Some people say they feel the effects immediately. Some say they feel them several days later. Still other people are not convinced that they get any benefits. However, Boozer tells everyone that Reiki can only help, not hurt.
Staff members at Levindale have told her that they also notice changes in the people who she has worked with. Nursing assistants say that residents are calmer after Boozer leaves and are less irritable and aggressive for a time.
One family member, of a resident who is not able to verbally communicate, told Boozer that she noticed a softening in her mother's face.
Another example was a Levindale resident who was often agitated. She would call out and cry out, and there was no apparent physical reason for her outbursts. Within 10 minutes of her first session, the woman was sleeping peacefully.
Another gentleman was diagnosed with cancer. Boozer went to him and asked if he wanted to try Reiki. He was less than enthusiastic but told her to go ahead. She started with his head chakra and worked down. By the time she got to his heart Chara, he was also asleep. When she returned the following week, he told her that he wasn't sure if it had "done anything" but that he must have felt pretty good if he went to sleep. He asked her to do another session.
Family members and staff members are often the ones who recommend patients and residents for Reiki treatments. Some of the people she helps are on comfort care or in hospice.
To become a Reiki practitioner and then a Reiki master, a person must take specific courses. Reiki is not a religion. It is "one with nature," which can be a companion to different religions or can stand by itself.
Helene King is a communications coordinator at LifeBridge Health, one of the largest and most comprehensive providers of health services in the northwest Baltimore region. A former television producer, she has overseen the completion of "The Who, What and Where of Elder Care" guide book and the Project LIGHT comprehensive tool kit, which is designed for primary care physicians helping their patients fight depression. She can be reached at
hking@lifebridgehealth.org
or on the web at
www.lifebridgehealth.org
.