What Practicing Reiki Unlocked in Me As An INFP

I didn’t come to Reiki through belief or prior interest; it began as a happy accident. Around a decade ago, a fellow traveler offered me a free treatment and I accepted, admittedly with a fair amount of skepticism.

The session was relaxing and revitalizing, although not especially remarkable in the moment. What stayed with me came afterward. During a post-session conversation, the practitioner described aspects of my inner world he had “intuited” during our brief silent time together—things no stranger could reasonably have known. It reinforced my sense that body, mind and energy are connected in ways I didn’t yet understand, and I began to take Reiki more seriously. 

When I “coincidentally” (I use the term loosely, as I don’t believe much in chance) met a second Reiki practitioner that same week, I asked how I might learn to do this myself. Instead of explaining, she offered to “attune” me to Reiki energy. I’ve been working with Reiki ever since. 

Why I’m Drawn to Reiki as an INFP

Like most INFPs, I’m drawn to anything that supports authentic personal growth. For me, this usually takes the form of meditation, contemplation and self-reflection. I was familiar with spiritual practices and energy healing long before I encountered personality theory, so when I began exploring the 16-type system beyond my four-letter label, it was eye-opening to learn that INFPs are often called “Healers.” Reflecting on this, I realize that practicing Reiki falls into my life as a natural extension of how I already move through the world.

For those unfamiliar, Reiki is a form of hands-on energy healing used to support physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. Its benefits are accessible to anyone through a practitioner, but it’s also something anyone can learn through an initiation process known as “attunement,” passed down through a lineage of Reiki Masters. Reiki is sometimes used as a complementary therapy in clinical settings, though many practitioners—myself included—turn to it primarily for intuitive self-healing and introspection.

Reiki works by influencing the flow of ki (the Japanese term for life-force energy, similar to chi in Traditional Chinese Medicine or prana in yogic philosophy). Essentially, it views the body and mind as reflections of our energetic state. When energy flows freely, without imbalance or blockage, we experience a greater sense of well-being. This holistic perspective resonates with my INFP tendency to look for connection, meaning and patterns beneath the surface of everyday experience.

My Journey with Reiki: 5 Paths of Personal Growth

Without getting too complicated, practicing Reiki gives my dominant cognitive function, Introverted Feeling (Fi), a way to express itself that benefits both myself and others. 

In very simple terms, cognitive functions are the fundamental mental processes—Sensing, Intuition, Thinking and Feeling—that define how individuals perceive information and make decisions. Each process can be either Introverted or Extraverted, so there are eight functions in total. Everybody uses all of them, but we have some that we prefer more than others. The dominant function for an INFP is Introverted Feeling, the voice we have that says “I need to be true to myself.” Fi means we make decisions based on how we feel about something and how it aligns with our internal moral framework. 

In practice, that shows up in a few distinct ways in my day-to-day life: 

1. Reiki helps me be more self-aware

As an Introvert, I’m naturally drawn inward, looking within myself to evaluate how life is going based on what I see and feel. Reiki gave me a structured way to do this through body scanning—using my hands to check in with myself energetically. I know this might sound a bit “out there,” so to be specific: for me, scanning doesn’t involve seeing colors or auras like it does for some Reiki practitioners. It’s more about noticing physical sensations like heat and vibration, alongside thoughts, emotions or intuitive impressions that arise.

This daily scanning has a positive effect on my mind-body connection. It helps me relax and gently pulls my INFP mind out of overthinking and back into the present moment. 

2. Reiki brings me back into balance

As I mentioned earlier, Reiki is grounded in the idea of balance. It involves releasing energy where it feels stuck and directing attention to where it’s needed. Reiki teaches that a state of equilibrium is natural; energy flows where it’s needed for healing, without our interference.

Here’s how that plays out in my own life:

• Learning Reiki challenged my tendency to make broad assumptions about my health. Checking in daily showed me how fluid well-being actually is, and how many factors are constantly shifting.
• It also humbled my inner “egotistical” optimist. I often feel convinced I can “fix” anything with my hands (thank you, Extraverted Intuition), but experience regularly proves otherwise. That gap keeps me humble and grounded.
• Offering Reiki sessions gives my sensitivity a clear outlet. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by others’ emotions and energies, I can engage with empathy while maintaining a sense of separation.
• It’s taught me how to ground and regulate my own energy, which makes me feel more steady and present.

3. Reiki enhances my connection to others

INFPs tend to need a lot of alone time and I typically view social interactions on a scale of “unnecessary” to “completely draining.” Offering Reiki—even occasionally and informally—means I can connect with others without feeling the need to run away and recover afterwards.

In a Reiki session, rather than giving someone energy that belongs to them, the practitioner acts as a channel for Reiki energy. The gift of this exchange is that, with the right intention, it can energize both the healer and the person receiving it. If this isn’t the perfect person-to-person dynamic for an INFP, I don’t know what is. 

4. Reiki reinforces my values

The Fi dimension of my personality keeps me closely attuned to my personal values, and Reiki gives those values a daily structure. Although its ethical foundation isn’t widely discussed, Reiki was developed based on five moral precepts. A practitioner is supposed to recite and adhere to these principles each day:

For today only,

• I will not anger.
• I will not worry.
• I will be grateful.
• I will work diligently and honestly.
• I will show compassion to myself and all living beings.

Returning to these each day keeps me aligned with what matters to me beneath the surface. I think it makes me a kinder, more compassionate person and encourages me to act with more consistency and care.

5. Reiki gives structure to my life

As an INFP, I tend to keep my world loosey-goosey. I actively avoid meetings, schedules and commitments as much as possible and often procrastinate or cancel plans that don’t feel “in the flow.” Instead, my sense of order originates from within; if everything in my inner world feels aligned, everything in the outside world somehow falls into place when it needs to.

Reiki, which I incorporate into my daily meditation practice, helps maintain this sense of internal structure. Through body-scanning and observation, I notice the patterns—both physical and emotional—that create a steady foundation for creativity and self-expression. Because working with energy is a growing, changing journey, my Reiki practice is something that I can commit to without feeling like I’m losing my freedom.

Final Words

Although I think anyone can benefit from learning Reiki, I can see how being an INFP makes me especially receptive to it as part of my self-care routine. Reiki gives me a sense of structure and a simple way to stay in tune with different aspects of my well-being. Sharing it with others—whether formally or casually—also gives me a way to express my values while, hopefully, offering something positive in return.

If you’re curious about the connections between body, mind and something beyond that, Reiki is a well-known and accessible path to explore. For an INFP, even one session can be enough to open the door to a new way of understanding yourself.