There is a bit of an inner skeptic in us all and it can be a frustrating reflection to encounter from another party, especially since it’s such a common encounter in our work. Sometimes patience and soft, persistent demonstration is all we need to calm others’ inner skeptics to assist them in opening just enough to receive the healing gift that we offer.

Pat Barton of Raleigh, North Carolina discovered how a persistent softness was enough to calm others’ inner skeptic and here is her story:

During the spring and summer of 2012, I had already been volunteering several years at the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Maryland when I learned about and took Levels 1 and 2 of Healing Touch for Animals. I have been interested in energy work since the 1980s, engaging in many courses, seminars, and personal wellness experiences in a variety of modalities. HTA just felt like “coming home” to me, combining my interest in the well-being of animals with my experience and growing knowledge of energy work. Not surprising, I started talking about what I had learned in my HTA classes to other volunteers and staff at the shelter.

What did surprise me was the rather cool reception to my “good news” and offers to provide some energetic support to the animals. Looking back, I think that many people are just a bit unsure of what energy work is about. I often hear, “I don’t believe in that.” In any event, I continued to quietly provide some chakra balancing, magnetic clearing, etheric heartbeat, and behavioral change work to the foster animals in my home, not wanting to turn people off at the shelter by being a “broken record.” Then one day everything changed!

On a Saturday in early spring 2013, I was at the shelter doing training for new volunteers, when the volunteer coordinator, Kim Teter, approached me in a rather tentative, but somewhat excited way. She said, “Would you be willing to do ‘that thing you do’ with one of the dogs in kennel?” All of a sudden my plans to take an afternoon clicker training class dissolved and my response was a resounding, “Yes, yes, yes!” Though I was a bit nervous, this was my opportunity to have the staff’s blessing to work with one of the dogs.

Darkness was a big, black, two year old lab mix who was not ready to be in the adoptable area of the shelter because of his deep anxiety. He was very fearful of humans and cowered in the back of his run (with indoor and outdoor sections) barking and snarling at anyone’s approach. As Kim and I approached his run, Darkness responded in his normal way. She suggested I step inside and she would hang a towel over the front of the cage and wait outside while I “did my thing.” I slowly took a seat on the floor placing a towel in front of me.

Not looking directly at Darkness, I started sending some positive energy out into the run. I was softly chanting when I noticed a nose in by back from the neighboring kennel and another nose under the fence from the opposite kennel. I had some allies! These dogs were also receiving energetic benefits and assisting me with Darkness. Before long, the barking stopped and curiosity took over. Darkness came closer as I placed a small treat on the towel. He tentatively took it and immediately moved back. After the third round of this, he stood by while I did some clearing. Then he allowed me to assess his chakras, do some chakra balancing and end with Etheric Heartbeat. He let me know when he was “finished” with this session by moving away. As I slowly stood to leave Darkness followed me to the front of his run. Kim’s response was nothing short of amazement!

I planned to return on Tuesday to do some follow-up work with my new friend and to discuss with caretakers any observations they had made on Darkness since my work with him on Saturday. When I arrived, I was dismayed to find that he was not in his run. What happened? Where’s Darkness! My alarm soon turned to delight when Joe, Darkness’ caretaker, told me he had gone to the adoption area. Going over to the viewing area, my delight turned to tearful elation, when I discovered that our boy had already had an application and was preparing to go to his new, forever home.

So, you see, it took Darkness to shed some light on the benefits of energetic healing. Now, I am encouraged to use HTA with the animals at the SPCA. I always consult with staff for suggestions and am now incorporating the Healing Touch Music and will soon be adding essential oils to my repertoire. What had been viewed with some skepticism is now welcomed. The beneficiaries of this openness, of course, are the dogs. My heartfelt thanks go out to Kim for opening the door and to Darkness whose beautiful light now shines in the home of his forever family.

Let us take a pause to reflect on a critical component not only required as a healing practitioner but as an individual: Self-care.

Daily practices in self-care not only summon our True Nature, but they also help us to discern the difference between our natural intuition and the chaotic echoes created by our minds. When we don’t practice this discernment, it’s much like a sports player entering the game having not attended practice, and it’s difficult to hit one out of the park when one is out of practice. Simply put, we cannot offer energy work in a clean, meaningful way for others if our own energetic housework isn’t being done.

