| Using EFT's Affirmation Statements
Tuning Into Your Problem
Now that you understand how to actually perform
the mechanical tapping and where you need to tap, you will
next need to know what to say while you are tapping.
The traditional EFT phrase uses the following
setup:
"Even though I have this _____________,
I deeply and completely accept myself."
You can also substitute this as the
second part of the phrase:
"I deeply and completely love and accept
myself."
The blank above is filled in with a brief
description of the addiction, food craving, negative emotion
or other problem you want to address.
Examples Using the Traditional EFT
Phrasing
While these examples represent a range of
problems, keep in mind there really is no limit to the types
of issues you can confront with EFT:
"Even though I have this fear of public
speaking, I deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have this headache, I
deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have this anger towards
my father, I deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have this war memory,
I deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have this stiffness in
my neck, I deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have these nightmares,
I deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have this craving for
alcohol, I deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have this fear of snakes,
I deeply and completely accept myself."
"Even though I have this depression,
I deeply and completely accept myself."
Other EFT Phrase Options
You can also try these other phrase variations.
All of these affirmations are correct because they follow
the same general format. That is...they acknowledge the problem
and create self-acceptance despite the existence of the problem.
That is what's necessary for the affirmation to be effective.
You can use any of them, but I suggest you
use the recommended one above because it is easy to memorize
and has a good track record at getting the job done.
"I accept myself even though I have
this_________."
Or:
"Even though I have this ____________,
I deeply and profoundly accept myself."
Or:
"I love and accept myself even though
I have this_______________."
Interesting Points About the Affirmation Statements
It doesn't matter whether you believe the
affirmation or not...just say it.
It is better to say it with feeling and emphasis,
but saying it routinely will usually do the job.
It is best to say it out loud, but if you
are in a social situation where you prefer to mutter it under
your breath...or do it silently...then go ahead. It will still
likely be effective.
To add to the effectiveness of the affirmation,
The Setup also includes the simultaneous tapping on one of
the acupuncture meridian points.
Tuning in is seemingly a very simple process.
You merely think about the problem while applying the tapping.
That's it...at least in theory.
"The cause of all negative emotions is
a disruption in the body's energy system."
Negative emotions come about because you are
tuned in to certain thoughts or circumstances, which in turn,
cause your energy system to disrupt.
Otherwise, you function normally. One's fear
of heights is not present, for example, while one is reading
the comic section of the Sunday newspaper and therefore not
tuned in to the problem.
Tuning in to a problem can be done by simply
thinking about it. In fact, tuning in means thinking about
it.
Thinking about the problem will bring about
the energy disruptions involved which then...and only then...can
be balanced by applying The Basic Recipe.
Without tuning in to the problem, thereby
creating those energy disruptions, EFT does nothing.
Putting It All Together First Round of Tapping
Now you will need to tap on each of the points
described above while you are stating the positive affirmation.
This will only take a few moments to do.
You should:
* Select an appropriate affirmation
* Carefully "tune in" to your problem by actually
trying to hold the problem in your thought:
* State the affirmations in a loud voice with great passion,
energy and enthusiasm
If you do this while tapping the points described
earlier, it is highly likely you will notice a major decrease
in the issue or problem that you were tapping on. If your
problem or issue resolves completely, you are done with the
tapping. If it doesn't decrease or decreases to a level that
is less than acceptable, move on to the next section, or consider
my more in-depth EFT series on DVD or VHS that comes with
a host of real-world examples.
Using EFT's Affirmation Statements -- Advanced Steps
Using the Reminder Phrase
Sometimes, one round of the tapping sequence
while voicing your affirmation is enough to clear up the issue.
However, when subsequent rounds are necessary, you can employ
a "reminder phrase." This is simply a word or short
phrase that describes the problem and which you repeat out
loud each time you tap one of the points in the sequence.
In this way you continually "remind" your system
about the problem you are working on.
The best reminder phrase to use is usually
identical to what you choose for the affirmation you initially
used. However, you can use a short cut if the setup is particularly
long by simply saying one or several words to speed up the
process and do more rounds.
For example, if you are working on a fear
of public speaking, the initial, or "setup," affirmation
would go like this:
"Even though I have this fear of public
speaking,
I deeply and completely accept myself."
Within this affirmation, the underlined words
"fear of public speaking" are ideal candidates for
use as the reminder phrase. Simply repeating this reminder
phrase and the affirmation are usually sufficient to "tune
in" to the problem at hand.
Lingering Issues: Adjustments for
Subsequent Rounds of Tapping
Sometimes the first round of tapping doesn't
completely eliminate a problem because a new issues or issues
that prevent further progress show themselves via the tapping.
