The Complete Guide to Reiki: Benefits, What to Expect, and How It Feels
Written By Brandi Fleck
Brandi’s hands placed over a client’s solar plexus chakra during a Reiki session at Intuitive Bodywork TN.
This is information on what Reiki is, how it works, and what to expect before, during, and after a session, including its benefits, sensations, and gentle after effects.
If you’ve ever asked, “What is Reiki? What does it feel like? Can Reiki help me heal?”, you’re not alone.
As a Reiki practitioner, I hear these questions from almost every new client. Some clients arrive after trying everything else and not getting answers. Some are curious skeptics. Many haven’t heard of Reiki until they book their first session.
In this guide, I’ll walk you through what Reiki is, how it works, what you might feel, and what to expect before, during, and after a session using only my own words and experiences from my practice. You’ll also find practical tips, real session stories, and answers to common questions so you can walk in informed, open, and ready to receive.
You can also watch this guide on YouTube!
What Is Reiki?
Reiki is universal life force energy—the vital energy that animates all living things. It already exists in you and around you: in people, animals, plants, rocks, water, everything.
When I offer Reiki, I’m a conduit. The energy flows through me to you and goes where it’s needed most.
A simple way to picture it is:
Your body = the car
Your life force = the battery
Me, the practitioner = the jumper cables
I don’t remember where I heard that first to give proper credit, but I use this metaphor with every client during our initial consultation and I love it.
Reiki is gentle and non-invasive, yet powerful. It helps clear energetic blockages, nurtures you, and helps you grow in certain areas so your system can return to balance, physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.
How Reiki Works (Root Causes vs. Symptoms)
Energy can get stuck for lots of reasons—emotional and mental stress, physical struggles, long-term patterns like fear or suppression, or unprocessed trauma. Those blockages may show up as anxiety, heaviness, or even physical pain.
One of the most important things to know:
The symptom isn’t always the source.
For example, if you come in with stubborn shoulder pain that massage and talk therapy can’t fix, Reiki might reveal a blocked throat chakra from years of stifling your voice. That blockage can “back up” into the shoulders and feel like weight or pain. In that case, Reiki first goes to the root of the issue.
That can look like deeper layers within like the sacral or root chakras where you have instabilities or insecurities that cause a shaky foundation or identity, therefore you don’t feel comfortable to speak. Once those imbalances are addressed through multiple sessions, then the throat chakra may open up later, before the shoulders fully release.
And, if you’re not ready to face the problem and integrate healing into your life, Reiki may not be able to break through right away. It may work on your heart chakra next to soften you to the idea of seeing the root of the issue.
How quickly these blockages dissolve depends on your receptiveness and readiness to face what’s going on.
Ultimately, Reiki flows where it needs to go—whether or not it’s where you think the problem is.
Healing Is a Process, Not an Instant Fix
Think of blockages on a spectrum. Some are “sandbars, ” which clear in a single session with a gentle flow of energy, like water. Others are like a “brick wall” built over years—they take repeated, gentle flow to wear down.
Healing isn’t one dramatic moment. It’s regeneration and re-centering, again and again, as life inevitably knocks us off balance. Reiki supports that organic process: your body’s own self-healing takes the lead; Reiki creates the conditions for it to happen.
What Reiki Feels Like
Every person and every session is different. You might feel:
Warmth or heat from my hands
Tingling, pulsing, twitching, or vibration
Itchiness under the skin (that “itch you can’t scratch”)
Lightness or floating
Colors, images, or memories surfacing
Sensations in areas I’m not touching
The sense that I have “octopus hands” (multiple hands) because guides are assisting or I’m using my own light body to reach places that my physical hands cannot reach
Some clients slip into a deep meditative state; some fall asleep; some don’t feel much in the moment but notice changes afterward. All of it belongs. Your body knows what to take.
From my side, I also sense things physically: if energy isn’t flowing, an area can feel cold to me; if it’s blown out, it can feel very hot. Tingling suggests movement. When detox action is happening, I feel a deep itch in my palms. Sometimes I burp during a session when energy is moving fast—air wants to release as things clear.
Before Your First Reiki Session (Comfort, Consent, and Intention)
Your comfort is the priority. Here’s how I set the space and flow—especially for first-timers:
Table position: For a first session, I usually start you face up. In subsequent sessions, we might start face down. We may switch halfway if the session calls for it.
