Once you have been attuned you will want to learn how to activate and use your Reiki. First-degree Reiki is activated by the intention that is you intend or mentally command it to run. Many people use a mental instruction such as Reiki On! Or Reiki now! Reiki may turn on when it is needed even without your conscious intention.

Only a slight amount of attention is needed to keep Reiki flowing. It does not involve mental strain or intense will, just a subtle intention and willingness. You are not pushing the Reiki energy; you are allowing it to flow through you like water flows through a hose.

Not everyone feels subtle energies. Once you have been attuned the Reiki will run even if you are not able to feel it. Sometimes it takes a while before one really feels it running. Whether or not you get hot hands or buzzing or other physical signs of Reiki activation it will work. Reiki is a subtle energy.

The energy generally comes into the crown and runs down the arms to the hands and from there to where it is needed and/or directed. This seems to be the standard flow pattern For Reiki and many other healing energy systems. This is not the only flow pattern just the most common. It is also possible to bring in the energy by other channels but crown to hands is usually easiest and most comfortable. Just want the energy to run. Think/intent that it turns on. One may also sense Reiki as flowing directly from source to the recipient without actually passing through you.

The basic Reiki energy has always been intention activated. The most important thing is to use Reiki often. The more you use it the more comfortable, confident, and skilled you will become. While the standard formal treatment uses both hands, you can also give informal Reiki treatments just by placing one hand in contact. You may find that you can run Reiki from your feet or other location if it’s needed. You can just put your hand on your own body and give yourself a simple treatment any time you wish.

At first, you may want to prove to yourself and others that it works. This can cause you to use your own personal energy rather than Reiki. Using your own energy might make you feel tired after giving a treatment. Usually, the Reiki practitioner feels rested and revitalized after the treatment.

You might experience normal tiredness from standing for a long time if you are not used to doing so. Any unusual tiredness usually indicates that the practitioner has been forcing the energy or pushing with personal will rather than allowing the Reiki energies to flow naturally.

The effectiveness of Reiki and other energy systems could be modified by the practitioner's and clients’ expectations. The limits that they put on the energy with the concepts they hold about what the work can and should do can affect the experienced results. Therefore, it is particularly important that while you are doing treatments you allow the energy to work. Hold the intention that it works for the highest good of the client.

You can begin by mentally stating what the perceived situation is and whether the client is in pain. If there is pain involved, I ask for pain relief to be part of the treatment.

Belief in, or practice of, a spiritual or religious system is not required for the effective practice of Reiki. (While many Reiki practitioners work with guides or angels it is not a practice intrinsic to or required for Reiki). Personal intuition will guide you as you learn to be aware of it and trust it. Naturally, Intuition alone does not substitute for a basic understanding of energy work and the techniques for treatment.

The Reiki energy is in most cases allowed to flow to where it chooses. It can be directed but it is strongly recommended that you do not try to do this at first and never exclusively. You may be unaware of the true cause of difficulty and may mentally prevent the Reiki from doing the best by pushing it where you want it to flow. At first, you may need to remind yourself quite often to allow the flow rather than push it with will.

Reiki uses the Ki or Universal life force energy to effect changes and removes blocks in the energy body which promotes the return of and maintenance of wellbeing and health. As you continue to practice you will probably develop an awareness of the condition of the energy field and may over time realize what diseases may have manifested from the feel of the client’s energy body.

As a Reiki practitioner you do not diagnose, nor do you heal others. You must take care not to alarm the client or to violate laws against diagnosis by non-medical professionals. You may ask questions, make suggestions, or suggest they see a doctor about areas of concern.

You provide a connection for the universal life force to work actively with you and empower the receiver. Energy healing is most effective when the person getting treatment is an active participant in the process. Encourage your client to actively invite the Reiki to heal them to the highest degree possible. This is more effective than passively having an attitude of being done to.

Reiki teachings in the West were passed on until quite recently without written materials or notes. Even the practice writing of the complex symbols traditionally used in second- and third-degree Reiki were destroyed after the training sessions. This was not the practice in Japan. Many books are now available with information and theories about Reiki.

Self-Treatment
Reiki can be used for your own healing as well as for others. This is one thing that differentiates Reiki from many other energy healing systems. Treating yourself is an excellent way to become familiar with using Reiki. It is highly recommended that practitioners give themselves a treatment frequently. I recommend that you give yourself treatments daily, if possible, particularly at the beginning of your practice. This will also help clear up any detoxification symptoms that do occur.

Self-treatment can be done either by putting your hands on your body in adaptations of the standard hand placements. Treatment on the front only will be fine, although you can do versions of some back positions on yourself. You can also just rest your hands on your legs or other accessible location and run the Reiki; actually, just putting your hands down against your body anywhere that is comfortable will work.

Reiki will go to where it is needed. I find that it works fine just to turn on Reiki and let it run; after all, you are in your body. That means that you are touching it. Whatever your Reiki level is, using the hand positions will probably give you more sensory confirmation than a remote treatment and may well work faster on each specific area.

You can place your hands on the front of your body with the mental intention that you are treating the back position. The positions for self-treating the back can be done by putting your hands on the back of your neck over your shoulders and at your back just above and below the waist. Provided that you are flexible and want to do that. Unless you are very flexible, do not try to reach difficult-to-reach places. If it hurts you to do it, it is not Reiki. Reiki will flow to where it is needed.

Preparing to give Reiki treatments to others
there is no single right way to do treatments. Before you begin a treatment on another person you may want to do a self-treatment or meditation to ground, center, and clear your own energy field. This is not a requirement but will prepare yourself to give the treatment. Many practitioners like to place their hands together in the grasshopper or praying hands position for a moment before they actually begin the treatment. This helps the practitioner to balance their own energy and reach the correct mental and emotional clarity to begin the treatment free from personal issues that might distract them.

Before the Treatment
greet your client and discuss what they can expect from Reiki. Answer any questions they have. Ask them about their reasons for seeking Reiki treatment and what they expect from Reiki. Tell the client what you will be doing. Some practitioners have a form and history to be filled out; others do not follow the medical model so closely. Make sure that if an exchange is involved, that is a payment or barter the details are clear and mutually agreeable.

Remind the recipient that you are not a medical practitioner. Reiki is never a substitute for medical treatment. This and other energy and spiritual work may on rare occasions stimulate a brief clearing period of detoxification on all levels. In a few rare cases people have felt worse before they felt better, if this does occur you should ask that if possible, they come in daily for three days in a row. Repeating treatment can alleviate these rare detoxification or healing crisis symptoms.

Have your client remove their shoes, glasses, and any bulky jewelry which might get snagged. They will remain fully clothed. Comfortable non-binding clothes are recommended. Clients do not need to remove wedding rings, dentures, small earrings, navel rings, and so forth. Some people fear that jewelry will interfere or block the energy but it does not. In fact, such items can absorb a reservoir of Reiki energy. The main reason to remove bulky jewelry is so that it will not snag on clothing during the treatment or interfere with hand placement.

Have the person lie down on a massage table or if none is available another sturdy table such as a kitchen or dining table with a pad of some sort, or a bench, couch, bed or floor if that is comfortable for both of you. Treatments can also be done with the client seated.
Most Reiki treatments are given with the client lying down and the practitioner standing. Many practitioners sit in an office chair with wheels. Some do treatments kneeling on the floor. Whatever table or other setups you are using the client and the practitioner should both be comfortable during the treatment. Try to have the table surface at a height where you do not have to strain to reach the hand position locations. A padded surface of some kind is suggested for comfort.