These issues -- whether images, conversations, interactions
or in some other form -- are in some way related to the first
problem being addressed -- sometimes they are part of or the
core of the cause, sometimes they are a result. The barrier
restricting your emotional health, in other words, is made
up of more than one brick -- and you must eliminate all the
bricks.
If this is the case, you should do additional
rounds of tapping as necessary to eliminate all the issues,
but adjust your affirmation slightly as follows for best results:
"Even though I still have some of this
__________,
I deeply and completely accept myself."
Note the words "still" and "some"
and how they change the thrust of the affirmation toward the
remainder of the problem.
EFT Cautions and Advice
Clinicians and clients should only do what
feels right or good to them. You should not enter into emotional
or physical waters that seem threatening. It is your responsibility
to take care of yourselves in this setting. Remember professional
help is easily available. Here are some cautions and advice
with EFT:
Be Specific
It is essential for clinicians to be extremely
specific with language when using EFT.
Tuning In
The clients need to be totally tuned in to
the issue of concern when using EFT. Sometimes, when the material
is emotionally painful, clients will want to disconnect from
their feelings. Look for any signs that the client is becoming
distracted or disengaged and make sure that they repeat the
Reminder Phrase as they tap the treatment points.
Cognitive Shifts
As with energy movement, it is essential to
pay attention to the cognitive shifts that can occur with
even a single round of the tapping. A cognitive shift has
occurred when you reframe the problem. Seeing the problem
from a new angle, you will often express a sense of surprise
and insight. These movements can offer valuable connections
and associations and may open new pathways for healing. Following
a cognitive shift, you often feel less guilt and self-blame,
more hope, or a simple sense of relief in an area where there
has never been relief before.
It is important to stop after tapping and
see if you notice anything different or if something new came
up after you tapped. This is frequently the underlying issue
that is the real root of your problem.
Try It On Everything
EFT can be used to treat deep limiting beliefs,
fears of the future, fear of success, fear of failure, and
anxiety about expectations, poor body image and future relapse
settings. One of the favorite sayings of Gary Craig, founder
of EFT, is "Try it on everything."
Energy and Intention
Many clients report that they do not have
the same success when using EFT by themselves and on themselves.
This likely has to do, in part, with the advantage of combining
the energy and intention of two people sharing a single purpose
during a session. When clients are less than satisfied with
their own results, it is best to find a therapist to help
them resolve the issue at a deeper level.
Through Me, Not By Me
This is one of Gary Craig's other favorite
sayings. EFT practitioners are NOT healing their clients.
The healing is done though us if our clients are open to receive
it.
Many people see themselves as special healers.
This, in fact, interferes with the treatment process. The
reality is that they are not healing anybody; the clients
are actually healing themselves. Witnessing and facilitating
this process is humbling as well as gratifying.
Keep Well Hydrated
Water conducts electricity, and EFT accesses
the electrical energy that flows through our bodies and minds.
It is very important for both you and your clients to be properly
hydrated. That would be about one quart of pure water per
day for every fifty pounds of body weight.
Using EFT's Affirmation Statements
More On Your Affirmations
Doing affirmations is one of the best ways
to be kind to your mind, every thought you have, every sentence
you speak is an affirmation of a sort. It is either positive
or negative. However, you can also do specific intentional
affirmations. And the beautiful thing about doing affirmations
is that you can radically improve the effectiveness with EFT.
You can do this by first creating a definite
positive statement that builds you up instead of beats you
up. We're talking about definite positive statements to make
or do, something in our lives or to create a specific goal.
You can start this process with positive self-statements.
Even if it doesn't feel true to begin with, you will want
to do these statements or affirmations many times a day.
Timing of Your Affirmations
When you wake up, when
you go to bed, every time you go to the bathroom you should
say them.
It is especially important to tap
and say the affirmations before you go to sleep.
This is probably the single most important time to do it.
I can't encourage you enough to do the EFT affirmations every
night. It is one of the most important principles I can give
you. When you tap before you go to bed you will give your
subconscious from 6-8 hours to work on your affirmations and
help create them for you.
If you find prayer a helpful resource like
I do, you will want to integrate your prayer into the EFT
sequences as I believe that will help dramatically increase
the effectiveness of your affirmations.
It took me a nearly a year after learning
EFT before I got in the habit of tapping before going to bed,
but I want you to avoid my mistake and not wait awhile before
you start doing this valuable technique. Start taping each
and every night before you go to bed.
Mirror Work
This is actually quite simple and inexpensive;
all you need is a mirror and some time. You can certainly
tap alone or in the dark, but I find it is far more effective
to tap while staring at your own eyes in the mirror. This
seems to provide a far deeper connection with your subconscious.