Blanket choice: You choose whether to be under or over a blanket. Both are fine. If I have a preference, it’s you being over the blanket so I can better see and feel subtle body responses (like tiny twitches). Even under a blanket, I can sometimes see your energetic body move—like a foot “kicking” energetically while physically barely moving.
Hands-on or hover: I practice hands-on Reiki and always ask for consent. If any area feels sensitive or triggering (like throat, chest, or pelvis), I’ll hover instead.
Intention setting: Bring your intention—what you hope to receive or address. Reiki will still go where it’s needed, but focusing your intention can clarify the path. Some practitioners don’t agree with this, but I find it sets the tone and helps me tune in better to what’s going on.
During a Reiki Session (What I Look For + Real Stories)
A typical session starts with balancing your main chakras, then I follow intuition and what your system shows me.
As I work, I notice the state of your inner and outer energy system. This includes noticing if your aura is leaning more toward one side or the other, how close or far away from your body it is, the shape of it, the temperature of it, and even the texture of it. I also gaze into your inner meridian pathways and see if they’re flowing bi-directionally and how fast or slow they’re flowing. This also gives me insight into your detox pathways and internal organs to an extent. (But remember, I’m not a medical professional and do not give medical advice).
As I’m working, my client report feeling various sensations that oftentimes correspond to exactly what I sense while I’m working. Here are a few real-world examples.
The “Octopus Hands” Effect
Many clients feel like I’m touching multiple places at once when I’m not. That often means guides are assisting. I’ll sometimes invite them to place their light-body “hands” on you while I work elsewhere or they’ll show me where to place my hands to work in tandem with them. Sometimes I even employ my own light body hands as if I have 6-8 arms coming out of my back as well.
Grief Work with Archangel Azriel
In grief sessions, I’ve had Archangel Azriel arrive to support the mourning process—bringing gentleness and calm that’s tangible in the room.
A Prenatal Reiki Celebration
In a prenatal session, hundreds of spirit ancestors surrounded us—celebratory and joyful. They essentially said, “This is your first prenatal session—we’ll stand back and witness.” It was moving, powerful, and affirming.
A Sudden Cough and a Big Realization
While grounding through a client’s feet, I asked Gaia to send Earth energy back up. She immediately had a sudden coughing fit—no allergies that day, no prior cough. Afterward, she had a massive realization about a relationship she needed to change. The release and the insight arrived together.
Clearing Chaotic Energy
At times I’ve seen an energetic “being” like chaos on top of someone. I’ll ask the angels to transmute it and take it away. When it’s complete, the space feels clear—then I clear the room and we continue.
After a Reiki Session (Detox and Integration)
Reiki is gentle, and “side effects,” when they happen, are typically gentle too. But healing processes can look different depending on the person. Common post-session experiences include:
Emotional release or mood swings — this is indication of an emotional detox
Vivid dreams
More bathroom trips (yes, this is common!)
Stomach gurgling during/after a session (as your system moves from fight-or-flight into rest-and-digest)
Possible light flu-like symptoms but you don’t have the flu — this is indication of physical detox
Feeling lighter, calmer, or clearer
Realizations that integrate over a few days or weeks
Ability to enter deeper into meditation and re-access the feeling you had in the session for a little white afterwards
Post-session self-care:
Hydrate. Always drink plenty of water after Reiki.
Rest if you can. Give your body space to integrate.
Be gentle with yourself. Let feelings move, without judgment.
Some people come in purely to relax and may not feel symptoms at all. Others doing deeper trauma work may notice waves of integration for an extended period of time. For example, when I recently had Reiki performed on myself by a fellow practitioner, I’ve had periodic burning in my right palm occur for the last three weeks. It’s been gradually tapering off, but I know I’m healing my divine masculine and an energetic release or detox is happening.
Getting the Most from Your Session
Consent matters—even if you’re skeptical. Simply saying, “I consent to receive this healing,” helps your mind, body, and spirit receive Reiki more easily.
Don’t compare. Every session is unique, even for the same person.
Not a psychic reading. I take notes during sessions and may share impressions if you ask, but Reiki isn’t a psychic reading. My job is to be a clear channel. I won’t share everything I sense if it isn’t pertinent to your healing in that moment, but I will share anything I feel prompted to relay.
