Can You Do Reiki on Yourself? Yes, and It Might Be the Most Useful Way to Learn It
Self-Reiki is exactly what it sounds like: using simple Reiki techniques on yourself for rest and restoration. You don't need certification, experience, or even belief that it works. You need your own hands and a few quiet minutes.
Most people meet Reiki lying on a table while a practitioner works. That's a lovely way to meet it. But the version almost nobody talks about is the one you can take home: a short daily practice, done with your own hands, that gives your body a scheduled chance to come off high alert.
What Self-Reiki Actually Looks Like
Less mystical than you might expect. You learn a series of hand placements, resting your hands on different areas of your own body, and you stay with each one while your breathing slows and your attention comes back from wherever the day scattered it. Five to ten minutes is enough. Some people practice before bed, some in the car before walking into work, some in the first minutes of the morning before anyone needs them.
Why a Few Minutes Matters
When life is demanding for long enough, the nervous system learns to stay ready: ready to react, ready to manage, ready for whatever's next. That readiness doesn't switch off just because you finally sat down. A daily self-treatment works like an appointment your body can count on, a reliable signal that right now, nothing is required of you. Practiced consistently, it becomes easier for your body to find its way to rest and digest instead of living in fight or flight.
None of this treats or cures anything, and it isn't a substitute for medical or mental health care. It's a self-care practice, in the most literal sense those words have.
Learn It in One Afternoon
On Sunday, July 19, Healing Arts Center in Virginia Beach is hosting Reiki for Self-Care, a 3-hour introductory workshop. You'll learn self-Reiki hand placements, grounding exercises, and how to fit a 5-to-10 minute practice into the routine you already have. It's a non-certification class, and every minute of it is about your own practice; no work is done on others.
Janice Landfair is teaching. She's a Reiki Master Teacher, Certified Clinical Reiki Master, and founder of Essential Wellness. She served as Reiki Program Leader at Sentara Brock Cancer Center's Integrative Therapy Center, launched a clinical Reiki training program in 2023 that prepares practitioners for hospital and hospice settings, and teaches Reiki certification at Healing Arts Center. Which means the person teaching you to rest your hands on your own shoulders trains practitioners for a living.
The workshop runs 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM and costs $125. You can book here, and if it fills or the date doesn't work, reach out and we'll let you know when Janice teaches it next. To register for the class: https://www.healingartsvb.com/events or https://www.essentialwellnessva.com/classes
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need any experience to learn self-Reiki?
No. Reiki for Self-Care is built for complete beginners, and it also works as a refresher if you learned years ago and let the practice lapse.
Do I have to believe in Reiki for it to help?
No belief is required. Come curious or come skeptical; the practice is a set of quiet, restful techniques either way, and you can decide what you think after you've tried them.
Is self-Reiki a replacement for therapy or medical care?
No. Reiki is a relaxation and self-care practice, not treatment for any condition. It can sit alongside the clinical care you receive, never in place of it.
This content is for educational and informational purposes only. Reiki is not a substitute for licensed medical or mental health care.
