I want to share a story with you. When I first started practicing Reiki professionally, I was so enthusiastic that ended up feeling like Joel Fleischman in Northern Exposure. Do you remember the TV series "Northern Exposure"? It was one of my all-time favorite shows- it aired in the early 1990's and featured Rob Morrow as a medical school graduate who was required to work in a remote part of Alaska after graduation as part of his scholarship agreement. He ends up feeling totally isolated from the life he left in New York. In essence, Joel suffered from what I call "Isolated Healer Syndrome", a term I made up to describe what happens when healers totally immerse themselves in their work and become isolated, neglecting their own needs in the process.

So back to my story. When I first began practicing Reiki professionally, I was so enthusiastic about the work I was doing that at one point I was doing up to nine Reiki sessions a day. I loved working with the energy so much that I didn't consider that I might be overdoing it. In the process, I had stopped scheduling regular Reiki sessions for myself, and had virtually cut myself off from interacting with other Reiki practitioners. Can you relate to this? Maybe you don't do nine Reiki sessions a day, but most Reiki practitioners I know are pretty selfless and do much more for others than they do for themselves.

Needless to say, I learned pretty quickly that I couldn't keep up that pace, and that I wasn't doing anyone a favor by pushing myself so hard. In the end, I learned some valuable life lessons; that you must continually refill your own well in order to be able to give to others, and that being surrounded by a supportive community of healers is crucial to your own well being.

That's one of the reasons I offer an annual Reiki Retreat. The Reiki Retreat is a day long event that offers the opportunity for Reiki practitioners to come together to refill our own wells, and to reunite as a community of healers. I truly believe that if we are to be of service to others, we must be of service to ourselves first. If you're suffering from "Isolated Healer Syndrome", or you feel you're at risk for it, please consider joining me for the Reiki Retreat. This year's Reiki Retreat will be held on Saturday, August 20 in Syracuse, NY. The Reiki Retreat is a day long event that is filled with opportunities for learning, fun, and community. For more information and to register, go to www.IntegratedEnergyHealing.com and click on the Reiki Retreat tab on the left side of the page.

Hope to see you there!
Blessings,
Mary