It's almost as if the mirror is reflecting back your energy
into you rather than going out into space somewhere.
If you haven't tried this yet you really need
to consider doing this profoundly simple yet powerful technique.
You can begin by looking in the mirror and
doing your EFT affirmations and you can tap that in on all
the EFT points. Pay careful attention and listen to what you
hear, especially focusing on any negative messages that can
be blocking your progress.
May not get any messages initially because
you are so used to beating yourself up and you are not used
to a kind loving thought, but listen and follow through and
learn to trust yourself.
We frequently have a tendency to beat ourselves
up for every little thing no matter how small. All of us can
use forgiveness on a daily basis and you can use the mirror
to help you here also.
You can start by looking into your own eyes
and say "Even though I wasn't successful or I was angry
or impatient or mean or cruel or whatever problem you need
to forgive yourself for then say
I forgive you, I was only doing the best I could"
I forgive you for holding onto those patterns
for to long, I forgive you for not loving yourself."
And when you say "you" you are looking
directly into your own eyes.
You have to try this as it is quite powerful.
Remember to always acknowledge the negative thought if it
is there, but don't give it a lot of importance.
Then you will want to use EFT on the negative
thought that comes up and create a positive opposite.
The Real Reason Why You Can't Achieve
Your Goal Or Lose Weight
A very common occurrence that will present
itself is when you start to tap for a food craving you will
have a memory of an image, person, place or event that the
craving reminds you of. When you are doing the tapping sequences
you will want to pay special attention to these usually negative
thoughts or images that come up. Carefully listen for any
statements that your subconscious is telling you are not right
or true for you.
This is writing on your wall and causing an
psychoenergetic block and unless you address that reversal
is not going to allow you to progress forward. This is usually
the major challenge for you and one of the primary reasons
as to why you have been able to successfully implement your
goal in the past. Unless you directly address this issue by
some means, it invariably will self-sabotage your efforts
to achieve your weight loss goal.
Fortunately the solution is quite straightforward
with EFT, you simply acknowledge whatever self-critical thoughts,
images or feelings come up and then chose to simply love and
accept yourself while taping on your acupuncture meridians.
Do this persistently and eventually your system
will improve with time. Remember to say your statements with
great enthusiasm and all the emotions you can muster. Your
subconscious mind will not convert your affirmations into
reality unless you can tie the statements in with emotional
energy.
Let me provide a few examples to more fully
illustrate my point. When I once gave an EFT demonstration
in front of 400 clinical nutritionists and I had a volunteer
come up who had a food craving. It turns out the physician
who volunteered had a craving for Rice Crispy treats that
were in the exhibit area. Her craving was a strong 10. As
soon as we did one round of taping her eyes started to water
and she was on the verge of tears. When I explored the issue
further with her she said that she was reminded of the time
when her mother would give her M & M treats to get her
out of her hair.
So the real issue had nothing to do with her
craving for the treats but it was the love and attention that
her mother did not give her and the clearly inferior candy
substitute that her mother offered her. We tapped on that
issue and her cravings for the sweets disappeared instantly.
Another example would be a woman I saw who
was 64 years old and was having trouble losing weight. When
we started the EFT affirmation sequence she had a memory of
how the last time she was her normal goal weight she was pregnant.
Even though consciously she very well knew that short of a
miracle, she was not going to become pregnant at 64, she was
blocked from going forward with her weight loss. Her subconscious
was convinced that if she achieved her goal weight she would
instantly and immediately become pregnant.
Fortunately, we were able to use EFT to bridge
the gap to the subconscious and connect it back to reality.
Once we completed tapping that issue through she was able
to successfully lose the 22 pounds of weight she had been
unable to do for over 20 years.
This is a very powerful illustration that
the subconscious is absolutely neutral. Remember your subconscious
is your faithful servant and it will provide you with exactly
what you tell it. It could care less whatever demand you place
on it. In many ways it is like your computer. It will perform
whatever instructions you tell it. So you must be very careful
of the instructions you provide.
The above story illustrates a negative example
of the power of the subconscious, but you could just as easily
implant positive affirmations and your subconscious will just
as reliably provide you with that result in your life. I offer
some practical suggestions on how to take advantage of this
principle below.
Be Persistent With Your Affirmations
When you first say an affirmation it may not
seem to be true. Please remember that affirmations are like
planting seeds in the ground. It helps if you think of our
mind like a garden in which your thoughts are seeds that you
are planting. When you do these affirmations it is like putting
a new seed into the ground.
Remember when you plant a seed in the ground,
you only have a little tiny seed, you don't have a full-grown
plant. That little seed needs to germinate. Then it breaks
open its little shell and it starts to get nourishment from
the earth. Then first the roots come out and then and only
then does that first little shoot come out through the ground.
