June 29, 2025 • 62 mins
What happens when traditional therapy fails a combat veteran struggling with trauma? For David Roberts, discovering Reiki became the unexpected lifeline that transformed his experience of being "on fire" into balanced wellbeing.
David takes us through his compelling journey from infantry soldier to holistic healer in this vulnerable conversation about finding healing in unexpected places. After returning from a combat-heavy tour feeling perpetually angry and dysregulated, David's path led him to explore energy healing. The moment he experienced his first reflexology point, feeling "the world was okay for a couple seconds," became the catalyst for a complete life transformation.
As both a Master Reiki practitioner and Army Reserve Master Resilience Trainer, David brings a refreshingly grounded perspective to energy work. He seamlessly bridges Western clinical understanding with traditional Asian health practices, making these modalities accessible even to skeptics. His approach emphasizes the nervous system science behind Reiki, challenging misconceptions that it's merely "woo-woo" or luxury care rather than legitimate healing.
The conversation takes a practical turn as David demonstrates powerful techniques specifically beneficial for veterans and anyone struggling with anxiety, boundary issues, or sleep disturbances. From the simple "typewriter" chest tapping to regulate the vagus nerve to more involved practices for releasing grief and establishing healthy boundaries, these tools offer immediate nervous system relief in just 60 seconds.
Whether you're a veteran seeking alternative approaches to healing, a Reiki practitioner looking to deepen your understanding, or simply curious about how energy medicine interfaces with traditional therapeutic models, this episode illuminates the profound healing potential when ancient wisdom meets modern understanding. David's journey from skeptic to practitioner reminds us that sometimes our greatest healing comes from places we least expect to find it.
David Roberts (He/Him). Is a Master Reiki Practitioner, somatic skills life coach, and Army veteran with roughly 8 years of experience in helping individuals regulate stress, process trauma, and restore balance through holistic and somatic care. As a Master Resilience Trainer in the U.S. Army Reserve, my goal is to bring a grounded and integrative approach to healing. I have provided trainings for groups and individuals, to include clinicians at Wayne State’s outpatient psych program, blending Eastern and Western modalities to support deep emotional and nervous system recovery.
If you’re looking at an approach that can support and guide your nervous system to a more peaceful and balanced place, I’d love to aid you in what ways I can, and speak about how Reiki (Teate) and Somatic Skills can help you achieve healing.
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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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (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
litigations 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 a
host.
So I'm Tracy Seawright, andthis is Ready Set Reiki.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Hello everyone, welcome, tracy Seawright, and
this is Ready Set Reiki.
I am joining you from my newlocation yes, I have moved and
it's the beginning of awonderful and amazing adventure.
So let me tell you who isjoining me today on my journey.
Now, his name is David Roberts.
He is a master Reikipractitioner, somatic skills
(01:03):
life coach and he's an Armyveteran with roughly eight years
of experience in helpingindividuals regulate stress
process, trauma and restorebalance through holistic and
somatic care.
Now, as a master resilienttrainer in the US Army Reserve,
his goal is to bring a groundedand integrative approach to
healing.
He has provided trainings forgroups of individuals, to
(01:24):
include clinicians at WayneState's Outpatient Psych Program
, lending Western and Westernmodalities to support deep
emotional and nervous systemrecovery.
Now, if you're looking for anapproach that can support and
guide your nervous system to bemore peaceful and a balanced
place, he would love to help youand speak to you about Reiki
and somatic skills to help youachieve the healing.
(01:46):
So let's bring in our wonderfulguest today, david Roberts.
David, welcome to Ready SetReiki.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
Thank you.
Thank you, it's my honor andprivilege to be here.
I greatly appreciate your time.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
Wonderful, wonderful.
So I am in El Paso, Texas,where I have the honor and the
privilege of working with manyin our military and veterans and
our Gold Star mothers.
So one of my favorite things todo is, on Fridays, I go down to
our Veterans Center, AmbrosiaGullen, and we do get fit while
we sit.
So it's a really wonderful anda way of giving back to all the
(02:22):
amazing and wonderful thingsthat they have done our military
has done for us.
So let's begin our journeytogether.
So tell us a little bit aboutyourself.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
Goodness, this was probably the hardest question, I
think.
Actually, you know, it's alwayslike what do you say about
yourself?
But obviously I'm at the unittoday, um in my 50s um, but uh,
army veteran, I'm still in theactive reserves um, I've gone
(02:53):
through a couple different jobchanges, um, but my background
is when I was, you know, 18, Ijoined um.
It was in the infantry and uh,you know, they told me hey man,
we're the war's dying downyou're not going anywhere,
because I was really scared.
I was going for college.
I'm like, oh no, I gotta go forcollege, I want to get a good
(03:13):
education and all that jazz andum, I got to my unit in the
infantry and they were like, ohyeah, six months were to point.
And I was like what, oh gosh,so went overseas, had um, I
guess you'd call it an amazingtime, but it was a pretty combat
, heavy tour.
And when I came back I justfound myself feeling very um,
(03:34):
just just trying to juggle, Iguess, my, my nervous system.
I didn't know anything aboutthat at the time, I was still
pretty young.
I just was like, oh, it's okayto be angry all the time, it's
okay to be, you know, frustrated, frustrated and sad and
depressed, and this is normal,you know.
And so, moving forward, I gotout of the infantry.
(03:55):
I still wanted to keep a footin, though I was like, oh, I
want to keep a foot in the door,I don't want to completely
separate.
So I went into the reserves asa civil affairs specialist and
sort sort of more like macrosocial work you work with a
population much more peacefulmission, and I was like, oh,
maybe this will do it for me,but I still felt like I was on
fire.
And when I got out and I wasback in the civilian world, I
(04:18):
wanted to again pursue collegeand during that journey I was
like, oh, I'll do social work,that'll help me.
and it's still, while it wascool to relate to folks, it
still felt like something wasmissing and I was like just
getting curious and I was like,well, you know, maybe I'll I
don't know look for some healingmodalities, and Reiki popped up
(04:42):
for me and around the same time, actually about a year later, I
found my current mentor,michael Gillespie, and he's been
a social worker since like the70s, but he was really blessed
to learn really cool traditionalAsian health practices from a
gentleman named Mr Onishi and DrLee, and so a lot of like what
I do in my Reiki sessions comesfrom those gentlemen and they're
(05:06):
I guess you could call themYang Shen skills, or they're
little tiny skills that arederived from Qigong or Kiko,
which is Japanese Qigong, butanyways.
So now I work.
You know, I'm trying to sort ofmake a whole shift.
I was doing social work, I'mtrying to make this holistic
shift now and um study reiki forphoenix, rising mental health
(05:30):
services, and I teach qigong anduh, yeah, and then of course I
do the skills education forwayne state universities,
outpatients like program andtheir clinicians, as well as my
mentor, and I train otherclinicians too on um platforms
for continuing education credits.
But we teach these skills, um,these these traditional age and
(05:51):
health practices with the termsomatics, so that way people can
jive with it in the in theclinical world.
So, um, yeah, I feel likethat's a lot about me.
Um, and you thought you weregonna have a hard time with that
one.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
That's a lot about me .
Speaker 3 (06:08):
And you thought you were going to have a hard time
with that one.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
You know I was like oh, let me just word vomit
everything.
Yeah Well, I love how you saidthat you wanted to kind of do
something with your anger.
I know in college my husbandwell, he was then my boyfriend,
you know went into the reservesand I had just found that there
were just many times where hewas just angry by the world
(06:32):
things happening.
So I like how you took thatopportunity to see what can you
do to heal, what can you do toself-regulate beyond you know
what the standards you wouldthink in the army would be.
You know, I mean these holisticmodalities kind of beyond you
know what the standards youwould think in the army would be
.
You know, I mean these holisticmodalities kind of.
Oftentimes, you know, peoplehave judgment towards it.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely I.
I'm glad you brought that up.
It made me realize.
Sort of circle back, the thingsthat ended up healing me were
Reiki, they wereigong, they were, you know, these yang shen and
kiko skills that I learned, andI remember learning the first
one.
It was just this reflexologypoint on the side of my hand, on
(07:12):
the knife edge here, right inline with the, the heart line,
and I remember just feeling likeall of a sudden the world was
okay for a couple seconds whileI was pressing that point and I
was like that's wild, and like Iwas like I could feel the
downshift and I was like, wow,dude, that's crazy.
Our bodies have, like just onepoint, that much ability, yeah,
(07:34):
and that was sort of the the endof it, like I was like I'm, I'm
hooked, I'm addicted.
You know that.
You know any.
I was like any human, I'll takeit.
And I just remember clinging tothat one point.
So, um, just uh, desperately.
And so I, of course, learnedmore and was able to really
start to build capacity andresilience, uh, which helped me
(07:56):
do better reiki sessions forfolks too right.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
And then here you've turned around in your being of
service and helping so manypeople.
Now, just from taking that stepforward, beautiful.
Now you mentioned a little bitin your tell us about yourself,
about your Reiki.
So would you say that you foundReiki or Reiki found you?
Speaker 3 (08:23):
Oh, good question, Can it be like a, both and like
a little bit of column A and acolumn B?
Um, cause I had no idea, like,what Reiki was.
It was like 2000 and, like youknow, uh, 2014.
When I got out and, um, Iremember just like looking
around and I was like you know,know, I've always been
(08:44):
interested in, like japanese,like chinese, like kung fu,
martial arts, and I was like,let's find something, because I
really want to channel myself,yeah, um, channel myself into
something.
And I went on meetup, um, and Idon't know if meetup's still a
thing, I think it is.
But like back in the day, youknow, um, I went out there and
there was a gentleman, mr andrewanders, and he was like, you
(09:06):
know, hey, come do reiki.
Uh, it's, it's healing, it'ssoothing, it's you know, x, y
and z.
And I said something just sortof pulled me in that direction
and I was like, okay, like I'vespent enough time at war, I
probably should do somethinghealing.
And so I decided, well, youknow what, let's try it out.
It was, you know, it was like a, a couple hundred bucks.
(09:29):
So I was like I could spare it,you know, all right, and went
in there and it was just thisreally like I don't know like
soothing, peaceful sort ofexperience.
Um, remember, sitting, just, youknow, in gashow and and uh,
doing the hot kureho and thismeditation, and um, I, I didn't
even, I didn't even know thenames back then, I didn't even
honor the names, like I was likewhatever, it doesn't matter,
(09:51):
infantry, you know, but I justcalled it the fire hands
meditation because it was justlike I was sweating with how
much heat there was and I justthought, oh wow, power, this is
cool, you know.
Energy, it's real.
Um, so the reiki sort of foundme and I started doing
treatments on myself and others,but, um, it certainly.
I sort of fell away from myfirst view.
(10:11):
I went to qigong and kung fuand I sort of fell back into the
whole power thing.
I was like I need to be strongbecause of all the trauma, right
you?
Know I need to be in control.
I need to be in control, and itwasn't till like a little bit,
like, I think, right around thepandemic.
Uh, my kung fu teacher was like, oh, I'm also a reiki teacher
and I was like, wait, what so?
reiki sort of found me again andit popped up and he was like,
(10:35):
oh yeah, and on top of that Iknow kiko, and I was like what
is that?
He's like?
It's going to amplify your rate.
You know, that sounds cool.
So it found me again and I wasable to then start sort of
reigniting that passion andbeing able to use that to help
others heal.
And uh, then I I somehowrekindled the connection with my
(10:55):
old mentor, the one I firstlearned with, and now he's an
acupuncturist.
He's learned so much, he's grown.
It's just such a cool thingthat Reiki continues to be, even
when I start to fall away fromit.
It's like, hey, buddy, you knowyou want to practice a little
bit, and then it picks me backup and so it's in my life for a
reason.
But I would say that Reiki, Isought it at first, but it
(11:18):
ultimately found me and itcontinues to find me, like it
almost chases.
Speaker 2 (11:21):
It's very cool, yeah well as you navigate, you have
this wonderful stress reducingmodality in your energetic
toolbox.
What are some misconceptionsyou have found as you are out
working with individuals aboutreiki.
What are they?
What are you finding out therethat people are have this
(11:43):
confusion about or misconception?
Speaker 3 (11:47):
Yeah.
So I think a lot of folks theythey say, oh, that's that, that
waving hands thing Right.
Or they don't even know.
They're like, well, what theheck is a rapy?
That sounds crazy.
So it's still like.
I get a lot of those responsesfrom folks Like well, what the
heck is that?
And I have a much more clinicallike I guess not understanding
(12:08):
of it because everyoneunderstands it that way,
probably too.
But my explanation to folks ismuch more clinical because of my
background in social work, mystudies with you know the
sympathetic, the parasympathetic, the vagus nerve.
You know all the trauma stuffthat I've learned through my
social work career.
And so I think one of thecommon misconceptions is that
(12:30):
it's and not to knock anyonebecause I love this stuff Like
I've gotten treatments wherepeople do crystals and call in
ancestors and it's super cooland I'm like what I can't do?
That Like mine's much moreclinical, Like that's legit.
But people think it's onlythose things and it's sometimes
it.
I think there's this, thismisconception in society that
those things are bad or they'relooked down on and they're not
(12:51):
real healing and I'm like nobrother, man, like sister, like
you, gotta, you gotta get in onthis because it is real deal
healing.
