Reiki for mental health inpatients

Reiki plays a minor but significant role in a a study just published in the journal Nursing Times, in which inpatients in a mental health facility were offered various community activities as well as brief samples of Reiki and other natural modalities. 

Patients were offered "hand reflexology, Reiki, Bowen technique, foot reflexology and acupressure," according to the article. "Patient feedback was extremely positive. . . Some 88% said they enjoyed the session a lot, while the remaining 12% enjoyed it a little. No one said they did not enjoy the sessions. When asked if they would continue to access complementary therapies after discharge, 97% said they would.

"Patients reported a range of benefits from the session: 44 felt reduced anxiety; 44 felt more relaxed; 14 felt more optimistic; 10 had increased energy; and 16 experienced reduced pain.

"Following his treatment, one patient remarked: ‘It has cured my anxiety. I didn’t remember I could feel like this.’ "

The goal of the experiment was to track the response of mental-health inpatients, who are traditionally some of the most excluded members of society, to various social and creative activities. Not surprisingly, the overall response from the patients was positive.