Reiki and the Nervous System (Why Your Stomach Might Gurgle)
From my experience—and as I’ve shared with clients—research shows Reiki is more than a placebo and can shift the nervous system from fight-or-flight (sympathetic) to rest-and-digest (parasympathetic). In practical terms, this means your body stops diverting energy to “run from the tiger” and can resume vital functions like digestion.
That’s why I often hear stomachs gurgling mid-session and why many people report more bathroom trips afterward. Chronic stress can disrupt your digestion; Reiki helps your system downshift so repair and regulation can resume.
The Spiritual Dimension of Reiki
Reiki can feel profoundly spiritual. You may sense guides or ancestors, receive insights, or experience waves of peace that feel divinely sourced.
I’ve worked alongside guides and angels—including Azriel—and in one session worked side by side with Ascended Master, Kuthumi. In prenatal work, ancestors have gathered in celebration. Sometimes guidance tells me exactly where to place my hands. Other times I ask guides to place theirs while I focus elsewhere. We co-create the session with your highest good at the center.
Common Misconceptions About Reiki
Let’s clear up a few things I’m asked about all the time:
“The practitioner heals me.”
Reiki supports your body in healing itself. The energy relaxes you so deeply that your natural healing processes can take over. I won’t take credit for “healing you.” Your system does that when given the right conditions.
“If I don’t feel anything, it didn’t work.”
Not necessarily. Some people see colors or feel tingling; others feel nothing—and then notice shifts later. Your system takes what it needs.
“Reiki is instant.”
Sometimes releases are immediate; other times, deeper blockages (your “brick walls”) take multiple sessions. Healing is a process.
“Reiki is a psychic reading.”
No. While I may get intuitive impressions, Reiki isn’t a reading. I share what’s appropriate and useful for your healing, and only if you want to hear it.
“Hands-on is required.”
I ask for consent and can hover where touch is uncomfortable (like the throat or chest). You always have a say in how we work.
“It’s only for spiritual people.”
Reiki meets you where you are. You don’t need a particular belief system to benefit. Simply consenting to receive is enough.
Reiki FAQ (Straight from My Practice)
Do I need to believe in Reiki for it to work?
No. Openness helps, but even skeptics have reported benefits. The key is your consent to receive.
Will you touch me everywhere you work?
I practice hands-on with consent. If a spot is sensitive or triggering, I’ll hover instead.
What position will I be in?
First sessions usually start face up. Later sessions may start face down. We can switch if needed.
Blanket or no blanket?
Your choice. I can read your body and energy either way. When you’re over the blanket, I can see subtle responses more clearly, but both work.
What will I feel during the session?
Possibilities include warmth, tingling, pulsing, floaty sensations, colors, memories, or feeling like multiple hands are working (guides assisting). You might also fall asleep or feel very calm and quiet.
What happens after the session?
You may experience gentle detox and integration—vivid dreams, mood shifts, insights, more bathroom trips, or just deep calm. Drink water and rest if you can. Effects can unfold over several days or weeks.
How many sessions will I need?
It depends. Lighter blockages can shift fast; deeper, long-standing ones take time. I like the “sandbar vs. brick wall” metaphor—both clear with consistent flow some blockages more easily than others.
Will you tell me everything you sensed?
I take notes. I share what’s timely and pertinent to your healing, and I’m happy to discuss more if you ask. Reiki isn’t a psychic reading, so discernment matters.
Ready to Experience Reiki?
Reiki is a gentle, powerful way to help your system come back to balance. It can clear stuck energy, calm an overactive nervous system, and support your natural capacity to heal—physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.
Every session is unique because every person is unique and every practitioner is unique. Whether you’re seeking relief from stress, heaviness in your body, or a deeper connection to yourself, Reiki meets you where you are and works for your highest good.
Ready to experience Reiki for yourself? Explore my offerings at Intuitive Bodywork TN or browse the Human Amplified archives for more tools on authentic living, healing, and personal growth. Have questions about your first session? Drop them in the comments—I’d love to hear from you.
Join the conversation!
Feel free to let me know if you have any questions in the comments.
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Hi, I’m the founder of Human Amplified. I’m Brandi Fleck, a recognized communications and interviewing expert, a writer, an artist, and a private practice, certified trauma-informed life coach and Reiki healer. No matter how you interact with me, I help you tell and change your story so you can feel more like yourself. So welcome!
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