KEENE, N.H. (MyKeeneNow) After more than three decades of practicing Reiki in Australia, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, Reiki Master Cam Auxer has opened a new practice in Keene, hoping to help people manage one of today’s biggest health challenges: chronic stress.

Auxer recently opened her office at 93 Roxbury St., Room 2W, after previously practicing at European Esthetics in Peterborough. She shares the space with massage therapist Jenny Laclair and says the welcoming atmosphere makes it an ideal setting for her work.

Her personal motto is simple.

“Life happens. Reiki helps.”

Auxer first discovered Reiki while living in Western Australia in 1991. She said the experience immediately convinced her to pursue the Japanese healing practice.

“My first encounter with Reiki was electrifying — literally,” Auxer said. “I could feel the energy racing through my body. I knew that Reiki was something I wanted to explore.”

She completed Reiki Levels 1 and 2 before earning advanced and master certifications and has practiced ever since, offering sessions in Australia before continuing in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

Reiki is a complementary wellness practice in which practitioners use light touch or place their hands just above the body with the goal of promoting relaxation and supporting the body’s natural healing processes. During sessions, clients remain fully clothed.

“Bodies know how to heal themselves,” she said. “I’m not the healer. Reiki is like giving the body a little extra energy to support what it’s already trying to do.”

Sessions begin with a conversation about the client’s goals, followed by guided breathing exercises and 30 to 60 minutes of Reiki. Clients often report feeling deeply relaxed, and some even fall asleep during treatment.

Throughout her career, Auxer has worked with people experiencing chronic pain, anxiety, emotional distress and serious illness. One of the experiences that left the greatest impression on her came while volunteering at an AIDS conference in Pennsylvania.

After receiving Reiki, one man living with advanced AIDS and cancer broke down in tears.

“He said, ‘That’s the first time anybody would touch me in years,'” Auxer recalled. “I felt privileged to be there for people and help them feel some sense of comfort emotionally and physically.”

She believes compassionate touch can be healing on its own, with Reiki providing an added sense of calm and relaxation.

Auxer said Reiki has become increasingly accepted in medical settings, with many hospitals offering it as a complementary service for patients dealing with pain, anxiety or cancer treatment.

She experienced that firsthand in 2018 when she underwent chemotherapy after being diagnosed with cancer.

“I received Reiki during my chemo sessions,” she said. “That was an unexpected pleasure.”

The experience came full circle after years of providing Reiki to cancer patients herself.

Beyond her Reiki practice, Auxer’s career has centered on health education. She worked on cancer prevention initiatives through Penn State University and the National Cancer Institute before conducting HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C outreach during a heroin epidemic in central Pennsylvania.

She also holds a certificate as a holistic health educator from the former Mount Nittany Institute of Natural Health, earned a master’s degree in communication from Kent State University and is the author of When Bodies Break: How We Survive and Thrive with Illness and Disability.

Auxer is accepting appointments Mondays and Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with weekend appointments available when possible. Appointments may be scheduled by texting 603-242-5061 with a name and phone number for a return call.