March 30, 2025 • 52 mins
Michelle Sloan's spiritual journey began over 35 years ago when she attended an Al-Anon meeting during college – a pivotal moment that sparked her lifelong dedication to healing work. Today, as a Reiki master with specializations in end-of-life care, certified Access Bars facilitator, ordained minister, and grief counselor, Michelle brings a wealth of wisdom to this profound conversation about healing modalities that transform lives.
The magical moment when Reiki found Michelle offers a touching glimpse into how healing practices enter our lives precisely when needed. When her father was diagnosed with ALS and received Reiki sessions, Michelle witnessed firsthand the profound calm and presence the practitioner brought to an otherwise devastating situation. This experience planted the seed that would eventually bloom into her own healing practice spanning multiple modalities.
Michelle eloquently bridges the perceived gap between spirituality and religion, explaining how Reiki exists comfortably at this intersection. "We're all energy. That's proven scientifically," she notes, grounding energy healing in observable reality while honoring its spiritual dimensions. This perspective offers a refreshing framework for those questioning how energy healing aligns with their faith tradition.
Her work with grief counseling reveals a deeply compassionate approach to emotional healing. "Grief doesn't go away, it waits," she shares, highlighting the importance of processing our losses rather than suppressing them. Through her workshops, one-on-one sessions, and classes, Michelle creates safe spaces for people to sit with their emotions and transform grief into wisdom. Her practice extends beyond death-related grief to encompass relationship endings, trauma, and significant life transitions.
What resonates most powerfully is Michelle's "60 seconds of courage" philosophy – the idea that transformative healing journeys begin with just one minute of bravery. Whether you're curious about Reiki, struggling with loss, or seeking to expand your spiritual practice, this conversation offers practical wisdom, heartfelt stories, and a roadmap for healing that honors both scientific understanding and spiritual truth.
Ready Set Reiki is a journey
From the curious beginner to the Season Master Teacher
All Energy workers of all systems and all levels.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
This is Ready Set Reiki, a podcast about Reiki,
the universal energy life force,from the curious beginner to
the seasoned master teacher,welcoming all systems, all
lineages and all levels.
Reiki is a journey and not adestination, and on this Ready
Set Reiki journey, I refer tomyself as a guide rather than
host, as I too am traveling,supporting others and learning
(00:43):
on this Reiki journey as well.
And with that said, I am yourguide, tracy C Wright.
Joining me today on my journeyis Michelle Sloan.
Now she is a spiritualpractitioner trained in the
study of science of mind and theart science and skill of
affirmative prayer, grief andtrauma counseling.
Further exploring an interfaithjourney, she became an ordained
(01:05):
minister through UniversalBrotherhood Clergy and expanded
into wedding and memorialservices.
She is a certified Reiki masterwith additional Reiki
certifications in end-of-lifeand hospice care.
She is also a certified AccessConscious Bar facilitator.
She is licensed to practiceprofessionally and bound by a
high code of ethics with respectto your privacy.
She is licensed to practiceprofessionally and bound by a
(01:26):
high code of ethics with respectto your privacy.
She has practiced across theUnited States and Europe,
leading classes, meditations,workshops, reiki sessions and
self-Reiki healing circles, bothonline and in person.
Her specialty lies inone-on-one sessions and
counseling, utilizing bothspiritual principles and healing
(01:46):
modalities.
Michelle, welcome to Ready SetReiki.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Thank you so much, Tracy.
It's lovely to be here.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
All right.
Well, let's begin our journeytogether, so tell us a little
bit about yourself.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
Well, sure, let's see .
I currently live in Florida andI have always been a seeker,
explorer when it came toself-help, and people always say
, how did you start your journey?
And I would really say like theturning point for me was over
35 years ago, when I was incollege.
I saw a church flyer that wasinviting people to do Al-Anon.
(02:26):
At the time it was in thechurch where we studied on a
college campus and I went andthat really began my path.
If I have to dial back andthink about what is that one
turning point?
And that was it.
When we unravel our pain, ourtrauma, and we reset to our
natural state, which is thriving, our world opens up.
(02:47):
And that really just propelledme into seeking and searching
and retreats and workshops andwellness therapy.
And then 12 years ago I became apractitioner at the Center for
Spiritual Living and it's atwo-year program very similar to
(03:08):
a master's degree inspirituality.
So a licensed spiritualpractitioner is someone who is
highly spiritual conscious andhas a deep understanding for
spiritual nature of life andthrives to deepen their personal
relationship with the divine.
So with that it allowed me,through Center for Spiritual
(03:29):
Living, to teach classes andworkshops, meditation and lead
services and officiate.
And I did that for quite awhile, you know, in time and
life happened and I exploredliving and loving.
And then COVID lockdownhappened and I utilized that
time to expand my Reiki practiceand I became a UC Reiki master
(03:54):
and I studied on specializing inend of life hospice Reiki and I
did that at the SanctuallyHearing Arts and I did that
online, which was a veryinteresting way to do your Reiki
master certification.
And then I decided to move toFlorida in 2001.
And it opened a doorway likeeither I was going to attach my
(04:18):
practitioner license to a localcenter or take that dive into
ministry, and I chose to becomea licensed minister through the
Universal Brotherhood Beautiful.
So here I am, yeah, exploringand living my best life.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
So when did Reiki come into your life?
Would you say that you foundReiki or Reiki found you?
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Reiki found me and this is really an interesting
story.
My dad was diagnosed with ALSand somebody had gifted him five
sessions of Reiki and I was inmy late twenties and I was just
happened to be there the day theReiki master showed up and
(05:03):
opened the door and just feelingher energy and her vibe and we
were all nervous.
My dad had a terminal illnessand he was just so calm and
present and receiving of thesessions and I thought, huh, I
think I might need to look intothis and explore what is Reiki
right.
So that was my firstintroduction to Reiki and
(05:23):
explore what is Reiki right.
So that was my firstintroduction to Reiki.
Reiki can be a beautiful gift.
I mean, and there's a difference, I think, between this is I
grew up Catholic and I grew upin the church and I went to
Catholic school and there's thatdifference between spirituality
and religion and I think wewere mentioning this in an email
(05:45):
.
Whereas spirituality, it reallyinvolves practicing meditation,
mindfulness, energy healing,like Reiki, and it often is
about finding that inner peaceand that purpose, that deeper
sense of understanding life, andreligion tends to be more
structured, more practiced andmore of an organization style,
(06:10):
including rules, regulations,rituals, and I think
spirituality has a tendency tobe more flexible, more personal,
about mindful practices.
So we lean into that innerpeace and purpose and I think
from there we find ourindividual growth.
And then, if I have to thinkabout it, versus religion, again
(06:32):
, it involves community, itinvolves shared beliefs and it
involves more structure, right,right, and spirituality has that
interpretation right To wherereligion can be more doctrinated
and structured.
But both spirituality andreligion really offer that sense
(06:54):
of a meaning, a meaning and aconnection, but it's just
approached in different ways.
The goal really is can be for me, it is interchangeable where
Reiki, yes, falls underspirituality, but it also has
principles and practices.
It has rules, it hasrequirements, right, whether
(07:16):
those look like symbols ormantras, but so does religion.
So there's a lot ofsimilarities and all we need to
do is really do is really trustits force to work through us and
with us.
But that's very similar to howwe connect to God or spirit or
universe.
So it's that universal lifeforce and energy.
(07:37):
That's who we are.
And so I think, when I thinkabout Reiki and then beginning
my practice, I was reallylooking forward to just
expanding into being morefulfilled, and so Reiki aided
for that.
For me, it aided in myspiritual journey and I think,
(07:59):
whether you're religious orspiritual, or a wellness seeker,
you're religious or spiritualor a wellness seeker.
We don't really have to title it.
I think what sums it up is ourpurpose is to love.
That's our highest energy,whether you're religious or
spiritual, and that means lovingall parts of you that feel
(08:20):
misaligned, traumatized, and sosometimes I utilize prayer to
get there, and sometimes Iutilize a Reiki to transmute the
energy that blocks us andallows us to move into love Like
it's.
It's an enlightenment rightthat people seek like, but,
simply put, it's just the studyof your own spiritual awareness
(08:41):
that connects us to thatpresence, and I think that's
what people are seeking when wesay that lightness, that joy,
that higher vibration, whateverwe choose to call it.
And that's what draws me toreligion, to prayer, to ministry
, to Reiki, because it's all thesame but different in the words
(09:05):
and the way we practice it.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
Very well said.
So, as you are out, you arenavigating this wonderful
journey that you're on, asyou're out, serving and helping
others.
What are some misconceptionsabout Reiki that people have?
Speaker 3 (09:21):
Yeah, there's definitely some myths out there,
but Reiki isn't religion and itdoesn't replace a medical
treatment.
But it can and it does workalongside those Reiki
practitioners, as you know,channel energy to promote
healing.
It's a hands-on approach, it'snot magic.
Our bodies are magnetic vesselsand they know how to reset, to
(09:46):
heal, to reveal, and healing isreally aligning.
To me, like people think thatworld healing is very woo-woo,
but it's more aligning and we'reall energy.
I mean that's provenscientifically.
We have electric impulses thatzap through our bodies right To
stimulate our muscles and ourcells and our neurons, and we're
(10:08):
carbon-based and we are builtfrom energy Like it flows, but
energy flows.
And then there's that gesture,right that practicing the energy
gestures follow and open upthat pathway to feeling light
aligned.
So for me, reiki is thatwell-being experience that
(10:29):
assists you to operate to yourhighest potential, both
emotionally, mentally andphysically.
I think the more consciousnessyou pour into your body, the
more vibration it has to heal.
And so it's certainly beenaround many, many, many years.
Of course, in the United Statesnot as long, maybe the 60s, you
(10:51):
know, 70s kind of depends on ifyou're in Hawaii or the main
mainland.
But I think it's important toconsider adding Reiki to your
healthcare plan it's having tome an additional insurance plan
because it's very complimentaryto improving your health and
(11:12):
your wellbeing.
I mean, we know it's used inoncologist offices and for
cancer treatment centers.