Just like it takes some time to go from seed
to a full-grown plant, it takes some time from your first
affirmation to the realization of your goal. It doesn't matter
whether you see the results or you don't see them. You have
to trust that it just takes time.
What Can You Do When Your Inevitable
Fear Thoughts Come Up
When a fear thought comes up, simply say thanks
for sharing, thank you for protecting me. Do not give it power.
Don't run from it. Whatever comes up, it is very important
to acknowledge it, when you hear them you can even write them
down.
Once you have written the fear though down,
you can turn it around to a positive affirmation and tap it
in with EFT. You can say even though I have this fear (name
the fear) I deeply love and accept myself and I fully appreciate
that it is only trying to help me.
Then do an affirmation for what you really
want, which is typically the positive present tense opposite
of the fear, or whatever positive outcome you would desire
instead of the fear.
Avoid denying the fear. You always want to
acknowledge the fear. That is the real beauty of EFT, it always
acknowledges the truth and helps you get out of the denial
trap that so many of us fall into.
EFT helps you understand that your fear thought
is there to protect you. That is what fear really is for,
to protect us.
It is important to recognize that no matter
where you are in life, no matter what you contributed to creating,
no matter what is happening, you are always doing the best
you can with the understanding, awareness, and knowledge that
you have until you can find a better way to handle the situation.
Be Patient With Your Affirmations
A critical truth that is helpful to remember
when doing this work is that your persistent and consistent
thoughts will eventually become your reality so be careful
to only focus on positive thoughts.
So many people do EFT affirmations for a few
days, they say it doesn't work and they stop. Remember, everything
happens in a perfect time space sequence. You want to trust
that and we want to know that.
Fortunately, EFT seems to rapidly accelerate not only the
time at which your goal is realized, but the likelihood for
your success. From my experience it is one of the most profoundly
effective ways to maximize the success of your affirmations.
Be Present With Your Affirmations
Be sure to always remember to say your positive
statements in the present tense. Your subconscious mind is
very literal and if you ask it to do something in the future,
you may fail to achieve your for many long years.
So many of us commonly default to this by
force of habit. It takes quite a bit of conscious effort to
avoid this non-intentional self-defeating trap. So always
avoid saying I will have or I am going to have, which is in
the future tense.
Always say your affirmation in the present
tense, otherwise you run the serious risk delay your obtaining
what you want and you may never get it.
Importance of Using Self-Affirmation
Principle
When I first started doing the EFT work, I
immediately modified the affirmation response and tried substituting
phrases like I chose to remain calm and relaxed, and a variety
of other ones that I thought might be better.
However, the more I studied this issue, the
more I realized that self-love is at the core of the problem
with most of our issues.
Everyone Knows What the Golden Rule
is
To do unto others, as you would have them
do unto you.
It is very hard to love your neighbor if you
don't love yourself.
Now when I talk about loving yourself I'm
not talking about vanity or arrogance but talking about really
respecting and cherishing the incredible miracle that you
really are.
You cannot harm yourself, or you cannot harm
another person if you love yourself. Unconditional acceptance
is one of the major goals that we are here for and that begins
with self-acceptance and self-love.
The Number one thing we can do to help us
love ourselves, especially if we are going to lose weight
is stop ALL criticism. We need to stop criticizing ourselves
now and forever, never again if we are going to make forward
progress. We need to vow to ourselves to never criticize ourselves
ever again.
Most of us have been criticizing ourselves
and beating ourselves up for years. We are not going to make
much forward progress if we persist in this pattern.
When we criticize ourselves we contribute
to negative changes and when we approve of ourselves we facilitate
positive changes. Our thoughts create and contribute to all
of our experiences in life, especially related to health issues.
You have complete control over our thoughts,
not of your emotions. Choose the thoughts that are nurturous
and supportive for you. Criticizing yourself never changes
a thing. So please refuse to criticize yourself.
You need to accept ourselves exactly the way
you are. If you don't love yourself when you are ten, twenty,
fifty or over 100 pounds overweight, it will be highly unlikely
that you will love yourself at your "ideal" weight.
Self-acceptance is the critical key here.
You can use the EFT affirmations to help you
address the central core that seems to be at the key to most
people's health problems, which is loving yourself and a peaceful
transformation of your self-criticism.
Everyone has made negative choices in the
past, we all have. The good news is that we all have a choice.
You can always choose to let go of the old pattern. You can
choose different and more supportive and nourishing thoughts.
Letting go of your old negative pattern with love, allows
you to move into the new pattern with ease.
Please always avoid punishing yourself
and beating yourself up.
