Hi, my name is Megan Hassen. My journey into stress reduction began during the pandemic, when I was feeling very burned out at work.  My cousin introduced me to Yoga Nidra, a deep rest meditation practice.  I took a class called ‘Daring to Rest’ by Karen Brody that changed my life.  Through that experience, I realized I had never given myself permission to rest.  Ruled by my to do list, I just kept going until I was too tired to do anything else.

Meditation became a regular part of my life - missing a day was not an option.  Not only did it give me the rest my body so desperately needed, it freed my mind from the programming I grew up with.  I realized I had been living my life to please others and not myself.  This was the beginning of a huge transformation for me.

I quit a 25 year career in the legal field without a plan of what I would do next.  Even though this went against everything I’d been taught, I just couldn’t show up in the way I wanted to at work.  For the first time in my life, I had no plan, no goal, no direction.  It was weirdly blissful, and yet, I knew I was not done contributing.

I began asking deeper questions about what I really wanted to do with my time.  I took several classes exploring gardening, herbal medicine and eventually, Reiki, a Japanese stress reduction technique.  I had heard of Reiki a decade prior, in a magazine I picked up at the grocery store.  Back then, overwhelmed by work and parenting, I believed I had zero time for such things.   I now realize this was part of my limited belief system, keeping me stuck on the hamster wheel.

When I received my first Reiki placement (a process where a teacher helps you receive the Reiki energy), I was blown away.  Feeling the waves of beautiful energy in my body wasn’t consistent with anything I had learned in my more analytical, science based world view.  How was this even possible?

I didn’t use it at first.  There was a lot to digest from the training and I wasn’t sure where to start.  A couple of weeks later a big snowstorm hit Salem.  While walking my dog, I stepped on a ledge hidden by the snow and sprained my ankle.  I’ve had a few of these events in my life and know it can take several weeks for a sprain to heal.  Mine healed overnight with Reiki.  I’m still in awe of that experience.

That was when things really started to shift for me.  I immersed myself in Reiki classes and became a Reiki Master.  I used Reiki on myself, my family, my friends, my dog - basically anyone who was receptive.  It felt like magic to me, and I continue to allow it to show me how beautiful life can be.

Finally, I began inviting Reiki into my daily Yoga Nidra sessions.  I’ve learned how easy it is to feel good when I make the space and allow it to come in.  I feel so lucky to have discovered these tools that have opened my mind, allowed my body to heal and helped me become aligned with who I really am.