How the Nervous System Regulates Stress and Where Reiki Fits In

To understand how Reiki may help with stress and burnout, we first need to understand how the nervous system regulates itself.

The Nervous System Is Always Scanning for Safety

Your nervous system is constantly asking one question:

Am I safe right now?

It asks this question below conscious awareness. It does not rely on logic. It relies on cues.

If your system detects safety, it shifts toward regulation. If it detects threat, it shifts toward protection.

This happens through two primary branches of the autonomic nervous system:

The sympathetic branch, often associated with fight or flight.