This article originally appeared in our Healing Hands newsletter.
It has its origins in the remarkable recovery of one of the founding members of the Barbados Reiki Association through Reiki group healing sessions and the desire to let the general public know about the healing power of Reiki and how accessible it is to everyone. Now, in its 13th year, the Association’s annual Complementary Health Day (CHD) has become a “not to miss” event for everyone interested in holistic health and healing through complementary therapies and products. This year’s event, slated for Sunday, June 19th, 2011 at the Ursuline Convent, will be held under the theme “Healing Body, Mind and Spirit” and promises the usual smorgasbord of alternative healing modalities.
The Association’s President, Kathleen Hurley, in reflecting on the origins of CHD, recalls that while still a fledgling organisation, one of the major activities of the Association was arranging group healing sessions for its members who were unwell. “One of the people who benefitted from this was Janice Chin who was experiencing a major health challenge. Janice had been initiated into Reiki in 1995 and when she experienced a crisis in 1997, she automatically turned to Reiki as her preferred method of healing. The Association arranged several group healing sessions for Janice and she experienced an amazing healing. As a result, Janice was anxious to let the general public know about Reiki and this is how CHD, or Reiki Open Day as it was originally called, began in 1998,” Kathleen explained.