Interview by MohammadEFT, visit his great website http://www.eft-personal-development.com/
1. Can you please tell the readers about what you do?
I am an EFT practitioner who specialises in working with sensitive souls, chronic dis-ease, trauma, anxiety and depression. My experience is though, that people are drawn to work with a practitioner because of who they are, not necessarily what their speciality is. In essence I believe many of the issues we have are due to a lack of self love and self acceptance. We take on erroneous beliefs as a result of certain events and people but these beliefs are not who we truly are at our core. Though they can certainly feel like it. What occurs in our lives does not define or 'damage' us in any way, it's 'just' our 'story', which can be powerful and used to heal others and our self, but ultimately our true self cannot be touched or changed by these temporary experiences. I think trust is one of the most important factors in a working relationship, if not the most important factor, it enables people to feel safe, fully connect and open up so deep healing can take place. I believe that I facilitate people to do their own healing, so being as clear as I can possibly be is very important for EFT to work as well as it can. As Gary Craig says “get yourself out of the way”! I am also currently training to be an Emotrance practitioner and I intend to do the intermediate EFT certification in the new year.
2. How did you first hear about EFT, and how did you first feel about it?
I first heard about EFT in a magazine years ago. It was an article written by Dr Mark Atkinson in a weekly alternative health section of the magazine. The words 'emotional freedom' jumped out at me and from there on I was hooked and immediately wanted to know more about it! At first I felt it was too good to be true, it seemed 'too simple', I think I was afraid of actually believing that it could help me as I had tried other therapies and they hadn't worked. EFT gave me real hope and I learned to take my power back, slowly but surely.
3) The word "intention" can mean different things to different people. Can you tell us a little bit about what you mean by it?
I read Wayne Dyer's book The Power of Intention a few years ago and I was fascinated by what he said about its meaning “Intention is not something you do, but rather a force that exists in the universe as an invisible field of energy—a power that can carry us.” The energy of intention is creative, kind, loving, beautiful, expansive, receptive and abundant, an energetic force we are all part of and as a result have access to when we tune into our true self. I believe EFT helps us tune in by dissolving all the blocks clouding the way. He also said “accessing the power of intention relieved me of so much of the seemingly impossible work of striving to fulfill desires by sheer force of will.” This gives me a lot of hope and helps me to remember that by tuning into the frequency of intention, which is who we are naturally, life becomes easier, more effortless and inspired.
4) Let's say someone is still new to the whole world of EFT and intention, and feels overwhelmed by the amount of work that "should" be done. Where would you advise that person to start?
Start with how you're feeling right now, even if you judge what you're feeling to be 'wrong', even if you're questioning the validity of what you're feeling, if you're feeling it, trust those feelings and start doing EFT with them. I think one of the most powerful things EFT has done for me is to really help me to trust my self more, and value my feelings, emotions and experiences. Self trust is so important and gives us a solid foundation and sense of belonging that so many long for but feel they don't have.
5) When would you advise someone to consult an EFT practitioner, rather than tapping for themselves?
When they feel stuck and things are not shifting. If EFT is not working, it may feel like another reason that 'proves' the common belief of "there's something wrong with me". People tend to blame themselves and beat themselves up about EFT not working for them. Also, I feel we are all in relationship to each other, so, working with others, including a tapping buddy or a trusted friend, enables and empowers us to view our experiences from a different perspective. A new perspective can reframe the experience in such a way that it returns our power to us (or reminds us that we had it all along, we were just too afraid to exercise that same power) and helps to dissolve and release any intensity surrounding that experience. Allowing the space for someone to really be heard creates a connection and trust that naturally creates reframes I find, and they usually come from the person themselves. I find it easier to access certain issues and feelings when I do EFT with someone else too, they help me to tune into more painful feelings that maybe I would try to avoid for protection or safety.
6) Do you have a tapping routine that you go through daily, for example? Or do you just tap when issues come up?
Both! I do have a tapping routine that I do everyday. I always do the three thump tap (collar bone, thymus, spleen) first thing in the morning along with the cross crawl. I also have my personal peace procedure list which I do almost every day (Note from Mohammad: The Personal Peace Procedure is an amazing use for EFT, I will write about it soon). I often tap continuously during the day too, a way of toning up my energy system. And I do tap when issues come up but sometimes if you're really being triggered it can be the last thing you feel like doing. I know from experience that this is the ideal time to tap! So if you can, really try to tap then.
