards that the professional Reiki community work together and hold each other to.
Thank you for beginning this discussion. I hope to be able to see your suggestions soon.
Colin, I share your view of Dr. Oz’s explanation; I found it to be both somewhat inaccurate and confusing. But I agree with Pamela that because the segment was so very short, no one (but us) was really paying attention to the particulars. Perhaps our coming together to create professional standards as well as a credible explanation will help to prevent this kind of confusion in the future.
Be well,
Pam
There is certainly a lot to ponder and consider. Everyone on FB had brought up so many good points. I don’t have an answer. I know when we look for a MD we want one that is credible and just because they have a license to practice medicine doesn’t mean they are a good doctor. There are also so many lineages or types of Reiki too. But I agree there are certainly three groups in need of help. In our Reiki practice we are strictly word of mouth which is how I found my own doctor as well. But defintely I agree I think we as Reiki practitioners should work together collectively as a community! I do think it over all having Dr Oz say that Reiki is a very good alternative is a very positive thing!
Pam, There are a number of places where you can read my thoughts about finding a credible Reiki practitioner. One is the chapter in my book that is devoted to helping people locate and choose Reiki practitioners who are credible and a good fit for them. I also generally include some guidance in the medical papers I write, such as the Reiki review and the Reiki and cancer paper.
Thanks for this additional assistance, I will spread the word on my blog and through Facebook.
Thanks for the videos. I missed the show. This is great news for all people. I love the healing energy. You are right if it going to be big in the Western World. There is a lot of conversation and discussion that need to happen.
I’m a bit worried about Reiki. As Dr. Oz featured it and put it at the top of his recommend list on his TV show last week, my fear is because there is so much bogus/woo-woo/new age “Reiki” stuff (which I found in my resarch) going on out there on the Internet, that people won’t find credible practitioners or find what Reiki really is. That Joe Schmoe will look for a Reiki practitioner because of Dr. Oz’ recommendation, find someone who might not be a true practitioner (but no credentials required unfortunately!), and have a bad or not worthwhile experience. (I have had a couple of friends relate that kind of thing.) Which would spread a bad word and not what Reiki is.
What can an individual reiki practitioner do?
Each of us can raise our own level of credibility. We can practice self-treatment daily, continue to contemplate Reiki, develop our communication and clinical skills, and step out into our communities.
This is beautiful advice, Pamela.
It is not productive to worry about what others are doing. (Just for today, I will not worry.)
Increased interest in Reiki will separate the grain from the chaff. It may take a little time, but it will happen.
Be well,
Pam
Christine, no worries about Reiki. We just had this article written in the paper. It literally came out of no where!!
If anything , Reiki will be no longer woo woo.. its defintely something positive.
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-35713-Animal-Rights-Examiner~y2010m1d14-Reiki-for-pets–You-bet
we were so excited. My friends and family were amazed and sent it to their friends and family!
Actually, Ming, I think woo-woo Reiki will continue, as it should, since it appeals to some people.
My hope is that woo-woo approaches to Reiki will no longer be the most visible option, since there are many people who are woo-woo averse, and although Reiki practice was picked up by the New Age movement, it is no more New Age than yoga or meditation.
That is actually a good thing Pam. When my PharmD hat comes off, I can be as woo woo as the next
So that doesn’t bother me one bit! With our clients, I can be woo woo if need be or not, I think its important to find the balance between to two in my experience. That is why this year was so exciting because my western medicine hat met the “eastern”!
Thank you for the encouragement and advice, Pamela.
Reiki has changed my life totally, and it simply bothers me (“do not worry”, aside) that people who might pursue it will find something too woo-woo or goofy and not Reiki at all. And therefore, they’ll not ever find the real stuff that it is.
Not meaning to diss, but there seems to be a lot of people out there who are too much, er, out there. As one who is a newbie to Reiki, if I had to judge by what I found on the Internet, I never would have gone there. (Thanks to my health care providers who pointed a good way.)
Thank you, Pamela for reminding me that your book contains information on choosing a practitioner. I read your book several years ago but have now reread that chapter.
I like that you’ve listed questions for prospective clients to ask of Reiki practitioners. I think it’s also important to suggest that one uses one’s instincts to assist with the decision. Someone could be a fabulous practitioner but not the right one for the individual at that time.
I think the biggest challenge going forward is to manage client expectations. People who don’t think twice about being told they have to stay on a medication indefinitely to manage a health issue expect one or two Reiki treatments to “cure” them. When this doesn’t happen, they claim Reiki “doesn’t work.” We need to educate the public about the healing process. We also need to differentiate between healing and cure.
I think that if prospective clients are more clear about the process they are embarking on and what they can expect from Reiki, they will be more inclined to ask the right questions of a prospective Reiki practitioner, and they will be more inclined to recognize the inadequately trained practitioner.
I also feel that before becoming a professional Reiki practitioner, one should have completed Master training, including an internship or apprenticeship of some kind. I have heard of too many people taking a one-day Level I class and then going into business. I’m not suggesting that we become cops, just that we educate the public about the various degrees of education.
If we want to be valued as professionals, I think we as a group need to have professional standards.
Be well,
Pam
I agree with supervised internships to train Reiki professionals, similarly to how other health care professionals are trained. It’s even more important because even the most thorough Reiki training is still not very much. Being a Reiki professional without practicing daily self-treatment just doesn’t make sense to me at all. It is mainly through our continuing daily practice that we develop as Reiki practitioners.
I do not feel that one needs to become a Reiki master to be a professional. Being a Reiki master was traditionally reserved for those who taught, and not many of them. Usui initiated over 2000 students but trained only 16 masters. Hayashi trained the same number, and Takata trained 22 after practicing Reiki for 40 years.
Thank you for your response, Pamela.
I understand that traditionally Master level training was for prospective teachers. I do not think, though, that Level I and Level II classes were one-day affairs, often with no further contact with the teacher.
If you agree that supervised internships are a good idea, are you suggesting that these take place in conjunction with the Level I and/or Level II training?
Janet Dagely Dagley, in her Reiki update training, suggests that Reiki teachers consider some form of testing before granting certification to their students. I think this is a good idea, although I have not yet given enough thought to what form that testing would take.
Be well,
Pam
Well i love that Reiki has had exposure to a huge audience i would love to see it get more common. I hope this makes a bit of a change. People that pick it up will get to know what it’s all about when they do a course.
Thanks for another thoughtful and informative post. Just want to alert you to a typo in the following sentence: But they trust Dr. Oz, so they shoulder (soldier) on.
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