What actually happens in a Reiki session

The most common question I get from people considering a first session is not does it work? It's what is it actually like?

What follows is a walk-through of a standard 60-minute first session at the studio in Xinyi. I'll try to be honest about both the technique and what people often report experiencing.

Before you arrive

A few practical things make the session more useful:

• Wear comfortable clothing you can lie down in. You stay fully clothed throughout.
• Eat lightly beforehand — not on a full stomach, not on an empty one.
• Drink water in the hours before, and plan to drink more after.
• Try not to schedule anything intense immediately afterwards. An hour to walk, sit with tea, or just be quiet helps the work land.

The first fifteen minutes — we talk

When you arrive, I'll bring you to the practice space. We sit in two chairs across a small table. There's no clipboard, no intake form that you fill out alone in a waiting room.

I ask:

• What's brought you in.
• What's been recurring lately — physically, emotionally, or just as a sense.
• What you've already tried for it.
• What you'd like to leave the session with, if anything specific.

These questions are not therapeutic in the talk-therapy sense. I'm listening for where the body is being asked to hold something, so I know where to attend. You don't have to share more than feels right.

The next thirty to forty minutes — the session

You move to the treatment table and lie on your back. Eyes closed or open, your choice. I cover you with a light blanket if it's cool. Soft warm light. There's no music unless you ask for it.

I work through a sequence of hand positions, each held for several minutes. The positions move from the head down through the body — head, throat, heart, abdomen, knees, feet. My hands rest lightly on or just above you. There is no pressure, no movement, no massage.

The technique on the surface is very simple. What's happening underneath is the longer conversation.

Some positions you'll feel a distinct warmth. Some you'll feel very little. Some you'll feel a release — sometimes physical, sometimes emotional, sometimes just a sense of something settling. All of these are normal. There is nothing you need to do.

Many people fall into a state that's not quite sleep and not quite waking. The mind quiets. Time stretches. Some people see images, hear words, remember things. Others experience nothing visible at all and find the changes only in the days that follow.

The last few minutes — coming back

I tell you when we're nearing the end. You sit up slowly. We sit quietly for a minute or two. I offer water and tea.

We talk briefly about what came up, if anything. I write a short note for you to take with you — what we noticed, what might be worth continuing to attend to in the days that follow. The whole conversation is brief. The work has already happened.

What it might feel like in the days after

People commonly report:

• Sleeping deeply that night, sometimes for ten or eleven hours
• An emotional sensitivity that lasts a day or two — old material surfacing
• A clarity about something they had been confused about
• A sense of being lighter physically, sometimes by quite a lot
• Occasionally, no obvious shift at all in the first 24 hours, then a settling that arrives later

None of these are guaranteed. I don't promise outcomes. What I promise is honest attention, the technique done well, and an hour held for you in a quiet room.

What it will not do

Reiki is not a cure for anything. It does not diagnose, treat, or prevent medical conditions. It does not replace therapy, medication, or medical care. If something serious surfaces in a session that warrants other professional support, I'll say so directly.

What it does is create the conditions for the body to do what it has been trying to do, in a held space, with the support of practised attention.

If you want to come

The easiest first step is a single in-person session — see the sessions on offer, or take the short guided prompt if you'd like one recommended. If you'd rather talk first or you're outside Taipei, the 30-minute online consultation is the quieter door. Or send a quiet note if you'd like.