I think people they don'trealize, they don't know the
history of it, that pre-worldwar ii this was being used in
clinics.
It was true clinical um, youknow, you know a practice and it
(13:15):
was healing.
And there's documentation thatpeople have found and have
documented now from thosehealings.
I mean there's lists and wehave them in the books, but we
have, like, there's those likearticles that my, my, my, I, my,
my.
I guess you want to call himmaster, but my master's giving
me and he says, hey, look at allof these things, are these news
articles where this guy talkedabout the healing he's done?
(13:35):
And I'm like, wow, that'samazing.
So when do I get to starthealing people like that?
You know, but it's, it isclinical, it belongs in the
clinic, in my opinion, and so Ithink that the misconception is
that that's like that's acomfort.
It's not even complimentary.
They're like that's that's a, aluxury.
I'm like no, this is this is sogood it's, it's more than just a
(13:57):
luxury.
This is true, legitimatehealing, and there's science
that supports it.
Um, so I think the biggestmisconception that a lot of
people have is that it's just,it's funny foo-foo magic and
it's the furthest thing from, inmy opinion.
Um, you know, like sometimes Ifeel like this feeling is more,
uh, more real, or more healingthan the healing I get from the
(14:20):
doctor, where they're like, ohhey, um, you got the sniffles,
okay, well, I'll take someibuprofen, go home and sleep on
it, you know.
Or like when I was in theservice and I'm like, oh yeah,
I'm like I'm pretty sure myankle broke, and they're like,
yeah, run it off, you're fine.
Like had I known Reiki backthen or had I been seeing
someone, I mean the healingmight have sped up, it might
(14:40):
have been been faster and maybemore increased.
Speaker 2 (14:47):
And I strongly believe that, based on the
things I've seen and the thingsI've read, and just the
testaments of my clients andother folks' clients too- my
very first Reiki training, itwas level one, nizui Rahiho, and
after that I kind of went downthe rabbit hole of researching
(15:08):
and then I came across DrHitoshi's healing guide.
So he was, you know, aphysician and had a clinic and
he has this very detailed guidethat he has for ailments.
Nowadays we would go to thehospital right Like a sword
wound and hand placements, andit was that clinical where two
(15:29):
practitioners were working onyou that it did that transition
from sitting to lying down.
So a lot of people don't knowthat whole aspect of it.
They again think it's thatwoohoo, yeah, yeah yeah, I think
it's.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
It's like one of those things where I look at the
uh, you know, the research nowthat's out about it and then
also like, if it was just that,why would there be like over 800
hospitals and clinics in theunited states alone that utilize
it?
As you know, they call itcomplementary therapy.
They have to call something forthe insurance, right, um, but
(16:05):
they wouldn't be using itotherwise um it didn't work and
um, you know, another thing thatI'm just about to start doing
as well is um volunteering atcorwell health doing reiki for
cancer patients and it's again.
Why would they have the programat a Catholic hospital too,
right, Like with this root beingCatholic if it didn't work and
(16:28):
it didn't have some?
Merit you know yeah.
So that's me nerding out aboutit.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
I get excited about it Right Modality to walk
alongside your primarycaregiver's plan.
So not a replacement, but youknow to work together Absolutely
.
So what has been your biggestchallenge or struggle you have
faced in your healing journey?
You're out there being ofservice and helping so many
individuals out there as thismaster resilience trainer,
(16:59):
helping those getting grounded.
So what challenges have youfaced?
Speaker 3 (17:05):
I think some of the challenges I've faced I mean,
there's been a lot along the wayum, I think, primarily just
getting over myself, um gettingover my own mental health and I
wouldn't say getting over it,but I would say, probably
getting through it right, um,getting through my own
challenges.
Um, you know, I'm definitelylike a strong believer and is
(17:27):
like, as the reiki flows throughme, kind of a vibe right, it's
healing me too.
Um, and I, and I want to saynow that I look at myself, now
that I've really squared away alot of that mental health, my
physical health, um, I'm in amuch healthier space, mind and
body.
My treatments have actuallyincreased as well and they
(17:47):
become more effective, and so Ithink one of the biggest
challenges in the beginning wasjust this constant battle within
my own mind.
I think, too, one of thebiggest challenges for me was I
was so well ingrained intoWestern sort of science and
things I was like.
(18:07):
Well, my initial response to alot of these things is, while it
seems amazing, I always hadthat voice of doubt in the back
of my head.
You know, is this reallyworking?
Are you really doing somethingfor yourself, or is this just
placebo?
You know, and so a lot of mychallenges and struggles came
from my own mental health, myown doubt, and I think just at
(18:29):
some point it's like when do youjust sort of throw all those
cares to the to the wind and say, obviously something I'm doing
is working, regardless if it's aplacebo or not, because I feel
better and it's not just myemotions, but it's how I behave
and it's how I interact withothers, when I don't feel like
there's a fire in my chestanymore, right, and I can take a
(18:50):
deep breath and I can feelgrounded and really feel the
chair supporting me, likethere's something to that, and
so I could probably say that'slike one of the biggest
challenges.
Challenges, um, I think too,something that always sort of
kept me from continuallypursuing this is just uh, you
(19:13):
know not again sort of emotional, but like not feeling like I'm
good enough because when I cameback I was just on fire and so
so like I, my familyrelationship, suffered, I
couldn't keep a partner to savemy life, like, luckily now, like
I love my wife to death, likeyou know, so blessed, um, but
those were things that really, Iguess just sort of uh got in
(19:36):
the way of pursuing these thingssooner and also, uh, with more
like zeal and passion.
Um, I would say maybe the.
The other thing I can think ofis, you know, it's been a rough
ride, you know, coming back fromthe service, like I was not in
a good space, and so there'slike times I'd like lost jobs
because like I was either tooimpulsive or I was too angry or
(19:59):
I was too something.
And uh, again that behavioralaspect like getting along with
folks is so difficult, oh mygosh.
And Reiki has changed my lifedramatically.
Now I have this very, I feel,like white energy.
It's just playful and it's I'mcurious about life again as
(20:22):
opposed to being so miserableand stuck in the idea of my
shortages.
And you know, living in thatland, living in the land of
curiosity, is so much morebeautiful.
So I would say that, like,those things are probably some
of the biggest things I've facedin my healing journey.
And I think that the journeycontinues.
(20:45):
Yeah, some of the biggest thingsI've faced in my healing
journey and I think that thejourney continues.
I think that the journey willalways continue and there will
always be new phases of thathealing in my life, and I think
it's one of the most beautifulthings about anything like
Qigong or Reiki or these somaticresets, the Yangshen and Kiko,
is the more that I do them, thedeeper I can go, the more I
realize and I go wow, there's somuch more to this than just I
(21:08):
place my hands in this position,you know.
Or there's so much more than,oh well, I just tap across the
collarbone and I'm better now.
Like it's just there's so muchdepth and just gold, gold in the
practice.
So, yeah, I would say thatmyself, myself, was my biggest,
my biggest boundary.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
That ego.
Yeah, making friends with thatego.
It puts us into some trouble,doesn't it?
But I like how you call it ajourney, because it really is.
It's not about that destination, because once we think we're
there, something else pops upand we realize we still have
more healing to do Many peoplealso.
(21:51):
Another misconception is it's aone and done.
You know it's a bippity,boppity boo, but it isn't.
It's cumulative.
It takes time and you may notsee it right away, and it may be
a year or two years later andsomething that maybe would have
triggered you five years ago.
You react a little softer to ityeah, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
I love that.
You said that and I think itsparked something else for me.
My one of my mentors, he saysyou know, uh, and he said you
know, miss takata talked abouthow this was a gentle healing
art.
This was short wave therapy, ifyou will right, like this, uh,
radio waves.
In a sense I think it's coollike we actually produce like
hurts from our hands, like super, super sick.
But, um, he was, like you know,traditionally she recommended
(22:38):
four to five sessions in a row,you know, because we wanted to
be able to slowly peel backlayers.
I love he said it's like a pushpop, so like all that crud is
sort of on the bottom, youpushing it up, so finally it
exposes itself.
And I think this is like verycommon in a lot of like
traditional asian healthpractices.
But you might not feelsomething at first.
(22:59):
Next session, all of a suddenyou feel a little crummy.
By the third or fourth, all ofa sudden it's like, wow,
everything's better.
It's this idea of like thingsmight get worse before they get
better because I have to sort ofpurge and get all that
nastiness out and then I cantone it, then I can really put
in this solid, beautiful, white,golden light energy, whatever
(23:20):
you know, you see, um, but yeah,I get to, I get to really heal
with this reiki at that point.
So I love that like reiki, likesort of does a combo deal in my
opinion, like it's it'ssmoothing the energy out, it's
sort of slowly sifting throughall the bull crap and pulling
that up while like continuallyhealing you with goodness.
It's like this both, and it's adialectic, if you will.
(23:42):
I guess it's really beautifulright right practice, practice,
practice, practice.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
Definitely the the difference maker and right
sticking around and youmentioned madam takata, and if
no one had caught this you saidabout the shortwave right after
Pearl Harbor, she had to changeand Americanize Reiki and take
that out.
So if you look in the bookcalled the Healing Touch by
William Rand, it's a level one,level two master manual.
(24:09):
He actually has a picture of it, painted over the word reiki
and putting that on therebecause she had to shift and
change what was going on.
You know.
But you know we accredit herfor keeping reiki going.
So yeah, that just shows youyou know how you need to shift
and change is a little bit asour out there being of service
(24:33):
yeah so when it is time for youto get an energetic tune-up,
what qualities do you look forin a reiki practitioner?
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I think that I look for someone who really embodies
the precepts right.
Like you know, I really wantsomeone who's not quick to anger
, who's who's not reallyworrying.
I want them to be able to tohave gratitude for that practice
and entreat with compassion, umand I think you can sort of
read that on somebody.
(25:04):
Um, and again, I mean I thinkabout, like from a western
perspective, like the vagusnerve and mirror neurons, right,
like if you, if someone walksinto the room and they have some
stuff going on and and no, notknocking them at all but I think
that someone can feel thatthere's a resonance.
And so I look for apractitioner who can really
(25:25):
separate, you know, when it'stime to heal from their personal
lives.
I think it's really, really,really important, because there
was a point in time I could notdo that, so my treatments were
you know, when it's time to healfrom their personal lives, I
think it's really, really,really important, because there
was a point in time I could notdo that, so my treatments were
not as effective.
And so I look for someone whois that still calm water,
because I want my biggest nerve,I want my energy, I want my
chakras, I want my, all my stuff, all the goodness right.
(25:47):
I want it aligned and I want itto be smooth, like, like a
placid lake you know, and so Ithink of someone like that.
But I also enjoy it Like, and Itotally welcome like bubbly
personality, like I'm I'm agoofball, so I want people to
have good energy and, um, youknow.
But I look for someone who justtakes care of themselves.
(26:07):
Um, when I think we take careof ourselves and again I'm, I'm,
uh, definitely what's the wordI'm looking for I guess I can
say that there was a point intime, like I said, I didn't take
care of myself, like I'm guiltyof it.
That's the phrase I was lookingfor.
I'm guilty of it not doing thatand, at the same time, right
(26:27):
coming back and doubling down,and so I just think someone who
takes care of themselves isreally, really important.
Again, from my own experience,like not having taken care of
myself and try to do thesethings.
So, yeah, someone who embodiesthe precepts, takes care of
themselves, can be that sort ofstill water for me and, yeah, I
(26:48):
would say that those areprobably the things that I look
for in a practitioner.
I personally enjoy moretraditional treatments and, at
the same time, like I've had itwhere my master that I'm still
apprenticing under you know, um,because in this lineage, um,
you know, he does acupuncture,so like he'll put.
(27:09):
He'll put like a.
He was like do you have a?
He was like read my pulse, hegoes.
Do you have a cold heart?
I was like what?
I was like what are you talkingabout?
He's like do you havecirculation issues, man?
I'm like, how did you even pickthat up?
He's like, well, I got a man.
He's like the Reiki told me,the energy told me.
(27:37):
So he's like let me put a, anacupuncture needle in your arm
here.
You know I was like okay, cool.
So like you know, he's puttingsomething in Shen Men and my
heart line.
And all of a sudden it's likethis warm rush of heat and
soothing to my heart.
So I also welcome a combinationof treatments as well.
(27:57):
I think it's fascinating.
I've only ever received onething or the other, so when
people can find things, I findit super fascinating too.
Definitely not knocking that.
I definitely want to experiencemore of that.
So I look for creativity too,I'd say, and a practitioner.
Speaker 2 (28:16):
Beautiful.
It's interesting, you know,when we talk about different
ways that people bring inmodality, that there really is
no wrong way to do it as long asyou have that intention, that
it's your intention.
That is what's important withthat.
So our next question we havefor you is what advice would you
(28:36):
give someone who's justentering spiritual work?
Speaker 3 (28:41):
Yeah, jeez, louise, that's a good question.
I would just say do theresearch, stay curious, look
around, experiment, just reallygo to whatever spirit calls to
you know, like reiki might notbe for somebody, and that's okay
right like do something else,man.
(29:02):
Um, if you know that energyhealing in general, or reiki or
aerobatic medicine, or just tcmor acupuncture, reflexology or
tweena or anything right likeany of those healing modalities.
