Working from a place of gratefulness vs. expectation

The other day I had an interesting session. I was practicing on a new client.  We focused on her back, which was very tense, and she could feel the warmth of the hands and how the tension was literally melting. Yet when the session was over, she looked at me with questioning eyes, and said: “I need to ask you something: ‘What am I supposed to feel during and after a #Reiki session?'” I told her people experiment different things, bust mostly a feeling of relaxation and wellbeing, probably some warmth and tingling as well. She looked at me again and asked: “So I am not supposed to have this big spiritual awakening or vision?” When I said, ‘Not really’, she looked relieved. She actually enjoyed the treatment and was feeling quite good, but because of what people had told her, she had other expectations.
Walking back to my house I started thinking on how the expectations people set for Reiki treatments and meditation sometimes hinder these modalities. How people may give them up after a few tries because they didn’t feel a “life-changing energetic shift” or a “mystical experience.”
It’s so easy to forget that contentment and peacefulness, as well as relaxation and balance, are gifts both rare and precious, even if they come without fanfare.
When you are centered you can think straight, and make decisions that will alter your life in a positive way. When you are content, you appreciate what you have and feel grateful. Your life makes sense. You get distance from craziness and become less reactive.
As a Reiki practitioner, working from a place of gratefulness has worked way better for me than working from great expectations.
So, next time you try a #Reiki session, be gentle with yourself: allow your body and mind to relax, let go of the need to meddle or control, offer it with simplicity and humility, and notice if your practice feels different.