That's probably the main areawhere a lot of people do
volunteering because it doesrelax your nervous system and it
aligns your chakras, which areyour energy centers.
It does help maintain the painmanagement and it does boost
(11:35):
your immune system and it's mostcertainly aids in the recovery
of injury or illness.
So, yes, what it is not is it'snot magic and it is a science
to it.
We know that energy is who andwhat we are, and so, with that,
I think you have to try it tounderstand it.
(11:57):
You know it's like how do weknow?
That's true.
Like I always like to stay inquestion, sometimes we have our
beliefs about what's good for usand what's bad for us around,
either what's been downloaded tous from our ancestors or what
we've heard but maybe notexperienced ourselves, and so to
(12:17):
stay in question around what itis, the best way to do is
experience it, to know.
You know everything works,sometimes right.
We align it with differentthings at different points of
our life and it's a matter ofstaying in possibility and
willingness right.
There has to be that window toreceive, like we're all good
(12:39):
givers, but are we willing toreceive?
And that changes yourexperience.
In a Reiki session or in a Reikicircle, or like tomorrow night
I'll do a sound bath, I pairwith a gal who does sound
healing, sound bath, and then Ido the hands-on Reiki while the
sound healing is happening.
So it's a real high magneticenergy of self-care, because
(13:05):
self-care is how we take ourpower back, and so for me it's a
really good intro to Reikibecause people are starting to
experience sound healing.
It's nice to go to a therapistand talk through your trauma or
your situation and work throughyour approach and your healing,
(13:26):
but there's nothing like soundbath or Reiki when your only job
is to lay there and receiveright and just feel like you had
amazing massage or you justwoke up from the best night's
sleep ever.
I mean, that's really what youfeel like after a Reiki session.
And it's always different,right, because we're in
different, we're different,we're changing and everything is
(13:49):
unfolding minute by minute andI can say sometimes I can be
agitated and restless, sometimesI can fall asleep, sometimes I
can feel tingling, sometimes I'mlike anticipation, like please
just get me on the table, like Ialways feel different, no
matter what's going on in mylife.
And that's what I like aboutReiki.
It's a wellness modality andthere's a lot of modalities.
(14:14):
Right, there's a lot of healingmodalities and so I always
encourage people to try them.
We do a great.
It's like a taster event herein Florida, in Jupiter, at the
Third Eye Institute and MysticShop, where everyone gets to try
a session and we'll have likefive or six wellness healers and
(14:34):
it's 20 minutes for $20, whichis a great investment and you
could try multiple.
And so the concept is you don'tknow what you don't know until
you try it.
So I always encourage peoplejust to try it and have their
own experience with their ownbody, with their own mind, and
see what happens, becausesometimes it can be physical,
(14:57):
sometimes it can be emotionaland sometimes it can be very
spiritual.
So, again, the energy moves.
The idea is to quiet the mindand allow the body to do what it
does naturally, because ourminds want to.
They're just going all the time.
(15:18):
They move on before our bodiesdo.
And what do we do with thatstuck trauma, pain, emotion,
that there's no time for right,because we live in a world
that's so overscheduled and sobusy.
I feel that it's good to reset.
There's only so much you canmanage Before you need.
(15:40):
We do it out to our computers,we delete our hard drive, we
have an external, we're holdingthe storage, but we need to be
doing that to our bodies, and soI find Reiki to really be
beneficial in that way too, ifthat makes sense, right.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
So you help so many people on their journey, help
them with their challenges,their struggles.
You even are, you volunteer asa grief counselor, you know,
with hospice and embracing theimportance of grieving mindfully
, what has been the biggestchallenge or struggle that you
have faced in your own healingjourney?
Speaker 3 (16:18):
Sometimes, when you can be in deep pain, you can be
paralyzed and it's to honorwhere you are, honor just.
Your body needs to rest,sometimes in the healing of
whatever you're experiencing andthen to search out.
I mean, I know, when I gotdivorced I didn't want to be
(16:39):
stuck in a bitter, angry, abusedsituation.
I wanted to heal and my focuswas I might not know how I was
going to get there, but my jobwasn't the how.
That was up to God, that was upto spirit.
My job was to be willing.
My job was just to keep thatfocus of searching out.
(17:03):
So I was doing Reiki, I wasdoing meditation, I was seeing
my minister, I was in supportcircles, I was traveling, I was
in nature, I was doingeverything I could to assist in
the healing, in the transferringof those emotions.
(17:25):
Because grief can often bemisdiagnosed.
It can manifest as stress, ashopelessness, isolation,
depression, even overwhelm andanxiety and we have a lot of
overwhelm and anxiety in ourworld, right.
But also, grief isn't justabout somebody, like a death in
(17:48):
a family, right, or a loss of aloved one.
Grief is an end of a marriage,an end of a relationship, any
significant trauma or changethat has caused loss in your
life, right.
So we experienced grief thenand while I was doing my studies
at Center for Spiritual Living,one of the criteria was to take
(18:10):
this particular grief class andthe book is called Grieving
Mindfully.
And I was so connected to thebook because it changed and
altered my perception towardsgrief and helped me heal.
Because it changed and alteredmy perception towards grief and
helped me heal that anytimesomebody I knew would lose
somebody, I would gift this book.
But I was finding that nobodywas reading it and I was
(18:31):
thinking this book is amazingand then I just had the calling
to start teaching it Becauseit's a book that has a lot of
practices.
But then the more classes Itake and the more studies I do
podcasts I might listen to theclass has evolved into more of
(18:52):
trauma and grief.
So I do that as a workshop, as aone-on-one session and as an
online class, because in today'ssocietal structure it really
suggests that we just ought toremain stronger than our grief
and we ought to just pushthrough it and get over it.
And that is the worst feelingever if you're in grief, because
you just you don't align withthat right, because this is very
(19:12):
self-destructive and it reallyprolongs our pain, because grief
doesn't go away, it waits.
And so, instead, if we chooseto grieve mindfully which would
involve being present and awareof our emotions, our thoughts,
our feelings, you know, while wemove through the grieving
process, we're able to transformgrief to wisdom, because grief
(19:37):
can be very energeticallydraining and it can be hard for
people to seek help.
There's a lot of great supportgrief groups.
That's one of the things I dowhen I volunteer.
I call families a few monthslater after they have lost their
loved one and I walk throughtheir options about grief
support, what it feels like, sothey can identify with their
(19:59):
feelings and I put them in theright direction through how to
get help.
But really, grief can be abridge that helps us meet
ourself and it gives us anopportunity to allow, to honor
what was, but also we grievewhat could have been, and so,
(20:19):
more importantly, we need togrieve and accept what has
changed.
And how do we do that?
We need tools, we needtechniques, we have to add them
to our tool belt of life, andit's true that when we suffer a
loss, a part of ourself is lost,and so navigating through that
(20:41):
everyday loss can be extremelychallenging without any tools,
because it doesn't really matter.
When I was in a grief so when mydad passed away from ALS,
that's when I found griefcounseling, because I was very
far away from my family, it wasacross the country and I learned
that it doesn't matter that ifit was last week, last year or
even a decade ago.
(21:01):
It's never too late to healyour grief or to find new ways
of being.
And I learned that in thatclass because somebody had been
in the class that was grievingtheir grandmother, who was like
their mom and she had passed 10years ago, and this gentleman
was a minister and he wasnon-denominational, which is
what I associate myself with.
(21:24):
And there was, you know,workbooks and journaling and
meditating, and that helped me alot.
And it really just becomesabout the question of what if
you turned your grief intoaction or your pain into power,
like what if you felt it, allthe emotions and the feelings,
(21:46):
until you felt clarity or desireor hope.
When we stay in question aroundwhat's possible, then there's
choice.
When we have a conclusion ofI'm never going to get over this
, there's nowhere to move to,you've decided something.
But when we stay in a questionlike what's possible now, even
(22:07):
just a general question.
We might not get the answer inthat moment, but the universe,
god's spirit, shows us right.
It shows us in signs, symbols,synchronicity, goosebumps, a
phone call, whatever it may be aclass flyer and we take action.
And then our world opens up.
(22:29):
Right.
That's how we always say I justwish they would send me a sign.
And I remember that when I wasmoving through a transition, is
God, please just send me a sign?
And I remember getting off theairplane and saying we're glad
you're here.
I'm like okay, there's my sign,I mean.
But we have to ask, like ourangels, our guides, our spirit,
(22:50):
they're waiting.
We have to ask, ask for help,ask to be shown the way.
And I was just talking to afriend this morning also about
we're always willing to pray forsomeone else and bless someone
else, but are we willing to dothat for ourselves?
It's almost like you have toput on your own oxygen mask
(23:14):
before you put on someone else's.
It's the same thing with griefor healing or any other type of
wellness modality, Like youcan't help someone else unless
you help yourself first.
And that's really aboutmindfulness, because mindfulness
facilitates our growth, right.
It helps us to develop openattitude towards life.
(23:36):
It assists us to cultivateacceptance, maybe even
forgiveness or compassion, notjust towards yourself, but to
others.
Right, it's said, we grieve asdeeply as we love and that's one
reason why everyone grievesdifferently because we love
(23:57):
differently.
We love differently atdifferent times, to different
what we're attached to ordifferent people or different
relationships.
So, like in my classes andworkshops and sessions, I help
individuals process theiremotions in that healthy way
where they can find theacceptance and peace.
And we do practice all of thetools and techniques meditation
(24:21):
journaling, practice all of thetools and techniques meditation
journaling, whether it's guided,you know question journaling,
inner work and breathwork.
Breathwork is another huge andit's free.
It's right where we are,wellness modality, which is now
becoming I love all thebreathwork exercises we can find
in classes and workshops andretreats are even adding them in
(24:43):
now, because, you know, thehuman spirit is meant to thrive,
no matter the level of traumaor grief.
That's our natural state.
So, learning about either griefor trauma and just gaining that
comfort and begin to transformyour grief into wisdom.
It's about mindfulness, right,and being emotionally and
(25:06):
spiritually resilient.
That's the goal, right?
We're not meant to stay wounded.