If they are calling to you, Iwould say pursue it with your
whole being.
Like we get one of these badboys, like these lives right.
(29:22):
And I want to chase things thatare like a vocation for me,
that really are just singing tomy spirit, my heart, you know,
make me feel accomplished andpurposeful in my life, and so I
would say, like get curious,stay curious, don't just get
(29:43):
hung up on one thing.
Speaker 1 (29:44):
If you want to learn it all, heck, go learn it all,
have fun um yeah, like that's,that's sort of like one of the
things I would say, and I wouldjust say like um, I'm looking at
my notes too.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
I'm like I got my notes too, no, um.
But also to like collaborateright, like I think it's really
hard to and I think I stillstruggle with this too like
getting uh clients and thingsand getting people to sort of
buy in and like don't be afraidto collaborate with somebody,
like get a part of like a cohortalmost right, and then it's
like a community too, so likethere's a communal aspect to
(30:19):
that.
My teachers always said, likethe most important three
teachings are the Buddha, theDharma and the Sangha.
Right, like your inner Buddha,like the teachings themselves
and then like the community.
I think that can like theteachings themselves and then
like the community.
Um, I think they consider a lotof spiritual based things,
right, but community is soimportant, yeah, so if you're
looking to get involved in thework, make, make friends, yeah,
(30:41):
get your name out there.
Um, find a mentor, findsomebody who has been in the
field longer than you and youreally resonate with I I see it
a lot like in the differentfacebook groups that I'm a part
of.
It's just there's a lot of I wasjust talking to my wife about
this the other day I feel likethere's a lot of gatekeeping.
(31:01):
I feel like there's a lot oflike these are my clients, these
are my clients, and there's nota lot of sharing or referrals
and maybe that's just myexperience.
I'm sure that there's placeswhere that happens all the time,
like referrals and things, butI feel like it's just like
building a community is a reallyimportant part of that.
(31:22):
So that way you can get in, youcan network, you can, you know
people can say you know what?
Actually, I really know David.
He's a really cool dude.
You're going to jive with him.
You actually, I really knowDavid.
He's a really cool dude.
You're going to jive with him.
You might have jived with mytreatment, but I guarantee you
he's got this skill set andyou're going to love that.
So hit him up.
Or you know, I have friendsthat you know.
They definitely they networkwith different acupuncturists in
(31:45):
Ann Arbor, ipsy and stuff inMichigan, and so they're sending
clients back and forth and Ithink it's so cool.
So you know, yeah, make it avocation, have fun, stay curious
, collaborate, network, befriendly, get out there, share
the wealth.
I think that sharing is caring.
And I think that even justsharing a couple of clients with
(32:07):
somebody, even if it's just acouple of times, they really
light their fire.
I think it's just find peoplethat are going to keep you
motivated, because it can be aburnout too.
Again.
Go back to taking care ofyourself.
That would be one more thing.
If you're going to get involvedin this stuff.
Take care of you.
Do it on you.
(32:28):
Do your treatments, Do yourqigong.
Do whatever you do.
Do it for you.
Do your treatments.
Do your qigong do.
Do whatever you do.
Do it for you.
Speaker 2 (32:33):
Got to pull yourself up and here's the thing, even
though you know we're bothmasters, even as a master
teacher, it's okay to stop whenyou're getting that burnout and
go back to those techniques.
You know I'm I sold a house, II'm selling another house and I
just found myself I'm enteringburnout with everything I was
(32:56):
doing and I stopped and I wentback.
I went back to do thosemedications and things that were
in the manuals to reset.
It's okay to pause in yourjourney and say, Okay, you know
what, I'm not taking anybodyright now.
I had somebody and I had torefer them.
I'm like I just don't.
I don't have it in my scheduleright now.
(33:18):
Right, I don't think I'm myelement where I can be of
service.
But here, here's one of mystudents.
You're more than welcome tothis, you can be of service to
me.
Here you go.
If you want to wait for me,that's great, but it's okay to
pause.
It's okay to go back and say,let me redo this, Let me work on
(33:39):
myself, you know, and that'skind of where that ego is put to
rest instead of I'm a master, Idon't need to take steps back.
Speaker 3 (33:49):
Yeah, yeah, I love that.
Yeah, I think it's so importantthat we just take care of
ourselves.
It is, it is.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
And even if you just Something happens and you get
off the, we had one house thathad an air-conditioned die 13
days before we sold it, and thenthe current one that we have
that we're selling it brokeagain.
So two different houses, bothair-conditions, which is a
higher expense, right?
(34:18):
What do you think?
Roof, windows, air-conditioningJust for today.
Just for today, just for today,absolutely, you know.
I might have to sit there for alittle bit.
Yeah.
But we're human right, we'rehaving a human experience.
(34:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
Absolutely Truly.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
So what books do you recommend?
Speaker 3 (34:51):
Good question.
I'm not a super avid reader.
I'm I'm very kinesthetic in myapproach, like I like the hands
on it.
Um, I love the history though,um, and I, I and I do love
reading some of the manuals.
I think they're really cool andI have read a couple, um, so
yeah, I've only like read acouple reiki books, um, but
(35:13):
again, you know, I think theones I read were great, because
again, I'm more, I guess, likeclinical in my practice, anyways
, like I want to know thosethings.
So like the original Reikihandbook, you know, of Dr Mikawa
Usui, and then Hayashi's Reikimanual, and then the other one
that I read was the Japanese Artof Reiki.
(35:35):
I think it's a friend, shaina,which I thought was really cool,
his his interpretation ofthings like just really being
about cultivation and peace andself healing and stuff like is
like just really being aboutcultivation and peace and
self-healing and stuff like, oh,dude, I was like preach, you
know, because that's what Ineeded when I first came back
and, uh, really, of course, whatsung to me was the, the
self-healing aspect of it youknow, being able to do teate or
(35:57):
hand allowance and put my handson someone else and heal them,
like that's cool, I love that.
But for me, like I was likereally just wow.
So if I put my hands like this,if I do this, if I'm like this,
if I have like, I was like wow,you know.
So I love that and I love theclinical aspects that those
other two books on the hi AshiRicky manual and the original
(36:18):
handbook of dr you see the, theclinical aspects they bring to
it as well, based on mybackground with social work and
the vagus nerve it just thosereally resonated strongly with
me.
Yeah, yeah.
Otherwise I've only read like alot of.
I think the philosophies gotogether but like different,
like Taoist texts or Buddhisttexts.
(36:40):
I think the thing that got mereally on this whole journey of
East Asian kind of healthpractices originally was and I
highly recommend this book foranyone actually who just wants
to read it is by Osho and it was.
I think it's calledEncountering with Nothingness or
(37:02):
it was like the Empty Bo withnothingness.
Um, so if you, just look at osho, look up osho and look up empty
boat.
Like it'll probably pop up, butdefinitely one of the most
amazing books.
I felt like he was talkingaround in circles, though, and I
was like, oh, this is all toophilosophical, this is too crazy
.
Um, but it was such a goodintroduction to uh, that eastern
(37:25):
philosophy, um and uh, just hisinterpretation of what you know
.
Shang tzu and lao tzu aretrying to say uh in their
writings.
So, like I, I loved it.
I was like, wow, this reallybroke it down for me.
If I can be that still water,that empty boat, then I.
When I devoid myself ofeverything, then I'm full of
(37:47):
everything, or it's like aconduit, and I was like oh man
and it tied right into Reiki forme.
I was like oh wait, what?
Like, let's go.
So that book too I guess Iwould also recommend, because I
think that's a really greatlesson, if not, if not even just
for Reiki but just for likeyour own personal life, your own
(38:13):
emotional regulation, your ownrelationships.
So, yeah, all right so whatother services do you offer?
Do you do classes?
Yeah, yeah, so, um, I haven'tstepped into like the whole like
teaching role yet.
I'm like I'm not sure if I'mready for that you know um, and
reason being so, like my teachermichael, that I learned from
original or um that my secondmentor still my mentor to this
day, like with kung fu and allthose things, um, his school of
(38:35):
thought from mr onishi when helearned this back like in the
70s from this gentleman, was um,you know, it was very much more
about self-cultivation.
It was like traditional, likeshorinji monks from japan, and
they were very in line with theshaolin, so shaolin, shorinji um
(38:55):
, but a lot about cultivation,self-cultivation.
So that's a little breaky.
We never learned, we never hadattunements.
It was all aboutself-cultivation.
So we did a lot of kiko orqigong to cultivate that energy.
So it was a very different kindof um reiki, if you will.
There is hands-on healing inkiko.
There's a couple differentpractices or a couple different
(39:18):
schools of thought, but theyhave like brushing of meridians
and things.
So you know, while it's notexplicitly Reiki that part of it
, the rest of what he taught uswas and so I'm a master teacher
in that lineage but I was like Idon't know, it's just not.
A lot of people are probablygoing to want to sit there and
cultivate energy.
They sort of want to just havethat lineage passed down kind of
(39:39):
vibe yes, I'm tuning you intothis frequency as opposed to I
have to tune myself in andcultivate all this qigong and
qigong.
If people are into it, I'mwilling to teach it.
And then in the other lineage,with Mr Anders, I'm only okuden
in that, so I don't have thetraining in that regards to give
(40:01):
an attunement as of yet.
Hopefully, sooner rather thanlater, I'm really excited to
continually apprentice under him.
But so you know, that's theReiki side of the house.
I can give a bomb treatment,but I don't want to teach as of
yet, unless someone's willing todo the cultivation of energy
and I could teach Kiko at thatpoint, which is really fun and
(40:23):
really really cool.
Um definitely amplifies my reikisessions.
Um, I do teach qigong at luckyflow acupuncture.
Um, that's in livonia, michigan.
So if any of you michigandersare listening, um, but livonia,
michigan, uh, lucky flowacupuncture is thursday evenings
and we're looking to expandthat um to like a teacher
(40:45):
program as well.
So, like that way we can, wecan sort of certify teachers and
pass these arts on.
So yeah, so I do teach Qigongas well.
And then with Phoenix RisingMental Health Services, we're
still rolling out this holisticprogramming.
But you know I do?
I have done skills coaching forfolks as it pertains to Qigong
(41:09):
and Qico and how can that helpthem with their own emotional
dysregulation, anxiety, sleepissues, eye strain, just general
fatigue.
So you know, those are someother services that I definitely
offer and then, hopefully inthe future, I'm getting medical,
(41:29):
medical qigong certified aswell.
So providing medical qigongtherapy for folks as well would
be really fun.
Um, that's like probably withinthe next year, so hit me up in
a year, uh, for that servicespecifically.
But yeah, so those are theother things I do currently in
the holistic realm and that Ireally love to do for folks.
Um, teaching qigong has beensuch a joy and just to see
(41:53):
people you know heal and be like, oh, I slept so good or wow, I
really felt the energy, likethat was way, that was way cool.
And I'm like, bro, we're juston the surface, Like let me tell
you, you know, but even thesurface level practices, the
basics right, are sofoundational and so life
changing you know so been really, really fun.
(42:13):
I love doing it, but those aresome of the other services that
I offer and I currently do forfolks.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Beautiful.
Do you offer anything online,do you?
Speaker 3 (42:22):
offer anything online , so not as of yet.
That's coming soon, probably,as I'm doing Okuden with my
mentor.
The other lineage that I wastalking about with Michael, I
call it the Onishi lineage.
They never did distance stuff,not that I know of.
It was all like hands-on, whichI was like oh, hey, that's cool
, but Mr Anders is very like no,this is very real and I've
experienced it from.
(42:42):
Hey, that's cool, but Mr Andersis very like no, this is very
real and I've experienced itfrom.
Like across the room, like it'ssuper.
I was like you didn't even haveyour hands anywhere near me, bro
, and he was like yes, that'sthe power, so probably like in
the next couple of months or so.
I would imagine I'm going tostart offering things online as
(43:02):
well.
I didn't buy into it.
For the longest time I was likethat's the bunny foo-foo stuff,
nope.
But then when I felt it formyself, I was like, oh wow,
that's wild.
Like my headache is gone andyou never even touch me.
So in the next couple months,absolutely Probably be offering
things online for Reiki.
We're looking at creating anonline platform as well for
(43:23):
Lucky Flow Qigong, so that'lleventually be available and
people are also just more thanwelcome.
Just to hit me up as well, andI can definitely just do like,
like a consultation withsomebody.
Like do you want to learnqigong?
Do you?
Do you want to learn some kiko?
Like, do you want to learn somesomatic practices to help with
your nervous system that are,you know, they're steeped in and
(43:44):
really come from traditionalAsian health practices?
Like I got you, that's too easy.
I would love to provide thatfor folks.
Speaker 2 (43:50):
So yeah, like you know, hit me up that leads right
into the next question how canwe get in touch with you if
someone's listening to this andyou're like, yeah, this is my
person?
Speaker 3 (44:03):
Yeah, absolutely um.
So there's quite a few ways toget a hold of me and I hope that
.
I hope that whoever's listeningdoes um.
But phoenix rising mhscom, um.
So it stands for phoenix risingmental health, but again, it's
just phoenix rising, mhscom, um.
