When you break it down, energy is energy. It always has been and will continue to be long beyond our new infatuation with it. How practitioners and healers work with and interpret that energy is what makes modalities so diverse. Energy is my colleague — she shows me things, let’s me know when things are off, and has a lot to say, when I’m in my physic space to pick up the message.
Energy work isn’t new, it’s just newly being accepted world wide. Vibrations, sound, and non-verbal communication was the first form of healing known to (wo)man. Before we could check our vitals, run a blood panel, or get a physical exam, vibration was one of our first cues to notice there was a shift in the body and that something needed to be addressed.
Just like our physical form, if we don’t move energy and maintain the health and well-being of our subtle space, then we are just as unhealthy as if we never exercised. And no one wants to be an energetic couch potato!
Reiki: USA’s poster child
Energy work, Intuition, and the word ‘healer’ are buzzwords that have taken off in western culture — and now get thrown around like wifi, Netflix, and disco! This is huge, to have something reach mainstream and become recognized on a global level. At long last, it’s becoming more socially acceptable and not taboo to work with our subtle body. It can also mean that we get a narrow view of what this entails, assuming all energy work is one and the same.
Since finishing my clairvoyant training, I have become more vocal around the fact that I offer energy readings & healings. I’ve found that many people assume that I do Reiki, and are surprised to hear energy work can be more than that. In fact, I’ve studied multiple modalities that allow me to access, assess, and support the emotional (energy) body, and there are plenty more out there.
Reiki is one of the first modalities in western cultures to take off, so it’s not surprising that this assumption comes up so often. But grouping all energy work into Reiki is like collapsing all vegetables into one — just because you’ve experienced a carrot doesn’t mean all veggies are orange and crunchy. Then again, if you’ve only ever met the poster child (or veggie) for energy work, how can you know what else is out there? Now that I’ve dabbled in this level of healing for some time, I want to share some of the other possibilities that are available to you.
There are many forms of energy healing. I’ve personally studied Reiki, Healing Touch, Aura Readings, Aura Healings, Zero Balancing, Polarity Work, Plant Medicine, and went through extensive Clairvoyant Training. This doesn’t even encompass all of what’s available for us to work with! Reiki is one example and I am forever grateful for it paving the way. I hope other energy modalities keep getting shared and become just as popular over time.
My journey with energy work
When I first started massage school, after crafting my own style and learning the best practices to work with clients, I started noticing patterns. Certain clients would have a pain or discomfort in the hip, shoulder, head — you name it — and no matter what tool I pulled out of my massage skill bag, it didn’t seem to budge.
At first I was frustrated, because I knew that if it was a soft tissue problem, I’m skilled enough at what I do that I would be creating some sort of change. So instead of continuing to be frustrated, I got curious. Curious to understand the other parts of being human and how they influence our physical form. What was I missing?
I started where most massage therapists do: I studied whole food nutrition, stretching practices, and the true meaning behind self-care. This helped some of my clients see improvement, and over time we finally were able to move through the physical ailment that was stopping them; however, I soon realized there was so much more to consider while assessing a person before they get on the table.
Working with energy and the subtle body was the final piece that ‘clicked’ for me — it made sense that whatever was affecting the non-physical realm could be moved and ultimately affect the body. More of those ‘stuck’ clients started to see progress, quicker than before. And I found an area I am extremely passionate about.
In the beginning, after I learned how to read and heal energy, I had to share the new service I could offer. This area is so vast, though, that I just pasted on a broad label to these services and called them “Energy Readings”. Unless you’re familiar with this world, it’s probably not something you were drawn to. Energy is simple; how we choose to work with it is what creates the experience people come in for.
My specialty is working with the physical and subtle (aka energy) body at the same time. I communicate with my hands, your body tells me a story, and beyond your physical form, your emotions and head spaces chime in — and they have a lot to say, as well as having a huge influence over your overall well-being.