We're not meant to stay in ourtrauma, we're meant to move
beyond that.
And so I think there's many,many ways, many things that are
out of our control.
And we live in a world whereeverybody wants to be in control
(25:27):
of their emotions, of theirenvironment, and I think that's
our biggest sense of falsehood.
And if we can just say the onlything we can control is our
reaction, and just say the onlything we can control is our
reaction right, or what wechoose to do next, and we keep
it that simple and know that wehave everything we need right
(25:49):
where we are, well then that'sthe first step.
I recently was at a memorialservice and someone was speaking
about this close friend of minewho passed away, that her
biggest saying was you just need60 seconds of courage to start
(26:12):
anything.
And I've been thinking aboutthat a lot since I've been to
her memorial service and I thinkit's true memorial service, and
I think it's true.
What if it just takes 60seconds of courage to do really
almost anything?
You know to feel the fear anddo it.
And it was like I was justchatting with my sister.
I'm like, oh, I got to go, I'mgetting ready to do a Ready Set
(26:34):
Reiki podcast and she said okay,you're going to be great.
I've heard all your otherpodcasts, you've got this.
And I'm like do I feel nervousor do I feel excited and ready?
It's our wording, and when webreak down our emotions, we kind
of stay in the surface ofemotions, sometimes Like I feel
(26:55):
scared.
Well, is it scared or nervousor is it worried?
And we can hone it.
Teachers do this all the timewith children, you know, with
faces or signs, to get them toidentify what they're feeling,
so they can express themselves.
And I think we forget this aswe get older and we move through
our life is what are we reallyfeeling?
(27:15):
And so for me, it's likeallowing yourself to be trusted,
like trusting yourself,trusting your word, trusting
your heart, trusting yourintuition, but, more importantly
, trusting your individuality.
We're not all the same.
We don't have the samefingerprint, for a reason.
We have different experiences,we have different journeys, but
(27:40):
honoring your journey is goingto look different, right?
So that's the only way we'reable to really come to the
acceptance of who we are.
Like shining your light.
Your light is here, it's needed, you're on purpose, and I think
people forget that as well,they're just kind of.
We get into this robotic statewhen we become overwhelmed with
(28:03):
all of the responsibilities orkeeping up with the Joneses.
But I love the wave of what'shappening right now in healing
modalities, whether it's griefand trauma, counseling or Reiki
or access bars or meditation orbreath work or going on retreats
or even being in nature.
(28:23):
Whether you're a massive hikeror runner, what are you doing?
To be with you?
It's silencing the mind andallowing your heart to speak.
For me is the goal.
I don't know if you find that.
Speaker 2 (28:39):
Right when it's time for you to get an energetic
tune-up.
What are some qualities thatyou look for in a Reiki
practitioner?
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Oh, this is a good question.
Yes, I try to stay open becauseeverybody has their unique way
of practicing Reiki.
So we learn it and then wetweak it right.
We learn it and then we tweakit right.
Whether you use crystals oroils or mantras or symbols, or
(29:07):
you're singing or music or notmusic like it's always different
and I like to explore, you know, whether it's holy fire Reiki
or it's a more of a gentle Reiki, or if it's somebody who's
hands above hands on.
There's so many different waysand the reason why I like to
search out different Reikimasters or practitioners is
(29:30):
there's always that one sayingor one thing that I'm going to
take into my practice.
Right?
So going to the same Reikipractitioner isn't what I do.
Practitioner isn't what I do.
But I try to gauge myself bygoing there at least two times a
year because I get to check inwith my healing, if I stay
consistent with one type ofhealer.
(29:51):
So that allows me to like wherehave I grown?
How is it different in my body?
But if I'm trying other Reikipractitioners, then I feel like
it's more expansive for me.
So I'm not a girl who collectsthings or has favorites where
some people are.
You know, I trust my intuition,like I feel into it.
(30:12):
Like when you were saying to metoday like well, we're having
something happen at the houseand I'm going to have the dogs,
that still feel good for you,and I was thinking we feel into
it, right, because I have totrust my intuition, I'm like
still feels good to me.
So that's kind of how I choose.
Sometimes I'll look at photosonline or names, or how far it
(30:32):
is, or do I want to go north orsouth?
Is that a yes or no right?
Just asking your body sometimesworks.
So I don't know, I might notreally have that one thing, but
I certainly try to utilize myknowing.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
So what advice would you give someone who's just
entering spiritual work?
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Yay, keep going, don't stop, is one thing for
sure, because certainly ifyou're asking a question or your
body is seeking something, thenthe answer is there right.
So I say it's not about judginganything, right.
(31:16):
Sometimes we want to judge itas weird, strange, odd.
I can't do that.
It's really more just aboutallowing your nervous system to
align with whatever that alignswith and I say, everything works
sometimes.
But also it's good to knowwhat's out there.
When I moved to Florida, myspiritual community busted open
(31:41):
and I really wasn't expectingthat because I had just thought,
oh, florida is, you know, sunnyand you know more of the East,
of the California vibe and maybea little older.
And it wasn't that at all forme.
It was more about I really likeI never had heard of access
bars.
I didn't even know it existed,but it had been around for near
(32:03):
over 10 years, maybe 20 years atthat point and I thought, okay,
what I don't know, I don't know, so let me try this.
And then it was one of thesethings where I didn't expect.
This is how I experiencedAccess Bars.
I was at a festival.
It was like a wellness festivaland there's music and they were
(32:24):
doing chanting and there wasgreat vegan food.
It was so fun and they just hada bunch of modality workers and
it was like another thing.
You know, $20, just try it.
And I laid on the table.
I'm like I don't even know whatthis is, but I could feel my
body Like I could.
I was thinking about things Ihadn't thought of in a long time
.
I was seeing colors, I wasfeeling light and joyous, like I
(32:45):
was listening to my body.
My body was just saying I wantmore of this.
And when you get that feeling,keep going.
And so I said how do I see youoff this event, outside of this
event?
And that's when I got intodoing full session and then
taking the courses and theclasses.
And the more I learned, the moremy life was changing, the more
(33:08):
I was deleting the hard drive,so to speak.
And so then I think you canstay on something for a while
and then be like, okay, I wantto try something else now.
You know, the variety is thespice of life.
The same thing goes forwellness, healing.
You know, I'm not a girl whoeats the same thing regularly
either, like everyone, somepeople are very regnant in what
they eat every day and thenmaybe splurge on the weekend.
(33:30):
But I am, I like that variety,I like the variety of having
that big umbrella, even in myspiritual practices of you know
what I offer and cover practicesof of you know what I offer and
cover it's.
It's.
I had to keep changing my, my,so it's Dwell and Reiki was my
original company, but then itbecame so much broader, so much
(33:51):
bigger.
When you're allowing yourselfto float down that river of of
wellness, of aligning, ofresetting, you don't know where
it's going to take you, but youjust, you know, trust the raft,
you're on type of a thing.
And so with that, like, yes, Ido grief counseling and it is my
passion and it's it's I can sitwith emotional pain, it's one
(34:13):
of my gifts, it's, you know,it's my area of genius.
You know where a doctor, anurse, you know they can sit in
a different type of trauma whereI couldn't, and so that's
opened up to the griefcounseling.
But I have my Reiki background,I have my ministry background,
so it allows me to do weddings,which you can find me on the
Knot and WeddingWire, and itallows me to do memorial
(34:36):
services and I'm finding a lotof people now are
non-denominational, right,they're doing a lot more
memorials versus church servicesand whatever works, because
it's evolving.
You know, we're an eclecticsociety now and so it's unique
and you can plan almost anythingout of the norm, and that's one
of the reasons why I like tooffer those services, because
(34:59):
it's a good balance, right, it'sa good balance to do grief and
death and loss and trauma andthen celebrate love, joy, you
know, weddings, connection, andfor me, that's what I like about
having an entrepreneurialbusiness is what do I want to do
(35:20):
today?
Yes, there's structure, butalso there's no limits, right.
If we live in a world oflimited possibility, how does
spirit want to use me?
And I just try to trust thatprocess as much as possible.
And so that's what I would sayto anyone trying.
Anything new is trust yourself,you know, trust that you're safe
(35:43):
, trust that there's a way youknow, and look for the signs,
look for the symbols, ask Peoplealways want to help people.
They ever noticed that wealways want to.
What can I do to help?
How can I support you?
Do you need anything that weutilize our resources in people
of?
How have you experiencedfullness?
How have you experiencedhealing?
You know what are some of howhave you experienced fullness,
how have you experienced healing?
(36:04):
You know what are some of thethings you've done.
When you start asking people,they might tell you about a
spiritual coach, a Reiki master,a minister, a class, a workshop
or drumming on the beach.
You know this is.
Or I saw yesterday the silentdisco.
You know there's so many thingsthat that in a body and moving
your body and moving energy canhappen in a lot of ways.
(36:26):
Right, just doesn't happen inour minds.
Right, it can happen throughmovement and through quieting
our minds.
So there's a lot of ways toalign, to heal.
So search them out and findwhat works for you and don't be
afraid.
There's nothing to be afraid ofwhen we're trusting our
(36:47):
instinct.
Yeah, so I guess that's myadvice.
All right, Thank you.
In a really long sentence, along, long sentence.
Speaker 2 (36:55):
Right.
So what books do you recommend?
And they can be books that arenot about Reiki, anything that
you have read along yourspiritual path.
Speaker 3 (37:05):
Oh, my gosh.
There's so many books.
Grieving Mindfully is thenumber one book that I'm
recommending.
It's on my website.
You can find the link therebecause that helps with the
tools, the techniques, so that'sa great book.
Um, darius Merritt Jones writessome really good books and I've
just read um when Fear Speaks,and I really am enjoying that
(37:33):
book and a lot of the times thatI try to read one book a month
and add, you know, maybe aparagraph or a thought or an
approach into my classes andworkshops, into my classes and
workshops.
Also, kyle sees, um, he doessome great stuff, um, really
motivational and um, a lot Ishare his stuff a lot.
He does 12 principles, uh, towellness, and it's just about
(37:55):
remembering.
