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All Healing is Self Healing

One of the basic tenets of the Healing Touch Program is all healing is self healing.

People are often curious about my work in Healing Touch, asking “What do you do?” But what they really want to know is, “How can you help me?” We are so accustomed to the Western model of healthcare, it makes sense when someone comes in with a “problem,” they want to know how I can help fix the problem. Last month I wrote about the benefits of Healing Touch. But this is a topic that can be taken to a much deeper level.

As a Healing Touch practitioner, my job isn’t about me telling a client how I can help them. In fact,

one of the the most important moments during a session is when I ask my client, “How can I help you?”

Why is this such an important question and what does this have to do with self-healing?

It’s been nearly 20 years since I stepped into my first Healing Touch class, curious about how to help people heal but completely oblivious to the fact that this class would be a turning point in my life. It was the first step in a complete and profound transformation of my understanding of anatomy and physiology, health and healing.

Up until then, my understanding of healthcare came from a deep respect for Western medicine, my father being a highly regarded dermatologist and someone whom I admired. Our family dinnertime conversations often revolved around interesting cases that he had seen that day, and even as a young girl I was always fascinated and eager to learn.

My experience of Western medicine included annual physicals to get my shots and make sure everything was OK. If any illness cropped up between check-ups, the doctor would give me medicine to make me better. If something serious occurred, like the day I was in severe pain with appendicitis, surgery took care of the problem.

I ended up studying biology in college, received a masters degree in education, and spent several years teaching. As I took time off to raise my four sons, my interest in pursuing a career in healthcare was bubbling on the back burner of my mind, wondering if I would ever return to teaching high school biology but sensing that there was a desire to do something different with that foundation.

I distinctly remember the first words to cross my mind when I completed Healing Touch Level 1: “That was different!”

Stepping into the world of Healing Touch and energy medicine opened me up to a completely new way of viewing health that encompassed not only my physical well-being, but also the emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects of my being. It expanded me into the world of energy, something that is subtle, often difficult to describe, but most definitely there.

With continued study and practice through the advanced levels of the Healing Touch Program, I knew that I wanted to share this beautiful and heart-centered approach with others. I built an active practice and eventually brought things full circle by advancing my certification to the level of Healing Touch instructor- the perfect merging of my deep respect for Western medicine and my love of biology, healthcare, and teaching, in a much more expanded, all-encompassing, holistic way.

So why is it so important to ask my clients, “How can I help you?” rather than telling them?

There are three main reasons why this is such an important question. They are all based on one of the basic tenets that I teach in my Healing Touch workshops: All healing is self healing.

  1. Partnership: I am not here to tell my clients what they need to feel better. I am not here to “fix” anything. I view my work as a partnership with each of my clients.
  2. Empowerment: My approach is always about empowering my clients to be actively involved in their own healing process. As they get in touch with their innate wisdom and healing potential, they are empowered to set their own intentions and goals.
  3. Self healing: My job is to facilitate the healing process. I always tell my clients, “You drive the bus. I’m here to help navigate.” As the client relaxes into the session, usually with guided breathwork, they open themselves up to transformation and healing, allowing the natural process of homeostasis to bring them back into a state of balance. During the session I tune in, follow my client’s energy, and like the lens of a camera, collect and focus healing energy where it is needed. There are methods for clearing old patterns, bringing in new energy, and balancing the client’s energy system. But ultimately, the healing occurs from within the clients themselves and it is based on their intention for healing, not mine.

In all, there are 30 basic tenets of the Healing Touch Program. “All healing is self healing” is just one of them. Would you like to learn more? Would you like to find out how Healing Touch can have a positive impact on your own health and the healing you might want to offer to others? You have many options.

Whatever you decide to do, you will have an opportunity to learn a bit about energy medicine and what I do as a Healing Touch practitioner and instructor. More importantly, you will begin to understand and experience for yourself why all healing is self healing.

Katie Oberlin

A Healing Touch Certified Practitioner, Katie received advanced training in shamanic healing at The Power Path School of Shamanism in 2014. Her travels have taken her to power spots in the southwestern United States, as well as Mexico and Peru, where she has worked with shamans from the Q’ero and Shipibo indigenous healing traditions.