Forgiveness
This is one of the key to being successful
with EFT and forgiving others is every bit as important as
forgiving ourselves. Not forgiving them does not harm them
in the slightest bit, but it plays havoc with us. Because
the issues are not theirs, they are ours.
People who have problems loving themselves
always seem to have problems learning to forgive others. Non-forgiveness
shuts that door. But when you forgive and when you let go,
not only does a huge weight drop off from you and the doorway
to your own self-love opens up.
When you won't forgive, when you won't let
go what you are really doing is binding yourself to the past
and when you are stuck in the past you cannot live in present
time. And if you cannot live in present time, how are you
going to create a healthy and exciting future?
And that is the absolutely wonderful and powerful
feature of EFT is that it allows you to effectively forgive
someone. I have EFT for hundreds of people to help them forgive
at the deep subconscious level.
Not just in your head, but in your heart,
where it really counts.
Your Language
I certainly have noticed this with many people I have worked
with. It all starts with our self-talk. Our self-talk or the
way we talk to ourselves becomes important because it becomes
the basis of our spoken word.
It sets up the mental atmosphere that we operate
in. This will attract to us experiences. You see your subconscious
is really an electromagnetic transmitter and receiver. It
broadcasts emotions in space and whatever we broadcast we
tend to receive from our environment.
BE VERY CAREFUL WITH
YOUR LANGUAGE
You see much of your power is in your words.
The thoughts you think and the words you say are constantly
creating your future. Your beliefs shape your life. The things
you say are extension of your thoughts. This is why it is
so important to never, ever berate yourself.
Always tell yourself you are doing
the best you can.
If all you do is tell yourself you are fat
and ugly and you hate yourself this way, then you stay stuck.
You need loving support and then you can make changes. You
need to constantly forgive yourself for not being perfect.
Too many of us think we have to be bad or
wrong before we can be changed but we really don't have to
do that. When you come from love and acceptance the changes
can become much easier. You make a change because you want
to improve the quality of our life, not because you are a
bad person that wants to become better.
And when you know more you will do things
differently, so never, ever berate yourself for where you
were.
Just tap in "I'm doing the best I can, I'm doing the
best I can."
Remember, you need to constantly forgive yourself
for not being perfect.
Do EFT about ten times per
day
This will allow you to obtain maximum
benefit from the technique.
It will also be enormously helpful if you
can do this in front of a mirror paying careful attention
to looking into your eyes. Your energy will be reflected off
the mirror and add a profound synergism to the EFT tapping.
When in public you only need to use one hand and can lightly
touch each point and hold it there for five seconds while
"tuning into the problem" and repeating the affirmation.
This way no one will realize what you are doing.
Using EFT's Affirmation Statements
More On Your Affirmations
Doing affirmations is one of the best ways
to be kind to your mind, every thought you have, every sentence
you speak is an affirmation of a sort. It is either positive
or negative. However, you can also do specific intentional
affirmations. And the beautiful thing about doing affirmations
is that you can radically improve the effectiveness with EFT.
You can do this by first creating a definite
positive statement that builds you up instead of beats you
up. We're talking about definite positive statements to make
or do, something in our lives or to create a specific goal.
You can start this process with positive self-statements.
Even if it doesn't feel true to begin with, you will want
to do these statements or affirmations many times a day.
Timing of Your Affirmations
When you wake up, when you go to bed, every
time you go to the bathroom you should say them.
It is especially important to tap and say
the affirmations before you go to sleep. This is probably
the single most important time to do it. I can't encourage
you enough to do the EFT affirmations every night. It is one
of the most important principles I can give you. When you
tap before you go to bed you will give your subconscious from
6-8 hours to work on your affirmations and help create them
for you.
If you find prayer a helpful resource like
I do, you will want to integrate your prayer into the EFT
sequences as I believe that will help dramatically increase
the effectiveness of your affirmations.
It took me a nearly a year after learning
EFT before I got in the habit of tapping before going to bed,
but I want you to avoid my mistake and not wait awhile before
you start doing this valuable technique. Start taping each
and every night before you go to bed.
Mirror Work
This is actually quite simple and inexpensive;
all you need is a mirror and some time. You can certainly
tap alone or in the dark, but I find it is far more effective
to tap while staring at your own eyes in the mirror. This
seems to provide a far deeper connection with your subconscious.
It's almost as if the mirror is reflecting back your energy
into you rather than going out into space somewhere.
If you haven't tried this yet you really need
to consider doing this profoundly simple yet powerful technique.
You can begin by looking in the mirror and
doing your EFT affirmations and you can tap that in on all
the EFT points. Pay careful attention and listen to what you
hear, especially focusing on any negative messages that can
be blocking your progress.