You know, sometimes we can hearsomething, read something, see
a photo, but it doesn't speak tous.
And then there's sometimes weread it or hear it and it's like
we're seeing it for the firsttime.
So I like to save my books andI like to reopen them and
randomly, you know, open a pageand think, huh, okay, okay.
(38:18):
And there's also Melody Beattie.
She does a great 365 book tothe heart.
So that's really inspirationalfor me.
I try to read that in themorning and sometimes I think I
need to write.
One of these I think that's onmy journey is to put what I know
and how I feel and what I'minspired about in writing for
(38:41):
your legacy to live on.
You know, it's nice to.
I was thinking about that todaywhen I was preparing.
I have so many notes, notebooks, word documents you know things
in my texts that I think how doyou put it all together?
And so, yeah, books are a greatresource.
So are podcasts.
Speaker 2 (39:02):
So what services do you offer?
Do you offer classes, trainings, workshops, events?
Speaker 3 (39:08):
Absolutely so.
Some of the services I offerare one-on-one sessions, whether
that could be access bars orReiki, and also can be grief
counseling.
I offer most of my servicesonline and in person.
And then I love workshops.
I love in-person workshops andonline workshops.
(39:29):
So I'm always changing, alwaysevolving.
So usually at the beginning ofthe year January, february I do
a visioning manifestationworkshop and then I do my grief
online workshop classes threetimes a year, and that's
starting in September.
And then we do my grief onlineworkshop classes three times a
year, and that's starting inSeptember.
And then we do April and thenFebruary, because it takes a
(39:50):
while for, I think, people toget brave enough to register.
And then I do a lot of monthlyworkshops.
Mostly if I'm traveling, I canteam up with somebody and I like
to travel, whether that's, youknow, to Las Vegas or anywhere
in the East coast or NorthCarolina the tendency to stay on
this coast more often now, andso they can.
(40:13):
One of the things I'm reallyinto now is, like I think I
mentioned earlier, was the soundbath Reiki events, and those
are monthly and, again, thoseare super healing.
People love them, them.
It's a great networkingconnection.
That's another reason why Ilike to do workshops in person.
You make like-minded people,but you make a special
connection.
You know, when you listen toeach other, heart to heart, some
, you open up a space, there'sexpansion, something unique can
(40:36):
happen, and so online is veryconvenient and it works,
especially if they're recorded,which I like to do, because
everyone has a busy lifestyle,but yet in person there's a
dynamic that just doesn't match.
So, yeah, so it's Reiki AccessBars, grief and Reiki Circles so
(40:57):
those are all found on mywebsite in person and online.
And some of the other services,like I said I mentioned, were
ministry and doing efficientservices for weddings and for
memorials, and it's Palm BeachWedding Efficient.
So I kind of branched out alittle because it is a little
bit separate than wellnessmodalities, and I have tagged
(41:21):
myself and built a storefront onthe Knot, which is a really
popular wedding site and weddingwire, and that's really fun.
It's really fun to see what ittakes to create your special day
, your vision, and one of myspecialties is creating vows,
(41:41):
special vows, personalizing andcustomizing the ceremony for
them, because every love isunique, right, we have a lot of
backgrounds and it's importantto capture that for me and
create that day, that's alifetime memory.
So, yeah, I like my umbrella'sbig, and if people say do you?
(42:03):
And I say not yet, sometimes,and then I might go and create
it, so you never know what I'mcreating next.
Speaker 2 (42:10):
Okay, so if someone wants to book a class with you
or event online or in person,how are they able again to get
in touch with you?
Speaker 3 (42:18):
Yes, so my website is dwell in spirit.
Everything is there.
You can book online, you cancontact me.
So it's dwell in spirit and thesocial media sites are similar.
Dwell in spirit.
Dwell in Reiki If you're justseeking Reiki.
It's dwell in Reiki If you'remore about the other healing
modalities and efficientservices.
(42:42):
Dwell in spirit and dwell inReiki.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
All right, beautiful.
Well, that ends the first partof our journey together, and I'm
going to continue to guide youto the second part of our
journey, which is questions fromlisteners and social media.
Speaker 3 (42:56):
Excellent.
Speaker 2 (42:57):
Here we go.
So number one what inspired youto become an ordained minister?
Speaker 3 (43:04):
Oh yeah, what inspired me was what's next?
Right, there's always anotherlayer.
We always have that ceiling,what we think we are, until we
have a new thought right andit's kind of that gate that's
not really locked.
And when I thought, well, whatis next?
Why not be a minister?
(43:25):
Like, what does it really take?
It takes myself to be seen, toshare who I am and to be willing
to be guided and be led.
And so that is what inspired meis am I willing?
And the question was yes.
Speaker 2 (43:41):
Very good.
Number two, as an ordainedminister, how do you explain
Reiki to those who questionwhere it aligns with their faith
?
Speaker 3 (43:50):
Yes.
So I think we touched on that alittle bit in the beginning
where Reiki is veryinterchangeable.
You know, it's not magic, it'senergy, it's based on rules
principles.
It's based on rules principles,it's based on something that's
also spiritual, but in the wayit has a connection, a
(44:15):
connection to your inner selfand to your higher self, and
that's very similar to religion.
So for me it's very parallelthere, similar to religion.
So for me it's very parallelthere, and so you can be very
religious and still utilizewellness modalities, you can be
very spiritual and still go to achurch, right?
So there's no real boundariesanymore.
(44:35):
It's just what I used to have amentor that used to say God
told me.
And then she would tell me whatGod told her, and then I would
say well, how can you argue withGod?
It is just like okay, then youhave to do it Right, then follow
what you're hearing, whatyou're being led to do.
(44:55):
What's your path, what's yourjourney?
Speaker 2 (44:58):
Right right, you know my background, very religious.
My mother was Bible-based intothe church, I was an acolyte in
the church and so often peopleare surprised, since I do yoga
and I do Reiki, that I am veryreligious.
You know praying and havingconversations with God, and so
they're quite surprised becausethey don't make that connection
(45:21):
that you can.
Speaker 3 (45:23):
Interchange yes, make it your own.
Yeah, and until you'veexperienced it, maybe you're not
in truth around it, maybeyou're in a belief that isn't
really.
You know, we upgrade all thetime.
We upgrade our beliefs right.
We upgrade our values and ourmorals.
(45:43):
We usually do that as we growand we expand, and so why not
try some wellness therapy?
Speaker 2 (45:50):
Right, right.
And for my mother, because ofher religious background and her
understanding of the word ofGod, the Bible, that she doesn't
accept the doing of the yoga orthe Reiki.
This is not.
She doesn't understand andfeels that, you know, I'm not
walking the path of the Lord bydoing these things.
Speaker 3 (46:13):
Well, reiki, really.
I mean I think yoga juststarted in the pajamas and it
was just stretching, right.
I mean our society has turnedit into something way more
fashionable.
Speaker 2 (46:21):
Oh, absolutely yeah, it turns it into it into
gymnastics and circus artists.
Speaker 3 (46:26):
Yeah, so I think it's about a mind-body-spirit
connection.
I don't think for me.
That's what I believe.
I mean, I know everyone has aunique belief around it.
Speaker 2 (46:39):
Sure, but along the journey you may come across
someone who has those deeprooted beliefs into well, yeah,
this is not for me.
This isn't a line.
Speaker 3 (46:50):
And that's okay.
I think the important thing ismeeting everybody where they are
.
I think that's one of thethings is what it takes for me
as a minister, as a practitioner, as a Reiki master, as an
officiant meeting people wherethey are.
Speaker 2 (47:08):
Yeah, Because it takes and that's the same thing
with yoga as well and Reiki.
That's what we say in my yogaclass as you teach we take you
where you are.
Speaker 3 (47:15):
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, and it's importantbecause we see them as
individuals, we honor theirprocess.
Right, it doesn't need to lookany other way, but the way it
looks.
It's the idea of everyone canhave their process.
But I think it's just asimportant to honor that process,
(47:35):
being in allowance, allowancefor each other, allowance to
what is and what isn't.
That, to me, is a spiritualjourney in itself.
Speaker 2 (47:45):
Very good.
So question number three I readon your website you offer grief
counseling, helping individualsnavigate emotions after loss,
the end of a relationship or thepassing of a loved one.
Can you tell me a little bitabout this service?
Speaker 3 (48:01):
Yeah, so it's different for everybody.
Some people like to have aone-on-one session.
They're not group people,they're very private.
Some people like the idea oflistening to somebody else heal
because that helps them heal, sothat would be more in a
workshop.
And then people don't want toattend because they're nervous
or they can't fit into theirschedule, so then they would fit
more into the online grief.
(48:22):
So I've really tried to expandit to what works for you, and
the idea is to be able to sitwith your own emotions and lean
in.
But the only way out is through, and so if we don't move
through it, we don't get to heal.
We don't get to it, we don'tget to heal.
(48:51):
It's like when we are grieving,a lot of us want to shut down
and we cap out.
We don't want to feel the grief.
Problem with that is, to thatlevel, you can't feel the joy,
you can't feel the happiness,you can't feel the celebration,
so we cap everything.
You don't really just have achoice.
You just numb down or you keepit down, and so really I love
watching people thrive.
I'm a connector, whatever thatmeans.
(49:15):
I want to connect you to yournext greatest good or I want to
connect you to the next personthat's going to enhance your
life right.
So in the training and in it'smore about staying open and
being willing to learn somethingnew, right To try something a
(49:36):
different way.
And that's really what thegrief counseling is about is
just being in a safe place tosit with your emotion, to move
through them right, so that wecan be a teacher.
Right as we get older, we teachwhat we know, we don't just
point the way.
The reason why we know isbecause we've lived through it
and that changes what's possible.
Speaker 2 (50:01):
Very good.
Well, that was the lastquestion, so, as we've been
talking, is there something thatyou may have forgotten or a
message that you would like toshare?
Speaker 3 (50:13):
you can take this time now um, I think if you're
questioning anything, then seekthe answer, because the answers
will come, and trust that lifeis for you, like, it's not
against us, and we're here foreach other.
