Origin of Illness

fied to be a teacher of the RKMRI protocol, with its Gold Standards and Best Practices.

With that understanding as we move forward, now we’ll look at what the origins of Medical Reiki are and what takes place in the operating room during surgery. Knowledge is power and it’s important to have insight into what happens in order to prepare yourself for what’s to come, should you require a surgical intervention.

From there, we’ll go into a brief history of medicine, the reasons for illness, the interconnectedness of science and spirituality, and the reasons why there is such a need for this practice to be added to conventional medicine. As you will see, it is an aid to those enduring the trauma of the often-severe medical interventions necessary to combat illness and disease.

From there, we’ll delve into the practice of Reiki where you’ll meet Reiki’s founder Mikao Usui, how he received this practice, and how it evolved into Medical Reiki. Belief is not necessary for Medical Reiki’s benefits to be experienced and examples of past clients with no initial belief in the practice are shared.

Chapters 5–7 specifically address the patient, physician, and Reiki practitioner experience as it relates to Reiki. Patients will learn how to request and receive Medical Reiki. Details of how a patient can find a Certified Medical Reiki Master are included. It’s important to work with a trained professional for many reasons and chapter 5 explains why, and how to find one. Physicians will learn about opening their practice to Medical Reiki for their patients and themselves. Doctors who want to suggest Medical Reiki to their patient(s) or use it for themselves will find out all

they need. And finally, Reiki practitioners will learn about the Medical Reiki Protocol, as well as why professional training is necessary for a practitioner’s own protection and for the safety of a medical client.

Lastly, the final chapter shares true stories of clients and practitioners of Medical Reiki from around the globe.

This book began with a foreword by Dr. Sheldon Marc Feldman explaining his rationale for introducing Medical Reiki to his patients. It ends with an epilogue by Dr. Mandy O’Hara explaining why Medical Reiki is important for doctors. These two doctors, one a surgeon and the other a pediatrician, hold the information shared in the rest of the book’s chapters like two bookends from the medical world. I pray for a future in which Medical Reiki is available in hospitals and in every medical venue not just for patients, but also for doctors who may experience vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue through their devoted work.

Healing exercises, in the form of meditations and affirmations, are included throughout the book at the end of chapters. I recommend that you write notes from these experiences in a journal dedicated to recording your progress. You have more power within you than you might imagine, and it’s important to your overall well-being to focus on activating that power. The meditations raise your energy and introduce you to what is possible. The words of the affirmations help you to create reality, and speaking the affirmations strengthens your hope, which is priceless. Thus, by doing the meditations and using the affirmations, you participate in your own self-healing by becoming aware of infinite possibilities and activating your own power, which is very important as you move toward the restoration of your health.

I know I am blessed, Dear Reader, to have you join me as an explorer of what was heretofore uncharted territory in the evolution of patient care. As we step forward together, I share with you what I was taught by Laurie Grant, the Usui Reiki Master, who in 1995 trained and certified me to be a Reiki Master Teacher:

Take what you can use from the information shared and disregard the rest.

With love and blessings,

Raven Keyes

New York, New York

1

The Beginning of Medical Reiki

Let’s start at the beginning, with the origin of what we now call Medical Reiki. This practice had its start when a client of mine needed open-heart surgery and I was invited into the operating theater of Dr. Mehmet Oz. Part of this story was included in my previous book The Healing Power of Reiki, but in far less detail. This story will give you a bird’s-eye view into what Medical Reiki can do for you and why you should demand it for your own care.

In this chapter, we will look at the Medical Reiki origin story from my perspective and from the client’s perspective, followed by exercises for meeting your own spirit helper to assist you in healing and a healing affirmation.

The Medical Reiki Origin Story: My Perspective

Terrified, Susanna squeezed my hand so hard it hurt. I walked beside the gurney that wheeled her through the labyrinth of halls, leading ever closer to the operating room where her open-heart

surgery would take place. Even lying down, Susanna shook from head to foot.

Once we pushed through the O.R. doors, I felt my sensitive eyes squinting to slits from the extremely bright lights. I turned to the voice of a woman who was saying “Good morning” through her mask. It was obvious to her who the patient was, since Susanna was lying on the gurney, but she turned to me with a look of sternness. “Who are YOU? You can’t be in here! You have to leave.”

“Dr. Oz has given me permission to be here,” I said, holding out his letter that explained I was his guest in the operating theater. Taking the letter from my hand, the nurse looked at me with shock, but only for a split second. Being a professional, she quickly brought her attention to the situation at hand and read the letter. With confusion in her eyes she offered, “You can be with the patient for now, but you will soon have to move away.”

