You Don’t Have to Be “Healed” to Help Others Heal

I hear it from Reiki students all the time: “I stopped practicing because I’m still messed up. I don’t want to pass that energy to someone else.” Let me say this plainly—if you had to be fully healed before helping anyone, no one would ever do healing work. Not me. Not you. Not anyone.

Here’s the truth: we all carry layers—old wounds, patterns, and stories that show up again and again. You can work through something in therapy, feel like it’s done, and years later another layer appears. That doesn’t mean you failed or didn’t heal enough. It’s just how being human works. Healing isn’t a finish line; it’s a lifelong relationship with yourself.

And here’s the part that matters for Reiki: you are not the source of the energy. You are a channel. You are not dumping your emotions into someone else. Universal energy already knows what to do. If you had to be perfectly healed first, Reiki wouldn’t exist—and none of us would qualify.

Even the Buddha spent years searching, doubting, and figuring things out before teaching anyone else. Being human and helping others are not opposites. Your own healing journey actually makes you more compassionate, grounded, and able to hold space for others.

So if you’ve stopped practicing because you feel too messy or unfinished, stop. You’re not broken. You’re not disqualified. You’re human. And humans are allowed to help each other while still growing. Always.