(50:35):
Utilize the wellness categoryof many, many practitioners and
utilize your faith and utilizethe ministry.
There are people who are hereto support you If you're feeling
lost or overwhelmed or anxiousor not knowing you're not alone.
Speaker 2 (50:56):
Okay, beautiful.
Well, thank you so much,michelle, for taking time out of
your very busy schedule to comewith me on this Ready Set Reiki
journey.
Speaker 3 (51:05):
Yes, thank you so much.
It was wonderful, tracy.
Speaker 2 (51:08):
All right.
All right, my wonderfullisteners.
So if you would like yourquestion featured on the podcast
, reach out atwwwreadysetreikicom, or check me
out on social media.
If you're interested in Reikitrainings or yoga and yoga
trainings, reach out to FeatherSister, wwwreadysetreikicom,
(51:28):
wwwfeathersistercom.
And I'm Tracy Seawright, andthis has been Ready Set Reiki.
Thank you.
This is Ready Set Reiki, a podcast about Reiki,
the universal energy life force,from the curious beginner to
the seasoned master teacher,welcoming all systems, all
lineages and all levels.
Reiki is a journey and not adestination, and on this Ready
Set Reiki journey, I refer tomyself as a guide rather than
host, as I too am traveling,supporting others and learning
(00:43):
on this Reiki journey as well.
And with that said, I am yourguide, tracy C Wright.
Joining me today on my journeyis Michelle Sloan.
Now she is a spiritualpractitioner trained in the
study of science of mind and theart science and skill of
affirmative prayer, grief andtrauma counseling.
Further exploring an interfaithjourney, she became an ordained
(01:05):
minister through UniversalBrotherhood Clergy and expanded
into wedding and memorialservices.
She is a certified Reiki masterwith additional Reiki
certifications in end-of-lifeand hospice care.
She is also a certified AccessConscious Bar facilitator.
She is licensed to practiceprofessionally and bound by a
high code of ethics with respectto your privacy.
She is licensed to practiceprofessionally and bound by a
(01:26):
high code of ethics with respectto your privacy.
She has practiced across theUnited States and Europe,
leading classes, meditations,workshops, reiki sessions and
self-Reiki healing circles, bothonline and in person.
Her specialty lies inone-on-one sessions and
counseling, utilizing bothspiritual principles and healing
(01:46):
modalities.
Michelle, welcome to Ready SetReiki.
Speaker 3 (01:50):
Thank you so much, Tracy.
It's lovely to be here.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
All right.
Well, let's begin our journeytogether, so tell us a little
bit about yourself.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
Well, sure, let's see .
I currently live in Florida andI have always been a seeker,
explorer when it came toself-help, and people always say
, how did you start your journey?
And I would really say like theturning point for me was over
35 years ago, when I was incollege.
I saw a church flyer that wasinviting people to do Al-Anon.
(02:26):
At the time it was in thechurch where we studied on a
college campus and I went andthat really began my path.
If I have to dial back andthink about what is that one
turning point?
And that was it.
When we unravel our pain, ourtrauma, and we reset to our
natural state, which is thriving, our world opens up.
(02:47):
And that really just propelledme into seeking and searching
and retreats and workshops andwellness therapy.
And then 12 years ago I became apractitioner at the Center for
Spiritual Living and it's atwo-year program very similar to
(03:08):
a master's degree inspirituality.
So a licensed spiritualpractitioner is someone who is
highly spiritual conscious andhas a deep understanding for
spiritual nature of life andthrives to deepen their personal
relationship with the divine.
So with that it allowed me,through Center for Spiritual
(03:29):
Living, to teach classes andworkshops, meditation and lead
services and officiate.
And I did that for quite awhile, you know, in time and
life happened and I exploredliving and loving.
And then COVID lockdownhappened and I utilized that
time to expand my Reiki practiceand I became a UC Reiki master
(03:54):
and I studied on specializing inend of life hospice Reiki and I
did that at the SanctuallyHearing Arts and I did that
online, which was a veryinteresting way to do your Reiki
master certification.
And then I decided to move toFlorida in 2001.
And it opened a doorway likeeither I was going to attach my
(04:18):
practitioner license to a localcenter or take that dive into
ministry, and I chose to becomea licensed minister through the
Universal Brotherhood Beautiful.
So here I am, yeah, exploringand living my best life.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
So when did Reiki come into your life?
Would you say that you foundReiki or Reiki found you?
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Reiki found me and this is really an interesting
story.
My dad was diagnosed with ALSand somebody had gifted him five
sessions of Reiki and I was inmy late twenties and I was just
happened to be there the day theReiki master showed up and
(05:03):
opened the door and just feelingher energy and her vibe and we
were all nervous.
My dad had a terminal illnessand he was just so calm and
present and receiving of thesessions and I thought, huh, I
think I might need to look intothis and explore what is Reiki
right.
So that was my firstintroduction to Reiki and
(05:23):
explore what is Reiki right.
So that was my firstintroduction to Reiki.
Reiki can be a beautiful gift.
I mean, and there's a difference, I think, between this is I
grew up Catholic and I grew upin the church and I went to
Catholic school and there's thatdifference between spirituality
and religion and I think wewere mentioning this in an email
(05:45):
.
Whereas spirituality, it reallyinvolves practicing meditation,
mindfulness, energy healing,like Reiki, and it often is
about finding that inner peaceand that purpose, that deeper
sense of understanding life, andreligion tends to be more
structured, more practiced andmore of an organization style,
(06:10):
including rules, regulations,rituals, and I think
spirituality has a tendency tobe more flexible, more personal,
about mindful practices.
So we lean into that innerpeace and purpose and I think
from there we find ourindividual growth.
And then, if I have to thinkabout it, versus religion, again
(06:32):
, it involves community, itinvolves shared beliefs and it
involves more structure, right,right, and spirituality has that
interpretation right To wherereligion can be more doctrinated
and structured.
But both spirituality andreligion really offer that sense
(06:54):
of a meaning, a meaning and aconnection, but it's just
approached in different ways.
The goal really is can be for me, it is interchangeable where
Reiki, yes, falls underspirituality, but it also has
principles and practices.
It has rules, it hasrequirements, right, whether
(07:16):
those look like symbols ormantras, but so does religion.
So there's a lot ofsimilarities and all we need to
do is really do is really trustits force to work through us and
with us.
But that's very similar to howwe connect to God or spirit or
universe.
So it's that universal lifeforce and energy.
(07:37):
That's who we are.
And so I think, when I thinkabout Reiki and then beginning
my practice, I was reallylooking forward to just
expanding into being morefulfilled, and so Reiki aided
for that.
For me, it aided in myspiritual journey and I think,
(07:59):
whether you're religious orspiritual, or a wellness seeker,
you're religious or spiritualor a wellness seeker.
We don't really have to title it.
I think what sums it up is ourpurpose is to love.
That's our highest energy,whether you're religious or
spiritual, and that means lovingall parts of you that feel
(08:20):
misaligned, traumatized, and sosometimes I utilize prayer to
get there, and sometimes Iutilize a Reiki to transmute the
energy that blocks us andallows us to move into love Like
it's.
It's an enlightenment rightthat people seek like, but,
simply put, it's just the studyof your own spiritual awareness
(08:41):
that connects us to thatpresence, and I think that's
what people are seeking when wesay that lightness, that joy,
that higher vibration, whateverwe choose to call it.
And that's what draws me toreligion, to prayer, to ministry
, to Reiki, because it's all thesame but different in the words
(09:05):
and the way we practice it.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
Very well said.
So, as you are out, you arenavigating this wonderful
journey that you're on, asyou're out, serving and helping
others.
What are some misconceptionsabout Reiki that people have?
Speaker 3 (09:21):
Yeah, there's definitely some myths out there,
but Reiki isn't religion and itdoesn't replace a medical
treatment.
But it can and it does workalongside those Reiki
practitioners, as you know,channel energy to promote
healing.
It's a hands-on approach, it'snot magic.
Our bodies are magnetic vesselsand they know how to reset, to
(09:46):
heal, to reveal, and healing isreally aligning.
To me, like people think thatworld healing is very woo-woo,
but it's more aligning and we'reall energy.
I mean that's provenscientifically.
We have electric impulses thatzap through our bodies right To
stimulate our muscles and ourcells and our neurons, and we're
(10:08):
carbon-based and we are builtfrom energy Like it flows, but
energy flows.
And then there's that gesture,right that practicing the energy
gestures follow and open upthat pathway to feeling light
aligned.
So for me, reiki is thatwell-being experience that
(10:29):
assists you to operate to yourhighest potential, both
emotionally, mentally andphysically.
I think the more consciousnessyou pour into your body, the
more vibration it has to heal.
And so it's certainly beenaround many, many, many years.
Of course, in the United Statesnot as long, maybe the 60s, you
(10:51):
know, 70s kind of depends on ifyou're in Hawaii or the main
mainland.
But I think it's important toconsider adding Reiki to your
healthcare plan it's having tome an additional insurance plan
because it's very complimentaryto improving your health and
(11:12):
your wellbeing.
I mean, we know it's used inoncologist offices and for
cancer treatment centers.
That's probably the main areawhere a lot of people do
volunteering because it doesrelax your nervous system and it
aligns your chakras, which areyour energy centers.
It does help maintain the painmanagement and it does boost
(11:35):
your immune system and it's mostcertainly aids in the recovery
of injury or illness.
So, yes, what it is not is it'snot magic and it is a science
to it.
We know that energy is who andwhat we are, and so, with that,
I think you have to try it tounderstand it.
(11:57):
You know it's like how do weknow?
That's true.
Like I always like to stay inquestion, sometimes we have our
beliefs about what's good for usand what's bad for us around,
either what's been downloaded tous from our ancestors or what
we've heard but maybe notexperienced ourselves, and so to
(12:17):
stay in question around what itis, the best way to do is
experience it, to know.
You know everything works,sometimes right.
We align it with differentthings at different points of
our life and it's a matter ofstaying in possibility and
willingness right.
There has to be that window toreceive, like we're all good
(12:39):
givers, but are we willing toreceive?
