“Reiki is love. Love is wholeness. Wholeness is balance. Balance is well-being. Well-being is freedom from disease.” ~ Mikao Usui

Reiki is a subtle, holistic healing modality that is practiced through the laying on of hands in person or with a distance technique. It uses the universal life force that flows through all living things, directed by the intention of the practitioner and recipient.

Reiki as we know it was realized and developed by Mikao Usui in Japan around the turn of the last century (read more here ) but is believed to be much more ancient. Reiki loosely translates to “spiritual energy.” While its roots and development are in Japanese Buddhism, it is not a dogmatic system.

Wikipedia refers to Reiki as a pseudo-science, which empirically speaking is true: there is no proof that Reiki is real or that it works. It is possible that this is because science has yet to develop a method of measuring Reiki’s existence or efficacy.

In 2019 Harvard did a study that affirmed that Reiki does statistically improve peoples physical and mental well being with lasting effect, but the study collected data from people’s self-reporting. It did not happen in a controlled environment or with a control group.

Why do I share this? Because I believe transparency matters, and because I belief that “Is it real” is not always the most important question. I have had so many doubters experience life-changing benefits from energy work that I have develped my own theory as to why it’s effective.

While science is an important tool, I believe it is also important to remember that science knows and can prove a very small percentage of its own theories about why things are the way they are.

I believe that the human being and experience is far more spiritual than literal. The human subconscious processes around 95% of the information around us with only about 5% being processed by the conscious mind. While the conscious mind is capable of being literal, the subconscious interprets and communicates through symbolism—the realm of the spiritual or, as Jung referred to it, the mythic. And, in my experience, most healing happens in this realm. If we could heal through logic alone it would be a different world. But often we use the literal to bypass the deeper healing and then struggle with issues that remain.

Whether or not you believe that subtle energy is clearing blockages in your Chakras is immaterial. Reiki provides an opportunity for deep rest and integration because it accesses the mythic realm, bypasses logic, and allows for loving and intentional presence in our most tender and vulnerable places. And that is healing.

“Reiki is wisdom combined with energy, it connects us to the universal source of light, its stimulates growth, it balances us from a physical, mental and spiritual point of view, it can heal the deepest wounds, and it can bring to the surface, the unknown potentials of our being.” - Mikao Usui

It is normal to have a full range of experiences—people who receive Reiki report feeling nothing, feeling vibration, experiencing bliss, experiencing emotional release, experiencing insights, and feeling grounded and centered.

A full range of experiences are normal, some people experience strong sensations such as heat or tingling, some don’t feel much of anything. Clients report a deep restorative relaxation and many find it helps with developing self-awareness and with emotional processing.

 In a session I will start you out laying quietly and comfortably, I often begin with a brief meditation to bring you into the present and focused on  your experience, leaving the outside world behind. You may experience emotional or physical release.

Depanding on your needs, I will let you rest, or I will check in with you about what I’m picking up on. Sessions with me are often catalytic, clearing, centering. We know that feelings manifest in the body and trauma can be stored there. Tuning into our body and quieting our minds to let it speak can reveal where we are holding on to tension, grief, and memories.

I start where you are. So often we seek change driven by judgement, validation, and rejection. “If only I weren’t so ____ , was better at____, could just make myself do ____, then I would be more _____, achieve_____ finally have ____.”

But what you resist persists and while extrinsic motivation may provide some triumph and gains, the experience of yourself as a problem you are trying to change will persist.

At Verge we start where you are—not where you think you should be—and work to develop intrinsic motivation for changes instead of responding to external pressure. We work at your own pace, following where your exploration leads.

Coaching is process oriented not goal oriented, holistic and integrative. There is no transformation without emobiment, or without letting go of certain things.

My coaching is a multi-pronged approach to address where you are stuck and support you in developing who you are becoming, your full experience of your authentic state and potential. We work together to release where you are restricted in mind, body, and spirit, and we work towards inherent wholeness, worthiness, and authentic being.

Ultimately, the experience is one of self-discovery, liberation, and becoming “un-fuckable with”—of finding your own solid core.

Coaching and therapy both entail self-reflection and emotional exploration, but therapy (psychotherapy) is clinically oriented treatment delivered by a qualified professional and designed to address mental health conditions and healing from deep trauma.

If you’re emotionally stable and ready to create change, coaching can be incredibly powerful. If you’re overwhelmed, in crisis, or working through trauma, therapy is the right first step.

The coaching process can open and uncover powerful emotions and touch on past emotional or physical traumas. If you do not already, we suggest working concurrently with a personal therapist who can provide traditional psychological support processes and treatment as needed. We may require that you have a therapist if you have a history of self-harm or suicidal ideation.

We are all spiritual beings—your spiritual life is your participation in the world. It is the bridge between what is seen and known and what is unseen and unknown. It is an aspect of our humanity that infuses our lives with context and meaning.

I encourage developing spiritual practices because I believe it is essential to our sense of relationship and connection

In her book Anchored, Deb Dana refers to connection as one of the 3 elements of well being, and says, “the final element, connection, brings a sense of relationship. The experience of connection encompasses four domains:

• Connection to self

• Connection to other people and pets

• Connection to nature and the world around us

• Connection to spirit.

In coaching, we will explore all domains of connection to develop and explore your own spiritual experience to congruence, authenticity, joie de vivre, and a capacity for meeting life on life’s terms. A spiritual context is very helpful for moving through uncertain times.

We often think of spiritual life as lofty, or as someone or something that is “out there.” But a spiritually lived life is profoundly integrated authentic, integrous and vital. It is present and it lives from the inside out.

I’m not a guru—so often we look to others to have the answers that we then struggle to conform to. This work is about looking within and finding your own answers through healing inquiry, experimentation and grace.

In my own journey I have found a spiritual life to be essential, not just to my healing, growth and resilience, but to my perspective on life and the world.

In my personal journey, I was born and raised in the Seventh Day Adventist church, when I was a teenager I had a spiritual awakening and began my own exploration. I identify as spiritually fluid and love the journey and the mystery. You might call me a seeker.

The spiritual system I most resonate with is Zen Buddhism. I have also found ritual to be an important tool for healing and manifestation, and that is where my own practices tend to center. At the heart of my philosophy is love and my approach is, as Ram Das says, that “we are all walking each other home.”

In coaching, we will explore all domains of connection to develop and explore your own spiritual experience. I have no agenda or belief system I am interested in you joining or adopting, just your own authentic connection and exploration

I’m not a guru—so often we look to others to have the answers that we then struggle to conform to. This work is about looking within and finding your own answers through healing inquiry, experimentation and grace.