What Is a Reiki Haircut?

Editor’s note: The writer of this piece, Shawna Hudson, is a reiki master healer with five years of experience.

As a reiki master healer myself, I can attest firsthand to the incredible benefits. For those who may be unfamiliar, reiki is a system of spiritual energy healing that originated in Japan. It can promote healing in many different aspects of your life — whether emotional, spiritual, or physical. Although I have a ton of experience both giving and receiving this energy, I was on the fence when I started seeing the idea of a “reiki haircut” pop up on my social media feed. Creators, such as SavTheScientist, swear by the “intuitive and gentle” service. “It’s truly such a sacred thing, the art of hair cutting,” she said. “You will feel nourished like no other. This was the best use of a self-care day.”

Although I'm spiritual, the journalist in me is also naturally skeptical. The person who convinced me this cut is worth it, though, is Jo Marie Riedl, a ceremonial reiki hairstylist who incorporates this healing practice into her work. "I am half Indigenous and we believe that hair holds energy,” she says. “And since hair holds energy, it can be used as medicine. What better medicine is there than a pure positive charge from the universe?"

Riedl says this service is great for anyone experiencing anxiety surrounding their hair. She has serviced clients with alopecia hair loss, hair thinning, chemically damaged strands, regrettable bangs, and even folks with a lot of attachment to their mane. Her reiki services also come in handy for those who are grieving or experiencing heartbreak or loss; a reiki haircut can potentially help facilitate healing and change for all of these situations.

"I do a regular haircut consultation first,” Riedi says of her service. “[Then], I take my client to an area to receive about 22 minutes of energy healing focusing on the crown area. After the treatment I wash their hair, discuss anything that may have come up during the session, and pull an oracle card. The oracle card usually has a message tied in with their reiki session.” Riedl likes to give homework afterward in the form of a healing process suggested by the oracle cards. She even lets them take their recently cut hair home to perform a closing ritual by releasing it in a body of water or burying it. 

Of course, results are never guaranteed when it comes to reiki. There are no studies that prove it works to heal your mind or body. But people have practiced reiki for about 2,500 years, and considering the stress so many of us deal with on a daily basis, an anxiety-reducing haircut can’t hurt.