And that changes yourexperience.
In a Reiki session or in a Reikicircle, or like tomorrow night
I'll do a sound bath, I pairwith a gal who does sound
healing, sound bath, and then Ido the hands-on Reiki while the
sound healing is happening.
So it's a real high magneticenergy of self-care, because
(13:05):
self-care is how we take ourpower back, and so for me it's a
really good intro to Reikibecause people are starting to
experience sound healing.
It's nice to go to a therapistand talk through your trauma or
your situation and work throughyour approach and your healing,
(13:26):
but there's nothing like soundbath or Reiki when your only job
is to lay there and receiveright and just feel like you had
amazing massage or you justwoke up from the best night's
sleep ever.
I mean, that's really what youfeel like after a Reiki session.
And it's always different,right, because we're in
different, we're different,we're changing and everything is
(13:49):
unfolding minute by minute andI can say sometimes I can be
agitated and restless, sometimesI can fall asleep, sometimes I
can feel tingling, sometimes I'mlike anticipation, like please
just get me on the table, like Ialways feel different, no
matter what's going on in mylife.
And that's what I like aboutReiki.
It's a wellness modality andthere's a lot of modalities.
(14:14):
Right, there's a lot of healingmodalities and so I always
encourage people to try them.
We do a great.
It's like a taster event herein Florida, in Jupiter, at the
Third Eye Institute and MysticShop, where everyone gets to try
a session and we'll have likefive or six wellness healers and
(14:34):
it's 20 minutes for $20, whichis a great investment and you
could try multiple.
And so the concept is you don'tknow what you don't know until
you try it.
So I always encourage peoplejust to try it and have their
own experience with their ownbody, with their own mind, and
see what happens, becausesometimes it can be physical,
(14:57):
sometimes it can be emotionaland sometimes it can be very
spiritual.
So, again, the energy moves.
The idea is to quiet the mindand allow the body to do what it
does naturally, because ourminds want to.
They're just going all the time.
(15:18):
They move on before our bodiesdo.
And what do we do with thatstuck trauma, pain, emotion,
that there's no time for right,because we live in a world
that's so overscheduled and sobusy.
I feel that it's good to reset.
There's only so much you canmanage Before you need.
(15:40):
We do it out to our computers,we delete our hard drive, we
have an external, we're holdingthe storage, but we need to be
doing that to our bodies, and soI find Reiki to really be
beneficial in that way too, ifthat makes sense, right.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
So you help so many people on their journey, help
them with their challenges,their struggles.
You even are, you volunteer asa grief counselor, you know,
with hospice and embracing theimportance of grieving mindfully
, what has been the biggestchallenge or struggle that you
have faced in your own healingjourney?
Speaker 3 (16:18):
Sometimes, when you can be in deep pain, you can be
paralyzed and it's to honorwhere you are, honor just.
Your body needs to rest,sometimes in the healing of
whatever you're experiencing andthen to search out.
I mean, I know, when I gotdivorced I didn't want to be
(16:39):
stuck in a bitter, angry, abusedsituation.
I wanted to heal and my focuswas I might not know how I was
going to get there, but my jobwasn't the how.
That was up to God, that was upto spirit.
My job was to be willing.
My job was just to keep thatfocus of searching out.
(17:03):
So I was doing Reiki, I wasdoing meditation, I was seeing
my minister, I was in supportcircles, I was traveling, I was
in nature, I was doingeverything I could to assist in
the healing, in the transferringof those emotions.
(17:25):
Because grief can often bemisdiagnosed.
It can manifest as stress, ashopelessness, isolation,
depression, even overwhelm andanxiety and we have a lot of
overwhelm and anxiety in ourworld, right.
But also, grief isn't justabout somebody, like a death in
(17:48):
a family, right, or a loss of aloved one.
Grief is an end of a marriage,an end of a relationship, any
significant trauma or changethat has caused loss in your
life, right.
So we experienced grief thenand while I was doing my studies
at Center for Spiritual Living,one of the criteria was to take
(18:10):
this particular grief class andthe book is called Grieving
Mindfully.
And I was so connected to thebook because it changed and
altered my perception towardsgrief and helped me heal.
Because it changed and alteredmy perception towards grief and
helped me heal that anytimesomebody I knew would lose
somebody, I would gift this book.
But I was finding that nobodywas reading it and I was
(18:31):
thinking this book is amazingand then I just had the calling
to start teaching it Becauseit's a book that has a lot of
practices.
But then the more classes Itake and the more studies I do
podcasts I might listen to theclass has evolved into more of
(18:52):
trauma and grief.
So I do that as a workshop, as aone-on-one session and as an
online class, because in today'ssocietal structure it really
suggests that we just ought toremain stronger than our grief
and we ought to just pushthrough it and get over it.
And that is the worst feelingever if you're in grief, because
you just you don't align withthat right, because this is very
(19:12):
self-destructive and it reallyprolongs our pain, because grief
doesn't go away, it waits.
And so, instead, if we chooseto grieve mindfully which would
involve being present and awareof our emotions, our thoughts,
our feelings, you know, while wemove through the grieving
process, we're able to transformgrief to wisdom, because grief
(19:37):
can be very energeticallydraining and it can be hard for
people to seek help.
There's a lot of great supportgrief groups.
That's one of the things I dowhen I volunteer.
I call families a few monthslater after they have lost their
loved one and I walk throughtheir options about grief
support, what it feels like, sothey can identify with their
(19:59):
feelings and I put them in theright direction through how to
get help.
But really, grief can be abridge that helps us meet
ourself and it gives us anopportunity to allow, to honor
what was, but also we grievewhat could have been, and so,
(20:19):
more importantly, we need togrieve and accept what has
changed.
And how do we do that?
We need tools, we needtechniques, we have to add them
to our tool belt of life, andit's true that when we suffer a
loss, a part of ourself is lost,and so navigating through that
(20:41):
everyday loss can be extremelychallenging without any tools,
because it doesn't really matter.
When I was in a grief so when mydad passed away from ALS,
that's when I found griefcounseling, because I was very
far away from my family, it wasacross the country and I learned
that it doesn't matter that ifit was last week, last year or
even a decade ago.
(21:01):
It's never too late to healyour grief or to find new ways
of being.
And I learned that in thatclass because somebody had been
in the class that was grievingtheir grandmother, who was like
their mom and she had passed 10years ago, and this gentleman
was a minister and he wasnon-denominational, which is
what I associate myself with.
(21:24):
And there was, you know,workbooks and journaling and
meditating, and that helped me alot.
And it really just becomesabout the question of what if
you turned your grief intoaction or your pain into power,
like what if you felt it, allthe emotions and the feelings,
(21:46):
until you felt clarity or desireor hope.
When we stay in question aroundwhat's possible, then there's
choice.
When we have a conclusion ofI'm never going to get over this
, there's nowhere to move to,you've decided something.
But when we stay in a questionlike what's possible now, even
(22:07):
just a general question.
We might not get the answer inthat moment, but the universe,
god's spirit, shows us right.
It shows us in signs, symbols,synchronicity, goosebumps, a
phone call, whatever it may be aclass flyer and we take action.
And then our world opens up.
(22:29):
Right.
That's how we always say I justwish they would send me a sign.
And I remember that when I wasmoving through a transition, is
God, please just send me a sign?
And I remember getting off theairplane and saying we're glad
you're here.
I'm like okay, there's my sign,I mean.
But we have to ask, like ourangels, our guides, our spirit,
(22:50):
they're waiting.
We have to ask, ask for help,ask to be shown the way.
And I was just talking to afriend this morning also about
we're always willing to pray forsomeone else and bless someone
else, but are we willing to dothat for ourselves?
It's almost like you have toput on your own oxygen mask
(23:14):
before you put on someone else's.
It's the same thing with griefor healing or any other type of
wellness modality, Like youcan't help someone else unless
you help yourself first.
And that's really aboutmindfulness, because mindfulness
facilitates our growth, right.
It helps us to develop openattitude towards life.
(23:36):
It assists us to cultivateacceptance, maybe even
forgiveness or compassion, notjust towards yourself, but to
others.
Right, it's said, we grieve asdeeply as we love and that's one
reason why everyone grievesdifferently because we love
(23:57):
differently.
We love differently atdifferent times, to different
what we're attached to ordifferent people or different
relationships.
So, like in my classes andworkshops and sessions, I help
individuals process theiremotions in that healthy way
where they can find theacceptance and peace.
And we do practice all of thetools and techniques meditation
(24:21):
journaling, practice all of thetools and techniques meditation
journaling, whether it's guided,you know question journaling,
inner work and breathwork.
Breathwork is another huge andit's free.
It's right where we are,wellness modality, which is now
becoming I love all thebreathwork exercises we can find
in classes and workshops andretreats are even adding them in
(24:43):
now, because, you know, thehuman spirit is meant to thrive,
no matter the level of traumaor grief.
That's our natural state.
So, learning about either griefor trauma and just gaining that
comfort and begin to transformyour grief into wisdom.
It's about mindfulness, right,and being emotionally and
(25:06):
spiritually resilient.
That's the goal, right?
We're not meant to stay wounded.
We're not meant to stay in ourtrauma, we're meant to move
beyond that.
And so I think there's many,many ways, many things that are
out of our control.
And we live in a world whereeverybody wants to be in control
(25:27):
of their emotions, of theirenvironment, and I think that's
our biggest sense of falsehood.
And if we can just say the onlything we can control is our
reaction, and just say the onlything we can control is our
reaction right, or what wechoose to do next, and we keep
it that simple and know that wehave everything we need right
(25:49):
where we are, well then that'sthe first step.
I recently was at a memorialservice and someone was speaking
about this close friend of minewho passed away, that her
biggest saying was you just need60 seconds of courage to start
(26:12):
anything.
And I've been thinking aboutthat a lot since I've been to
her memorial service and I thinkit's true memorial service, and
I think it's true.
What if it just takes 60seconds of courage to do really
almost anything?
You know to feel the fear anddo it.
And it was like I was justchatting with my sister.
