De Vitto, J. (2019). Reiki practitioners experiences of self-healing and transformation: An intuitive inquiry [Unpublished Master’s thesis]. Alef Trust & Middlesex University.

The research investigated the experiences of self-healing and personal transformation within Reiki Practitioners who channel Reiki to heal themselves or others. The research explored this topic within Reiki Practitioners who are situated outside of the nursing literature. The methodology of intuitive inquiry was used and eight participants as well as the researcher’s experiences were analysed using Thematic Content Analysis. Eight themes were formed and included: Opening the Door, Shifting Beliefs, Lifestyle Changes, Healing Crisis, Moving Past Doubts, Spiritual Connection and Self-Empowerment. Two of the participant’s narratives were shared in depth, in addition to a compound narrative which included the other participants’ experiences – including my own. My findings show that the Reiki practitioners experienced transformation on a mental, emotional, physical and spiritual level. Many of the participants experienced mental and emotional struggles which they learnt to interpret as meaningful and integrate into their lives. Many of the participants learnt to shift their beliefs and make lifestyle changes which led to greater self- empowerment. The Reiki practitioners’ journeys of healing and transformation were found to correlate with stages of development within Transpersonal models of psycho-spiritual development. An attempt was made to map out the Reiki Practitioner’s experiences alongside these models of development.