Fertility treatment is often described as a medical process — appointments, medications, bloodwork, ultrasounds, procedures. But anyone who has lived it knows the experience goes far beyond the physical body.
It can be a time filled with hope, but also uncertainty, waiting, grief, and emotional exhaustion. Many people describe feeling as though their life is on hold, caught between cycles and results, trying to stay hopeful while also protecting their heart.
Over my years of working as a Fertility Nurse, I have witnessed just how much patients carry — not only physically, but emotionally and mentally. I began incorporating Reiki and holistic healing modalities into my work because I saw a need that medicine alone, even at its very best, cannot fully address: a safe place for the nervous system, the mind, and the heart to rest.
What Is Reiki?
Reiki is a gentle energy-based relaxation practice that originated in Japan in the early 1900s. The word itself combines two Japanese concepts: “Rei,” meaning universal, and “Ki,” meaning life energy.
During a session, the practitioner uses light touch or hands placed just above the body while the client rests comfortably, fully clothed. The practitioner acts as a channel or guide for the energy to flow. We use the body’s chakra system, which acts as the energy centres in the body. We can also assess where one my have blocks in energy flow. The goal is not to “fix” one particular part of the body, but to help restore overall balance.
Most people report sensations such as warmth, heaviness, or deep relaxation — and many fall asleep. It is best understood as a structured relaxation practice that helps the body move out of chronic stress mode.
Why the Nervous System Matters in Fertility
The body has two main nervous system states:
Sympathetic (“fight-or-flight”) — alert, protective, vigilant
Parasympathetic (“rest-and-digest”) — calm, restorative, regulating
When you are going through infertility, your body is rarely at rest.
You are waiting for phone calls. Monitoring symptoms. Managing medications and injections. Counting days in a cycle. Bracing yourself for results.
During prolonged stress, the sympathetic system stays activated. This can increase cortisol, elevate heart rate, and contribute to inflammation. Reproductive processes depend on coordinated hormonal signaling, and the body functions best when it can access the parasympathetic state.
Reiki aims to help the body access this calmer state. Studies have observed reductions in anxiety and improvements in mood, along with changes in physiologic markers such as heart rate and blood pressure.
This does not mean Reiki causes pregnancy. Rather, it supports the conditions under which the body functions best.
The Emotional Weight of Infertility
Infertility is not only a medical diagnosis. It is an ongoing emotional experience.
Patients often describe anxiety before appointments, grief after failed cycles, fear before starting treatment, and isolation from friends and family.
Reiki offers something simple but powerful: a space where nothing is required of you. You are not tracking, analyzing, or performing. You are allowed to rest.
Emotional release is common — sometimes tears, sometimes relief, sometimes simply quiet. Many patients report feeling clearer, calmer, and more hopeful afterward.
How Reiki Fits Alongside Medical Care
Reiki is intended to work with fertility treatment, not instead of it. Complementary care can support with stress regulation, sleep, circulation, digestion, and overall well-being during treatment.
It can be particularly helpful during the two-week wait, before starting IVF, after unsuccessful cycles, following pregnancy loss, or when beginning injections or new protocols.
The goal is not control over outcomes. The goal is support while you move through uncertainty.
Author Bio
Tali Shvartsman is a Registered Nurse, Reiki Master and Certified Breathwork Facilitator with over 14 years of experience in Fertility Nursing. Her work focuses on providing supportive, complementary care to individuals navigating fertility treatment.
References
Baldwin, A. L., Wagers, C., & Schwartz, G. E. (2008). Reiki improves heart rate homeostasis in laboratory rats. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 14(4), 417-422.
Díaz-Rodríguez, L., et al. (2011). Immediate effects of Reiki on heart rate variability and cortisol levels. Biological Research for Nursing, 13(4), 376-382.