This last year has been an unprecedented year for me in terms of my spiritual journey. I’ve found extreme growth in terms of self awareness, acknowledging my intentions and actions, processing my emotions and utilising that to better myself. A natural consequence of this journey is that I’ve been very receptive to trying new things that Mahi a year ago may not have been, and with an open mind.

One of the things that I tried recently is Reiki. Reiki is a Japanese form of energy healing. It’s administered by a Reiki practitioner through them laying their hands across your body from head to toe. This distribution is called the “Reiki energy” and is distributed across all of the Chakras in your body. Whilst Chakras have been reintroduced in the new-age wave of spirituality, Chakras are an ancient Hindu concept found in texts of Indian spirituality dating way back (like 1000 BC). There are 7 Chakras, each relating to different things:

1. Root Chakra - located in the base of the spine represents physical identity, stability and grounding. Blockages here may manifest in the form of severe anxiety.

2. Sacral Chakra - located above the pubic bone and represents sexuality and creativity. Blockages here can make you feel uninspired and may physically manifest in lower back pain.

3. Solar plexus - Located in the stomach area and associated with willpower, self-esteem and self-confidence. Blockages here can be associated with digestive issues like ulcers, heartburn and acid reflux.

4. Heart Chakra - Located in the centre of the chest and focused on unconditional love and compassion. This chakra is the most blocked as a lot of things you encounter in your day to day affects your heart. Things like overextending yourself, people pleasing, break ups. Issues here can result in feeling lonely and insecure.

5. Throat Chakra - Located in the throat, this chakra governs your ability to communicate and express your truth. Blockages here can result in things like sore throats.

6. Third eye chakra - Located between the eyes, this chakra is associated with your inner knowing and intuition, and ability to see things. Blockages here are associated with those who have trouble understanding the reality of a situation or those who are at odds with their intuition and may manifest in concentration problems or headaches.

7. Crown Chakra - Located at the top of the head, this chakra governs your awareness, intelligence and overall enlightenment. It is linked to every other chakra and our alignment with our life’s purpose, so it affects every organ. Blockages here can manifest in being an inherently negative or a stubborn person.

Although I was feeling relatively well-aligned and probably in the happiest space I’ve ever been in my life, I decided that this concept was interesting to me and that I’d be interested in trying it out. It was particularly alluring to me to see what Chakras may have blockages given I was feeling so in tune with myself.

I decided to have a session with Sian Duggan at Marama Crystals in her Grey Lynn studio.