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Energy Therapies
Energy Therapies |
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Energy therapies is a collective term used to
refer to a variety of alternative and complementary treatments
based on the use, modification, or manipulation of energy fields.
Most energy therapies presuppose or accept the theory that matter
and energy are not exclusive opposites, but that matter is simply
a denser form of energy that is more easily perceived by the
senses. Some energy therapies are associated with systems of
traditional Indian or Chinese medicine that are thousands of years
old; others draw upon contemporary scientific theories. Energy
therapies can be divided for purposes of discussion into two
groups: those that utilize energy fields located in, affecting, or
emanating from the human body (biofield therapies); and those that
use electromagnetic fields in unconventional ways. In addition,
there are energy therapies that combine biofield therapy with some
aspects of bodywork polarity therapy, and qigong are examples of
this combined approach.
Energy therapies vary widely in their understanding of
qualifications to be a healer. Some have credentialing or training
programs; others do not. Some practitioners of energy therapy
believe that all or most people have the capacity to be healers;
others regard the ability to use or direct healing energies as a
gift or charism that is given only to people who are "chosen" or
unusually spiritual.
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Purpose
The purpose of energy therapies can be broadly defined as the
healing of mental or physical disorders by rebalancing the
energy fields in the human body or by drawing upon spiritual
energies or forces for such healing. Some energy therapies
include internal detoxification or release of trauma-related
memories as additional purposes. |
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Brief descriptions of some of the
energy therapies.
Therapeutic touch
Therapeutic touch, or TT, is a form of energy therapy that
developed in the United States. It is a noninvasive method of
healing derived from an ancient laying-on of hands technique.
In TT, practitioners alter the patient's energy field through
a transfer of energy from their hands to the patient.
Therapeutic touch was developed in 1972 by Dora Kunz, a
psychic healer, and Dolores Krieger, a professor of nursing at
New York University. The principle behind TT is restoration of
balance or harmony to the human energy field, or aura, that is
thought to extend several inches to several feet from the
body. When illness occurs, it creates a disturbance or
blockage in the vital energy field. The TT practitioner uses
her/his hands to discern the blockage or disturbance. Although
the technique is called "therapeutic touch" there is generally
no touching of the client's physical body, only his or her
energetic body or field. TT is usually performed on fully
clothed patients who are either lying down on a flat surface
or sitting up in a chair.
A therapeutic touch session consists of five steps or phases.
The first step is a period of meditation on the practitioner's
part, to become spiritually centered and energized for the
task of healing. The second step is assessment or discernment
of the energy imbalances in the patient's aura. In this step,
the TT practitioner holds his or her hands about 2-3 inches
above the patient's body and moves them in long, sweeping
strokes from the patient's head downward to the feet. The
practitioner may feel a sense of warmth, heaviness, tingling,
or similar cues, as they are known in TT. The cues are thought
to reveal the location of the energy disturbances or
imbalances. In the third step, known as the unruffling
process, the practitioner removes the energy disturbances with
downward sweeping movements. In the fourth step, the
practitioner serves as a channel for the transfer of universal
energy to the patient. The fifth step consists of smoothing
the patient's energy field and restoring a symmetrical pattern
of energy flow. After the treatment, the patient rests for
10-15 minutes.
Although therapeutic touch has become a popular alternative or
complementary approach in some schools of nursing in the
United States and Canada, acceptance by the mainstream medical
community varies
Many hospitals permit nurses and staff to perform TT on
patients at no extra charge. On the other hand, however,
therapeutic touch became national news in April 1998 when an
elementary-school student carried out research for a science
project that questioned its claims. Twenty-one TT
practitioners with experience ranging from one to 27 years
were blindfolded and asked to identify whether the
investigator's hand was closer to their right hand or their
left. Placement of the investigator's hand was determined by
flipping a coin. The TT practitioners were able to identify
the correct hand in only 123 (44%) of 280 trials, a figure
that could result from random chance alone. Debate about the
merits of TT filled the editorial pages of the Journal of the
American Medical Association for nearly a year after the news
reports, and continues to this day.
Qigong
Qigong is a form of Chinese energy therapy that is usually
considered a martial art by most Westerners. It is better
understood, however, as an ancient Chinese system of postures,
exercises, breathing techniques and meditations. Its
techniques are designed to improve and enhance the body's qi.
