Will I Pick up Negative Energy from my Client?

Article by Angie Webster

Negative energy or negative emotions are something that concerns some Reiki practitioners. They wonder if they will be open picking these up from their clients during treatment sessions. Many people that are drawn to Reiki, or other healing professions, are quite sensitive to the emotional energies of others and even feel them inside themselves. This is often referred to as being empathic. Sometimes this state leads the practitioner to fear that they are actually taking on the emotions of the person they are treating.

I used to fear this, too and it took me a long time to figure out that I could sense the emotions of another person without becoming fearful of them and immersed in them. I can remain separate, within my own true emotional state while observing the state of another. It took practice and mindfulness of the fear and other emotions that were coming up with regard to other people’s emotions. Most of all, it required me to be honest with myself about what my emotions were, and to be willing to set boundaries within myself.

The first thing to remember is that fear is a negative energy. It narrows your pathways, distorts your aura and restricts your ability to connect with Universal Life Force. When you are starting from a place of fear, you are attracting negative energy, rather than inviting in a flow of positive energy. If you feel that you are having fear, sadness or anger prior to a session, it is a good idea to give yourself a few minutes of Reiki to help shift the energies within you. You might ask Reiki for help in seeing where you can relax and invite positive energy into your system and into the session. I find this to be a good thing to do, regardless of my state of mind prior to a session, but it is especially important if I am having a difficult day.

Before each session, it’s a good practice to offer Reiki to the treatment room and to the treatment table. I like to use the symbols on the walls, floors, ceiling and center of the table. This invites Reiki in and strengthens your connection with Reiki even before your client gets there. You will feel the energy of the room lighten right away. If you like, you can burn sage, candles or incense; whatever is part of your practice to establish a positive energy zone.

When we are treating a client, it helps to approach them with compassion and openness, holding space for wherever they happen to be on their path. If you feel an emotion that your client is feeling or a physical issue that is in their body, you may need to momentarily hold space for yourself, as well. Remind yourself that what you feel is your client’s, not yours. You may still feel it inside you, but it is only energy and it will pass if you allow it. It doesn’t belong to your experience or your life and it won’t remain after the session. We can let it go if we remind ourselves of that and don’t get stuck in telling ourselves that we can’t.

When we feel emotional pain of our own, there is always a thought process, or story, that goes through our heads about it. That is often what makes the pain stay rather than flow through easily. We don’t need to tell ourselves a story when we can recognize the pain belongs to someone else. We can be there for them more fully when we remain uninvolved in a story, yet compassionate and understanding of their pain. It is a very wonderful thing when we can feel the energies moving through our clients, and we can help them most completely when we can be fully present and recognize these energies as what we are there to treat and not something to fear.

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Angie Webster made a significant contribution to the Reiki community, with a particular focus on Animal Reiki, which she had a deep affection for. As a knowledgeable Reiki Master Teacher and Author, she conducted online courses on energy healing, herbalism, flower essences, and personal growth.
She is the author of “Animal Reiki: How it Heals, Teaches & Reconnects Us with Nature” and “Reiki from A to Z”. Currently, Angie has decided to retire from her professional life to devote more time to her health, family, and the little joys of life.