Reiki (“ray-key”) is an energy healing technique offered at major hospital systems as a complementary practice for those experiencing anxiety, pain, fatigue, or serious illness.
Book a session and try Jikiden Reiki — the direct-lineage method practiced and passed down in Japan for over a century.
Have you noticed that children seem to recover from injuries much faster than adults — and that elderly people tend to heal more slowly still?
This can be understood through the concept of life force energy, or ki in Japanese. When the body is unwell, it draws on its ki to restore balance. The more freely ki flows, the more readily the body can repair itself. Children are brimming with it. As we age and go through the ups and downs of life, that natural flow can become depleted or obstructed.
Reiki is a simple and gentle healing practice in which a trained practitioner enters a calm and open state of mind, allowing energy to flow freely while placing their hands on or near the recipient’s body. The body draws what it needs to support its natural ability to heal.
Reiki is a complementary practice and works best alongside — not instead of — medical care. The experiences below are what clients have shared. Results vary, and nothing here is a medical claim.
Settles the wired-but-tired state. Drops the volume on a nervous system stuck on alert.
Used for over a century alongside medical care for chronic, recovery, and post-injury pain.
Many clients report falling asleep faster and waking up fewer times in the night.
For the always-on. A 60-minute reset for people whose battery never gets back to full.
Simple and straightforward. You’ll know exactly what’s coming before you walk in.
Find us at 116 West Ave — conveniently located along the NFTA-Metro #3 bus line, with street parking available on West Ave and surrounding streets.
You’ll be welcomed at the door and accompanied upstairs to the dedicated 2nd floor space. If stairs are a concern, please book a travel session and I will come to you instead.
We’ll talk briefly about what brought you in — sleep, pain, stress, or anything on your mind. This is a good time to mention any areas you’d like extra attention, or anywhere you’d prefer not to be touched.
Please silence your phone before we begin.
You’ll lie face-up on a comfortable, heated table — fully clothed, shoes off — with freshly laundered sheets and soft sound bath music in the background.
Hands are placed gently on various areas of the body, with a Japanese towel between the hands and your head. Most time is spent on the head and any areas you’ve asked for support. You’ll be asked to turn face-down at some point so the back can be addressed as well.
You might feel warmth, tingling, or a deep sense of stillness — or simply nothing at all. Most people drift. Many fall asleep.
The session closes with a gentle Japanese rubbing and tapping technique to help the body integrate and re-energize.
We’ll take a few minutes to talk through how the session felt and answer any questions you have.
For over two decades I worked in the tech industry — at companies like Microsoft, TIBCO, and MedImpact, navigating complex systems, high-stakes projects, and the particular kind of exhaustion that comes from a fast-paced and stressful career.
Alongside that career, I explored many types of spiritual and meditation practices, eventually settling on the Kriya Yoga of Lahiri Mahasaya. Through that practice I discovered that I could unblock stuck energy within my body — back pain disappeared, flexibility improved, and I was finally able to let go of long-held grudges and past failures.
But I wondered: could I help my family and other people experience this kind of release, without asking them to take up a meditation practice first? Reiki was that answer.
I trained in Jikiden Reiki, an authentic Japanese lineage preserved before the proliferation of new styles that emerged in the West from the 1980s onward. Jikiden (直傳) means “directly taught.” Mikao Usui, the founder of Usui Reiki Ryoho, taught Dr. Chujiro Hayashi — a former captain and physician of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Dr. Hayashi taught Chiyoko Yamaguchi when she was just 17 years old. She continued to practice in Japan for over 65 years until her passing in 2003, and taught her son Tadao Yamaguchi, who is the current president of the Jikiden Reiki Institute, headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. The Yamaguchi family taught Frank “Arjava” Petter, a researcher and author who brought the original Japanese Reiki teachings to a Western audience. My teacher, Lorraine George-Young, received her Jikiden training directly from Arjava.
What drew me to Jikiden specifically was its simplicity and fidelity to the original teaching. As someone who has long appreciated Japanese culture and its tradition of preserving craft across generations, Jikiden felt like a natural home.
It also answered something I’d wondered about since childhood. There’s a scene in The Karate Kid where Mr. Miyagi places his hands on Daniel’s injured knee — rubbing them together, holding them still, and somehow making the pain go away. I didn’t have a name for what that was at the time. Now I do.
In Japan, Reiki was something practitioners brought to their families and neighbors. West Buffalo Reiki is here to offer this traditional practice to the people of this neighborhood and community.
In peer-reviewed trials, Reiki has been associated with reduced pain scores, lower anxiety, and measurable improvement in heart rate variability.
You’ll rest fully clothed on a heated treatment table with gentle sound bath music in the background. Sessions take place at 116 West Ave on the Lower West Side — served by the NFTA-Metro #3 bus, with street parking available on West Ave and surrounding streets.
Please arrive 5 minutes early. If stairs are a concern, please book a travel session instead.
I will travel to your WNY location, bringing the heated treatment table to you. Ideal for those with limited mobility, postoperative recovery, hospice care, or anyone who simply prefers the comfort of their own home or facility.
Please ensure the session space is free of distractions — including pets, children, and other people — so you can rest and receive fully.
Opens our scheduler · or call (716) 333-5188