7) Where do you personally see the future of EFT going? Do you have a certain vision for the future?
I believe very much in the vision that Gary Craig and others hold, that the future of EFT is to realise that we are spiritual beings having a human experience, not the other way around. Using EFT to help us remember that we are infinitely pure, perfect and complete. I find that vision so comforting, hopeful, exciting, and, most of all, true.
8) Last question, have I told you that I love your blog?
Thanks Mohammad!
Hi Everyone,Here are two letters (about two weeks apart) from Irene Schoenfeld regarding a client with loneliness. This is a multi-aspected client of the type many of us come across. They take more time than others and, until we get more experience with them, we wonder if we are making any progress. They are both a challenge and a blessing to us. They are a challenge because they take more time. They are a blessing because they help us expand our skills.Hugs, GaryGC COMMENT: My apologies. You asked me about this a couple of weeks ago and I haven't responded until now. Although we spoke on the phone about it, I wanted to add to it through this written response. I've been thinking about it in the meantime. Here are some thoughts.1. Loneliness is a big wide label that is likely to include many aspects. Incidents of rejection are high probabilities. Abandonment also comes to mind. In your letter you said he, "has problems dealing with people if there might be a possibility of them leaving him alone." I suspect there is a fear here in many forms. This list could probably go on indefinitely and may be one of the reasons you have long sessions with him. He keeps bringing up other aspects. See if you can't zero in on some of these other emotions that make up his sense of loneliness. It's a way of being specific.2. This is a case where the client will likely benefit from doing EFT for the general issue of "loneliness" 10 times a day or more. If he thinks of a specific issue during the day then use that one instead. The case of Lori which we wrote up a while back was just like this except her issue was the general one of "self image." Spectacular change occurred for her. Your client may "forget" to do what needs to be done here and you may have to be a bit more persuasive. A daily phone call as a reminder might help.3. You may be making great headway and not know it. Good possibility here. He may be skipping from aspect to aspect in a generalized way and each time he does so EFT may have topped (improved) the previous tree in his emotional forest. He still seems beset with problems but you will know you are making headway when some of the previous problems don't seem to come up any more. He is off to new ones. Good news indeed.Gary
SECOND LETTER: Hi, I have a client same client as above-GC that is great at getting specific but sometimes I wonder if it slows us down. Here is an example: Being Fearful start at 4 go to 2 and then he says the worst part of the fear is I can't make it on my own, he continues talking and then it becomes fear of moving ahead. That is an 8+. Goes quickly to a 3 and then to a 0. He then spontaneously talks about fearful of being with himself, that's a nine and we get it to 0. He wanted to do it one more time and a tear runs down his cheek because he has never accepted who he was before. I test the fear of moving ahead and he finds an aspect of "if he moves ahead his business will blow up." This is a 7. During the tapping he talks about feeling his essence is getting bigger. He doesn't feel like a small being any more. We get the "if he moves ahead his business will blow up" to a one and I asked him what's keeping it there after 3 run throughs. He says: uncertainty of the right direction of my business, uncertainty of what kind of person I will change into when I become successful, can I change in myself what I need to change and will I actually need to do the work. Fear is down, uncertainty is up. Doubt is what is holding the fear in place.Any suggestions? At that point we had been at this for 2 hours so I ended the session so I could have a chance to look at it all. I think that I need to tap on Doubt. What do you think?By the way this is the person who has been tapping on loneliness for several weeks and he says that it is getting much better. When his friends say they can't see him he doesn't get all plugged in.Irene SchoenfeldGC COMMENT: I think you are to be commended for hanging in there with him and for probing for all those aspects. It started with loneliness. Several forms of fear came in. Now doubt. Probably more to come. I know it seems endless but it sounds to me like you are doing marvelous work with a difficult if not "impossible" (with conventional healing techniques) case. I hear music here. An unfinished symphony.Please note that persistence has helped with his "loneliness" issue but the way he "gets" this is by being aware of his emotions when his friends cannot see him. Although a powerful change, it manifests itself rather subtly. It isn't like a phobia where we can produce instant results of the type, "now you see it, now you don't." We would love to have this kind of result every time but some clients, like this one, present us with a sea of problems all at once. You may be blessings to each other. He needs your love, patience and experience and you need his circumstances to sharpen your skills. What we learn along the way with our "tough" clients makes us better with our future clients. Getting through these "challenges" takes you to the next level of proficiency and your reward will be increased confidence that benefits YOU as well as your clients. I've been through this many times over the past 6 years. It is getting harder and harder to "throw me." In most cases I am presented with, I've been there before. It's just a matter of experience and hanging in there.Also, when your client shifts from one aspect to another (I call this the daisy chain effect) he is not likely to come back to a previous aspect and, if he does, it will usually have a different flavor to it. If this is what is happening, you now have a BIG CLUE that you are making superb headway. It may take many sessions but please notice that the client is always bringing up NEW issues. The old ones seem less of a bother. He is getting healthier before your eyes. Maybe he doesn't notice it yet (because he keeps bumping into new trees) and you may need to keep reminding him of his headway by pointing out things that no longer seem to bother him. You are doing this man a loving service by staying with him. Persistence, persistence, persistence.My love to you both, GaryP.S. How much headway do you think you would have made with this client if you didn't have EFT? How many hours of talk therapy, visualization, cognitive work or other conventional techniques do you think it would take to help this man? Just a little perspective.