And again, you know I operatethe somatic skills coaching,
(44:25):
qigong coaching through themthat I could also probably do
online through that, throughthat practice.
Luckyflowcom is where I do.
Luckyflow acupuncture is whereI do the Qigong classes on
Thursday evenings.
Again, we'll be expanding that.
Or you can just call them tooFor those of you who are in
Michigan sorry for those of youwho are not we will expand it to
(44:47):
Zoom eventually.
I'm trying to talk into it, butthat's 734-724-5867 is their
number.
Again, thursday nights 630 tolike eight.
Roughly, it's pretty fun,roughly, it's pretty fun, uh.
And then, uh, if you wanted to,you could reach out to me at my
(45:09):
professional email, which isjust d, and then my last name,
roberts um, atphoenixrisingmhscom.
Hold on just one sec, Iapologize, um, but so d roberts
at phoenixrisingcom.
And then my personal email,droberts4317 at yahoocom.
(45:34):
So those are all the ways topretty much get a hold of me.
Please feel free to reach outto me.
I would love to just spread allof the knowledge and train and
teach and heal.
Speaker 2 (45:48):
All right, Sounds good.
Well, that ends the first partof our journey.
I'm going to guide you towardsthe second part, which is
questions from social media andfrom listeners.
So here we go.
Number one as an Army veteran,how do you explain wakey to our
fellow active military andveterans?
Speaker 3 (46:08):
yeah, good question.
So, um, you know, obviously,like I've sort of been like
hinting at throughout the wholepart, you know the whole uh
interview here is you?
Know um, veterans can be grumpy.
We can be very, um just almostbullheaded about some things,
(46:28):
and I can say that because I amI can say it too, because I'm
married to one but it's, it's,it's this truth, right?
so, um, you know, but we allcome from different walks of
life, um, it's a volunteer, it'sall volunteer service, right?
So you know, from all walks,and some people come in and
they're very spiritual already,so they're very open to those
(46:49):
conversations.
Um, some people are morereligious and so they're like oh
, I'm gonna so you know, andthen some people are just like I
drink, like let's be real, likethat's what that's their coping
.
So when I you know, I pray thatthey change that.
But that's like that dark armyhumor, right, they're like
that's how I cope with my things.
And so a lot of times I try toapproach it from the viewpoint
(47:12):
of the Western scienceattunement right or a somatic
reset, um, or I'll say uh, it'steate, which opens up the
conversation.
Well, what does teate mean?
Oh well, it's a hand allowance,it's a hand healing right and
(47:33):
they're like you know, and thatopens up.
You know sometimes funny doorsand you know goofy jokes, but
it's a way in to then say yeah,and if you're interested, right
like this could help with thesethings.
It helps adjust your nervoussystem.
So you know, common issues forveterans are we can't sleep
we're wired, um, you know, or wewake up periodically throughout
(47:54):
the night, uh, every hour, orwhatever it is right which leads
to emotional dysregulation,anxiety, panic, like ptsd, stuff
, right from, like what if theywere at war?
Or you know, just honestly, themilitary is enough to give
anyone PTSD, sometimesregardless if you went to war.
And so really, sort ofcapitalizing on those key points
(48:14):
and saying this treatment thatI can offer will help you to
adjust or reset your nervoussystem so you can finally find
rest.
And if you don't believe me,then just try it.
Like what's the harm, truly, um, what's the worst that happens?
You, you know what, what's thebest that happens?
You get the best healing ofyour life and what's the worst
(48:35):
that happens, you, you know,just, I invested in my
relaxation.
That's pretty cool, you know,um?
so even if I don't feel anything, at least I got to be able to
relax, and so I keep it at sortof that more western clinical
mindset when I talk to veteransabout it, just because a lot of
them that I've encountered don'treally get the spiritual stuff
(48:58):
or they go right back to thatmisconception that it's all woo,
woo, fuzzy baloney and then itruins my credibility.
You know, I'm like, ah snap,I'm no longer clinician david
who provides reiki, I am nowjust crazy reiki guy, and so you
know, there there is sort ofthat juggling act, but I would
say I always stick to calling itsomatic resets and then
(49:18):
eventually, when I, when I'vewarmed up to them, I will then
tell them, um, that it is thatyeah it's the same thing with
yoga too.
Speaker 2 (49:27):
There is that misconception, especially in the
military, with yoga as well.
So often changing the namehelps and, like football, you
said, especially our veteranswho are in their seventies and
eight nineties.
They have that misconceptionabout yoga Like, oh, I'm not
doing that, so you have to-.
Speaker 3 (49:46):
Yeah, it's true.
You know, it's even in armyfunded programming.
Can you hold just one second?
I'm so sorry, Tracy, Iapologize.
Thank you sorry.
(50:15):
Everything is good all right.
Speaker 2 (50:20):
Number two how has your somatic training and skills
helped you enhance your Reikisessions?
Speaker 3 (50:26):
Yeah, good question too.
So, again, the school of Reikithat I really had originally
learned from was more aboutcultivation practices, and so
even with the cultivation, it'shelped my own health and
well-being, my own um, my ownsort of wellness, and so when
(50:47):
I'm practicing these kiko skillsor these somatic resets and I'm
relaxed, it allows, personally,I feel, energetically for a
much more open conduit, sothere's much more energy that's
able to flow, um, and so anotherthing that I think it sort of
helps with too right is, um, Idon't just do them for myself, I
(51:10):
also offer them to my clients,and so the clients, you know,
because I do them myself theyusually experience a little bit
more energetic flow, which isnice, um, and I would say that
whatever they usually come infor, or whatever I pick up on
during session, I'm like oh youknow I think you could use this,
would you be open to it?
(51:30):
And then usually they're like,oh well, yeah, heck, yeah, man.
So I'll teach them a couple ofdifferent skills to help them
regulate you know, their nervoussystem and really just honestly
, keep the energy flowingbetween sessions.
Right, I think it's very commonthat you know, if you have a
consistent client, they mightcome once a week, and that'd be
really really great.
Or they might come once a month, and so I want to give them
(51:53):
things between sessions that'sgoing to help improve their
energetic flow and continue theprocess of healing.
So the Kiko, you know, qigong orYangshan, those little resets
are great to give clients.
They're easy to do, they'requick, they're simple, efficient
, they don't take more than 60seconds and they're extremely
effective.
There are deeper protocols thatare three to five minutes, and
(52:15):
I would say this for clientsthat are really into this.
So I always try to gauge it too.
If it's a newer client, I'mgoing to give them something
really simple.
If it's like a client that'scontinuous, or like one of my
friends that I've been healingfor a long time, then I'm like,
okay, try this bad boy out, youknow, and I'll go over that
whole movement sequence withthem and they're like Whoa.
(52:39):
So it helps myself and it alsohelps amplify the energetic flow
in general and keep them steadybetween sessions.
Speaker 2 (52:42):
Right, I often say I, I, the way I teach, is like I
teach myself out of a job,because I give you the tools
that you can use and you're notable to come to class in person
or you're unable to have asession in person, absolutely.
Number three can you share oneparticular technique that you
recommend for individuals whoare currently serving or who are
(53:04):
retired from the military Sure?
Speaker 3 (53:06):
Yeah, absolutely so.
Again, this goes back to thatpopulation that probably, if
they're open to it, great, butthey're probably not as open.
So when I was thinking aboutthe skills to share because I
have like a 40 page documentlike each one has like 10 skills
on each sheet, so there's a lotright, and I'm still learning,
you know, which is crazy but Ipicked out three that I thought
(53:28):
were pretty dang good, and we'vealso taught some of these at
Wayne State University for folksthat are struggling with things
like anxiety, sleep, grief,which is again very common for
veterans as well.
Even if we don't know, we'regrieving and it comes out as
anger.
So the first technique thatI'll do is I call it the
typewriter or chest tapping, andI'll open my blouse just a
(53:50):
little bit so you can see likeunderneath the collarbone here
right, there's a couple ofmeridians that run vertically
right, and so what I'll do isI'll take my opposite hand to
that side, so I'm creatingbilateral stimulation to sort of
tone the vagus nerve, and thenI'll tap from the inside,
(54:10):
underneath the collarbone of mychest out towards the shoulder,
and when I hit where the chestand the shoulders sort of meet,
I will then reset myself that'swhy I call it the typewriter and
then I will continue to um, tapout, and so I can just do this,
maybe 60 seconds or so, andthis really, or I can, you know,
(54:31):
do it as much as you want, andthen I might switch sides too
and do it on the other side, butI would say that that one is
really good for anxiety.
It's really good for sleep.
A lot of us get anxiety beforesleep.
Even so, it's something thatnot only could you do for
veterans, you could do foryourself too, which is nice.
But I think it's an easy one,it's accessible and it's not too
(54:54):
far-fetched, because I canpitch that as well vibration
tones the vagus nerve Pressure,and touch tones the vagus nerve.
It shifts us from sympatheticto parasympathetic.
So, yeah, I would say that thatis an easy skill.
Um, and then I have two more.
(55:16):
Is that okay, cool, awesome.
You know, for those of you whocan see these things, um, if
you're not listening to thepodcast now you, you're watching
it.
So this next one is really fun.
This is actually from Hiko, sothis is like it's almost like an
(55:36):
extended kenyokuho or like thedry bathing Really neat, and it
combines some elements of pikuain it Pikua, pikua, pikua-chan,
or, you know, kung fu-chan.
So I will start by pressing thebacks of my hands together, not
(55:56):
super hard, just enough to wherethere's pressure, and I might
breathe in like a couple timeshere, two or three, and then
when I'm done I sort of let themfall to the sides, sort of
really trying to feel for thatdrop, that gravity.
So there's a sense ofembodiment here that's happening
, and then I'll just come up anddo my dry bathing One, two,
(56:21):
three, one, two, three.
At the end of the third I thenbreathe in and I pull the hands
behind and then I breathe outand I push the hands out,
creating a barrier.
So from the side, after I'vecreated this barrier, I'll then
(56:42):
breathe in and cross the handsin front of me, like this I'll
then stand up, creatingboundaries and space, and
breathe out, breathing back in,then down, breathing out, then
breathing back in, and I turn tothe left, looking over my left
(57:04):
shoulder, and I push the palmout, so I'm creating space.
If I was doing it this way,behind me and in front of me,
then I come back to center andthen I go to the right and I do
the same thing.
And I come back and I justsettle, and so that is a little
(57:25):
bit more of an involved skill.
That's something I might teacha veteran who is struggling with
their boundaries and strugglingwith, you know, grief,
releasing grief because, too,this pushing and stuff, this
breathing, opens up the heartand lung space and the lungs
hold on to grief, and so if I'musing this breath work and I'm
(57:47):
pushing and extending, Iextending, I'm releasing that as
well.
Um, so that's number two.
That's sort of like, again,super, you know, uh, I think you
know super dry bathing in asense, right, really creating
that sacred space around me.
Um, cause, also, we tend tostruggle with our boundaries, as
veterans too.
You know, keeping my boundariesand then also like not saying
(58:11):
no to somebody, or, you know,always saying yes or always
saying no, whatever the casemight be, our relationships can
suffer.
So this one's really good forthat too.
It teaches a physical sense ofwhat is a boundary you know,
this is my space, this is safefor me.
So it's very grounded um.
And then the last one is verysimple.
It's just um, I call it thekarate chop, and we literally
(58:33):
just knock the sides of thehands like 36 times Don't worry
about counting, though, becausethat sort of puts you in beta
brainwaves and that's like we'restressed anyways and so I just
want to feel the vibration.
I want to be able to justnotice the sensations in my body
, and this one's really good foranxiety and overthinking, and I
combine it with if I were tostand up and do this.
(58:57):
Once I'm finished that chop, Imight bring the hands to the
side and then I would breathe in, and then I physically touch my
sternum and I guide the energyas I breathe out down and off of
the hip, and I would do thesame with the left hand down and
(59:19):
off the hip.
So there's a sense of and again, I might do that like eight to
ten times.
It just depends on how much youwant to really bring that
energy down.
When I'm guiding energy down,I'm grounding.
When I'm raising energy likethis, I'm getting hype right, so
up that center line.
So that's the practice.
The third one I wanted to share.
(59:40):
I think all three are reallyeffective.
We've taught all three at WayneState University and we've had
great effects from it.
We've had letters of effectsfrom it.
You know, we've had um lettersof recommendation from, like,
their assistant director.
He's like this these guys are,they're crazy, they're cool, so,
um, really cool things to sharewith your clients who are
(01:00:01):
struggling with even just normaltrauma or anxiety, and then
clients who are veterans, rightum, and?
And we're going to have verysimilar um potential issues um
that might not be had, might nothave been resolved.
So yeah, so that's, that's allmy um, my skills I wanted to
share.
I think I got a, I got a lot ofmo?
Um and I'd love to share them.
(01:00:22):
I would love to, uh, havepeople consult with me or have
people just hit me up.
As it's a small world and I'mtrying just to network with
anyone I can you know I love it.
I love the work.
Speaker 2 (01:00:36):
Well, thank you for sharing that.
That was our last question and,as we were talking, is there
anything you may have forgottenor something you'd like to share
with the listener?
The floor is yours.
Speaker 3 (01:00:57):
I would say no matter what gets thrown in your way,
please don't give up.
Please don't do that.