I'm like, oh, I got to go, I'mgetting ready to do a Ready Set
(26:34):
Reiki podcast and she said okay,you're going to be great.
I've heard all your otherpodcasts, you've got this.
And I'm like do I feel nervousor do I feel excited and ready?
It's our wording, and when webreak down our emotions, we kind
of stay in the surface ofemotions, sometimes Like I feel
(26:55):
scared.
Well, is it scared or nervousor is it worried?
And we can hone it.
Teachers do this all the timewith children, you know, with
faces or signs, to get them toidentify what they're feeling,
so they can express themselves.
And I think we forget this aswe get older and we move through
our life is what are we reallyfeeling?
(27:15):
And so for me, it's likeallowing yourself to be trusted,
like trusting yourself,trusting your word, trusting
your heart, trusting yourintuition, but, more importantly
, trusting your individuality.
We're not all the same.
We don't have the samefingerprint, for a reason.
We have different experiences,we have different journeys, but
(27:40):
honoring your journey is goingto look different, right?
So that's the only way we'reable to really come to the
acceptance of who we are.
Like shining your light.
Your light is here, it's needed, you're on purpose, and I think
people forget that as well,they're just kind of.
We get into this robotic statewhen we become overwhelmed with
(28:03):
all of the responsibilities orkeeping up with the Joneses.
But I love the wave of what'shappening right now in healing
modalities, whether it's griefand trauma, counseling or Reiki
or access bars or meditation orbreath work or going on retreats
or even being in nature.
(28:23):
Whether you're a massive hikeror runner, what are you doing?
To be with you?
It's silencing the mind andallowing your heart to speak.
For me is the goal.
I don't know if you find that.
Speaker 2 (28:39):
Right when it's time for you to get an energetic
tune-up.
What are some qualities thatyou look for in a Reiki
practitioner?
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Oh, this is a good question.
Yes, I try to stay open becauseeverybody has their unique way
of practicing Reiki.
So we learn it and then wetweak it right.
We learn it and then we tweakit right.
Whether you use crystals oroils or mantras or symbols, or
(29:07):
you're singing or music or notmusic like it's always different
and I like to explore, you know, whether it's holy fire Reiki
or it's a more of a gentle Reiki, or if it's somebody who's
hands above hands on.
There's so many different waysand the reason why I like to
search out different Reikimasters or practitioners is
(29:30):
there's always that one sayingor one thing that I'm going to
take into my practice.
Right?
So going to the same Reikipractitioner isn't what I do.
Practitioner isn't what I do.
But I try to gauge myself bygoing there at least two times a
year because I get to check inwith my healing, if I stay
consistent with one type ofhealer.
(29:51):
So that allows me to like wherehave I grown?
How is it different in my body?
But if I'm trying other Reikipractitioners, then I feel like
it's more expansive for me.
So I'm not a girl who collectsthings or has favorites where
some people are.
You know, I trust my intuition,like I feel into it.
(30:12):
Like when you were saying to metoday like well, we're having
something happen at the houseand I'm going to have the dogs,
that still feel good for you,and I was thinking we feel into
it, right, because I have totrust my intuition, I'm like
still feels good to me.
So that's kind of how I choose.
Sometimes I'll look at photosonline or names, or how far it
(30:32):
is, or do I want to go north orsouth?
Is that a yes or no right?
Just asking your body sometimesworks.
So I don't know, I might notreally have that one thing, but
I certainly try to utilize myknowing.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
So what advice would you give someone who's just
entering spiritual work?
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Yay, keep going, don't stop, is one thing for
sure, because certainly ifyou're asking a question or your
body is seeking something, thenthe answer is there right.
So I say it's not about judginganything, right.
(31:16):
Sometimes we want to judge itas weird, strange, odd.
I can't do that.
It's really more just aboutallowing your nervous system to
align with whatever that alignswith and I say, everything works
sometimes.
But also it's good to knowwhat's out there.
When I moved to Florida, myspiritual community busted open
(31:41):
and I really wasn't expectingthat because I had just thought,
oh, florida is, you know, sunnyand you know more of the East,
of the California vibe and maybea little older.
And it wasn't that at all forme.
It was more about I really likeI never had heard of access
bars.
I didn't even know it existed,but it had been around for near
(32:03):
over 10 years, maybe 20 years atthat point and I thought, okay,
what I don't know, I don't know, so let me try this.
And then it was one of thesethings where I didn't expect.
This is how I experiencedAccess Bars.
I was at a festival.
It was like a wellness festivaland there's music and they were
(32:24):
doing chanting and there wasgreat vegan food.
It was so fun and they just hada bunch of modality workers and
it was like another thing.
You know, $20, just try it.
And I laid on the table.
I'm like I don't even know whatthis is, but I could feel my
body Like I could.
I was thinking about things Ihadn't thought of in a long time
.
I was seeing colors, I wasfeeling light and joyous, like I
(32:45):
was listening to my body.
My body was just saying I wantmore of this.
And when you get that feeling,keep going.
And so I said how do I see youoff this event, outside of this
event?
And that's when I got intodoing full session and then
taking the courses and theclasses.
And the more I learned, the moremy life was changing, the more
(33:08):
I was deleting the hard drive,so to speak.
And so then I think you canstay on something for a while
and then be like, okay, I wantto try something else now.
You know, the variety is thespice of life.
The same thing goes forwellness, healing.
You know, I'm not a girl whoeats the same thing regularly
either, like everyone, somepeople are very regnant in what
they eat every day and thenmaybe splurge on the weekend.
(33:30):
But I am, I like that variety,I like the variety of having
that big umbrella, even in myspiritual practices of you know
what I offer and cover practicesof of you know what I offer and
cover it's.
It's.
I had to keep changing my, my,so it's Dwell and Reiki was my
original company, but then itbecame so much broader, so much
(33:51):
bigger.
When you're allowing yourselfto float down that river of of
wellness, of aligning, ofresetting, you don't know where
it's going to take you, but youjust, you know, trust the raft,
you're on type of a thing.
And so with that, like, yes, Ido grief counseling and it is my
passion and it's it's I can sitwith emotional pain, it's one
(34:13):
of my gifts, it's, you know,it's my area of genius.
You know where a doctor, anurse, you know they can sit in
a different type of trauma whereI couldn't, and so that's
opened up to the griefcounseling.
But I have my Reiki background,I have my ministry background,
so it allows me to do weddings,which you can find me on the
Knot and WeddingWire, and itallows me to do memorial
(34:36):
services and I'm finding a lotof people now are
non-denominational, right,they're doing a lot more
memorials versus church servicesand whatever works, because
it's evolving.
You know, we're an eclecticsociety now and so it's unique
and you can plan almost anythingout of the norm, and that's one
of the reasons why I like tooffer those services, because
(34:59):
it's a good balance, right, it'sa good balance to do grief and
death and loss and trauma andthen celebrate love, joy, you
know, weddings, connection, andfor me, that's what I like about
having an entrepreneurialbusiness is what do I want to do
(35:20):
today?
Yes, there's structure, butalso there's no limits, right.
If we live in a world oflimited possibility, how does
spirit want to use me?
And I just try to trust thatprocess as much as possible.
And so that's what I would sayto anyone trying.
Anything new is trust yourself,you know, trust that you're safe
(35:43):
, trust that there's a way youknow, and look for the signs,
look for the symbols, ask Peoplealways want to help people.
They ever noticed that wealways want to.
What can I do to help?
How can I support you?
Do you need anything that weutilize our resources in people
of?
How have you experiencedfullness?
How have you experiencedhealing?
You know what are some of howhave you experienced fullness,
how have you experienced healing?
(36:04):
You know what are some of thethings you've done.
When you start asking people,they might tell you about a
spiritual coach, a Reiki master,a minister, a class, a workshop
or drumming on the beach.
You know this is.
Or I saw yesterday the silentdisco.
You know there's so many thingsthat that in a body and moving
your body and moving energy canhappen in a lot of ways.
(36:26):
Right, just doesn't happen inour minds.
Right, it can happen throughmovement and through quieting
our minds.
So there's a lot of ways toalign, to heal.
So search them out and findwhat works for you and don't be
afraid.
There's nothing to be afraid ofwhen we're trusting our
(36:47):
instinct.
Yeah, so I guess that's myadvice.
All right, Thank you.
In a really long sentence, along, long sentence.
Speaker 2 (36:55):
Right.
So what books do you recommend?
And they can be books that arenot about Reiki, anything that
you have read along yourspiritual path.
Speaker 3 (37:05):
Oh, my gosh.
There's so many books.
Grieving Mindfully is thenumber one book that I'm
recommending.
It's on my website.
You can find the link therebecause that helps with the
tools, the techniques, so that'sa great book.
Um, darius Merritt Jones writessome really good books and I've
just read um when Fear Speaks,and I really am enjoying that
(37:33):
book and a lot of the times thatI try to read one book a month
and add, you know, maybe aparagraph or a thought or an
approach into my classes andworkshops, into my classes and
workshops.
Also, kyle sees, um, he doessome great stuff, um, really
motivational and um, a lot Ishare his stuff a lot.
He does 12 principles, uh, towellness, and it's just about
(37:55):
remembering.
You know, sometimes we can hearsomething, read something, see
a photo, but it doesn't speak tous.
And then there's sometimes weread it or hear it and it's like
we're seeing it for the firsttime.
So I like to save my books andI like to reopen them and
randomly, you know, open a pageand think, huh, okay, okay.
(38:18):
And there's also Melody Beattie.
She does a great 365 book tothe heart.
So that's really inspirationalfor me.
I try to read that in themorning and sometimes I think I
need to write.
One of these I think that's onmy journey is to put what I know
and how I feel and what I'minspired about in writing for
(38:41):
your legacy to live on.
You know, it's nice to.
I was thinking about that todaywhen I was preparing.
I have so many notes, notebooks, word documents you know things
in my texts that I think how doyou put it all together?
And so, yeah, books are a greatresource.
So are podcasts.
Speaker 2 (39:02):
So what services do you offer?
Do you offer classes, trainings, workshops, events?