As healing practitioners we are entrusted with very deep, sacred spaces. In order to both understand and work within the appropriate level of depth that some of these spaces require, we must be anchored in our Higher Selves. Once we are anchored in our higher selves, only then can our body, mind, heart and spirit harmoniously receive and share their gifts. Whether it’s time on the Healing Touch table, meditation, Yoga, time in nature, a favorite hobby and/or prayer, it’s crucial to have a consistent practice that feels nourishing and/or refuels your ability to serve others.

There is a particular stone that often goes unturned: Toolbox Inventory. It is necessary for each of us to take regular inventory of our toolboxes to be sure that the tools we’ve been using are still applicable and resonate in a meaningful way. For instance, if meditation was your elixir when you first stepped foot onto your path, perhaps now you’ve grown in a way that active meditation is also an elixir (conscious dance, jogging, etc.) This doesn’t mean that you have to let go of meditating altogether, it simply means that there may be other tools that work for you in addition to the originals. We are constantly changing and growing as individuals, so it’s necessary to check in with yourself once in a while to be sure that your self-care practice is commensurate to that of your current needs.

Don’t forget about the abundance of additional tools and resources at your disposal as well. Between modern technology and the lights starting to switch on everywhere in the world, it is no longer difficult to find a community of like-minded individuals that feel supportive to you.

Let’s not forget the importance of connecting with family and friends. This is yet another critical piece to our self-care puzzle since a large portion of our nourishment in this human experience lies in authentically connecting with those we love. Add time with loved ones to your To-Do List or your calendar since it’s as much a priority as “doing what needs to be done.”

So often we get lost in doing that we completely forget that some of our energetic work is shared when we are simply being. In order to have the tenacity and energy required to assist any individual in their healing process, proper rest and nourishment are also necessary. If we show up disheveled, unbalanced and tired, we’re not much good to anyone, including ourselves. While this may seem obvious, these practical practices in self-care are a reflection that our clients may be inspired to reciprocate. After all, rest and nutrition are key components for good health and balance overall.

The best part of being, no matter how practical it may seem, is witnessing the way in which is comes around full circle when your client’s self-care (reflected by yours) complements your session and their whole receiving meets your whole offering.

We’d love to hear about your daily self-care practice! Comment below to join the conversation.

The bond between animals and their humans is strong, and it is even more so when it comes to assistance dogs and their owners. Together, the two form a team, each relying on the other for survival. Not every dog trained ultimately becomes a service dog, but the great need for these animals is dire. Training is time-consuming and hard work, for both dog and trainer, so when there is an issue with the dog that can be overcome, it’s critical to make it happen.

Healing Touch for Animals® practitioner Deb Bauer, from Cochranville, Pennsylvania, experienced this first-hand. Here is her story

I train service dogs to help people with various disabilities. One of the dogs in our program did not tolerate grooming very well. He was a breed that requires regular and extensive grooming, so this was an issue. His trainer worked with him religiously to teach him to be more tolerant. He was able to be groomed, but it was a struggle for even his trainer. We knew that his behavior would be difficult for someone with a disability to handle on a regular basis. So the dog was released from our program and we set about trying to find him a nice home as someone’s pet.

While we were waiting, his hair grew and grew. We needed to get him groomed to make him look good for people who wanted to come meet him. We called the vet to come sedate him so we could shave him and get him groomed in a stress-free manner. I was to be the person to shave him and get him groomed while he was sedated, so I waited with him for the vet to arrive.

As fate would have it, the vet was detained and was late showing up, and I knew I had other commitments later in the day. I started working with the dog with HTA techniques and I was able to turn on the clippers near him without upsetting him too much. More HTA: I ran the clippers over his body lightly without actually clipping his hair. More HTA: I was able to clip his body hair a little at a time. Interspersing HTA techniques in with the grooming, I had the dog almost completely clipped by the time the vet arrived.

Clipping his face would be the hardest and I saved it until last, hoping the vet would arrive by then. She had arrived, but because I was having such success, I decided to try it on my own.

Thanks to HTA techniques I was able to finish grooming the dog. We decided to give the dog another chance in our training program to see if he would continue to make progress with the grooming issues. He did. He can now be groomed and clipped regularly without any issues! He has been placed and is working as a service dog with his very own person, and he is always well-groomed and proudly wears his many fancy collars to show off his new haircuts

If you have a story about HTA techniques, we would love to hear about it. Please contact us!