What the whole picture offers
For me, working with energy means that I get to see the whole you, physically, emotionally, and mentally. Through this non-physical lens I get to see what’s outdated, in the way of your living your best self, and support you in a software update (tuning your subtle body) so that your outsides start to reflect more of what’s real for you on the inside.
Have you ever noticed someone walking down the street or showing up in the office who just looks tired or not themselves? This is a perfect example of when it’s time to look within. Our outsides mirror our insides, and if those points of your life aren’t reflecting a true path on the outside, or if you’re feeling “off”, anxious, depressed, lost, and/or stuck in a transition, this is a great service to turn to.
Side-note: energy work is not a substitute for mental health, but it is a fantastic complement to help create big change, so that when you are working with your mental health, you can accomplish/move through more.
What my clients are drawn to
So far, Energy Healing Massages have been my signature service in working with energy. It’s a wonderful experience for you on the table — to see all the layers of yourself at once and feel some sort of shift in the moment. When you release energy it can create more space in the body, and overall, isn’t that what we are all looking for? More room to be ourselves and walk confidently through the world.
Combining physical massage and energy work is extremely helpful; it allows us to really dig in and start to create real change. For many clients, as they experience this session, we pop off the lid to a different part of life, which they want to explore in a more conversational platform. This is where my Intuitive Consulting appointments come to play.
If you want to try Intuitive Consulting, either because an Energy Healing Massage opened something up or because you’re curious, let me share what that looks like. You will still lie on my lovely table, but will be fully clothed. You’ll receive more of a non-physical healing using energy alchemy, sound healing, and healing energetic touch. Instead of us moving your energy in a felt-only way, we will be able to have a conversation with your energy, and see where it leads us down the halls of your soul.
Whatever you choose, these are very collaborative sessions, and we usually deal with very real and intimate internal conversations. I love this work, and think it’s so important — we have coaches for business, health, and finances, but what about the deeper conversations? Who do you go to outside of your support circle when something is not working, or you know something’s gotta shift but you can’t quite put your finger on it? This is where I come in; we will collaborate together and make the unknown of life, and being human, a lot more approachable to look at.
Feeling the Juiciness
Working with my intuitive teacher for a lengthy period of time allowed me to learn to really trust my intuition, validate an experience or thought process that didn’t really make sense yet, and gave me permission to feel in a whole new way. Of course, like any caring teacher, mentor, or healer, I want you to have a nibble of the juiciness I have (and continue) to experience. More importantly, I want you to feel what it feels like to be you, and I mean all of you. The happy, sad, frustrated and ___ — insert all the other feelings we aren’t always given permission to feel in our day-to-day. While bringing your whole space (all of you) up to present time.
Can you tell there’s a lot I want to share with you? As I was writing these services out I began noticing how they’re developing into so much more, and how committed I am to sharing the bigger picture of energy healing. I know it can feel hard to understand what it’s like to work with energy, especially when not all of us will immediately feel the changes it creates. When we shift the subtle form and subtle conscious mind, it can take time before we see the results in our physical world.
Even so, we are all, collectively, starting to wake up, seeing and feeling more. This isn’t always easy to digest. You don’t have to hide, push down the uncomfortable, or wait until you’ve failed to digest it to understand what you’re experiencing. I’m here to assist you in the process, whether you come to me for healings or simply read my words and start to apply them.
In time, when (or if) you do start to move into supporting your subtle body as part of your lifestyle, that’s where my book and classes will be helpful. The big change that happens in life isn’t finished on the table, it’s begun; and how we move through that experience, how we respond to what we uncover, will make the biggest difference in life.
I am here to help you see, and shape the world (our world) to be a more interactive, supportive place to be, and I know I can’t do it alone. So why should you have to? We all have a purpose, a gift, a fire inside of us, and only you can choose where you follow it — or don’t. This isn’t about fixing anything or forcing you to be another way, this is about permission for us all to live our own true authentic path, inside and outside. What do you think the world would look like if we all chose to take this on together?
