I am a Reiki Master of Masters with 17 years of expertise in two areas: 1) I practice Reiki to facilitate healing and growth; and 2) I train practitioners in the use of Reiki for self and others. My current practice, as well as how Reiki came to me, is significantly influenced by previous career experiences.

My Background
I first had a career in scientific research followed by a second career as a regulator of pharmaceuticals with the FDA. I also have over 30 years of experience practicing Jungian-oriented psychotherapy as a clinical social worker. I worked with adults, teens and couples for recovery from trauma, relationship difficulties and life transitions.

My career experience has been a unique combination of thinking with both sides of my brain. This balance has allowed me early in my career to be disciplined about having proof behind anything labeled a fact with my left brain. While my right brain understands our connections with the personal unconscious mind and what Jung called the “transpersonal universal consciousness.” This duality recognizes the benefits of spiritual, psychological and physical healing of an individual coupled with their development into the person they were meant to be.

Jungian-Oriented Psychotherapy
I call what I do Jungian-oriented psychotherapy, or “parts work” for short, as in putting the parts back together to restore the whole. In Carl Jung’s vision, we come into this world with a whole psyche but quickly have to repress many parts of it because powerful forces in our lives. For example, parents won’t tolerate those parts. We also experience traumas that have to be hidden in the unconscious mind because we were too young to process them at the time. At some point in our lives the drive to reunite with these banished parts and to heal from trauma becomes so strong that we begin what Jung called the individuation process. The reunion of the banished parts with the conscious mind is achieved by connection with the guidance of internal elements in our individual unconscious minds, as well as the transpersonal universal consciousness. The ultimate goal, individuation, is to regain our wholeness and become the person we were meant to be.

Bioenergetic Healing Techniques
I also had over 10 years’ experience with various other bioenergetic healing techniques before practicing Reiki. Early on in my “parts work” psychotherapy practice, I began to study bioenergetic healing through classes and intensive workshops and found it very helpful for these purposes. I found that experiential techniques were a great adjunct to talking psychotherapy, particularly to access guidance from the unconscious mind and universal consciousness quickly.

Reiki
Reiki (pronounced Ray-key) is a bioenergetic healing therapy. All bioenergetic therapies clear blockages and imbalances in energy flow to promote physical and emotional health and spiritual connection. It is important to human well-being that energy on all levels flows freely.

Reiki is a safe, simple technique that promotes well-being on all levels. It is effective in stress-reduction and promotion of relaxation, in improving health and enhancing the quality of life. It can be used in conjunction with medical or therapeutic techniques to promote recovery and reduce side effects. Reiki can also be used in psychotherapy to access repressed psychological trauma held in the body, to facilitate emotional release and to heal trauma wounds.

How Reiki Came to Me . . .
I received a notice in 2005 that the University of Maryland School of Social Work was offering two classes in Reiki (I and II) that would satisfy continuing education requirements for clinical social workers. When I walked into the classroom, I felt a welcoming energy that I had never felt before in a classroom and that was just the start. I was born an introvert and do not generally sit on the front row or volunteer in classes. So I was surprised to find myself on the front row raising my hand when the teacher (Libby Barnett) started the class by asking if anyone wanted to receive Reiki from her while she was lecturing. She chose me, and the energy I experienced was beyond anything I had experienced before. The classes ended up being one incredible experience after another—and I was blown away by the energy I felt after the Reiki I and II classes! It was then that I made a commitment to practice Reiki for myself and others for the rest of my life!

I proceeded to apply for the Reiki Master and Reiki Master Teacher classes, receiving those degrees in 2006. After a year of teaching Reiki I and II, I received my Master of Masters degree in 2007.

About Anita