EHS, Reiki & Me

By Hilary de Vries

I am a Reiki Master practitioner and teacher. I am also electro-hyper sensitive. Electro-hyper sensitivity is also referred to as electrosensitivity or electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS for short).

These terms are all used to refer to sensitivity to and intolerance of electromagnetic radiation (EMR) [i]. Sources include mobile phones, wi-fi, Bluetooth, cordless phones, pylons, electrical wiring and smart meters. Symptoms include muscle ache, dizziness, fatigue and rashes. [ii]

I have been EHS for over 15 years. There are various reasons people may develop sensitivity, including over exposure to wireless signals or living near high voltage power lines. In my case, the cause is most likely the multiple amalgam fillings I had for many years and which impacted my overall health; now with the fillings removed, my health has improved but I am left with the EHS. [iii]

I was already EHS when I first heard of Reiki and began exploring the possibility of learning it. What enabled me to do this was my Reiki teacher, Elizabeth Harley, being willing to have any wi-fi off and to have the other students on the course also turn their phones off. Without Elizabeth doing this, I wouldn’t have been able to take an in-person course or attunement and follow it all the way to Master level. I appreciate more and more the difference that made as the possibility of in-person participation for me today is highly unlikely due to the increasing prevalence of wireless devices and people’s reliance on them.

Being trained in Reiki has helped me to continue working and to offer a valuable service to others, despite these restrictions. I work from home from a wooden building in my garden that has no wi-fi and minimal wiring. Clients are asked to turn their phones off before arrival, which benefits the quality of their session as well as being vital for me. It brings me into contact with others in a safe environment and allows me to be my normal self. I can also offer courses from here and it is a joy to be able to share Reiki with others.

Working in a low exposure environment also removes so much of the daily stress that comes with being EHS. When almost everyone carries a transmitter in their pocket and more and more places have wi-fi, it can be really stressful for me negotiating daily life and makes it almost impossible to do anything spontaneously.

Even a visit to the dentist can be difficult. A trip round the shops can be akin to running the gauntlet; a shop that is fine on one visit can have had a new wireless system fitted the next time; having to wait too long in a queue can increase exposure to and pain from other people’s phones around me.

Reiki helps relax and process the stress and to centre me. In addition, I find the Reiki precept ‘Be grateful’ particularly helpful. Despite the difficulties, there is still a tremendous amount I have to be grateful for.

Remembering this helps lift me and change my focus, especially when feelings of isolation are strong and new difficulties arise. I’m also grateful that the UKRF offers so many online events, meaning that I can participate, and meet with practitioners further afield, something that wouldn’t otherwise be possible. Yes, I miss the in-person contact, but the access to the online is invaluable. Plus the fact that the UKRF continues to produce a printed magazine means I can sit and read it and get away entirely from any electrical devices and other sources of EMR.

I wish I could say that Reiki has healed my EHS. It hasn’t, but it has brought benefits in other ways that make life more manageable. If there is one piece of advice I’d like to give, it’s this: please, please don’t sleep with your mobile phone on next to your bed. Give your body a rest. We are all electro-sensitive to a greater or lesser degree; when that crosses into electro-hyper sensitivity, life becomes a lot harder.

Look after yourself.

Hilary de Vries
UKRF Member
Composer/musician/artist and Reiki Master/Teacher based near Inverness

[i] Why electrohypersensitivity and related symptoms are caused by non-ionizing man-made electromagnetic fields: An overview and medical assessment- Dominique Belpomme & Philippe Irigaray https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935122007010
[ii] Electrosensitivity(ES), Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity (EHS) and Electrophobia (EPh):
Facts and Falsehoods- ES-UK https://www.es-uk.info/resources/
[iii] Recovery from Electromagnetic Intolerance: Key Precursors – Magda Havas p.15
https://esmed.org/recovery-from-electromagnetic-intolerance-key-precursors/