Benny my beautiful little cat……

…………some background information first about Reiki and the world of nature…….

One thing I can say for sure is that working within the Reiki System of Healing brings you very much closer to nature. I have always loved animals but now I seem to have opened up something inside that gives me an extra affinity with nature. After my first attunements in my Level One Reiki training I vividly noticed and became aware of everything to do with the natural world around me. I had never really taken any notice of things like trees or birds before. By this I mean intense interest. Now I always hear the birds around me, I feel joyful because of it and constantly gaze at my natural surroundings when out and about with the wonder of an innocent child.

Reiki is another word for “Spiritual Energy”, the type of energy that flows within and around us all. The Reiki System of Healing that I practice dates back to the early 1900s and originates from the East…..Japan. It is believed within this System that everything in the Universe is interconnected and Reiki Practitioners learn through meditation and techniques how to share this energy. As Practitioners, we consciously share it with intent during a treatment but there are times when there is a subconscious sharing of this energy. Occasions when we haven’t made an effort to do so – it just happens naturally. A lot of the time, as someone who works daily with this System you automatically feel that interconnectedness with other living beings. That’s what I believe has helped me to connect and feel so close to animals.

Such a lovely little girl……

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This is Benny – when we brought her as a kitten, we thought she was a boy. When the time was right, I took her to see my lovely vet to get her neutered and after a quick examination, he turned around with a smile and said, “This isn’t a male, it’s a female! I can still go ahead but it’ll cost you another £15”. Anyway, from then onwards she remained a “Benny” as my daughter Sophie wanted to leave her name as it was. I did buy Benny for her but when Sophie left the household to move into her own first home she stayed with me and my other two cats.

Benny was an adventurer! She was tiny, cute and very vocal. She came for fuss when she felt like it and spent a lot of time outdoors. She had her own little places in the house that she liked to go to snooze and and she loved my ginger Tom called Marmalade, vying for his attention whenever my other female cat Pixie wasn’t around. The two girls didn’t really get on and seemed to stay out of each other’s way. When we had the builders in for a couple of months, she disappeared for what seemed like forever….weeks….and just wandered through the door after they finally left and everything was back to normal. She was the bird/mouse killer and often brought her little presents into the house. Boy was she clever though, greeting you with a knowing look in her eye as if she knew everything you were saying and had an understanding of the world that was almost human.

Benny became more affectionate as she got older but was never a lap cat. This is where my story gets more interesting and takes a turn into territory tainted by sadness. On coming back from a week away, after a day or so I noticed that Benny was snuffling and this continued for more than a few days. I contacted the vet and eventually had to take her to be checked over. She had some investigations as it wouldn’t clear up, with a turn for the worse when her breathing became more difficult. It sounded awful, laboured and rasping. At first it was thought to be a chronic upper respiratory tract problem but my vet decided to refer her to a hospital in Derby for further tests. She was anaesthetised and had a camera procedure to look into the affected area alongside imaging being performed. I was glad to have insurance so that I could pay to find out what the problem was. My worst fears were confirmed when the lovely vet looking after her called to let me know that she suspected they had found a nasal cancer that was blocking her nasal passages and invading the lower part of her brain.

During the procedure, part of the cancer came away, which proved very helpful to little Benny as it completely relieved the breathing problems. After she had recovered, she came home to me and her care was transferred back over to my own vet. He prescribed a course of steroids for her to slow the growth of the cancer, explaining to me that the steroids would kill off some of the cancer cells but not enough to stop the growth altogether. My insurance wasn’t enough to cover the cost of more tests, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. That was the recommended treatment but I was told it would only extend life rather than effect a cure. So steroids were the only treatment available to her. She could have a course of them and then it would just be a waiting game. I felt so sad this had happened especially as my little beauty was only 6 years old and in the prime of her life. It seemed so unfair!

I read a lot about the condition and was horrified by what I read. My vet confirmed that things were going to get worse for her. He told me that as the cancer grows, neurological problems like seizures are common and nose bleeds plus varying amounts of pain in her head were to be expected. That it was up to me to come back to him when I felt she needed his help.

I shared Reiki with little Benny an awful lot…….every day in fact. She would come to me, cuddle up on my knee, curl up in a little contented ball and appear to be snoozing, gently purring as she slept. Towards the end this was what she constantly sought…..comfort from lying curled up with me. I knew that I was sharing Reiki with her – sometimes I set an intent to do so. There are many memories I have though of just sitting with her lying cradled in my lap, feeling her relax, listening to her breathing slow and being aware of the movement of energy between us. She changed quite a bit towards the end of her life…….she stopped hunting, going outside and ate less and less. I never felt she was in pain as she always seemed relaxed…..apparently cats with this type of cancer rub their heads with their paws when in discomfort or pain as the cancer grows. I only saw her do this once.

It did grow though…….large enough for her to lose her sight. For the last day or so before she died, it seemed she was just wandering and then standing still as if not sure what to do next. Her pupils grew very large and fixed. I could feel her body stiffen in surprise when I picked her up, as if she was unaware of me approaching her to do this. Once she could smell me and knew who I was, she relaxed and pressed herself against my body, moulding with me, purring away and closing her eyes. I knew something was different and that it was time to take her back to the vets.

We said goodbye to her that day and buried her later under the bird feeder tree. She went to sleep peacefully with me stroking her. Lovely Little Benny, my sweet little girl……..

I feel certain that Reiki helped her, eased things for her, relaxed her, took away her fear and perhaps some of her pain. I feel so glad to know that I could help and be such a comfort to her.