I recently taught EFT to a group of people. One of the most skeptical people in the audience was quite surprised to find after doing some tapping, his joint pain completely disappeared. He was amazed and did EFT by himself at home where he also got relief five or six times and then it stopped working. What happened?

Typically it’s because tapping on a physical issue relieves the pain temporarily. It’s when you you resolve a core issue that you’ll find more powerful, long term results.

Last night the gentleman called me. He was having a lot of discomfort, particularly in his elbows. His doctor said that it was because of a side effect of a potent medication he was taking. The soft tissue was inflamed and swollen. When he bent his elbow, the angle or torque created the discomfort.

I asked him what his SUDS (Subjective Units of Distress) level was with the discomfort. He said it was at a three. It’s important to note that this is a subjective measure. For someone else, this person’s three could be a ten. So we started tapping a few rounds with a normal EFT setup statement:

Even though I have this swelling and discomfort in my left elbow, I deeply and completely accept myself.

We promptly got nowhere. No change whatsoever. So I asked him, “If there was an emotion connected to this discomfort what might it be.” With a perplexed look he said that he had no idea. So I asked him if his left elbow could speak what would it say it wanted.” Another blank look. Usually, when I do these things, I get good results. Not this time. I’m not attached to the outcome so it was time to play in a new direction.

Sometimes what happens in the body is literal. Joint problems can mean being stiff, inflexible. It can mean not wanting to deal with uncertainty or having a fear of change. I had a feeling to go with this so I did. We tapped on the following EFT setup statement.

Even though I have discomfort in my left elbow, my energy and my body easily flow with change.

This clicked and bingo, we got results immediately, going from three to one. I don’t like to stop there so instead of doing the EFT Shortcut method again, we went to the classic long version which includes using the finger tapping points, the gamut point, eye movements, etc. After one more round of tapping, he was at a zero and very happy about it. When he “tested” his left elbow, there was no discomfort and then he was surprised to find the same thing happened with his right elbow.

With EFT, you’ll often start with physical sensations to uncover what emotions may lie underneath. In this case, it was a fear of change. Gary Craig has said that you might have to keep trying different “doors” until one finally opens.

Sometimes it’s good to “fight” for things. At other times it’s far more effective to use leverage instead. For example, when our internal critic is yakking away, there’s often an internal fight. What if we gave up the fight and used the principle of Aikido to leverage our critical voice? Aikido is a martial art performed by blending with the motion of the attacker and redirecting the force of the attack rather than opposing it head-on. Also, in Aikido the practitioners defend themselves while also protecting their attacker from injury. No more internal head butting.

You’ll find a very good way to do this by visiting Gene Monterastelli of Tapping Q&A. Read Gene’s post, Transforming Our Critical Voice In To Something Helpful In 8 Easy Steps. His site is full of excellent information on EFT and tapping.

Did you participate and listen to the Tapping World Summit in 2009? If so, you know that it was a great event on EFT and Meridian Tapping Techniques. This year’s event starts this Sunday, the 21st, and it will be even bigger. The goal is to have over 100,000 people attending online. There are 20 presenters giving you information on tapping that you can use in your life immediately. It’s all free to you unless you decide to buy the CDs and workbook. That’s completely optional.

If you decide to purchase the audios there are several bonus audios. For example, I did a presentation on employee dissatisfaction and stress at work. Research shows that well over half of all employees in the United States are not satisfied or engaged with their jobs. If you are one of them, this is a must listen to audio for you! You can register for the free Tapping World Summit 2010 and find out all the details about the speakers by clicking on the banner below.

]]> http://www.eftzone.com/2010/02/18/the-tapping-world-summit-2010-starts-sunday/feed/ 0 http://www.eftzone.com/2010/02/08/confused-about-the-eft-set-up-phrase/ http://www.eftzone.com/2010/02/08/confused-about-the-eft-set-up-phrase/#comments Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:29:23 +0000 Ron Ball http://www.eftzone.com/?p=1440 Newcomers to EFT often get hung up on what to say in the EFT setup phrase. They wonder if they’re saying the perfect words. In classic EFT, the ending of the phrase is … I deeply and completely accept myself. Sometimes people will say, “But I don’t accept myself.” In these cases, be flexible in finding a phase that resonates and works for you. Andrew Wilkie has some excellent recommendations in this article.