According to traditional Chinese philosophy and medicine, qi
is the fundamental life energy responsible for human health
and vitality. Qi travels through the body along channels
called meridians. There are twelve main meridians in humans.
Each major body organ has qi associated with it, and each
organ interacts with particular emotions on the mental level.
Qigong techniques are designed to improve the balance and flow
of energy throughout the meridians, and to increase the
overall quantity and volume of a person's qi.
In the context of energy therapy, qigong is sometimes divided
into internal and external qigong. Internal qigong refers to a
person's practice of qigong exercises to maintain his or her
own health and vitality. Some qigong master teachers are
renowned for their skills in external qigong, in which the
energy from one person is passed on to another for healing.
Chinese hospitals use medical qigong along with herbs,
acupuncture and other techniques of traditional Chinese
medicine. In these hospitals, qigong healers use external
qigong and also design specific internal qigong exercises for
the patients' health problems. |
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Reiki
Reiki is a holistic alternative therapy based on Eastern
concepts of energy flow and the seven chakras (energy centers)
in the human body. Reiki was formulated by a Japanese teacher,
Mikao Usui, around 1890, based on Vajrayana (Tibetan)
Buddhism, but incorporates meditation techniques, beliefs, and
symbols that are considerably older. It is distinctive among
energy therapies in its emphasis on self-healing, its
spiritual principles, and its accreditation of healers through
a system of initiation. Reiki practitioners participate in the
healing of emotional and spiritual as well as physical pain
through the transmission of universal life energy, called "rei-ki"
in Japanese.
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It is believed that ki flows throughout
the universe, but that Reiki connects humans in a more direct
way to the universal source. Reiki is used for the healing of
animals as well as people. As of 2002, a research team at the
University of Michigan is studying the effectiveness of Reiki
in treating chronic pain in patients with diabetic neuropathy.
Various other studies are also underway in the United States
and Canada, some examining the efficacy of the therapy in
coping with pain and anxiety.
Although Reiki involves human touch, it is not massage
therapy. The patient lies on a table fully clothed except for
shoes while the practitioner places her or his hands over the
parts of the body and the chakras in sequence. The hands are
held palms downward with the fingers and thumbs extended. If
the person is in pain or cannot turn over, the practitioner
may touch only the affected part(s). Silence or music
appropriate for meditation is considered essential to the
treatment. Reiki healers practice daily self-healing, in which
they place their hands in traditional positions on their own
bodies. They may use touch, or distant/non-touch.
Reiki healers are initiated into three levels of practice
through attunements, which are ceremonies in which teachers
transmit the hand positions and "sacred" symbols. Reiki I
healers learn the basic hand positions and can practice direct
physical, emotional or mental healing on themselves and
others. Reiki II healers are taught the symbols that empower
them to do distance or absentee healing. In Reiki III the
healer makes a commitment to become a master teacher and do
spiritual healing.
Polarity Therapy
Polarity therapy, which is sometimes called polarity
balancing, is a biofield therapy that resembles Reiki in its
emphasis on energy flow, human touch, and the energy centers (chakras)
in the human body. Polarity therapy was developed by Dr.
Randolph Stone (1890-1981), an American chiropractor and
naturopath. It integrates bodywork with diet, yoga-based
exercise, and self-awareness techniques to release energy
blockages in the patient's body, mind, or feelings. Polarity
theory divides the body into three horizontal and four
vertical zones (right, left, front, and back), each having a
positive, negative, or neutral charge. Energy currents in the
zones are correlated with five energy centers in the body
corresponding to the five elements (ether, air, fire, water,
and earth) of Ayurvedic medicine.
Polarity therapy can be done one-on-one or with a group of
practitioners working on the patient. The therapist as well as
the patient removes shoes. The patient lies fully dressed
except for shoes on a massage table or bed, or on the floor.
The practitioner takes the patient's history, checks reflexes
and touches body parts to determine energy blocks. Polarity
therapy uses three levels of touch: no touch (hands held above
the body, touching only the energy fields); light touch; and a
deep, massaging touch. The therapist balances energy currents
in the patient's body by placing his or her "plus" hand on
"negative" body parts and vice versa. Polarity therapy
involves rocking the patient's body and holding the head as
well as more usual massage techniques. It takes about four
polarity sessions to treat most conditions, with each session
lasting about an hour
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