Importance of Good Body Mechanics for Energy Workers

Just because energy work isn't as physically demanding as other healing modalities such as massage doesn't mean the healers don't need to take care of themselves. Paying attention to your own body mechanics during a healing session is as important to your client as it is to you.

When I was first introduced to the Reiki energy healing system in the early 90s, I remember the instructor telling the students that when you give a healing you also receive a healing. I assume this is why body mechanics such as posture and the correct way to move during the healing session were never stressed.

I had also read numerous books on energy healing that lacked an appreciation for self care, although I'm sure this wasn't the case with every author on the subject. I was probably more aware of the need for body mechanics because as a teenager I fractured my pelvis and suffered from chronic pain for years. I needed to make sure to prevent injury.

Luckily, my education would be expanded just a few years later when I attended massage school. On the first day of class, the school's founder came in and introduced herself, then gave a speech on the importance of the healing path we were about to embark upon. The biggest impression she made on me was telling us that in healing sessions the healer is the most important person in the room, not the client. The gist of the idea of what she was trying to get across was that injured therapists are no good to any of their clients.

Stand up straight may have been a recurring mantra from childhood, but it's definitely sound advice for young and old alike. As we age and in the process of engaging in our daily activities, posture becomes easy to ignore. There are ways to train our bodies to counteract the effects of bad posture including martial arts, yoga, and simply taking time out of our day to relax, drop our shoulders and sit up straight.

Martial arts and yoga are excellent techniques to not only enhance your mental and physical health, they give you tools to use during the healing session to prevent injury to yourself.

A common position used by massage therapists during sessions is the horse stance, sometimes called the warrior stance, which is taken from martial arts. In this stance, you mimic how a person would sit on a horse. The legs are bent at the knees with feet parallel and back straight.

This is a good position to develop strength and stamina, but it can be difficult to be flexible during a session. I personally adapted this stance early on by not lunging so deep with my knees in a sort of combination between the horse stance and mountain pose common in yoga.

There are now special massage tables for energy workers that make it easier to perform the session while sitting. But having good body mechanics is important whether you are sitting or standing.

Practicing these techniques makes you more aware of your own body during the session. Remeber, no one benefits from an injured massage or energy worker.