One of the things that concerns parents is automobile accidents when their sons or daughters are driving. My neighbor’s daughter’s car was hit from behind two weeks ago. Fortunately, although she was shaken up, she wasn’t physically injured. Luckily, she was driving an older sports utility vehicle with a rear bumper that thinks it’s a tank. Let me tell you how we used EFT for the trauma of her car crash.

Since my neighbor knows I’m an EFT coach/practitioner, the following morning she asked for my help. Getting hit from behind at 40 miles per hour while you’re at at stop light is traumatic. First, I asked to be certain her daughter didn’t have any serious physical issues that required immediate medical attention. She didn’t.

I checked to see what the most dominant thing about the accident was. Her daughter said it was the sound which was a very loud crash. We tapped on the sound of the crash. After rounds of tapping for about five minutes, that trauma was over. It went down to a SUDS (Subjective Units of Disturbance Scale) of zero. Next, we then tapped on the feelings it evoked — fear and surprise. We tapped on each of these separate emotional issues to zero them out.

Lastly, I asked her if she had any physical pain. She said that she did in in her lower back and stomach. We surmised that this was from an abrupt use of these muscles from the jolt of the crash. Although I wasn’t sure EFT would help, we “try it on everything.” We used EFT for the physical pain and amazingly, it also went away within a few minutes. That was two weeks ago, and after that morning we did the EFT tapping, the pain has never returned.

In car accidents, there are physical injuries that require and receive medical attention. What usually never gets taken care of are the emotional traumas from minor car accidents and other events. That’s why I urge people to learn how to use EFT so they have a “first aid” kit at their fingertips for upsetting things that happen at work, in play and everyday life.

As you know by now, Gary Craig, the founder of EFT will be retiring shortly. Gary Williams has put together a wonderful week long salute to Gary Craig. You won’t want to miss it. Today, The EFT World Tapping Hub will be opening up its doors to celebrate Emotional Freedom Techniques and pay tribute to its creator Gary Craig. As you listen over the seven days, you’ll hear many tributes to Gary Craig from from some of the very best practitioners of EFT, MTT and other methods. You’ll hear how EFT has changed their lives and helped so many people across the world get over all kinds of limitations and health issues.

Go to www.thetappinghub.com to sign up for the tribute. Again, it’s 100% free and you’ll be able to download anything in case you miss it. Here’s a short video from Brad Yates to kick things off. 

As a way of saying "Thank You!" and in the spirit of giving that Gary Craig often adopted, The EFT Tapping World Hub will be offering free access to interviews every day for seven days. It’ll start with a recorded interview featuring Gary Craig and many insights into his new film, based on his work with war veterans.

The event start today, Sunday, January 10th, at 12 noon PST, 3 pm Eastern, 8 pm GMT and the next morning at at 4 am in Perth, 6 am in Brisbane and 7 am in both Sydney and Melbourne, Australia.

Here’s the agenda:

Day One
Gary Craig, Ann Adams, Patricia Carrington, Carol Look

Day Two
Emma Roberts, Alina Frank, Gwyneth Moss, Marie Holliday

Day Three
Sue Beer, Brad Yates, Andy Bryce, Judy Byrne

Day Four
Rue Hass, Maryam Webster, Sophia Cayer, Jacqui Crooks

Day Five
Rick Wilkes, Pamela Bruner, Paul Zelizer, Tania Prince

Day Six
Linda Wood, Gwen Bonnell, Tapas Fleming, Steve Wells, Karin Davidson

Day Seven
Sue Beer, Ingrid Dinter, Sasha Allenby, Jacqui Davis, David Rourke and bonus audio!

Again, go to www.thetappinghub.com to sign up for the Gary Craig tribute. Many thanks to Gary Williams and the tapping participants for sharing this experience with us.

I’ve been watching an excellent series on PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) called This Emotional Life. It’s a three part series that ends this evening. The program is hosted by Daniel Gilbert, Harvard psychologist and best-selling author of Stumbling on Happiness. The series explores the nature of social relationships that are the key to our human happiness, the obstacles to happiness, and the sometimes misguided pursuit of happiness itself. If you miss seeing the program, you can get the DVD of at this PBS page.