This is a guest article by EFT practitioner Pat Burns who lives in Tallahassee, Florida. You can find out more about Pat's work on her lovely website and blog.
Inner Theater combines the power of EFT with inner visualization. With Inner Theater, a client creates a safe place in their mind/imagination --- an inner sanctuary of sorts in which they have total control. Nobody can enter that sanctuary without their permission, and nothing can happen in that space that they don't wish to have happen.
Clients are encouraged to give their imagination free reign, and to "go with the flow", and not try to analyze what happens as this imagery plays out. If a client can trust in the process, they will find EFT and Inner Theater to be powerful tools for change and healing.
Inner Theater is not only tremendously powerful when combined with tapping -- it also allows clients to approach highly emotionally charged issues with far less fear and anxiety than with more traditional methods.
Once I learned the Inner Theater technique I found that it was useful when doing tapping on my own issues, particularly those with a high emotional charge. One such issue was the guilt that I felt about what kind of mother I had been. A part of me felt that I had let my daughter down, and that was difficult to deal with.
I started by focusing on how that guilt looked and felt to me. I got a mental picture of myself lying on a bed of nails. Each nail represented a time when I had let my daughter down, and with any little movement that I made, the nails pierced me. My intensity on this issue was a 10. I started tapping.
“Even though I have this guilt about my mothering that looks and feels like a prickly bed of nails, I’m ready to start letting go of that guilt, and I deeply and completely love and accept myself”.
“Even though this mothering guilt is really painful, I’m open to the possibility that I can let go of the guilt AND the pain and feel better about myself, and I deeply and completely love and accept myself”.
I used reminder statements such as:
· “I love my daughter so much and I let her down”
· “I did the best that I could, but it wasn’t good enough”
· “I wasn’t the mother that my daughter needed”
· “It’s time to start letting go of this guilt”
· “I’m open to the possibility that maybe I wasn’t such a bad mom”
· “I did the best I could, and that’s all anyone can do”
· “Breathing out that guilt with every breath I take”
I could physically feel the guilt level dropping. My muscles started to relax. I tapped a bit more.
“Even though I’ve released a lot of my guilt, I’ve still got more that I’m holding onto, and I’m ready to bring some healing to this, and I deeply and completely love and accept myself, and I hold myself in kindness and compassion”.
· “Letting go of the guilt”
· “Feeling better and better about myself”
· “Breathing out guilt, breathing in peace”
· “Transforming the last of the guilt into a healing energy”
I estimated my emotional charge at this point to be about a 5. I checked back in to see whether there was any change in that bed of nails, and right before my eyes, the nails transformed into blades of soft grass, gently cushioning me.
Next I pictured myself standing face to face with my daughter. I expressed my remorse, and apologized to her for all of my shortcoming as a mother. Her immediate response was that she was lucky to have me for a mom. This was something that she had actually said to me.
A loving feeling filled me, and the tears flowed freely. I felt a great release of emotion, and my body somehow felt lighter.
Now I said aloud to myself “I was a bad mother” to see how it felt. The statement no longer felt true, and the emotional charge was down to zero.
This tapping session was transformational for me, and I felt a deeper, more profound connection with my daughter as a result.
By using Inner Theater and EFT together, you too can experience the combined power of the two. Open your mind, free your imagination, and find out what EFT and Inner Theater can do for you.