May not get any messages initially because
you are so used to beating yourself up and you are not used
to a kind loving thought, but listen and follow through and
learn to trust yourself.
We frequently have a tendency to beat ourselves
up for every little thing no matter how small. All of us can
use forgiveness on a daily basis and you can use the mirror
to help you here also.
You can start by looking into your own eyes
and say "Even though I wasn't successful or I was angry
or impatient or mean or cruel or whatever problem you need
to forgive yourself for then say
I forgive you, I was only doing the best I could"
I forgive you for holding onto those patterns
for to long, I forgive you for not loving yourself."
And when you say "you" you are looking
directly into your own eyes.
You have to try this as it is quite powerful.
Remember to always acknowledge the negative thought if it
is there, but don't give it a lot of importance.
Then you will want to use EFT on the negative
thought that comes up and create a positive opposite.
The Real Reason Why You Can't Achieve
Your Goal Or Lose Weight
A very common occurrence that will present
itself is when you start to tap for a food craving you will
have a memory of an image, person, place or event that the
craving reminds you of. When you are doing the tapping sequences
you will want to pay special attention to these usually negative
thoughts or images that come up. Carefully listen for any
statements that your subconscious is telling you are not right
or true for you.
This is writing on your wall and causing an
psychoenergetic block and unless you address that reversal
is not going to allow you to progress forward. This is usually
the major challenge for you and one of the primary reasons
as to why you have been able to successfully implement your
goal in the past. Unless you directly address this issue by
some means, it invariably will self-sabotage your efforts
to achieve your weight loss goal.
Fortunately the solution is quite straightforward
with EFT, you simply acknowledge whatever self-critical thoughts,
images or feelings come up and then chose to simply love and
accept yourself while taping on your acupuncture meridians.
Do this persistently and eventually your system
will improve with time. Remember to say your statements with
great enthusiasm and all the emotions you can muster. Your
subconscious mind will not convert your affirmations into
reality unless you can tie the statements in with emotional
energy.
Let me provide a few examples to more fully
illustrate my point. When I once gave an EFT demonstration
in front of 400 clinical nutritionists and I had a volunteer
come up who had a food craving. It turns out the physician
who volunteered had a craving for Rice Crispy treats that
were in the exhibit area. Her craving was a strong 10. As
soon as we did one round of taping her eyes started to water
and she was on the verge of tears. When I explored the issue
further with her she said that she was reminded of the time
when her mother would give her M & M treats to get her
out of her hair.
So the real issue had nothing to do with her
craving for the treats but it was the love and attention that
her mother did not give her and the clearly inferior candy
substitute that her mother offered her. We tapped on that
issue and her cravings for the sweets disappeared instantly.
Another example would be a woman I saw who
was 64 years old and was having trouble losing weight. When
we started the EFT affirmation sequence she had a memory of
how the last time she was her normal goal weight she was pregnant.
Even though consciously she very well knew that short of a
miracle, she was not going to become pregnant at 64, she was
blocked from going forward with her weight loss. Her subconscious
was convinced that if she achieved her goal weight she would
instantly and immediately become pregnant.
Fortunately, we were able to use EFT to bridge
the gap to the subconscious and connect it back to reality.
Once we completed tapping that issue through she was able
to successfully lose the 22 pounds of weight she had been
unable to do for over 20 years.
This is a very powerful illustration that
the subconscious is absolutely neutral. Remember your subconscious
is your faithful servant and it will provide you with exactly
what you tell it. It could care less whatever demand you place
on it. In many ways it is like your computer. It will perform
whatever instructions you tell it. So you must be very careful
of the instructions you provide.
The above story illustrates a negative example
of the power of the subconscious, but you could just as easily
implant positive affirmations and your subconscious will just
as reliably provide you with that result in your life. I offer
some practical suggestions on how to take advantage of this
principle below.
Be Persistent With Your Affirmations
When you first say an affirmation it may not
seem to be true. Please remember that affirmations are like
planting seeds in the ground. It helps if you think of our
mind like a garden in which your thoughts are seeds that you
are planting. When you do these affirmations it is like putting
a new seed into the ground.
Remember when you plant a seed in the ground,
you only have a little tiny seed, you don't have a full-grown
plant. That little seed needs to germinate. Then it breaks
open its little shell and it starts to get nourishment from
the earth. Then first the roots come out and then and only
then does that first little shoot come out through the ground.
Just like it takes some time to go from seed
to a full-grown plant, it takes some time from your first
affirmation to the realization of your goal. It doesn't matter
whether you see the results or you don't see them. You have
to trust that it just takes time.
What Can You Do When Your Inevitable
Fear Thoughts Come Up
When a fear thought comes up, simply say thanks
for sharing, thank you for protecting me. Do not give it power.
