Grief, this five-letter word I know all too well. One of the major themes of my lifetime is grief and abandonment. If you have read anything I shared before, my grief started at a very young age, when my parents separated and then about a year later, my dad passed. I was at the tender age of 5.
Grief and abandonment are a theme that goes through my family and ancestors as well. Very sad, traumatic childhoods….taken from their homes, wars, abandoned or losing parents or children at a very young age. With all the world is going through right now and, in the past, we have our individual grief, ancestral grief and grief as a world collective that we are often experiencing at the same time.
Grief isn’t only the loss of a friend, loved one or pet. It can come from a breakup of a relationship or parent or child taken away too soon. It can come from an injury that isn’t healing or a diagnosis you were hoping and praying wouldn’t come. It can be from the loss of a job, school year, or a huge unexpected change in circumstances or shift of direction. It can come from moving to a new home or a new job. It can come from something not working out the way you thought it would. Even if whatever is triggering a wound or grief is planned and you are excited about it, you can still experience an overwhelming amount of grief and it can catch you quite off guard.
Grief has no bounds or barriers to who it reaches and can come from many sources. It can be felt as a collective and spread across our world. The 5 main stages of grief are denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Depending on the sources, there may be other stages we experience as well. Shame is often something that comes up for those who experience grief, but it is not often talked about. For you who were guided to read this, I offer this gentle reminder, it is ok to feel what you are feeling right now, it is part of the experience of grief. You may move around the different stages of grief, stay in one stage much longer or even experience more than one simultaneously.
Trust is all something for us to learn on our journeys as that no matter what is happening right now, all will work out as it should. Trust can be very hard to feel when our worlds are being flipped upside-down. There is a bigger purpose to things than we can see in the moment. We haven’t been given all the pieces to the puzzle yet. If we did not know grief, we would not truly know love and joy. It is all a part of the human experience.
Image by danigeza
There is much to learn from our wounds and grief and we all can use some extra support on our journeys along the way. Even those who are in the guiding, healing and helper roles, like those of us who are guided to Reiki or any other healing modality, are in need of support from time to time.
I have had to seek the help and guidance of others at different stages along the way on my own journey. Seeking help does not make you weak and it is ok to reach out and connect with others who can provide guidance, tools and skills we may be needing to support our grief journey. So, I encourage you to please seek out help if you need it at this time or at any point along the way. We are not meant to do or walk this journey alone. There were different points along my journey where I needed the support of a counsellor or psychotherapist as well. Other times my focus was with other guides who offered Reiki or other forms of healing that my heart was seeking at the time.
Reiki for me, is the most amazing, beautiful, loving healing energy and it resonates with my heart. My journey with grief and wounds of the heart is what called me to Reiki as a client, and then as a practitioner. The heart is the place that holds all the grief and wounds and all the love, peace and joy. Though we can’t expect Reiki to do all the work for us with our grief and our wounds as we still have to seek support where we need it and do our part as we dig deeper, layer by layer into our grief and wounds. No matter what stage of your grief, wound or Reiki journey, if you or a loved one could use some extra support, I urge you to seek it out.
Here is your gentle reminder that you are stronger than you know, and we all need a little support from others at times. There are many out there in our Reiki communities and beyond who are available to offer support, guidance, compassion and a safe space to guide you and walk beside you as you move step by step closer towards the healing your heart is seeking for you. Grief and wounds are like stepping stones, leading you along a path back to your heart. For the ultimate journey is one From Head to Heart, where heart connection and heart transformation can take place when you are ready to let the pain, grief and wounds go, one step and one day at a time.
Previous article from the “Grief, Wounds and Reiki” series:
Article by Jennifer Cluley
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Jennifer Cluley
Jennifer Cluley is a Reiki Master, Certified Meditation & Birth Star Mantra Teacher, Intuitive and Guide. Jennifer’s passion is to inspire others to connect to their heart to bring more balance, peace, love, forgiveness and harmony within, which then ripples into the home and out into the world. Jennifer’s anchor is Reiki and her meditation practice, her guide, which continues to assist her healing journey and guiding and assisting others who connect with her. A better understanding of ourselves and our connections with those we love, ultimately brings more harmony in the home. Jennifer’s children are her biggest motivators, her angels, guides and loved ones in spirit provide an abundance of support and many family and friends are her biggest sources of inspiration to lead a spirit led life.
Connect with Jennifer:
Website: jencluley.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/fromheadtoheart555
Instagram: www.instagram.com/jencluley_hopeanchors
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