Research
on the Effects of Reiki
A Nursing researcher receives funding for unconventional breast
cancer therapy
Dr. Ahlam Mansour, of the College of Nursing, has received
a $20,000 grant from the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Initiative
(CBCRI) to conduct a feasibility study of the effects of Reiki
[pronounced. ray-key], a so-called energy medicine. It involves
the application of what she terms "universal life energy"
through hands-on techniques.
The grant is one of only six awarded in a national competition
in which 47 submissions were received by the CBCRI, which is a
granting agency housed in the National Cancer Institute of Canada,
Toronto.
Dr. Mansour, herself "a second-degree Reiki, says there's
an abundance of anecdotal records and some emerging scientific
evidence that Reiki is effective in decreasing physical problems
and anxiety associated with illness.
"But to date," she adds, "no rigorous studies
have been undertaken into its efficacy. Our study will be to investigate
the effects of Reiki on the level of anxiety, physical problems,
spiritual well-being, and complete blood counts in breast cancer
patients undergoing their initial (AC) chemotherapy."
She says she and her nine-person team will soon begin a partially
blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to test for the effectiveness
of the therapy.
"We hope that the feasibility study will provide enough
data to determine whether or not to proceed to a full-scale study
on the efficacy of Reiki in reducing the side-effects of chemotherapy
and the emotional problems breast cancer patients generally experience."
The team members include: Dr. Mansour; Dr. Gail Laing, a professor
in Nursing; Marion Bueche, a Reiki master, who practices in Regina;
Dr. Barbara Walley, an oncologist at the Saskatoon Cancer Clinic;
Dr. Anne Leis, a psychologist in Community Health and Epidemiology
(CHE); Dr. Alanna Danilkewich, a family physician at the RUH;
Judy Nurse, a research coordinator in CHE; and Pat Homenick, Peg
Schmidt, and Olga Stefaniuk, breast cancer survivors.
Chronic Illness Study
Martha Lucas, Ph.D., is the research advisor for an international
Reiki Research Project. The project is still waiting funding (a
mere $9500) but already has Reiki practitioners volunteering daily,
with several "area coordinators" all over the country.
This research project will be working with patients who are suffering
with AIDS, diabetes, migraines, and MS. If you know anyone who
needs help with any of these disorders, they may participate with
no cost to them.
If you are interested in participating as a practitioner, please
contact Martha Lucas, Ph.D., or call Lynne Stanley, CRMT, 303-273-5847.
George Washington University
If you are interested in volunteering to a current study being
coordinated through George Washington University you should contact
Lynne Stanley at P.O. Box 694, Golden, CO 80402 or 303-273-5847.
This is a double blind study to prove the benefits of only Reiki
on three types of clients. There are over 100 volunteers participating
and more are needed.
We will be working on clients with AIDS or diabetes or migraine
headaches. Some will receive Reiki, some will be taught to give
Reiki to themselves, and some will involve practitioner and self-application.
Group 4 will be on the "waiting list."
For further information about the subject of subtle energy you
may be interested in visiting: http://www.webcom.com/~hrtmath/IHM/Research/SubtleEnergy.html
Uses of Reiki in the Childbearing Cycle: a Descriptive Study
Using Practitioner Perspective on Uses, Benefits, and Possible
Risks.
A Study is being conducted into the Uses of Reiki in the Childbearing
Cycle. You are being asked to participate
Principal Investigatior: Stacey Hebner, a student at Yale University
School of Nursing, is conducting this study.
You are invited to be a subject in a research study about the
uses, benefits, and risks of Reiki during pregnancy, childbirth,
and the postpartum period.
The purpose of this study is to describe current uses of Reiki
during pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum. In addition, this
study will provide an important starting point for further research
to validate or refute the efficacy of Reiki in soothing childbearing
women and their infants. Future research on Reiki in pregnancy
may increase the health care providers' ability to advise their
patients about the use of Reiki for the relief of discomfort and
maintenance of health and well being during pregnancy, childbirth,
and the postpartum period.
If you agree to participate, the researcher will set up a telephone
interview with you at your convenience. You will be asked questions
about your experiences with using Reiki during pregnancy, childbirth,
and the postpartum period. The interview will last approximately
30 minutes. If you want to stop the interview for any reason,
you can do so at any time.
Risk to participants will be minimal, not to exceed the usual
risks of activities of daily living. Research results will be
shared among both nursing and Reiki professionals; therefore benefits
to participants will be indirect in the form of increased professional
knowledge about the uses, benefits and risks of Reiki during the
childbearing cycle. In addition, increased knowledge of Reiki
among health care professionals could promote wider acceptance
of this alternative healing method. You will not be paid for your
participation in this study nor will there be any costs to you
for your participation.
All information about your participation in this study will be
kept confidential. (Your name will not be put on tapes or other
study materials.) Identifying information will be removed from
all data collection forms. Your name will not be used in any report
of the study findings. The records will be kept in a locked file
which only the researcher can access.
You are free to choose to participate or not and if you do become
a subject, you are free to withdraw from this study at any time
during its course. If you choose not to participate or if you
change your mind later and you withdraw, there will be no penalty
to you.
Please contact me if you have further questions about this project
or your rights as research subject, please contact the principle
investigator, Stacey Hebner, at 1 (203) 752-1847. E-mail address:
hebner@aol.com
Invisible Energy Seen as Future Medical Tool
By Sara Altshul O'Donnell
The New York Times Special Features
Energy healing is already under scrutiny at the University of
Arizona in Tucson, where the Human Energy Systems Lab has been
established under the direction of Gary E. Schwartz.
Schwartz and the lab's co-director, Linda Russek, have examined
the ways energy communication takes place between two people.
In their lab, they discovered that when an electrically charged
body -- such as a human being -- moves through space, an electromagnetic
force is created that can be measured on another person's body
a few feet away. They also found that, at least for two people
who care for one another, the electrical impulses from one person's
heart register on the other's brain.
This suggests that energy transfer between two people (between
an energy healer and a patient, for example) is very real. But
many scientists remain skeptical, arguing that just being able
to measure energy transfer between people isn't proof that it
can heal.
"At the moment, all of this remains on the fringes of conventional
science, but my hunch is that energy medicine will come into its
own in the next few decades," says Weil (director of the
Program in Integrative Medicine and clinical professor of internal
medicine at the University of Arizona at Tucson).
http://integrativemedicine.arizona.edu/
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