This world needs a lot ofhealing and I don't care if
you're what population you're apart of, um veteran, or you know
um, or else, like we all needhelp, um.
(01:01:18):
So please, if you have a gift,please help you know, please get
out there, get passionate, geton fire about something and put
your passion to the test.
Ignore all the, as Arnold wouldsay, ignore the naysayers.
Ignore them because there'sgoing to be naysayers, there's
(01:01:41):
going to be people who say thisdoesn't work and there's going
to be people who say you'regoofy and you're dumb or
whatever else.
Don't listen, don't let themget you down.
Continue the good work.
Continue to fight the goodfight in the most peaceful and
healing way beautiful.
Speaker 2 (01:01:58):
Yes, even if you have to pause, like I paused for a
little bit, take a breath andkeep going absolutely all right.
Well, thank you, david.
So much for joining me on thisjourney.
I really appreciate you takingtime out of your very busy
schedule to be on Ready SetReiki.
All right, beautiful, wonderfullisteners.
If you would like your questionfeatured on Ready Set Reiki,
(01:02:20):
reach out wwwreadysetreikicom.
I'm Tracy Seawright and thishas been Ready Set rake in.
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
litigations 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 a
host.
So I'm Tracy Seawright, andthis is Ready Set Reiki.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Hello everyone, welcome, tracy Seawright, and
this is Ready Set Reiki.
I am joining you from my newlocation yes, I have moved and
it's the beginning of awonderful and amazing adventure.
So let me tell you who isjoining me today on my journey.
Now, his name is David Roberts.
He is a master Reikipractitioner, somatic skills
(01:03):
life coach and he's an Armyveteran with roughly eight years
of experience in helpingindividuals regulate stress
process, trauma and restorebalance through holistic and
somatic care.
Now, as a master resilienttrainer in the US Army Reserve,
his goal is to bring a groundedand integrative approach to
healing.
He has provided trainings forgroups of individuals, to
(01:24):
include clinicians at WayneState's Outpatient Psych Program
, lending Western and Westernmodalities to support deep
emotional and nervous systemrecovery.
Now, if you're looking for anapproach that can support and
guide your nervous system to bemore peaceful and a balanced
place, he would love to help youand speak to you about Reiki
and somatic skills to help youachieve the healing.
(01:46):
So let's bring in our wonderfulguest today, david Roberts.
David, welcome to Ready SetReiki.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
Thank you.
Thank you, it's my honor andprivilege to be here.
I greatly appreciate your time.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
Wonderful, wonderful.
So I am in El Paso, Texas,where I have the honor and the
privilege of working with manyin our military and veterans and
our Gold Star mothers.
So one of my favorite things todo is, on Fridays, I go down to
our Veterans Center, AmbrosiaGullen, and we do get fit while
we sit.
So it's a really wonderful anda way of giving back to all the
(02:22):
amazing and wonderful thingsthat they have done our military
has done for us.
So let's begin our journeytogether.
So tell us a little bit aboutyourself.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
Goodness, this was probably the hardest question, I
think.
Actually, you know, it's alwayslike what do you say about
yourself?
But obviously I'm at the unittoday, um in my 50s um, but uh,
army veteran, I'm still in theactive reserves um, I've gone
(02:53):
through a couple different jobchanges, um, but my background
is when I was, you know, 18, Ijoined um.
It was in the infantry and uh,you know, they told me hey man,
we're the war's dying downyou're not going anywhere,
because I was really scared.
I was going for college.
I'm like, oh no, I gotta go forcollege, I want to get a good
(03:13):
education and all that jazz andum, I got to my unit in the
infantry and they were like, ohyeah, six months were to point.
And I was like what, oh gosh,so went overseas, had um, I
guess you'd call it an amazingtime, but it was a pretty combat
, heavy tour.
And when I came back I justfound myself feeling very um,
(03:34):
just just trying to juggle, Iguess, my, my nervous system.
I didn't know anything aboutthat at the time, I was still
pretty young.
I just was like, oh, it's okayto be angry all the time, it's
okay to be, you know, frustrated, frustrated and sad and
depressed, and this is normal,you know.
And so, moving forward, I gotout of the infantry.
(03:55):
I still wanted to keep a footin, though I was like, oh, I
want to keep a foot in the door,I don't want to completely
separate.
So I went into the reserves asa civil affairs specialist and
sort sort of more like macrosocial work you work with a
population much more peacefulmission, and I was like, oh,
maybe this will do it for me,but I still felt like I was on
fire.
And when I got out and I wasback in the civilian world, I
(04:18):
wanted to again pursue collegeand during that journey I was
like, oh, I'll do social work,that'll help me.
and it's still, while it wascool to relate to folks, it
still felt like something wasmissing and I was like just
getting curious and I was like,well, you know, maybe I'll I
don't know look for some healingmodalities, and Reiki popped up
(04:42):
for me and around the same time, actually about a year later, I
found my current mentor,michael Gillespie, and he's been
a social worker since like the70s, but he was really blessed
to learn really cool traditionalAsian health practices from a
gentleman named Mr Onishi and DrLee, and so a lot of like what
I do in my Reiki sessions comesfrom those gentlemen and they're
(05:06):
I guess you could call themYang Shen skills, or they're
little tiny skills that arederived from Qigong or Kiko,
which is Japanese Qigong, butanyways.
So now I work.
You know, I'm trying to sort ofmake a whole shift.
I was doing social work, I'mtrying to make this holistic
shift now and um study reiki forphoenix, rising mental health
(05:30):
services, and I teach qigong anduh, yeah, and then of course I
do the skills education forwayne state universities,
outpatients like program andtheir clinicians, as well as my
mentor, and I train otherclinicians too on um platforms
for continuing education credits.
But we teach these skills, um,these these traditional age and
(05:51):
health practices with the termsomatics, so that way people can
jive with it in the in theclinical world.
So, um, yeah, I feel likethat's a lot about me.
Um, and you thought you weregonna have a hard time with that
one.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
That's a lot about me .
Speaker 3 (06:08):
And you thought you were going to have a hard time
with that one.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
You know I was like oh, let me just word vomit
everything.
Yeah Well, I love how you saidthat you wanted to kind of do
something with your anger.
I know in college my husbandwell, he was then my boyfriend,
you know went into the reservesand I had just found that there
were just many times where hewas just angry by the world
(06:32):
things happening.
So I like how you took thatopportunity to see what can you
do to heal, what can you do toself-regulate beyond you know
what the standards you wouldthink in the army would be.
You know, I mean these holisticmodalities kind of beyond you
know what the standards youwould think in the army would be
.
You know, I mean these holisticmodalities kind of.
Oftentimes, you know, peoplehave judgment towards it.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely I.
I'm glad you brought that up.
It made me realize.
Sort of circle back, the thingsthat ended up healing me were
Reiki, they wereigong, they were, you know, these yang shen and
kiko skills that I learned, andI remember learning the first
one.
It was just this reflexologypoint on the side of my hand, on
(07:12):
the knife edge here, right inline with the, the heart line,
and I remember just feeling likeall of a sudden the world was
okay for a couple seconds whileI was pressing that point and I
was like that's wild, and like Iwas like I could feel the
downshift and I was like, wow,dude, that's crazy.
Our bodies have, like just onepoint, that much ability, yeah,
(07:34):
and that was sort of the the endof it, like I was like I'm, I'm
hooked, I'm addicted.
You know that.
You know any.
I was like any human, I'll takeit.
And I just remember clinging tothat one point.
So, um, just uh, desperately.
And so I, of course, learnedmore and was able to really
start to build capacity andresilience, uh, which helped me
(07:56):
do better reiki sessions forfolks too right.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
And then here you've turned around in your being of
service and helping so manypeople.
Now, just from taking that stepforward, beautiful.
Now you mentioned a little bitin your tell us about yourself,
about your Reiki.
So would you say that you foundReiki or Reiki found you?
Speaker 3 (08:23):
Oh, good question, Can it be like a, both and like
a little bit of column A and acolumn B?
Um, cause I had no idea, like,what Reiki was.
It was like 2000 and, like youknow, uh, 2014.
When I got out and, um, Iremember just like looking
around and I was like you know,know, I've always been
(08:44):
interested in, like japanese,like chinese, like kung fu,
martial arts, and I was like,let's find something, because I
really want to channel myself,yeah, um, channel myself into
something.
And I went on meetup, um, and Idon't know if meetup's still a
thing, I think it is.
But like back in the day, youknow, um, I went out there and
there was a gentleman, mr andrewanders, and he was like, you
(09:06):
know, hey, come do reiki.
Uh, it's, it's healing, it'ssoothing, it's you know, x, y
and z.
And I said something just sortof pulled me in that direction
and I was like, okay, like I'vespent enough time at war, I
probably should do somethinghealing.
And so I decided, well, youknow what, let's try it out.
It was, you know, it was like a, a couple hundred bucks.
(09:29):
So I was like I could spare it,you know, all right, and went
in there and it was just thisreally like I don't know like
soothing, peaceful sort ofexperience.
Um, remember, sitting, just, youknow, in gashow and and uh,
doing the hot kureho and thismeditation, and um, I, I didn't
even, I didn't even know thenames back then, I didn't even
honor the names, like I was likewhatever, it doesn't matter,
(09:51):
infantry, you know, but I justcalled it the fire hands
meditation because it was justlike I was sweating with how
much heat there was and I justthought, oh wow, power, this is
cool, you know.
Energy, it's real.
Um, so the reiki sort of foundme and I started doing
treatments on myself and others,but, um, it certainly.
I sort of fell away from myfirst view.
(10:11):
I went to qigong and kung fuand I sort of fell back into the
whole power thing.
I was like I need to be strongbecause of all the trauma, right
you?
Know I need to be in control.
I need to be in control, and itwasn't till like a little bit,
like, I think, right around thepandemic.
Uh, my kung fu teacher was like, oh, I'm also a reiki teacher
and I was like, wait, what so?
reiki sort of found me again andit popped up and he was like,
(10:35):
oh yeah, and on top of that Iknow kiko, and I was like what
is that?
He's like?
It's going to amplify your rate.
You know, that sounds cool.
So it found me again and I wasable to then start sort of
reigniting that passion andbeing able to use that to help
others heal.
And uh, then I I somehowrekindled the connection with my
(10:55):
old mentor, the one I firstlearned with, and now he's an
acupuncturist.
He's learned so much, he's grown.
It's just such a cool thingthat Reiki continues to be, even
when I start to fall away fromit.
It's like, hey, buddy, you knowyou want to practice a little
bit, and then it picks me backup and so it's in my life for a
reason.
But I would say that Reiki, Isought it at first, but it
(11:18):
ultimately found me and itcontinues to find me, like it
almost chases.
Speaker 2 (11:21):
It's very cool, yeah well as you navigate, you have
this wonderful stress reducingmodality in your energetic
toolbox.
What are some misconceptionsyou have found as you are out
working with individuals aboutreiki.
What are they?
What are you finding out therethat people are have this
(11:43):
confusion about or misconception?
Speaker 3 (11:47):
Yeah.
So I think a lot of folks theythey say, oh, that's that, that
waving hands thing Right.
Or they don't even know.
They're like, well, what theheck is a rapy?
That sounds crazy.
So it's still like.
I get a lot of those responsesfrom folks Like well, what the
heck is that?
And I have a much more clinicallike I guess not understanding
(12:08):
of it because everyoneunderstands it that way,
probably too.
But my explanation to folks ismuch more clinical because of my
background in social work, mystudies with you know the
sympathetic, the parasympathetic, the vagus nerve.
You know all the trauma stuffthat I've learned through my
social work career.
And so I think one of thecommon misconceptions is that
(12:30):
it's and not to knock anyonebecause I love this stuff Like
I've gotten treatments wherepeople do crystals and call in
ancestors and it's super cooland I'm like what I can't do?
That Like mine's much moreclinical, Like that's legit.
But people think it's onlythose things and it's sometimes
it.
I think there's this, thismisconception in society that
those things are bad or they'relooked down on and they're not
(12:51):
real healing and I'm like nobrother, man, like sister, like
you, gotta, you gotta get in onthis because it is real deal
healing.
I think people they don'trealize, they don't know the
history of it, that pre-worldwar ii this was being used in
clinics.
It was true clinical um, youknow, you know a practice and it
(13:15):
was healing.
And there's documentation thatpeople have found and have
documented now from thosehealings.
I mean there's lists and wehave them in the books, but we
have, like, there's those likearticles that my, my, my, I, my,
my.
I guess you want to call himmaster, but my master's giving
me and he says, hey, look at allof these things, are these news
articles where this guy talkedabout the healing he's done?
(13:35):
And I'm like, wow, that'samazing.
So when do I get to starthealing people like that?
You know, but it's, it isclinical, it belongs in the
clinic, in my opinion, and so Ithink that the misconception is
that that's like that's acomfort.
It's not even complimentary.
They're like that's that's a, aluxury.
I'm like no, this is this is sogood it's, it's more than just a
(13:57):
luxury.
This is true, legitimatehealing, and there's science
that supports it.
Um, so I think the biggestmisconception that a lot of
people have is that it's just,it's funny foo-foo magic and
it's the furthest thing from, inmy opinion.
