Whole body treatment
reiki works by stimulating the body's natural healing processes. In a whole-body reiki treatment, recipient's lie down, usually on a massage table, and relax. After a few moments of preparing a calm mind, treatment begins with the practitioner placing their hands over the recipient in various positions without touching; although some practitioners will employ both touching and non-touching techniques. Between 12 and 20 varying hand positions are used, with the whole treatment lasting about 45 to 60 minutes.

Some reiki practitioners use a set of fixed hand positions while others operate an intuitive system allowing their hands to guide them to areas requiring treatment.

Recipients often describe a sensation of warmth or slight tingling on the areas being treated, even when there has been no physical contact and a state of deep relaxation is usually the most immediate effect of reiki treatment. Several treatments may be required over several weeks with treatment intervals typically 1 to 4 weeks.

Localised treatment
This type of treatment involves focused attention with hands placed on or near injured or impaired areas of the body.

Duration of such treatments varies depending on the injury, with 20 minutes sessions on average being typical. Some practitioners use pre-defined hand positions for particular types of treatment while others prefer to give a whole body treatment followed by specifically targeting areas requiring more attention.