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Deepak Chopra, MD
"EFT offers great healing benefits."
EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques®) Where emotional relief brings physical health
Self help method often works where nothing else will No Drugs Involved ~ High Success Rate
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EFT brings relief from a range of allergies and autoimmune disorders - collapsing safety issues does the job
Note: This article assumes you have a working knowledge of EFT. Newcomers can still learn from it but are advised to get our Free EFT Get Started Package or our Affordable DVDs for a more complete understanding. For more, read our EFT Info and Disclaimer Document.
Hi Everyone,
This article by Paul Zelizer is a quality example of how successfully addressing emotional issues can dramatically improve physical issues that seem to be "impossible."
Hugs, Gary
Jeff (not his real name) was a man in his late 20's referred to me by a local acupuncturist. He was suffering from a range of immune system disorders including Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS). Jeff's main symptoms were that he had very low energy, was sick often, and had very strong reactions to many kinds of substances like cleaners, fragrances, fabrics, and aromatic plants.
To give an example of how severe these conditions were, Jeff and I conducted our first several sessions outside - he was very concerned about the possibility of reacting to things in my office. Fortunately, it was summer when we started meeting and we could sit under the trees tapping away.
The Metaphor of Safety and the Immune System
One of the leading stress and trauma researchers in the world is a man named Dr. Stephen Porges at the University of Illinois. In his work on understanding how the nervous system works, Dr. Porges talks about "the metaphor of safety". In fact, he has carefully documented how chronic patterns of feeling unsafe tend to be linked with immune system problems like fibromyalgia.
Dr. Porges' research inspired me to start talking to and reading the work of other EFT practitioners. What I've noticed is that many respected EFT practitioners (Jo Hainsworth, Rue Hass, and Chip Englemann come to mind) have also noticed the link between ongoing concerns about safety and severe immune system problems.
Using EFT to Clear the Safety Concerns
In our first few sessions, Jeff and I focused on his early childhood experiences. His mother had a mental illness and had attempted suicide several times. In addition, the family had moved frequently. These moves were hard on Jeff especially when the family moved from a quiet part of town where he could play outside to a tall building in a section of town where Jeff felt afraid.
To give you an idea of how we used EFT, I'll focus on how we cleared the old emotions about one of his mother's suicide attempts. To do this we used a body centered version of the Movie Technique.
First, I explained the technique. After Jeff felt comfortable with it, I had him start by telling me about a time earlier that particular day that had no intense emotion at all. Then, Jeff continued on with the story. As soon as he felt any rise of intensity, we tapped. For instance, we tapped on an intuitive feeling that something was wrong that day, the way his mom was acting weird before he left for school, the phone call he got at school, the feelings upon seeing his mom in the hospital, the feelings in his stomach upon reading the letter, the feeling in his chest that the suicide attempt was his fault, his feeling of shame, his feelings of loneliness, and others.
There were many aspects on this one incident. In fact, we spent two sessions just on clearing the aspects related to this one incident.
GC COMMENT: While Paul refers to them as aspects, they are also specific events. Whatever you call them, one of the most efficient ways to do EFT is to reduce broad issues down to these smaller pieces.
As our sessions progressed, we worked on other times when Jeff felt like his safety was threatened, like the previously mentioned moves and feeling isolated because he was an only child with no relatives around.
After about 5 sessions, Jeff reported feeling better. He had more energy. He started exercising again (he hadn't been able to for the past several years). When he felt like he was starting to get sick, his body was able to fight it off.
Our sessions shifted to the current areas of Jeff's life that were stuck. With all his health problems, Jeff's career had suffered. We tapped on his fears that he would never be able to have a successful career because of his health.
One day, Jeff came in and wanted to work on his romantic relationship history. He had a pattern of falling deeply in love with women who would ultimately reject him. After a half dozen of these experiences, Jeff had given up on the idea of a relationship completely. We tapped on several particularly painful breakups as well as the persistent belief he had that he'd never be able to maintain a loving and stable relationship.
The Results
After nine sessions, Jeff's life has changed significantly. His health is vastly improved. He has much more energy, rarely gets sick, and reports that he no longer reacts to most of the substances that used to trigger him.
In his career, Jeff has a new sense of clarity and motivation. He secured a position in a prestigious training program that he is very excited about. Jeff reports that now when he speaks up at a business meeting, people respond to what he has to say. In fact, they often seek him out afterwards to discuss his comments. He was recently asked to chair an important committee.
During our last session, Jeff and I spoke about how he feels about the world. He says this is one of the biggest areas of change. "Instead of seeing the world as something that is always assaulting me and my immune system," Jeff said, "I am now looking at how I can have fun and help others. This is a huge change for me."
Paul Zelizer