Um, you know, like sometimes Ifeel like this feeling is more,
uh, more real, or more healingthan the healing I get from the
(14:20):
doctor, where they're like, ohhey, um, you got the sniffles,
okay, well, I'll take someibuprofen, go home and sleep on
it, you know.
Or like when I was in theservice and I'm like, oh yeah,
I'm like I'm pretty sure myankle broke, and they're like,
yeah, run it off, you're fine.
Like had I known Reiki backthen or had I been seeing
someone, I mean the healingmight have sped up, it might
(14:40):
have been been faster and maybemore increased.
Speaker 2 (14:47):
And I strongly believe that, based on the
things I've seen and the thingsI've read, and just the
testaments of my clients andother folks' clients too- my
very first Reiki training, itwas level one, nizui Rahiho, and
after that I kind of went downthe rabbit hole of researching
(15:08):
and then I came across DrHitoshi's healing guide.
So he was, you know, aphysician and had a clinic and
he has this very detailed guidethat he has for ailments.
Nowadays we would go to thehospital right Like a sword
wound and hand placements, andit was that clinical where two
(15:29):
practitioners were working onyou that it did that transition
from sitting to lying down.
So a lot of people don't knowthat whole aspect of it.
They again think it's thatwoohoo, yeah, yeah yeah, I think
it's.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
It's like one of those things where I look at the
uh, you know, the research nowthat's out about it and then
also like, if it was just that,why would there be like over 800
hospitals and clinics in theunited states alone that utilize
it?
As you know, they call itcomplementary therapy.
They have to call something forthe insurance, right, um, but
(16:05):
they wouldn't be using itotherwise um it didn't work and
um, you know, another thing thatI'm just about to start doing
as well is um volunteering atcorwell health doing reiki for
cancer patients and it's again.
Why would they have the programat a Catholic hospital too,
right, Like with this root beingCatholic if it didn't work and
(16:28):
it didn't have some?
Merit you know yeah.
So that's me nerding out aboutit.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
I get excited about it Right Modality to walk
alongside your primarycaregiver's plan.
So not a replacement, but youknow to work together Absolutely
.
So what has been your biggestchallenge or struggle you have
faced in your healing journey?
You're out there being ofservice and helping so many
individuals out there as thismaster resilience trainer,
(16:59):
helping those getting grounded.
So what challenges have youfaced?
Speaker 3 (17:05):
I think some of the challenges I've faced I mean,
there's been a lot along the wayum, I think, primarily just
getting over myself, um gettingover my own mental health and I
wouldn't say getting over it,but I would say, probably
getting through it right, um,getting through my own
challenges.
Um, you know, I'm definitelylike a strong believer and is
(17:27):
like, as the reiki flows throughme, kind of a vibe right, it's
healing me too.
Um, and I, and I want to saynow that I look at myself, now
that I've really squared away alot of that mental health, my
physical health, um, I'm in amuch healthier space, mind and
body.
My treatments have actuallyincreased as well and they
(17:47):
become more effective, and so Ithink one of the biggest
challenges in the beginning wasjust this constant battle within
my own mind.
I think, too, one of thebiggest challenges for me was I
was so well ingrained intoWestern sort of science and
things I was like.
(18:07):
Well, my initial response to alot of these things is, while it
seems amazing, I always hadthat voice of doubt in the back
of my head.
You know, is this reallyworking?
Are you really doing somethingfor yourself, or is this just
placebo?
You know, and so a lot of mychallenges and struggles came
from my own mental health, myown doubt, and I think just at
(18:29):
some point it's like when do youjust sort of throw all those
cares to the to the wind and say, obviously something I'm doing
is working, regardless if it's aplacebo or not, because I feel
better and it's not just myemotions, but it's how I behave
and it's how I interact withothers, when I don't feel like
there's a fire in my chestanymore, right, and I can take a
(18:50):
deep breath and I can feelgrounded and really feel the
chair supporting me, likethere's something to that, and
so I could probably say that'slike one of the biggest
challenges.
Challenges, um, I think too,something that always sort of
kept me from continuallypursuing this is just uh, you
(19:13):
know not again sort of emotional, but like not feeling like I'm
good enough because when I cameback I was just on fire and so
so like I, my familyrelationship, suffered, I
couldn't keep a partner to savemy life, like, luckily now, like
I love my wife to death, likeyou know, so blessed, um, but
those were things that really, Iguess just sort of uh got in
(19:36):
the way of pursuing these thingssooner and also, uh, with more
like zeal and passion.
Um, I would say maybe the.
The other thing I can think ofis, you know, it's been a rough
ride, you know, coming back fromthe service, like I was not in
a good space, and so there'slike times I'd like lost jobs
because like I was either tooimpulsive or I was too angry or
(19:59):
I was too something.
And uh, again that behavioralaspect like getting along with
folks is so difficult, oh mygosh.
And Reiki has changed my lifedramatically.
Now I have this very, I feel,like white energy.
It's just playful and it's I'mcurious about life again as
(20:22):
opposed to being so miserableand stuck in the idea of my
shortages.
And you know, living in thatland, living in the land of
curiosity, is so much morebeautiful.
So I would say that, like,those things are probably some
of the biggest things I've facedin my healing journey.
And I think that the journeycontinues.
(20:45):
Yeah, some of the biggest thingsI've faced in my healing
journey and I think that thejourney continues.
I think that the journey willalways continue and there will
always be new phases of thathealing in my life, and I think
it's one of the most beautifulthings about anything like
Qigong or Reiki or these somaticresets, the Yangshen and Kiko,
is the more that I do them, thedeeper I can go, the more I
realize and I go wow, there's somuch more to this than just I
(21:08):
place my hands in this position,you know.
Or there's so much more than,oh well, I just tap across the
collarbone and I'm better now.
Like it's just there's so muchdepth and just gold, gold in the
practice.
So, yeah, I would say thatmyself, myself, was my biggest,
my biggest boundary.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
That ego.
Yeah, making friends with thatego.
It puts us into some trouble,doesn't it?
But I like how you call it ajourney, because it really is.
It's not about that destination, because once we think we're
there, something else pops upand we realize we still have
more healing to do Many peoplealso.
(21:51):
Another misconception is it's aone and done.
You know it's a bippity,boppity boo, but it isn't.
It's cumulative.
It takes time and you may notsee it right away, and it may be
a year or two years later andsomething that maybe would have
triggered you five years ago.
You react a little softer to ityeah, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
I love that.
You said that and I think itsparked something else for me.
My one of my mentors, he saysyou know, uh, and he said you
know, miss takata talked abouthow this was a gentle healing
art.
This was short wave therapy, ifyou will right, like this, uh,
radio waves.
In a sense I think it's coollike we actually produce like
hurts from our hands, like super, super sick.
But, um, he was, like you know,traditionally she recommended
(22:38):
four to five sessions in a row,you know, because we wanted to
be able to slowly peel backlayers.
I love he said it's like a pushpop, so like all that crud is
sort of on the bottom, youpushing it up, so finally it
exposes itself.
And I think this is like verycommon in a lot of like
traditional asian healthpractices.
But you might not feelsomething at first.
(22:59):
Next session, all of a suddenyou feel a little crummy.
By the third or fourth, all ofa sudden it's like, wow,
everything's better.
It's this idea of like thingsmight get worse before they get
better because I have to sort ofpurge and get all that
nastiness out and then I cantone it, then I can really put
in this solid, beautiful, white,golden light energy, whatever
(23:20):
you know, you see, um, but yeah,I get to, I get to really heal
with this reiki at that point.
So I love that like reiki, likesort of does a combo deal in my
opinion, like it's it'ssmoothing the energy out, it's
sort of slowly sifting throughall the bull crap and pulling
that up while like continuallyhealing you with goodness.
It's like this both, and it's adialectic, if you will.
(23:42):
I guess it's really beautifulright right practice, practice,
practice, practice.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
Definitely the the difference maker and right
sticking around and youmentioned madam takata, and if
no one had caught this you saidabout the shortwave right after
Pearl Harbor, she had to changeand Americanize Reiki and take
that out.
So if you look in the bookcalled the Healing Touch by
William Rand, it's a level one,level two master manual.
(24:09):
He actually has a picture of it, painted over the word reiki
and putting that on therebecause she had to shift and
change what was going on.
You know.
But you know we accredit herfor keeping reiki going.
So yeah, that just shows youyou know how you need to shift
and change is a little bit asour out there being of service
(24:33):
yeah so when it is time for youto get an energetic tune-up,
what qualities do you look forin a reiki practitioner?
Speaker 3 (24:43):
I think that I look for someone who really embodies
the precepts right.
Like you know, I really wantsomeone who's not quick to anger
, who's who's not reallyworrying.
I want them to be able to tohave gratitude for that practice
and entreat with compassion, umand I think you can sort of
read that on somebody.
(25:04):
Um, and again, I mean I thinkabout, like from a western
perspective, like the vagusnerve and mirror neurons, right,
like if you, if someone walksinto the room and they have some
stuff going on and and no, notknocking them at all but I think
that someone can feel thatthere's a resonance.
And so I look for apractitioner who can really
(25:25):
separate, you know, when it'stime to heal from their personal
lives.
I think it's really, really,really important, because there
was a point in time I could notdo that, so my treatments were
you know, when it's time to healfrom their personal lives, I
think it's really, really,really important, because there
was a point in time I could notdo that, so my treatments were
not as effective.
And so I look for someone whois that still calm water,
because I want my biggest nerve,I want my energy, I want my
chakras, I want my, all my stuff, all the goodness right.
(25:47):
I want it aligned and I want itto be smooth, like, like a
placid lake you know, and so Ithink of someone like that.
But I also enjoy it Like, and Itotally welcome like bubbly
personality, like I'm I'm agoofball, so I want people to
have good energy and, um, youknow.
But I look for someone who justtakes care of themselves.
(26:07):
Um, when I think we take careof ourselves and again I'm, I'm,
uh, definitely what's the wordI'm looking for I guess I can
say that there was a point intime, like I said, I didn't take
care of myself, like I'm guiltyof it.
That's the phrase I was lookingfor.
I'm guilty of it not doing thatand, at the same time, right
(26:27):
coming back and doubling down,and so I just think someone who
takes care of themselves isreally, really important.
Again, from my own experience,like not having taken care of
myself and try to do thesethings.
So, yeah, someone who embodiesthe precepts, takes care of
themselves, can be that sort ofstill water for me and, yeah, I
(26:48):
would say that those areprobably the things that I look
for in a practitioner.
I personally enjoy moretraditional treatments and, at
the same time, like I've had itwhere my master that I'm still
apprenticing under you know, um,because in this lineage, um,
you know, he does acupuncture,so like he'll put.
(27:09):
He'll put like a.
He was like do you have a?
He was like read my pulse, hegoes.
Do you have a cold heart?
I was like what?
I was like what are you talkingabout?
He's like do you havecirculation issues, man?
I'm like, how did you even pickthat up?
He's like, well, I got a man.
He's like the Reiki told me,the energy told me.
(27:37):
So he's like let me put a, anacupuncture needle in your arm
here.
You know I was like okay, cool.
So like you know, he's puttingsomething in Shen Men and my
heart line.
And all of a sudden it's likethis warm rush of heat and
soothing to my heart.
So I also welcome a combinationof treatments as well.
(27:57):
I think it's fascinating.
I've only ever received onething or the other, so when
people can find things, I findit super fascinating too.
Definitely not knocking that.
I definitely want to experiencemore of that.
So I look for creativity too,I'd say, and a practitioner.
Speaker 2 (28:16):
Beautiful.
It's interesting, you know,when we talk about different
ways that people bring inmodality, that there really is
no wrong way to do it as long asyou have that intention, that
it's your intention.
That is what's important withthat.
So our next question we havefor you is what advice would you
(28:36):
give someone who's justentering spiritual work?
Speaker 3 (28:41):
Yeah, jeez, louise, that's a good question.
I would just say do theresearch, stay curious, look
around, experiment, just reallygo to whatever spirit calls to
you know, like reiki might notbe for somebody, and that's okay
right like do something else,man.
(29:02):
Um, if you know that energyhealing in general, or reiki or
aerobatic medicine, or just tcmor acupuncture, reflexology or
tweena or anything right likeany of those healing modalities.
If they are calling to you, Iwould say pursue it with your
whole being.
Like we get one of these badboys, like these lives right.
(29:22):
And I want to chase things thatare like a vocation for me,
that really are just singing tomy spirit, my heart, you know,
make me feel accomplished andpurposeful in my life, and so I
would say, like get curious,stay curious, don't just get
(29:43):
hung up on one thing.
Speaker 1 (29:44):
If you want to learn it all, heck, go learn it all,
have fun um yeah, like that's,that's sort of like one of the
things I would say, and I wouldjust say like um, I'm looking at
my notes too.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
I'm like I got my notes too, no, um.
But also to like collaborateright, like I think it's really
hard to and I think I stillstruggle with this too like
getting uh clients and thingsand getting people to sort of
buy in and like don't be afraidto collaborate with somebody,
like get a part of like a cohortalmost right, and then it's
like a community too, so likethere's a communal aspect to
(30:19):
that.
My teachers always said, likethe most important three
teachings are the Buddha, theDharma and the Sangha.
Right, like your inner Buddha,like the teachings themselves
and then like the community.