Don't run from it. Whatever comes up, it is very important
to acknowledge it, when you hear them you can even write them
down.
Once you have written the fear though down,
you can turn it around to a positive affirmation and tap it
in with EFT. You can say even though I have this fear (name
the fear) I deeply love and accept myself and I fully appreciate
that it is only trying to help me.
Then do an affirmation for what you really
want, which is typically the positive present tense opposite
of the fear, or whatever positive outcome you would desire
instead of the fear.
Avoid denying the fear. You always want to
acknowledge the fear. That is the real beauty of EFT, it always
acknowledges the truth and helps you get out of the denial
trap that so many of us fall into.
EFT helps you understand that your fear thought
is there to protect you. That is what fear really is for,
to protect us.
It is important to recognize that no matter
where you are in life, no matter what you contributed to creating,
no matter what is happening, you are always doing the best
you can with the understanding, awareness, and knowledge that
you have until you can find a better way to handle the situation.
Be Patient With Your Affirmations
A critical truth that is helpful to remember
when doing this work is that your persistent and consistent
thoughts will eventually become your reality so be careful
to only focus on positive thoughts.
So many people do EFT affirmations for a few
days, they say it doesn't work and they stop. Remember, everything
happens in a perfect time space sequence. You want to trust
that and we want to know that.
Fortunately, EFT seems to rapidly accelerate not only the
time at which your goal is realized, but the likelihood for
your success. From my experience it is one of the most profoundly
effective ways to maximize the success of your affirmations.
Be Present With Your Affirmations
Be sure to always remember to say your positive
statements in the present tense. Your subconscious mind is
very literal and if you ask it to do something in the future,
you may fail to achieve your for many long years.
So many of us commonly default to this by
force of habit. It takes quite a bit of conscious effort to
avoid this non-intentional self-defeating trap. So always
avoid saying I will have or I am going to have, which is in
the future tense.
Always say your affirmation in the present
tense, otherwise you run the serious risk delay your obtaining
what you want and you may never get it.
Importance of Using Self-Affirmation
Principle
When I first started doing the EFT work, I
immediately modified the affirmation response and tried substituting
phrases like I chose to remain calm and relaxed, and a variety
of other ones that I thought might be better.
However, the more I studied this issue, the
more I realized that self-love is at the core of the problem
with most of our issues.
Everyone Knows What the Golden Rule
is
To do unto others, as you would have them
do unto you.
It is very hard to love your neighbor if you
don't love yourself.
Now when I talk about loving yourself I'm
not talking about vanity or arrogance but talking about really
respecting and cherishing the incredible miracle that you
really are.
You cannot harm yourself, or you cannot harm
another person if you love yourself. Unconditional acceptance
is one of the major goals that we are here for and that begins
with self-acceptance and self-love.
The Number one thing we can do to help us
love ourselves, especially if we are going to lose weight
is stop ALL criticism. We need to stop criticizing ourselves
now and forever, never again if we are going to make forward
progress. We need to vow to ourselves to never criticize ourselves
ever again.
Most of us have been criticizing ourselves
and beating ourselves up for years. We are not going to make
much forward progress if we persist in this pattern.
When we criticize ourselves we contribute
to negative changes and when we approve of ourselves we facilitate
positive changes. Our thoughts create and contribute to all
of our experiences in life, especially related to health issues.
You have complete control over our thoughts,
not of your emotions. Choose the thoughts that are nurturous
and supportive for you. Criticizing yourself never changes
a thing. So please refuse to criticize yourself.
You need to accept ourselves exactly the way
you are. If you don't love yourself when you are ten, twenty,
fifty or over 100 pounds overweight, it will be highly unlikely
that you will love yourself at your "ideal" weight.
Self-acceptance is the critical key here.
You can use the EFT affirmations to help you
address the central core that seems to be at the key to most
people's health problems, which is loving yourself and a peaceful
transformation of your self-criticism.
Everyone has made negative choices in the
past, we all have. The good news is that we all have a choice.
You can always choose to let go of the old pattern. You can
choose different and more supportive and nourishing thoughts.
Letting go of your old negative pattern with love, allows
you to move into the new pattern with ease.
Please always avoid punishing yourself
and beating yourself up.
Forgiveness
This is one of the key to being successful
with EFT and forgiving others is every bit as important as
forgiving ourselves. Not forgiving them does not harm them
in the slightest bit, but it plays havoc with us. Because
the issues are not theirs, they are ours.
People who have problems loving themselves
always seem to have problems learning to forgive others. Non-forgiveness
shuts that door. But when you forgive and when you let go,
not only does a huge weight drop off from you and the doorway
to your own self-love opens up.