According to Professor Gilbert, "Science has revealed three important facts about happiness: You can’t be happy alone; you can’t be happy all the time; you can be happier than you are.” The series is so well produced that it’s both enlightening and entertaining. There are video clips from celebrities like Alanis Morissette, Katie Couric, Richard Gere, Chevy Chase, John Leguizamo, and Larry David, who share their personal experiences. These clips are woven in with everyday people and their stories.

Although the topic of happiness is a key area of the program, it’s really about much more. It covers the gamut of pertinent topics that affect people and families today.

The This Emotional Life Website has a lot of good content, including resources you may want to explore. Click on a topic link from an episode below to learn more. For example, on the topic of depression, did you know that clinical depression is the leading cause of disability for those aged 15 to 44 in the United States? With forgiveness, people who forgive have lower blood pressure and lower rates of heart disease. Or, with happiness, did you know that it’s contagious and it benefits friends through three degrees of acquaintance? The effects can last for a year.

Episode 1  Families, Friends & Lovers

• Adolescence
• Attachment
• Bullying
• Grief and Loss
• Postpartum Mood Disorders
• Intimate Relationships

Episode 2  Facing Our Fears

• Addiction
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• Anger
• Autism
• Bipolar Disorder
• Borderline Personality Disorder
• Depression
• Eating Disorders
• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
• Stress and Anxiety

Episode 3  Rethinking Happiness

• Altruism
• Connecting with Others
• Creativity and Flow
• Forgiveness
• Happiness
• Humor
• Meditation
• Resilience

Lastly, Track Your Happiness

Oh, one more thing, how happy are you right now? If you’d like to help contribute to a greater scientific understanding of happiness, you can do it via your iPhone. Track Your Happiness. org is a new scientific research project that investigates what makes life worth living. Check it out here.

A few days ago, I was working with a woman who has Transverse Myelitis which is a neurological disorder of the spinal cord caused by inflammation. She was in a wheelchair because she is paralyzed from the waist down. While she was in the hospital, I introduced her to EFT over the telephone. She’d been paralyzed once before and recovered, even though her doctors said she never would. This time she didn’t believe she’d walk out of the hospital. That belief changed within 10 minutes of tapping with EFT.

I asked her what had changed. She said that previously she pictured herself walking out of the hospital. This time she didn’t. Instead, she saw herself leaving the hospital in a wheelchair. I taught her the EFT shortcut method over the phone. Her starting SUDS level was at an eight and we tapped with the following setup phrase:

“Even though I don’t see myself walking out of this hospital, I deeply and completely accept myself as best I can right now.”

[Since she said that she didn’t accept herself, we added the words, “as best I can right now.”]

Next we tapped:

“Even though I don’t see myself walking out of this hospital, I’m open to the possibility. I did it once before.”

In speaking with her, her belief internally was based on a picture. She saw herself in a wheelchair. I asked her if the picture was in color or black and white. She replied that it was in black and white. I said to imagine it being only one of several pictures in her slide show. Did she have a picture from a time in the past where she was active and feeling good? She said she did. Actually, she became excited because she saw a full color movie of herself water skiing.

Next, I told her that when I said, “now,” to mentally do one of three things with the black and white picture: 1) tear it into little pieces 2) burn it up 3) or, with her breath blow it a million miles away. She chose one and did it. After that, I had her mentally bring the full color movie of her water skiing back. I said to add some fun sounds, feelings of perfect balancing on her skis and even the unique smells of the boat on the lake to make it more “real.”

We did two more rounds of tapping while she projected the water skiing movie in her mind. Shortly after, her belief about not walking again went down to a zero. We tested to see if the negative “black and white” belief picture would come back and it wouldn’t. This is an example of how EFT can be valuable in helping people overcome limiting fears and beliefs regarding their health and well-being.

Might EFT help her walk again or improve her condition? Perhaps, because she was able to walk again once before. Also, she said that prior to her Transverse Myelitis, she endured two traumatic years of helping a relative with a drug addiction, plus five years of extreme emotional abuse from a husband she later divorced. No doubt there are various aspects to release. We’ll continue to tap away on her condition and be open to all possible outcomes. 

As you may know, Gary Craig, the founder of EFT is retiring on January 15, 2010. I first discovered EFT eight years ago. I was reading an article by Don Blackerby who is dedicated to helping kids rediscover the joy of learning. Don mentioned a new method of relieving emotional and physical issues by tapping on specific acupuncture points. Since I had absolutely no frame of reference for this, I thought it was bizarre. How could tapping your fingertips do anything? Thank goodness I didn’t let that get in my way to learning more about EFT.

