You would think that with all the articles on how to cope with stress in popular magazines, newspapers, and medical literature that we would have a better handle on it. Yet the annual survey on stress in America conducted in 2010 by the American Psychological Association reports that only 40% of Americans think that their health is good or excellent. A whopping 44% of Americans state that their stress levels have risen during the past five years.
In addition, the majority of Americans report living with moderate or high levels of stress, yet we fall short in our efforts to manage our stress, particularly if we are female. 28% of women report living with a high level of stress (8, 9, or 10 on a 10-point scale with 10 representing the highest level of stress) as opposed to 20% of men. 49% of women, and only 39% of men, report that their stress levels have shot up in the last five years.
Clearly, we Americans need help to reduce stress. And we women need more help with stress. That’s when alternative health methods such as the Reiki Method of Natural Healing should not be considered so “alternative,” but instead be recognized as empowering components of our wellness plans, healthcare systems, and stress management efforts.
What is Reiki? Also called the Usui Reiki Method of Natural Healing after its Japanese founder, Dr. Mikao Usui, Reiki is hand-on healing and stress relief that works on every level of your being. A Reiki session treats your organs, glands, and energy centers of the body, and when used regularly can help strengthen your immune system, increase your energy levels, promote relaxation and stress relief, and alleviate chronic health conditions.
On a lighter note, Reiki is known to encourage a healthy, youthful glow, an enticing benefit for women who are concerned about their skin and overall appearance. (Reiki is so relaxing that it would be hard not to look better after a treatment!) Years ago, the first woman practitioner at the highest level, Mrs. Hawayo Takata, remarked that you would not age once you became a Reiki Master Level Practitioner, and she looked about sixty when she passed at the age of eighty. The Reiki Method of Natural Healing can also help ease other skin conditions like blemishes, plaque psoriasis, dry skin, poison ivy, and sunburn.
Let’s face it, women need an extra measure of stress relief, particularly those who are married (Note that in the APA study, 33% of married women as opposed to 22% of single women report living in a great deal of stress). We women usually put ourselves last and our health and peace of mind therefore suffer.
Imagine how we could transform our relationships, increase our energy, feel better, and stop running ourselves ragged if we would just use the Reiki Method of Natural Stress and Pain Relief. Imagine people still carding you when you’re forty! Imagine getting through the day with a smile… because you know you haven’t internalized anyone else’s stress. Isn’t that a great dream? Now go out and make it happen with Reiki.