Speaker 3 (39:08):
Absolutely so.
Some of the services I offerare one-on-one sessions, whether
that could be access bars orReiki, and also can be grief
counseling.
I offer most of my servicesonline and in person.
And then I love workshops.
I love in-person workshops andonline workshops.
(39:29):
So I'm always changing, alwaysevolving.
So usually at the beginning ofthe year January, february I do
a visioning manifestationworkshop and then I do my grief
online workshop classes threetimes a year, and that's
starting in September.
And then we do my grief onlineworkshop classes three times a
year, and that's starting inSeptember.
And then we do April and thenFebruary, because it takes a
(39:50):
while for, I think, people toget brave enough to register.
And then I do a lot of monthlyworkshops.
Mostly if I'm traveling, I canteam up with somebody and I like
to travel, whether that's, youknow, to Las Vegas or anywhere
in the East coast or NorthCarolina the tendency to stay on
this coast more often now, andso they can.
(40:13):
One of the things I'm reallyinto now is, like I think I
mentioned earlier, was the soundbath Reiki events, and those
are monthly and, again, thoseare super healing.
People love them, them.
It's a great networkingconnection.
That's another reason why Ilike to do workshops in person.
You make like-minded people,but you make a special
connection.
You know, when you listen toeach other, heart to heart, some
, you open up a space, there'sexpansion, something unique can
(40:36):
happen, and so online is veryconvenient and it works,
especially if they're recorded,which I like to do, because
everyone has a busy lifestyle,but yet in person there's a
dynamic that just doesn't match.
So, yeah, so it's Reiki AccessBars, grief and Reiki Circles so
(40:57):
those are all found on mywebsite in person and online.
And some of the other services,like I said I mentioned, were
ministry and doing efficientservices for weddings and for
memorials, and it's Palm BeachWedding Efficient.
So I kind of branched out alittle because it is a little
bit separate than wellnessmodalities, and I have tagged
(41:21):
myself and built a storefront onthe Knot, which is a really
popular wedding site and weddingwire, and that's really fun.
It's really fun to see what ittakes to create your special day
, your vision, and one of myspecialties is creating vows,
(41:41):
special vows, personalizing andcustomizing the ceremony for
them, because every love isunique, right, we have a lot of
backgrounds and it's importantto capture that for me and
create that day, that's alifetime memory.
So, yeah, I like my umbrella'sbig, and if people say do you?
(42:03):
And I say not yet, sometimes,and then I might go and create
it, so you never know what I'mcreating next.
Speaker 2 (42:10):
Okay, so if someone wants to book a class with you
or event online or in person,how are they able again to get
in touch with you?
Speaker 3 (42:18):
Yes, so my website is dwell in spirit.
Everything is there.
You can book online, you cancontact me.
So it's dwell in spirit and thesocial media sites are similar.
Dwell in spirit.
Dwell in Reiki If you're justseeking Reiki.
It's dwell in Reiki If you'remore about the other healing
modalities and efficientservices.
(42:42):
Dwell in spirit and dwell inReiki.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
All right, beautiful.
Well, that ends the first partof our journey together, and I'm
going to continue to guide youto the second part of our
journey, which is questions fromlisteners and social media.
Speaker 3 (42:56):
Excellent.
Speaker 2 (42:57):
Here we go.
So number one what inspired youto become an ordained minister?
Speaker 3 (43:04):
Oh yeah, what inspired me was what's next?
Right, there's always anotherlayer.
We always have that ceiling,what we think we are, until we
have a new thought right andit's kind of that gate that's
not really locked.
And when I thought, well, whatis next?
Why not be a minister?
(43:25):
Like, what does it really take?
It takes myself to be seen, toshare who I am and to be willing
to be guided and be led.
And so that is what inspired meis am I willing?
And the question was yes.
Speaker 2 (43:41):
Very good.
Number two, as an ordainedminister, how do you explain
Reiki to those who questionwhere it aligns with their faith
?
Speaker 3 (43:50):
Yes.
So I think we touched on that alittle bit in the beginning
where Reiki is veryinterchangeable.
You know, it's not magic, it'senergy, it's based on rules
principles.
It's based on rules principles,it's based on something that's
also spiritual, but in the wayit has a connection, a
(44:15):
connection to your inner selfand to your higher self, and
that's very similar to religion.
So for me it's very parallelthere, similar to religion.
So for me it's very parallelthere, and so you can be very
religious and still utilizewellness modalities, you can be
very spiritual and still go to achurch, right?
So there's no real boundariesanymore.
(44:35):
It's just what I used to have amentor that used to say God
told me.
And then she would tell me whatGod told her, and then I would
say well, how can you argue withGod?
It is just like okay, then youhave to do it Right, then follow
what you're hearing, whatyou're being led to do.
(44:55):
What's your path, what's yourjourney?
Speaker 2 (44:58):
Right right, you know my background, very religious.
My mother was Bible-based intothe church, I was an acolyte in
the church and so often peopleare surprised, since I do yoga
and I do Reiki, that I am veryreligious.
You know praying and havingconversations with God, and so
they're quite surprised becausethey don't make that connection
(45:21):
that you can.
Speaker 3 (45:23):
Interchange yes, make it your own.
Yeah, and until you'veexperienced it, maybe you're not
in truth around it, maybeyou're in a belief that isn't
really.
You know, we upgrade all thetime.
We upgrade our beliefs right.
We upgrade our values and ourmorals.
(45:43):
We usually do that as we growand we expand, and so why not
try some wellness therapy?
Speaker 2 (45:50):
Right, right.
And for my mother, because ofher religious background and her
understanding of the word ofGod, the Bible, that she doesn't
accept the doing of the yoga orthe Reiki.
This is not.
She doesn't understand andfeels that, you know, I'm not
walking the path of the Lord bydoing these things.
Speaker 3 (46:13):
Well, reiki, really.
I mean I think yoga juststarted in the pajamas and it
was just stretching, right.
I mean our society has turnedit into something way more
fashionable.
Speaker 2 (46:21):
Oh, absolutely yeah, it turns it into it into
gymnastics and circus artists.
Speaker 3 (46:26):
Yeah, so I think it's about a mind-body-spirit
connection.
I don't think for me.
That's what I believe.
I mean, I know everyone has aunique belief around it.
Speaker 2 (46:39):
Sure, but along the journey you may come across
someone who has those deeprooted beliefs into well, yeah,
this is not for me.
This isn't a line.
Speaker 3 (46:50):
And that's okay.
I think the important thing ismeeting everybody where they are
.
I think that's one of thethings is what it takes for me
as a minister, as a practitioner, as a Reiki master, as an
officiant meeting people wherethey are.
Speaker 2 (47:08):
Yeah, Because it takes and that's the same thing
with yoga as well and Reiki.
That's what we say in my yogaclass as you teach we take you
where you are.
Speaker 3 (47:15):
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, and it's importantbecause we see them as
individuals, we honor theirprocess.
Right, it doesn't need to lookany other way, but the way it
looks.
It's the idea of everyone canhave their process.
But I think it's just asimportant to honor that process,
(47:35):
being in allowance, allowancefor each other, allowance to
what is and what isn't.
That, to me, is a spiritualjourney in itself.
Speaker 2 (47:45):
Very good.
So question number three I readon your website you offer grief
counseling, helping individualsnavigate emotions after loss,
the end of a relationship or thepassing of a loved one.
Can you tell me a little bitabout this service?
Speaker 3 (48:01):
Yeah, so it's different for everybody.
Some people like to have aone-on-one session.
They're not group people,they're very private.
Some people like the idea oflistening to somebody else heal
because that helps them heal, sothat would be more in a
workshop.
And then people don't want toattend because they're nervous
or they can't fit into theirschedule, so then they would fit
more into the online grief.
(48:22):
So I've really tried to expandit to what works for you, and
the idea is to be able to sitwith your own emotions and lean
in.
But the only way out is through, and so if we don't move
through it, we don't get to heal.
We don't get to it, we don'tget to heal.
(48:51):
It's like when we are grieving,a lot of us want to shut down
and we cap out.
We don't want to feel the grief.
Problem with that is, to thatlevel, you can't feel the joy,
you can't feel the happiness,you can't feel the celebration,
so we cap everything.
You don't really just have achoice.
You just numb down or you keepit down, and so really I love
watching people thrive.
I'm a connector, whatever thatmeans.
(49:15):
I want to connect you to yournext greatest good or I want to
connect you to the next personthat's going to enhance your
life right.
So in the training and in it'smore about staying open and
being willing to learn somethingnew, right To try something a
(49:36):
different way.
And that's really what thegrief counseling is about is
just being in a safe place tosit with your emotion, to move
through them right, so that wecan be a teacher.
Right as we get older, we teachwhat we know, we don't just
point the way.
The reason why we know isbecause we've lived through it
and that changes what's possible.
Speaker 2 (50:01):
Very good.
Well, that was the lastquestion, so, as we've been
talking, is there something thatyou may have forgotten or a
message that you would like toshare?
Speaker 3 (50:13):
you can take this time now um, I think if you're
questioning anything, then seekthe answer, because the answers
will come, and trust that lifeis for you, like, it's not
against us, and we're here foreach other.
(50:35):
Utilize the wellness categoryof many, many practitioners and
utilize your faith and utilizethe ministry.
There are people who are hereto support you If you're feeling
lost or overwhelmed or anxiousor not knowing you're not alone.
Speaker 2 (50:56):
Okay, beautiful.
Well, thank you so much,michelle, for taking time out of
your very busy schedule to comewith me on this Ready Set Reiki
journey.
Speaker 3 (51:05):
Yes, thank you so much.
It was wonderful, tracy.
Speaker 2 (51:08):
All right.
All right, my wonderfullisteners.
So if you would like yourquestion featured on the podcast
, reach out atwwwreadysetreikicom, or check me
out on social media.
If you're interested in Reikitrainings or yoga and yoga
trainings, reach out to FeatherSister, wwwreadysetreikicom,
(51:28):
wwwfeathersistercom.
And I'm Tracy Seawright, andthis has been Ready Set Reiki.
Thank you.
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