Energy healing works — but HOW does it work?
- 12
- Jun
Wellness is on everyone’s lips these days, and after a year of health fears, fake news, and conspiracy theories, it’s no great surprise that energy healing has grown in popularity. With stress and anxiety through the roof, who wouldn’t want to find inner peace and live their best life without medical intervention?
Proponents of energy healing claim that it is a way to naturally relieve pain, rebalance and repair the body, and heal trauma and even physical illness. But energy healing has its skeptics. After all, how do we know if it really works when peer-reviewed scientific evidence is few and far between?
We worked with Antonia Harman, healer and expert on emotional trauma and founder of Divine Empowerment, and Stanford-trained doctor Dr. Leonard Laskow talked about the pros and cons of energy healing so that you can form your own opinion and maybe find inner peace of the process:
What is energy healing?
Despite being part of the modern wellness movement, energy healing actually has roots that go way back in history.
“Energy healing is the original form of medicine,” says Harman. “Descriptions of the” laying on of hands “to relieve pain were even found in ancient Egyptian papyrus from 1500 BC. Found. It has been practiced for four thousand years – probably much longer. ‘
One of the most important principles of energy healing is that prevention is better than cure.
There are many different forms of energy healing, but by and large it refers to any practice that acts on the subtle flow of energy through the body to restore health (both mental and physical) and restore a sense of balance. “One of the most important principles of energy healing is that prevention is better than cure,” says Harman. “It is important that you stay vital, healthy, and sane as this can help you avoid disease.”
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Forms of energy healing
There is no such thing as the “only” form of energy healing, and indeed any therapy that energetically restores health can fall under this broad umbrella term. It includes (but is not limited to) the following:
★ Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine (or TCM) originated in China thousands of years ago. “This includes acupuncture, which treats meridians or energy channels according to the organs,” says Harman. “These meridians were even discovered by mainstream science – they injected dye into meridional trajectories as opposed to random areas, and the trajectories became visible under CT scans.
“A main principle of TCM is that emotions relate to organs. So when you have strong, strong emotions, you can limit or damage organs. As an example, the lungs and colon relate to grief. Anger, frustration, and resentment are the liver and gallbladder. Kidneys are deathly fear, while the bladder is general fear and the spleen and stomach are worrying.
★ Reiki
The word Reiki comes from the Japanese words ‘rei’, which means universal, and ‘ki’, which means life force.
“Reiki is a popular and nutritious form of energy healing,” says Harman. “It involves the gentle laying on of hands, symbols and intentions. Practitioners are a channel for universal energy that rebalances the mind, body and spirit.”
Many people rely on Reiki to relieve pain, stress, and anxiety, which is why it is now offered as a complementary therapy in some NHS trusts.
★ Chakra healing
This type of healing aims to balance the flow of energy through your chakras or energy centers.
“We have seven main chakras, from the base of the spine to the top of the head,” says Harman. “They are rotating wheels of light in the colors of the rainbow, all of which have individual properties and defined locations. One of the most important factors in chakra work is balance. Chakras can be worked on in a variety of ways – there are countless chakra meditations and affirmations on YouTube, as do colors. ‘
Chakra healing, Harman says, is very fashionable right now. “There are tons of products out there with big bands like Aveda even selling chakra balance body sprays,” she adds.
★ Crystal healing
While there is no scientific basis for the claim, advocates of crystal healing say that stones and crystals have specific healing properties and that their presence can affect your wellbeing.
“This is another very popular form of energy work,” says Harman. “Crystals radiate energy, so having them around can heal. Choose the one with the right property for your needs. They do everything from protection to calming down to blocking electromagnetic stress, attracting love, enabling cohesive thinking, and much more.”
★ Divine empowerment
Harman’s own personal brand of energy healing works to resolve emotional trauma on the fly, from single occurrences to longstanding mental health problems, including anxiety and depression. She says she can also solve physical pain and problems, and has a team of practitioners who can be booked for sessions.
