What actually happens in a group Reiki circle, and does it feel different from a private session?
Answered by Vanessa Chugani · Updated September 2026
A Reiki circle usually means several people in one room with practitioners dividing attention between them, so it is more communal and each person gets less individual time. A private session is one person, one practitioner, the whole hour. In Canggu, Vanessa's practice offers private sessions and small-group training, not open circles.
A Reiki circle, sometimes called a share, usually means several people in one room, with one or two practitioners moving between them or everyone taking turns as giver and receiver. It is a communal format. A private session is one person, one practitioner, one room, for the whole hour.
What tends to happen in a circle
Attention gets divided. A circle might run for an hour with six or eight people sharing it, so each person often gets only a few minutes of direct attention. The room is rarely silent the way a treatment room is: there is settling, and the odd whispered word as people find a position. Some people find that atmosphere is part of the appeal, a quiet building as the group settles together. What tends to be missing is a practitioner following what is actually happening for you, because there usually is not time for that in a group.
What a private session gives you instead
Sessions here are private, one to one, in person in Canggu or at a distance. The hour is yours. If your shoulders have been up by your ears for weeks, or your jaw will not unclench, that is what gets worked with, for as long as it needs. Nobody else in the room is dividing the attention, and nothing about the pace is set by anyone but you.
What stays the same either way
Some things do not change with the format. You stay fully clothed, lying down or sitting, whichever is easier that day. Hands rest lightly on or just above the body: there is no massage and no manipulation, and the room stays quiet while the session runs. Afterwards there is usually a few minutes to talk about what came up, if anything did. Feeling very little is normal, and not a sign anything went wrong.
Which one actually suits you
A circle suits someone who wants company and does not mind sharing attention. A private session suits someone who wants the whole hour on whatever they are carrying, from a wired 2am mind to grief that has nowhere else to go. This practice does not run open circles: what is offered is private sessions and Reiki training, taught live in groups of no more than six, often one to one. If it is company you want more than individual attention, an open circle elsewhere may suit you better than a private session here.
Related questions
Does Vanessa run group Reiki circles in Canggu?
No. Her sessions are private, one to one, in person or at a distance, and training happens in small groups of no more than six, often one to one. If you are picturing an open circle where several people receive together, that is not the format offered here.
Is a private session more effective than a group circle?
Not necessarily more effective, just different. A private session gives one person the whole hour and a practitioner's full attention. A circle divides that attention across a room. Which suits you depends on whether you want individual focus or a shared, communal experience.
What should I expect physically in a private session?
You stay fully clothed and lie down or sit, whichever is comfortable. Hands rest lightly on or above the body. There is no massage or manipulation, the room stays quiet throughout, and afterwards there is time to talk about what came up, if anything did.