I was so apprehensive and so protective of Susanna that when I heard her referred to as “the patient,” my emotional pain was extreme. She was so much more than that to me, and it was because I loved her that I was in this operating room to begin with. Had this precious person just become nothing more than “the patient”? Her life was on the line, but in that moment, I realized she wasn’t recognized as the beautiful woman with a heart of gold. Susanna was a patient, like so many others who had come to this place, with no control over what might happen to her, and no telling how all this was going to turn out.

I first met Susanna when she came to one of my meditation classes at Equinox Fitness. She was the guest of an Equinox member. At the end of the meditation, Susanna approached me with a request.

“I hear you are a Reiki master, and I’d like to try a session. I had a car accident several years ago and no one has been able to help me with the pain I still have in my neck. Do you think I could see you privately?”

I carefully considered her request before responding.

“Why certainly I can see you, but I’m not a doctor, and I can’t promise you anything. It’s certainly worth a try though.”

Susanna became my client and we began to work on her issues. We developed a strong bond along the way as she fell in love with Reiki and with the results it brought her. Not only was her neck pain alleviated, but over time she was able to release old emotions and patterns that had previously held her back in life.

After about two years of working together, Susanna called me and requested an immediate Reiki session.

“Raven, I have to see you. It’s really important. Can you please see me right away?’

I arranged to have a session with her the very next afternoon. When Susanna arrived, she was visibly distraught.

“I’m scared to death!” she blurted. “I have to have open-heart surgery!” My immediate thought was that she wanted a Reiki session to give her the courage she needed to negotiate these scary waters. I was shocked when she said, “I’m interviewing surgeons and tomorrow I meet with Dr. Mehmet Oz. I read an article in the New York Times that says he has an interest in combining surgery with alternative methods of healing. Would you go with me into surgery if he says you can come?”

With a gasp I blurted, “NO, Susanna, I couldn’t possibly!” My heart leapt as Susanna looked at me with shock in her eyes. Thoughts sped through my mind, flashing back to the terrifying

childhood tonsillectomy I experienced that left me with my own form of post-traumatic stress disorder. I felt my skin crawl as I thought to myself, “No, no, I do NOT want to go into an operating room!” Yet because I loved Susanna so very much and truly wanted to help, my thoughts continued to chase each other, all leading to the same conclusion: No! I really couldn’t do it.

Susanna looked frightened as I tried to explain everything to her.

“I hate the sight of blood and am squeamish to a fault! I don’t know how I could do my work in an operating room, not to mention in the presence of a surgeon who is an icon.”

Even though she was starting to cry, I held Susanna in my arms and said, “I absolutely cannot do this Susanna. I’m so very, very sorry, but I’m just not able to do it. Let’s take this time to get you ready by having our Reiki session—and I promise you—I’ll take the day off when you have the surgery and concentrate on healing prayers for you all day long.”

With that Susanna took a seat on my Reiki table and I handed her a tissue. Once she blew her nose, she reclined, stretching out on the table. I covered her with a cozy blanket and began the session.

Reiki is a practice of gently supplying the source energy that is in all of life, which flows out through the hands of a practitioner into a client (or into oneself when using it for self-care). It has nothing to do with religion. Yet it’s important to know that Reiki is a spiritual practice used to promote deep healing on the many interconnected levels that make up a life. Although it may be hard for some to understand or believe, we practitioners often have strong connections to light beings and spirit helpers who aid us in our work. In my case, I have a helper/guide who calls itself

the Archangel Gabriel. As I explain in my book, The Healing Light of Angels, what we call angels pre-date every religion by many thousands of years and have always been accessible to humans.

When I touched Susanna’s head at the beginning of the session, I began to hear advice from my spirit helper. I knew I had to say yes to Susanna and could feel that so much would happen from this. I could feel immense spiritual support and I began to cry quietly. Thankfully Susanna didn’t know, as she was already asleep on the table, which is a common response to Reiki no matter how upset a client might be when they first lie down.

The session was very powerful. The loving energy of Reiki poured through my hands and into Susanna’s body, and although I was still very apprehensive, I followed Spirit’s instructions. When Susanna woke up at the end of the session, I told her I would accompany her if Dr. Oz would allow it and I gave her my résumé.

The next day I taught my usual lunchtime meditation class at Equinox Fitness. Since this is New York City, I had regular meditation students from every profession, including a doctor of anesthesia with whom I chatted with following class.

“I have a Reiki client who asked me to go with to her openheart surgery with Dr. Mehmet Oz. What do you think?”

His immediate response was, “Oh, no, that will never happen. It’s just not done.”

Not five minutes later, Susanna called from Dr. Oz’s office.

“Raven! Dr. Oz said yes! All he wanted to see was your résumé! The surgery is scheduled for next week!”

The only thing I could do was trust that I would manage this terrifying event. I had to believe that Susanna and I would weather