I think that can like theteachings themselves and then
like the community.
Um, I think they consider a lotof spiritual based things,
right, but community is soimportant, yeah, so if you're
looking to get involved in thework, make, make friends, yeah,
(30:41):
get your name out there.
Um, find a mentor, findsomebody who has been in the
field longer than you and youreally resonate with I I see it
a lot like in the differentfacebook groups that I'm a part
of.
It's just there's a lot of I wasjust talking to my wife about
this the other day I feel likethere's a lot of gatekeeping.
(31:01):
I feel like there's a lot oflike these are my clients, these
are my clients, and there's nota lot of sharing or referrals
and maybe that's just myexperience.
I'm sure that there's placeswhere that happens all the time,
like referrals and things, butI feel like it's just like
building a community is a reallyimportant part of that.
(31:22):
So that way you can get in, youcan network, you can, you know
people can say you know what?
Actually, I really know David.
He's a really cool dude.
You're going to jive with him.
You actually, I really knowDavid.
He's a really cool dude.
You're going to jive with him.
You might have jived with mytreatment, but I guarantee you
he's got this skill set andyou're going to love that.
So hit him up.
Or you know, I have friendsthat you know.
They definitely they networkwith different acupuncturists in
(31:45):
Ann Arbor, ipsy and stuff inMichigan, and so they're sending
clients back and forth and Ithink it's so cool.
So you know, yeah, make it avocation, have fun, stay curious
, collaborate, network, befriendly, get out there, share
the wealth.
I think that sharing is caring.
And I think that even justsharing a couple of clients with
(32:07):
somebody, even if it's just acouple of times, they really
light their fire.
I think it's just find peoplethat are going to keep you
motivated, because it can be aburnout too.
Again.
Go back to taking care ofyourself.
That would be one more thing.
If you're going to get involvedin this stuff.
Take care of you.
Do it on you.
(32:28):
Do your treatments, Do yourqigong.
Do whatever you do.
Do it for you.
Do your treatments.
Do your qigong do.
Do whatever you do.
Do it for you.
Speaker 2 (32:33):
Got to pull yourself up and here's the thing, even
though you know we're bothmasters, even as a master
teacher, it's okay to stop whenyou're getting that burnout and
go back to those techniques.
You know I'm I sold a house, II'm selling another house and I
just found myself I'm enteringburnout with everything I was
(32:56):
doing and I stopped and I wentback.
I went back to do thosemedications and things that were
in the manuals to reset.
It's okay to pause in yourjourney and say, Okay, you know
what, I'm not taking anybodyright now.
I had somebody and I had torefer them.
I'm like I just don't.
I don't have it in my scheduleright now.
(33:18):
Right, I don't think I'm myelement where I can be of
service.
But here, here's one of mystudents.
You're more than welcome tothis, you can be of service to
me.
Here you go.
If you want to wait for me,that's great, but it's okay to
pause.
It's okay to go back and say,let me redo this, Let me work on
(33:39):
myself, you know, and that'skind of where that ego is put to
rest instead of I'm a master, Idon't need to take steps back.
Speaker 3 (33:49):
Yeah, yeah, I love that.
Yeah, I think it's so importantthat we just take care of
ourselves.
It is, it is.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
And even if you just Something happens and you get
off the, we had one house thathad an air-conditioned die 13
days before we sold it, and thenthe current one that we have
that we're selling it brokeagain.
So two different houses, bothair-conditions, which is a
higher expense, right?
(34:18):
What do you think?
Roof, windows, air-conditioningJust for today.
Just for today, just for today,absolutely, you know.
I might have to sit there for alittle bit.
Yeah.
But we're human right, we'rehaving a human experience.
(34:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
Absolutely Truly.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
So what books do you recommend?
Speaker 3 (34:51):
Good question.
I'm not a super avid reader.
I'm I'm very kinesthetic in myapproach, like I like the hands
on it.
Um, I love the history though,um, and I, I and I do love
reading some of the manuals.
I think they're really cool andI have read a couple, um, so
yeah, I've only like read acouple reiki books, um, but
(35:13):
again, you know, I think theones I read were great, because
again, I'm more, I guess, likeclinical in my practice, anyways
, like I want to know thosethings.
So like the original Reikihandbook, you know, of Dr Mikawa
Usui, and then Hayashi's Reikimanual, and then the other one
that I read was the Japanese Artof Reiki.
(35:35):
I think it's a friend, shaina,which I thought was really cool,
his his interpretation ofthings like just really being
about cultivation and peace andself healing and stuff like is
like just really being aboutcultivation and peace and
self-healing and stuff like, oh,dude, I was like preach, you
know, because that's what Ineeded when I first came back
and, uh, really, of course, whatsung to me was the, the
self-healing aspect of it youknow, being able to do teate or
(35:57):
hand allowance and put my handson someone else and heal them,
like that's cool, I love that.
But for me, like I was likereally just wow.
So if I put my hands like this,if I do this, if I'm like this,
if I have like, I was like wow,you know.
So I love that and I love theclinical aspects that those
other two books on the hi AshiRicky manual and the original
(36:18):
handbook of dr you see the, theclinical aspects they bring to
it as well, based on mybackground with social work and
the vagus nerve it just thosereally resonated strongly with
me.
Yeah, yeah.
Otherwise I've only read like alot of.
I think the philosophies gotogether but like different,
like Taoist texts or Buddhisttexts.
(36:40):
I think the thing that got mereally on this whole journey of
East Asian kind of healthpractices originally was and I
highly recommend this book foranyone actually who just wants
to read it is by Osho and it was.
I think it's calledEncountering with Nothingness or
(37:02):
it was like the Empty Bo withnothingness.
Um, so if you, just look at osho, look up osho and look up empty
boat.
Like it'll probably pop up, butdefinitely one of the most
amazing books.
I felt like he was talkingaround in circles, though, and I
was like, oh, this is all toophilosophical, this is too crazy
.
Um, but it was such a goodintroduction to uh, that eastern
(37:25):
philosophy, um and uh, just hisinterpretation of what you know
.
Shang tzu and lao tzu aretrying to say uh in their
writings.
So, like I, I loved it.
I was like, wow, this reallybroke it down for me.
If I can be that still water,that empty boat, then I.
When I devoid myself ofeverything, then I'm full of
(37:47):
everything, or it's like aconduit, and I was like oh man
and it tied right into Reiki forme.
I was like oh wait, what?
Like, let's go.
So that book too I guess Iwould also recommend, because I
think that's a really greatlesson, if not, if not even just
for Reiki but just for likeyour own personal life, your own
(38:13):
emotional regulation, your ownrelationships.
So, yeah, all right so whatother services do you offer?
Do you do classes?
Yeah, yeah, so, um, I haven'tstepped into like the whole like
teaching role yet.
I'm like I'm not sure if I'mready for that you know um, and
reason being so, like my teachermichael, that I learned from
original or um that my secondmentor still my mentor to this
day, like with kung fu and allthose things, um, his school of
(38:35):
thought from mr onishi when helearned this back like in the
70s from this gentleman, was um,you know, it was very much more
about self-cultivation.
It was like traditional, likeshorinji monks from japan, and
they were very in line with theshaolin, so shaolin, shorinji um
(38:55):
, but a lot about cultivation,self-cultivation.
So that's a little breaky.
We never learned, we never hadattunements.
It was all aboutself-cultivation.
So we did a lot of kiko orqigong to cultivate that energy.
So it was a very different kindof um reiki, if you will.
There is hands-on healing inkiko.
There's a couple differentpractices or a couple different
(39:18):
schools of thought, but theyhave like brushing of meridians
and things.
So you know, while it's notexplicitly Reiki that part of it
, the rest of what he taught uswas and so I'm a master teacher
in that lineage but I was like Idon't know, it's just not.
A lot of people are probablygoing to want to sit there and
cultivate energy.
They sort of want to just havethat lineage passed down kind of
(39:39):
vibe yes, I'm tuning you intothis frequency as opposed to I
have to tune myself in andcultivate all this qigong and
qigong.
If people are into it, I'mwilling to teach it.
And then in the other lineage,with Mr Anders, I'm only okuden
in that, so I don't have thetraining in that regards to give
(40:01):
an attunement as of yet.
Hopefully, sooner rather thanlater, I'm really excited to
continually apprentice under him.
But so you know, that's theReiki side of the house.
I can give a bomb treatment,but I don't want to teach as of
yet, unless someone's willing todo the cultivation of energy
and I could teach Kiko at thatpoint, which is really fun and
(40:23):
really really cool.
Um definitely amplifies my reikisessions.
Um, I do teach qigong at luckyflow acupuncture.
Um, that's in livonia, michigan.
So if any of you michigandersare listening, um, but livonia,
michigan, uh, lucky flowacupuncture is thursday evenings
and we're looking to expandthat um to like a teacher
(40:45):
program as well.
So, like that way we can, wecan sort of certify teachers and
pass these arts on.
So yeah, so I do teach Qigongas well.
And then with Phoenix RisingMental Health Services, we're
still rolling out this holisticprogramming.
But you know I do?
I have done skills coaching forfolks as it pertains to Qigong
(41:09):
and Qico and how can that helpthem with their own emotional
dysregulation, anxiety, sleepissues, eye strain, just general
fatigue.
So you know, those are someother services that I definitely
offer and then, hopefully inthe future, I'm getting medical,
(41:29):
medical qigong certified aswell.
So providing medical qigongtherapy for folks as well would
be really fun.
Um, that's like probably withinthe next year, so hit me up in
a year, uh, for that servicespecifically.
But yeah, so those are theother things I do currently in
the holistic realm and that Ireally love to do for folks.
Um, teaching qigong has beensuch a joy and just to see
(41:53):
people you know heal and be like, oh, I slept so good or wow, I
really felt the energy, likethat was way, that was way cool.
And I'm like, bro, we're juston the surface, Like let me tell
you, you know, but even thesurface level practices, the
basics right, are sofoundational and so life
changing you know so been really, really fun.
(42:13):
I love doing it, but those aresome of the other services that
I offer and I currently do forfolks.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Beautiful.
Do you offer anything online,do you?
Speaker 3 (42:22):
offer anything online , so not as of yet.
That's coming soon, probably,as I'm doing Okuden with my
mentor.
The other lineage that I wastalking about with Michael, I
call it the Onishi lineage.
They never did distance stuff,not that I know of.
It was all like hands-on, whichI was like oh, hey, that's cool
, but Mr Anders is very like no,this is very real and I've
experienced it from.
(42:42):
Hey, that's cool, but Mr Andersis very like no, this is very
real and I've experienced itfrom.
Like across the room, like it'ssuper.
I was like you didn't even haveyour hands anywhere near me, bro
, and he was like yes, that'sthe power, so probably like in
the next couple of months or so.
I would imagine I'm going tostart offering things online as
(43:02):
well.
I didn't buy into it.
For the longest time I was likethat's the bunny foo-foo stuff,
nope.
But then when I felt it formyself, I was like, oh wow,
that's wild.
Like my headache is gone andyou never even touch me.
So in the next couple months,absolutely Probably be offering
things online for Reiki.
We're looking at creating anonline platform as well for
(43:23):
Lucky Flow Qigong, so that'lleventually be available and
people are also just more thanwelcome.
Just to hit me up as well, andI can definitely just do like,
like a consultation withsomebody.
Like do you want to learnqigong?
Do you?
Do you want to learn some kiko?
Like, do you want to learn somesomatic practices to help with
your nervous system that are,you know, they're steeped in and
(43:44):
really come from traditionalAsian health practices?
Like I got you, that's too easy.
I would love to provide thatfor folks.
Speaker 2 (43:50):
So yeah, like you know, hit me up that leads right
into the next question how canwe get in touch with you if
someone's listening to this andyou're like, yeah, this is my
person?
Speaker 3 (44:03):
Yeah, absolutely um.
So there's quite a few ways toget a hold of me and I hope that
.
I hope that whoever's listeningdoes um.
But phoenix rising mhscom, um.
So it stands for phoenix risingmental health, but again, it's
just phoenix rising, mhscom, um.
And again, you know I operatethe somatic skills coaching,
(44:25):
qigong coaching through themthat I could also probably do
online through that, throughthat practice.
Luckyflowcom is where I do.
Luckyflow acupuncture is whereI do the Qigong classes on
Thursday evenings.
Again, we'll be expanding that.
Or you can just call them tooFor those of you who are in
Michigan sorry for those of youwho are not we will expand it to
(44:47):
Zoom eventually.
I'm trying to talk into it, butthat's 734-724-5867 is their
number.
Again, thursday nights 630 tolike eight.
Roughly, it's pretty fun,roughly, it's pretty fun, uh.
And then, uh, if you wanted to,you could reach out to me at my
(45:09):
professional email, which isjust d, and then my last name,
roberts um, atphoenixrisingmhscom.
Hold on just one sec, Iapologize, um, but so d roberts
at phoenixrisingcom.
And then my personal email,droberts4317 at yahoocom.
(45:34):
So those are all the ways topretty much get a hold of me.
Please feel free to reach outto me.
I would love to just spread allof the knowledge and train and
teach and heal.
Speaker 2 (45:48):
All right, Sounds good.
Well, that ends the first partof our journey.
