In today’s fast-paced and emotionally demanding professional landscape, the conversation around employee wellbeing has never been more important or more complex. Mental health challenges, emotional fatigue, and burnout have become common, particularly in high-stakes, high-stress sectors.
While corporate wellness initiatives often address surface-level needs, there is a growing awareness that deeper, more holistic interventions are required, ones that acknowledge the emotional weight employees carry, especially in caregiving or mentally intensive roles.
Whether in healthcare, corporate offices, or high-growth startups, employees are being asked to perform amid uncertainty, disruption, and constant change. This can take a significant toll on their ability to show up fully, learn effectively, and contribute meaningfully.
Impact on caregivers
Caregivers in clinical settings, for instance, experience this at an amplified level. Their work, though purposeful, is emotionally consuming. Over time, stress, anxiety, and fatigue begin to erode resilience, team cohesion, and even retention. But this isn’t exclusive to hospitals, burnout and emotional depletion now touch almost every profession.
As HR professionals and business leaders, we are tasked not only to support performance but also create nurturing environments where people can recharge and feel whole again.
Reiki as a solution
One such approach, rooted in care, presence, and balance, is Reiki, a gentle, curative modality, that offers a unique and thoughtful solution.
- Reiki simply means “Universal Life Force Energy.”
- It is a Japanese restorative technique which is safe, simple, natural, non-invasive, has no dogma, nor any religious beliefs and is deeply therapeutic.
- It is also classified as a biofield therapy – noninvasive therapies in which the practitioner explicitly works with a client’s biofield (interacting fields of energy and information that surround living systems)
- The practice involves a trained practitioner placing their hands lightly on or just above the body, allowing free flow of energy to encourage the recipient’s natural healing processes.
- The person receiving Reiki remains fully clothed and in control of the experience.
The intention of this treatment is to:
- Create deep relaxation
- Reduce anxiety, stress, pain
- Restore balance
- Enhance overall wellbeing
The session simply offers a space for the nervous system to rest and recalibrate. In practical terms, Reiki can be described as a healing pause — a space where the body slows down, the mind quiets, and the emotional load gets just a bit lighter.
Case example: Pandemic pilot program
During pandemic, a world class healthcare facility piloted Reiki program to support caregivers. All staff were invited to participate in group Reiki sessions. The results were striking:
- Before sessions, caregivers described feeling: Tired. Stressed. Fatigued. Anxious. Emotionally depleted.
- After Reiki, staff defined feeling: Lighter. Calm. Relieved. Refreshed. Resilient. At peace.
These weren’t just feel-good anecdotes. Across the board, participants showed improvements. While more empirical research is still needed, published studies in peer reviewed journals have noted Reiki’s impact on reducing anxiety, depression, and perceived stress.
What this tells us is simple: when people are given the space to slow down and reset, they show up differently. They feel better, and in turn, are better able to engage with their work, their teams, and themselves.
Beyond healthcare
You don’t need to be in healthcare to apply this insight. Every workplace has caregivers, people who hold emotional responsibility for others, whether as managers, team leads, client-facing staff, or HR professionals. These roles are vital but often invisible in their emotional toll.
Here’s how forward-thinking organizations can integrate Reiki into their culture of care:
- Drop-in Reiki Sessions as part of wellness days or mental health weeks
- Group Reiki Circles to help teams recharge after intense project cycles or change events
- Programs that allow teams to experience Reiki in a low-pressure, opt-in format
Benefits for organisations
What often emerges isn’t just relaxation, it’s clarity, emotional balance, and a renewed sense of self. Reiki is not a replacement for clinical care or mental health services. Rather, it serves as a complementary support — one that is subtle, accessible, and deeply human.
For HR and leadership teams focused on:
- Reducing burnout and turnover
- Improving emotional safety and wellbeing
- Fostering presence and connection in leadership
- Supporting trauma-informed workplace practices
Reiki offers a way to engage employees in care without needing to ask them to “fix” themselves or share personal details. It’s simply a soothing space, led by intention and grounded in empathy and compassion.
Closing thought
As we move toward more human-centered models of leadership, it’s time to expand how we think about care. Wellness isn’t just about gym discounts or digital apps. It’s about giving people access to experiences that restore their capacity to be present, balanced, and engaged.
Reiki invites us to do just that. Quietly, respectfully, and powerfully.
Because a thriving culture isn’t built only on KPIs and policies, it’s built on energy, deep human connection, trust, and care.
Introducing Shilpa
Shilpa is a Medical Scientist with 15 years’ experience in Clinical Laboratory and Nursing Education in Abu Dhabi. A Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach (FMCHC) and Certified Sound Alchemist, she founded Tribe of Warrior Women to support oncology patients. Her healing journey, Farasha, was published in The Healing Revolution Diet, and she has been recognized in Passion Vista and named among the Global 200 Women Power Leaders 2025. A Reiki Master Practitioner of 25 years, Shilpa continues advancing her training in Breathwork and Integrative Metabolic Health.