“I’ve had wonderful results with fibromyalgia and sciatica,” she says. “I teach by awakening people’s latent abilities – abilities that we all have who are locked away. Man is much more capable than we are aware of. Anyone can learn Divine Empowerment and the results are humiliating on a daily basis.”
Energy healing and physical pain
While even skeptics understand why some people choose to consult an energy healer for an emotional problem, what about physical problems like pain and illness? How can energy healing help with specific health problems?
“As strange as it sounds, physical symptoms are the way your body communicates with you,” says Harman. “The body is a map. You just have to learn to read it. ‘
Harman reveals that pain has its roots in certain energetic or emotional origins:
- Shoulder pain: It’s about feeling burdened and guilty for having fun.
- Back pain: (Generally) it’s about feeling unsupported – that your life lacks structure or there may be problems with responsibility and stability.
- Middle back pain: refers to feeling responsible for others, blurring the lines between your problem and what is not. It can also relate to humiliation, embarrassment, and feelings of dominance.
- Lower back pain: relates to financial responsibility, needs, pressures, and pressures of others.
- Hip pain: it is about inflexibility, relationship problems, sexuality or trust in personal relationships.
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Energy healing: the evidence
Sounds fascinating, completely outside – or maybe a little bit of both? If the skeptic in you is crying out for evidence, you might not be surprised to hear that it’s a little hard to get at.
“Medical research is expensive and is largely funded by large companies to develop drugs,” says Harman. “When it comes to energy healing, there’s really nothing for sale, so the research just wasn’t done.”
There is research, however, including that by Stanford-trained doctor Dr. Leonard Laskow, who found out that the structure of DNA can be changed depending on whether it is sent conscious anger (it dies) or conscious love (it heals)). As a Life Fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dr. Laskow used the term “holoenergetic healing” and states that love and forgiveness are the keys to health and longevity – something Harman agrees with.
Any form of therapy that can relieve stress helps maintain good health. “If you want to heal yourself, the key is forgiveness and letting go completely,” she says. “It’s about looking deeply into your life and relationships and forgiving all parties. Forgiveness is an important issue in religion for this reason. ‘
There have been several studies of the effectiveness of Reiki healing, including a 2010 research review that found strong evidence that biofield therapies like Reiki and therapeutic touch can relieve pain, and moderate evidence that they can relieve anxiety in hospitalized patients.
It is also important to consider patients’ perceptions of how they feel after energy healing. “It is known and well-documented that stress causes all kinds of diseases, so any therapy that can reduce stress will help maintain good health,” says Harman. This explains the growing popularity of energy healing and the fact that therapies such as Reiki and acupuncture are offered alongside traditional treatments.
How to Find a Professional Energy Healer
As with any therapy, if you are intrigued by the idea of energy healing, it is important to make sure that the professional you choose is qualified.
“Like any other profession, energy healing has regulators,” says Harman. “Divine Empowerment is supported by The International Practitioners of Holistic Medicine and their website has lists of accredited therapists.”
The African Holistic Health Chapter of NY is a fount of information and can refer seekers to excellent, energy-medicine health providers. Practitioners from many parts of the country are also members. (Rev. Niamo The HealMobile is a member.)
And it’s not just about checking references – it’s important to make sure you are comfortable and comfortable with a practitioner before parting with your money.
“There are tons of amazing healers out there,” says Harman. “And as with anything, you need to find the therapist who best suits your needs. It’s important that you feel comfortable with your healer, too – most of us are happy to answer questions before parting with your hard-earned cash. In any case, I wouldn’t hire anyone as a client if I wasn’t sure that I could help in a significant way. ‘
“Now is a really exciting time in energy healing as new modalities emerge and the entire industry becomes mainstream,” added Harman. “Whatever type of healing you choose, it will nourish your soul, so why not try?”
Always consult your physician or health professional
If you are interested in energetic healing for a specific health problem, it is important that you see it as complementary therapy. Don’t stop traditional medications or treatments you may be undergoing and consult your health professional before making any changes to a treatment plan. But you will find that energy healing is a great addition to Western medicine.
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