The shooting at the Navy Shipyard in Washington, DC, like every other shooting, was tragic. I always feel so helpless when I hear about these incidents. Though I send my thoughts and prayers to those who have been affected, a prayer just doesn’t seem enough in such a tragedy. But when you are not affiliated with those involved it feels better than doing nothing.
In this instance, however, I got to do a little more. I am a Reiki volunteer with a group called CAUSE. Their mission is to “organize programs that promote recreation, relaxation and resiliency for members of the US Armed Services recuperating from injuries received in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.” I was invited to give Reiki sessions to staff members at the Navy Shipyard in a one-time event.
Despite all the red tape and organizing that had to happen we ended up with a group of eight practitioners giving twenty minute sessions to those who signed up or just showed up. Happy as I was to be there I had my reservations about how useful such a short session would be on a one-time basis. And it got me thinking.
Meditation, as little as five minutes, has been shown to have physical and emotional benefits. Transcendental Meditation is done for twenty minutes at each session and with that short span of time exercise can have numerous benefits. A quick twenty minute phone call to a friend can leave you feeling on top of the world, and a smile, which can do the same, only takes a moment. All of these things are beneficial in the short term but are far more useful when done regularly. Just like Reiki healing.
Yet, they can also offer you a jump-start - to your day, your confidence level or your healing. And sometimes that’s all you need, a little push, to get going again. By taking that ten or twenty minute walk around the block you may remember how good it feels to have the breeze on your face and do it again the next day…and the next. When you take the time to listen to your inner voice in a meditation you can remind yourself how wonderful it feels just to have five minutes to yourself, and the peace it brings.
Twenty minutes of Reiki healing helped numerous people at the Navy Shipyard focus on their own healing and forget, for a moment, the tragedy that had happened to them and their co-workers. A few people even came back for a second session. Some of the recipients were surprised how quickly they were able to relax, “tune out”, and even fall asleep in such a short time. The thing that made it all worthwhile for me was the comment, “Thank you so much for doing this, this is exactly what we needed”.
You have to start your own healing process with what you have where you are. It need not take a lot of time or effort but it will always be more useful when done with consistency. Take some time today to consider what actions you can do on a daily basis that will help you manage your chronic pain or condition.
Then share your ideas with us so that we can learn from each other. Leave a message on Facebook.