I have a lot of respect for Don Blackerby. I also trust my intuition and believe in synchronicity so I decided to jump in and learn all about EFT. Back then, Gary’s EFT materials were on videotapes and audio cassettes so I bought them. That was the beginning of a journey into the wonderful healing land of EFT and more.

Rather than go into the reasons Gary is retiring, you can read his post here.

From the very beginning, Gary Craig’s goal has been to bring EFT and its healing benefits to the world in an easy to understand manner. I greatly appreciate the challenges Gary has faced as EFT has blossomed in popularity worldwide. Gary has always wanted EFT to be open to everyone — professionals and the public alike. It’s also been important to him to control the quality and integrity of how EFT was presented.

In addition to the hundreds and hundreds of EFT success stories I’ve read over the years, I’ve also seen criticisms of EFT, including some calling it a placebo effect, quackery, and yada yada yada. It’s primarily skeptics that have never even tried this simple, noninvasive method. Yes, there’s great value in scientific, logical, left-brain thinking. And, it’s not the only truth, the only solution set to emotional and physical issues.

It’s just as important to tap into your own right-brain intuition and have a curious, adventuresome, inquisitive mindset that’s open to direct experience of new discoveries and possibilities such as EFT. There are millions of people doing EFT around the world. So far, over a thousand people have left comments on his retirement post telling how EFT has positively impacted them.

By the way, if you don’t have DVDs from the EFT library, you might want to get them. Gary will be closing his Website when he retires, and he may not offer the DVDs again once his inventory is gone. You can get them here.  

Lastly, Gary Craig has been a soldier in helping bring healing to people who have lost hope or given up on customary methods of treating emotional and physical issues. A soldier is a person who contends or serves in any cause. Gary has been on point not only for EFT, but for opening people’s minds, hearts, and spirits to new healing possibilities. As every soldier knows, to take point, walk point, or be on point is to take the first, most risky and vulnerable position in a combat military formation.

The point person is the lead soldier in a unit advancing through hostile or unsecured territory. That territory has been traditional, limited, close-minded beliefs about what’s possible for psychological and physical health and healing. Walking point requires a dedication to others and a constant, extreme alertness. There’s such mental and physical fatigue, a soldier can only do it for so long. That’s why the point position is rotated between soldiers and units.

Gary, thank you for walking point for us for so many years. I honor you and have tremendous love and gratitude for your selfless commitment and integrity in bringing the wonder-full gift of EFT to us all.

As I recall, I found out about Joan Feldman’s book, A Frog in My Basement: A Therapist’s Curious Journey into Energy Psychology and the Law of Attraction from a Google Alert I have on EFT. For some reason I was drawn and compelled to buy a copy of the book. I just finished reading it and what a hoot it was. Joan’s book is an entertaining, educational and enlightening story wrapped and packaged in 288 pages. As an added plus, the appendices give you tools for doing EFT and TAT.

Her writing style is funny, witty, and insightful. I smiled as I read along because I can relate to many things she said. She explains the challenges she had going from being a traditional therapist to entering the land of “Woo Woo” and having strange things happen to her while getting amazing results. Imagine a therapy session where your therapist shook, rocked, growled and yawned, not from disinterest, but as part of the energetic healing process. All of this showed up for Joan as she trusted her intuition. She was being called to make a choice between her old beliefs and the new, albeit illogical ones, being presented to her.

One part that especially clicks for every EFT practitioner is chapter nine, “Ungrateful Wretches.” Joan talks about clients getting small miracles from methods like EFT, whereupon the clients gloss over or dismiss giving credit to EFT. This is called the “Apex Effect.”

Joan Feldman willingly takes risks in being very open and genuine about her experiences and adventures into energy psychology and the law of attraction. Her passion radiates from the pages. She sprinkles in a handful of case stories that are compelling and captivating. The book is full of zippy energy, humor and Joan’s unbridled optimism. As Joan says near the end of her book, “My goal is to offer you a new way of thinking to help you be happier and more hopeful and to give you tools for creating a better life.”

Joan Feldman’s book, A Frog in My Basement: A Therapist’s Curious Journey into Energy Psychology and the Law of Attraction, is a charming, heartwarming read. Get the book. I believe you’ll be grateful you did.