I'm going to guide you towardsthe second part, which is
questions from social media andfrom listeners.
So here we go.
Number one as an Army veteran,how do you explain wakey to our
fellow active military andveterans?
Speaker 3 (46:08):
yeah, good question.
So, um, you know, obviously,like I've sort of been like
hinting at throughout the wholepart, you know the whole uh
interview here is you?
Know um, veterans can be grumpy.
We can be very, um just almostbullheaded about some things,
(46:28):
and I can say that because I amI can say it too, because I'm
married to one but it's, it's,it's this truth, right?
so, um, you know, but we allcome from different walks of
life, um, it's a volunteer, it'sall volunteer service, right?
So you know, from all walks,and some people come in and
they're very spiritual already,so they're very open to those
(46:49):
conversations.
Um, some people are morereligious and so they're like oh
, I'm gonna so you know, andthen some people are just like I
drink, like let's be real, likethat's what that's their coping
.
So when I you know, I pray thatthey change that.
But that's like that dark armyhumor, right, they're like
that's how I cope with my things.
And so a lot of times I try toapproach it from the viewpoint
(47:12):
of the Western scienceattunement right or a somatic
reset, um, or I'll say uh, it'steate, which opens up the
conversation.
Well, what does teate mean?
Oh well, it's a hand allowance,it's a hand healing right and
(47:33):
they're like you know, and thatopens up.
You know sometimes funny doorsand you know goofy jokes, but
it's a way in to then say yeah,and if you're interested, right
like this could help with thesethings.
It helps adjust your nervoussystem.
So you know, common issues forveterans are we can't sleep
we're wired, um, you know, or wewake up periodically throughout
(47:54):
the night, uh, every hour, orwhatever it is right which leads
to emotional dysregulation,anxiety, panic, like ptsd, stuff
, right from, like what if theywere at war?
Or you know, just honestly, themilitary is enough to give
anyone PTSD, sometimesregardless if you went to war.
And so really, sort ofcapitalizing on those key points
(48:14):
and saying this treatment thatI can offer will help you to
adjust or reset your nervoussystem so you can finally find
rest.
And if you don't believe me,then just try it.
Like what's the harm, truly, um, what's the worst that happens?
You, you know what, what's thebest that happens?
You get the best healing ofyour life and what's the worst
(48:35):
that happens, you, you know,just, I invested in my
relaxation.
That's pretty cool, you know,um?
so even if I don't feel anything, at least I got to be able to
relax, and so I keep it at sortof that more western clinical
mindset when I talk to veteransabout it, just because a lot of
them that I've encountered don'treally get the spiritual stuff
(48:58):
or they go right back to thatmisconception that it's all woo,
woo, fuzzy baloney and then itruins my credibility.
You know, I'm like, ah snap,I'm no longer clinician david
who provides reiki, I am nowjust crazy reiki guy, and so you
know, there there is sort ofthat juggling act, but I would
say I always stick to calling itsomatic resets and then
(49:18):
eventually, when I, when I'vewarmed up to them, I will then
tell them, um, that it is thatyeah it's the same thing with
yoga too.
Speaker 2 (49:27):
There is that misconception, especially in the
military, with yoga as well.
So often changing the namehelps and, like football, you
said, especially our veteranswho are in their seventies and
eight nineties.
They have that misconceptionabout yoga Like, oh, I'm not
doing that, so you have to-.
Speaker 3 (49:46):
Yeah, it's true.
You know, it's even in armyfunded programming.
Can you hold just one second?
I'm so sorry, Tracy, Iapologize.
Thank you sorry.
(50:15):
Everything is good all right.
Speaker 2 (50:20):
Number two how has your somatic training and skills
helped you enhance your Reikisessions?
Speaker 3 (50:26):
Yeah, good question too.
So, again, the school of Reikithat I really had originally
learned from was more aboutcultivation practices, and so
even with the cultivation, it'shelped my own health and
well-being, my own um, my ownsort of wellness, and so when
(50:47):
I'm practicing these kiko skillsor these somatic resets and I'm
relaxed, it allows, personally,I feel, energetically for a
much more open conduit, sothere's much more energy that's
able to flow, um, and so anotherthing that I think it sort of
helps with too right is, um, Idon't just do them for myself, I
(51:10):
also offer them to my clients,and so the clients, you know,
because I do them myself theyusually experience a little bit
more energetic flow, which isnice, um, and I would say that
whatever they usually come infor, or whatever I pick up on
during session, I'm like oh youknow I think you could use this,
would you be open to it?
(51:30):
And then usually they're like,oh well, yeah, heck, yeah, man.
So I'll teach them a couple ofdifferent skills to help them
regulate you know, their nervoussystem and really just honestly
, keep the energy flowingbetween sessions.
Right, I think it's very commonthat you know, if you have a
consistent client, they mightcome once a week, and that'd be
really really great.
Or they might come once a month, and so I want to give them
(51:53):
things between sessions that'sgoing to help improve their
energetic flow and continue theprocess of healing.
So the Kiko, you know, qigong orYangshan, those little resets
are great to give clients.
They're easy to do, they'requick, they're simple, efficient
, they don't take more than 60seconds and they're extremely
effective.
There are deeper protocols thatare three to five minutes, and
(52:15):
I would say this for clientsthat are really into this.
So I always try to gauge it too.
If it's a newer client, I'mgoing to give them something
really simple.
If it's like a client that'scontinuous, or like one of my
friends that I've been healingfor a long time, then I'm like,
okay, try this bad boy out, youknow, and I'll go over that
whole movement sequence withthem and they're like Whoa.
(52:39):
So it helps myself and it alsohelps amplify the energetic flow
in general and keep them steadybetween sessions.
Speaker 2 (52:42):
Right, I often say I, I, the way I teach, is like I
teach myself out of a job,because I give you the tools
that you can use and you're notable to come to class in person
or you're unable to have asession in person, absolutely.
Number three can you share oneparticular technique that you
recommend for individuals whoare currently serving or who are
(53:04):
retired from the military Sure?
Speaker 3 (53:06):
Yeah, absolutely so.
Again, this goes back to thatpopulation that probably, if
they're open to it, great, butthey're probably not as open.
So when I was thinking aboutthe skills to share because I
have like a 40 page documentlike each one has like 10 skills
on each sheet, so there's a lotright, and I'm still learning,
you know, which is crazy but Ipicked out three that I thought
(53:28):
were pretty dang good, and we'vealso taught some of these at
Wayne State University for folksthat are struggling with things
like anxiety, sleep, grief,which is again very common for
veterans as well.
Even if we don't know, we'regrieving and it comes out as
anger.
So the first technique thatI'll do is I call it the
typewriter or chest tapping, andI'll open my blouse just a
(53:50):
little bit so you can see likeunderneath the collarbone here
right, there's a couple ofmeridians that run vertically
right, and so what I'll do isI'll take my opposite hand to
that side, so I'm creatingbilateral stimulation to sort of
tone the vagus nerve, and thenI'll tap from the inside,
(54:10):
underneath the collarbone of mychest out towards the shoulder,
and when I hit where the chestand the shoulders sort of meet,
I will then reset myself that'swhy I call it the typewriter and
then I will continue to um, tapout, and so I can just do this,
maybe 60 seconds or so, andthis really, or I can, you know,
(54:31):
do it as much as you want, andthen I might switch sides too
and do it on the other side, butI would say that that one is
really good for anxiety.
It's really good for sleep.
A lot of us get anxiety beforesleep.
Even so, it's something thatnot only could you do for
veterans, you could do foryourself too, which is nice.
But I think it's an easy one,it's accessible and it's not too
(54:54):
far-fetched, because I canpitch that as well vibration
tones the vagus nerve Pressure,and touch tones the vagus nerve.
It shifts us from sympatheticto parasympathetic.
So, yeah, I would say that thatis an easy skill.
Um, and then I have two more.
(55:16):
Is that okay, cool, awesome.
You know, for those of you whocan see these things, um, if
you're not listening to thepodcast now you, you're watching
it.
So this next one is really fun.
This is actually from Hiko, sothis is like it's almost like an
(55:36):
extended kenyokuho or like thedry bathing Really neat, and it
combines some elements of pikuain it Pikua, pikua, pikua-chan,
or, you know, kung fu-chan.
So I will start by pressing thebacks of my hands together, not
(55:56):
super hard, just enough to wherethere's pressure, and I might
breathe in like a couple timeshere, two or three, and then
when I'm done I sort of let themfall to the sides, sort of
really trying to feel for thatdrop, that gravity.
So there's a sense ofembodiment here that's happening
, and then I'll just come up anddo my dry bathing One, two,
(56:21):
three, one, two, three.
At the end of the third I thenbreathe in and I pull the hands
behind and then I breathe outand I push the hands out,
creating a barrier.
So from the side, after I'vecreated this barrier, I'll then
(56:42):
breathe in and cross the handsin front of me, like this I'll
then stand up, creatingboundaries and space, and
breathe out, breathing back in,then down, breathing out, then
breathing back in, and I turn tothe left, looking over my left
(57:04):
shoulder, and I push the palmout, so I'm creating space.
If I was doing it this way,behind me and in front of me,
then I come back to center andthen I go to the right and I do
the same thing.
And I come back and I justsettle, and so that is a little
(57:25):
bit more of an involved skill.
That's something I might teacha veteran who is struggling with
their boundaries and strugglingwith, you know, grief,
releasing grief because, too,this pushing and stuff, this
breathing, opens up the heartand lung space and the lungs
hold on to grief, and so if I'musing this breath work and I'm
(57:47):
pushing and extending, Iextending, I'm releasing that as
well.
Um, so that's number two.
That's sort of like, again,super, you know, uh, I think you
know super dry bathing in asense, right, really creating
that sacred space around me.
Um, cause, also, we tend tostruggle with our boundaries, as
veterans too.
You know, keeping my boundariesand then also like not saying
(58:11):
no to somebody, or, you know,always saying yes or always
saying no, whatever the casemight be, our relationships can
suffer.
So this one's really good forthat too.
It teaches a physical sense ofwhat is a boundary you know,
this is my space, this is safefor me.
So it's very grounded um.
And then the last one is verysimple.
It's just um, I call it thekarate chop, and we literally
(58:33):
just knock the sides of thehands like 36 times Don't worry
about counting, though, becausethat sort of puts you in beta
brainwaves and that's like we'restressed anyways and so I just
want to feel the vibration.
I want to be able to justnotice the sensations in my body
, and this one's really good foranxiety and overthinking, and I
combine it with if I were tostand up and do this.
(58:57):
Once I'm finished that chop, Imight bring the hands to the
side and then I would breathe in, and then I physically touch my
sternum and I guide the energyas I breathe out down and off of
the hip, and I would do thesame with the left hand down and
(59:19):
off the hip.
So there's a sense of and again, I might do that like eight to
ten times.
It just depends on how much youwant to really bring that
energy down.
When I'm guiding energy down,I'm grounding.
When I'm raising energy likethis, I'm getting hype right, so
up that center line.
So that's the practice.
The third one I wanted to share.
(59:40):
I think all three are reallyeffective.
We've taught all three at WayneState University and we've had
great effects from it.
We've had letters of effectsfrom it.
You know, we've had um lettersof recommendation from, like,
their assistant director.
He's like this these guys are,they're crazy, they're cool, so,
um, really cool things to sharewith your clients who are
(01:00:01):
struggling with even just normaltrauma or anxiety, and then
clients who are veterans, rightum, and?
And we're going to have verysimilar um potential issues um
that might not be had, might nothave been resolved.
So yeah, so that's, that's allmy um, my skills I wanted to
share.
I think I got a, I got a lot ofmo?
Um and I'd love to share them.
(01:00:22):
I would love to, uh, havepeople consult with me or have
people just hit me up.
As it's a small world and I'mtrying just to network with
anyone I can you know I love it.
I love the work.
Speaker 2 (01:00:36):
Well, thank you for sharing that.
That was our last question and,as we were talking, is there
anything you may have forgottenor something you'd like to share
with the listener?
The floor is yours.
Speaker 3 (01:00:57):
I would say no matter what gets thrown in your way,
please don't give up.
Please don't do that.
This world needs a lot ofhealing and I don't care if
you're what population you're apart of, um veteran, or you know
um, or else, like we all needhelp, um.
(01:01:18):
So please, if you have a gift,please help you know, please get
out there, get passionate, geton fire about something and put
your passion to the test.
Ignore all the, as Arnold wouldsay, ignore the naysayers.
Ignore them because there'sgoing to be naysayers, there's
(01:01:41):
going to be people who say thisdoesn't work and there's going
to be people who say you'regoofy and you're dumb or
whatever else.
Don't listen, don't let themget you down.
Continue the good work.
Continue to fight the goodfight in the most peaceful and
healing way beautiful.
Speaker 2 (01:01:58):
Yes, even if you have to pause, like I paused for a
little bit, take a breath andkeep going absolutely all right.
Well, thank you, david.
So much for joining me on thisjourney.
I really appreciate you takingtime out of your very busy
schedule to be on Ready SetReiki.
All right, beautiful, wonderfullisteners.
If you would like your questionfeatured on Ready Set Reiki,
(01:02:20):
reach out wwwreadysetreikicom.
I'm Tracy Seawright and thishas been Ready Set rake in.
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