Ego, Friend or Foe?

By Josslyn Streett, Reiki Master/Teacher for Rain Shadow Reiki

I have talked over the years with many other healers about the ego.  It’s a big topic and everyone seems to have a different way of handling their ego during a Reiki healing on a client.  Most people see the ego as a negative influence on the healing process; questioning, denying our intuitive thoughts, etc.   Therefore many people label it as bad, in the way, something that needs to be dealt with, like a naughty child.

I have considered these views over the years and tried many of the methods I’ve been taught by others.  Unfortunately, none of them felt right to me.  I believe it is because over the many years of healing myself and my thought processes, I have found that my ego has been here all this time mainly to protect me from myself and others who have hurt me.  It adds a cushion between me and getting hurt again.  Like many things in our lives, this protection may have been needed as a child, or at one time in my life, but as I have grown and changed, I have new tools to work with now.  I have Reiki and I’m an adult with a new more mature view on life, so this type of protection is no longer needed.  But, it keeps ‘protecting’ me whether I want it to or not because that is how our human selves are made.

What Is Ego Protection?

Often the ego protects us in the form of what seems like negative behaviors;  defensiveness, anger, procrastination, non-movement or freezing, judgment towards others or yourself, and any other ‘negative’ behavior that protects you from living life to the fullest or making so-called mistakes.

Example of Ego Protection

For example, when we meet a new friend, we may be excited because we really like them and we feel a connection to them.  Maybe you are really ready to make a new friend and have been asking Divine to send you someone you really connect with.   But then your ego may cause you to sabotage the friendship in someway because you’ve been hurt by friends in the past.  It could have been in childhood, or even in a past life, probably both.  You may not even remember the original incidence, but your ego does.  Your subconscious mind remembers and created a protection device way back when to help you not make the same mistake again.  Well, the same mistake might be keeping you from having long-lasting friendships or even long-lasting relationships now.  Even though this happened a long time ago, it’s still ruling your current life.   Probably not what you want.  We have many of these protections that our mind and ego together have created.  Our mind creates the thought process and our ego carries out the orders, like the heavy.  It’s a great plan, until it’s not.

Ego Vs. Intuition

Quite often, as a Reiki practitioner, our ego gets in the way of the process of Reiki flowing during a healing on others or on our self.  When intuitive information comes in, sometimes the ego second guesses it, questions it or totally dismisses it.  This ‘conversation’ can be going on in our heads causing a blockage of energy flow and information flow.  This also often causes us to not be grounded during a session because of the battle being waged in our minds.  Not the scenario we want.  We want the energy flowing as well as the intuitive information without questioning without blockage.

Why does this happen?

There are many reasons this may happen.  This is something you’ll need to work on with Reiki and meditation on your own to figure out.  But, one theme I have found quite common amongst healers is the past life theme of judgment, condemnation or death for being a witch, healer, pagan, or psychic.  Therefore, our ego believes it is not safe to do healing or intuitive work and therefore protects us from doing this.  Many of us in this day and age feel quite safe doing this kind of work but our ego remembers long ago when it was not.  It is still protecting us to this day because it does not feel safe.

Positive Vs. Negative

When you start viewing the world as ‘It’s all good!” then it becomes all good and much can be healed.  When I started viewing my ego as a positive part of me that is here to help me, I was able to open up to ways to help heal my ego and thus heal me.  A whole new world opened up to me.  Anything can be viewed this way because we learn from everything.  Therefore, everything is good.  Even illness can be a gift when we view it as part of our learning journey on this planet.

How to Heal Your Ego While in a Healing Yourself

Prior to a healing or meditation, this is how I take care of my ego so as to keep the energy and information flowing nicely.  I do the prayer position or the Gassho before every meditation and healing that I do.  So this is my technique.  As always, this is one way, a way that I have found that works for me.  I teach this in my classes and have found it to work well.  If it doesn’t work for you then please feel free to be creative and find what works with your ego.  There is no wrong.  We are all unique and we all require a unique method that speaks to us.

1. Place your hands in prayer position, the Gassho.  While doing your beginning invocation; grounding, affirming safe and sacred space, and affirming that you are a clear channel for the Reiki energy, you also add in a place for your ego to go. (If you don’t remember the Gassho, get your Reiki I manual out or your Reiki book and review this information.  I find it extremely helpful to my centering of my mind and being prepared during a healing situation.)
2. The first few times you do this, put extra intention and visualization into it.  You may want to practice this before you meditate so you can spend a little more time on it at first.  Then add it to your healing invocation.
3. Create a safe space for you ego to go during the meditation/healing.  I send my ego to the day spa.  I create a beautiful sanctuary like space up above my higher self in between me and my Divine Source connection.  I imagine my ego on a massage table receiving Reiki healing from angels and spirit guides.  Get creative with this and make the spa irresistible to your ego, so wonderful that your ego will want to stay there for a very long time.

   

4. I hold the intention that my ego is receiving a healing just like myself or my client and that for the greatest good for all, my ego will get the healing it needs and deserves for the many years of service it has given me.  Be truly heart centered here.
5. Ask Divine Source, Mother Father God, to send down the Highest and most Sacred Order of Reiki guides to help with the healing of your ego while they also help you with the Reiki healing or meditation you are about to do.  Ask that your ego get everything it needs to feel safe and secure during this time.
6. Wait until you FEEL that your ego is safe and happy and then move on to your healing or meditation.
7. Continue healing your ego with meditation, psychotherapy, hypnosis, Emotional Freedom Technique or any other technique that works well for you in between healings.  These are powerful healing tools for the mind.

Remember the ego is a part of us, a part that is doing it’s best to help us and even heal us.  When we open up to new possibilities, miracles can happen.  How is your ego trying to help you?

That’s it.  Practice, intend, visualize and put emotion into it and you’ll be all good!!

Let me know how it goes, I love to hear from you!!

Blessings to you all,

Josslyn

rainshadowreiki@gmail.com or 360-460-7829