When you won't forgive, when you won't let
go what you are really doing is binding yourself to the past
and when you are stuck in the past you cannot live in present
time. And if you cannot live in present time, how are you
going to create a healthy and exciting future?
And that is the absolutely wonderful and powerful
feature of EFT is that it allows you to effectively forgive
someone. I have EFT for hundreds of people to help them forgive
at the deep subconscious level.
Not just in your head, but in your heart,
where it really counts.
Your Language
I certainly have noticed this with many people I have worked
with. It all starts with our self-talk. Our self-talk or the
way we talk to ourselves becomes important because it becomes
the basis of our spoken word.
It sets up the mental atmosphere that we operate
in. This will attract to us experiences. You see your subconscious
is really an electromagnetic transmitter and receiver. It
broadcasts emotions in space and whatever we broadcast we
tend to receive from our environment.
BE VERY CAREFUL WITH YOUR LANGUAGE
You see much of your power is in your words.
The thoughts you think and the words you say are constantly
creating your future. Your beliefs shape your life. The things
you say are extension of your thoughts. This is why it is
so important to never, ever berate yourself.
Always tell yourself you are doing the best
you can.
If all you do is tell yourself you are fat
and ugly and you hate yourself this way, then you stay stuck.
You need loving support and then you can make changes. You
need to constantly forgive yourself for not being perfect.
Too many of us think we have to be bad or
wrong before we can be changed but we really don't have to
do that. When you come from love and acceptance the changes
can become much easier. You make a change because you want
to improve the quality of our life, not because you are a
bad person that wants to become better.
And when you know more you will do things
differently, so never, ever berate yourself for where you
were.
Just tap in "I'm doing the best I can, I'm doing the
best I can."
Remember, you need to constantly forgive yourself
for not being perfect.
Do EFT about ten times per day
This will allow you to obtain maximum benefit
from the technique.
It will also be enormously helpful if you
can do this in front of a mirror paying careful attention
to looking into your eyes. Your energy will be reflected off
the mirror and add a profound synergism to the EFT tapping.
When in public you only need to use one hand and can lightly
touch each point and hold it there for five seconds while
"tuning into the problem" and repeating the affirmation.
This way no one will realize what you are doing.
EFT: Alternative Approaches and Final
Recommendations
Choices Alternative
Dr. Patricia Carrington has made a major innovation
to EFT with her choices option.
Unlike the traditional affirmations mentioned
above, Choices do not contradict a person's present view of
reality and so are much more easily accepted. Additionally,
the represent a proactive stance and a commitment to one's
self.
When using the Choices option a self-acceptance
affirmation is substituted for the traditional EFT affirmation
used above. In general this affirmation is the opposite of
whatever the negative statement contained in the first portion
of the Set-Up phrase.
This Choice is an expression of what the person
truly desires for the problem that the treatment is presently
addressing. It is aimed at that specific problem rather than
being a general affirmation.
Choices Technique
Identify the negative emotion or state (thought,
attitude, feeling, pain, etc) that you want to be rid of.
Formulate a Choice that is roughly the opposite
of this negative emotion or state.
Combine the negative emotion with the positive
Choice.
State the entire Basic recipe combination
(negative emotion and Choice) on the first three meridian
points.
Then alternate the points by stating the negative
reminder phrase on one point and then the positive Choice
or reminder Choice on the next point.
Be careful to always end on a positive Choice.
Wording of Choices
Most people do not know how to identify what
they really want. Ironically, however the, they are almost
always very clear about what they don't want.
When asked to make a positive Choice, which
is based on what they do want, most people will at best, just
choose to improve a bit on what they don't like. One way they
do this is to revert to comparisons.
They will use such words as better or more.
Examples include:
* I choose to be more confident.
* I chose to feel better.
This does not work well because a person's
subconscious, computer-like mind is quite literal and it cannot
interpret that statement with any precision. What is better?
It could be only a tiny bit better. How much is more? When
this is not spelled out precisely you have an unclear Choice
that will not be very effective.
First Rule of Choices: Be Specific
A person making a Choice needs to state precisely
what it is they want. A Choice should not contain vague comparison
words such as "better," but should be a statement
of exactly what they really want to create in their life.
Second Rule of Choices: Create a Pulling
Choice
Choices must "pull" to be effective.
This requirement is often neglected. A Choice that is lifeless
is like a dull ad; you just skip over it, don't attend to
it, and it has very little impact on your life.
You might think of a choice as a sort of ad
made up by you and directed to yourself as a consumer. The
person who must be sold is you. You have to buy into and truly
want the manifestation you are trying to bring about.
Whenever possible seek to carefully add an
adjective or adjectives to make the Choice as appealing as
possible. The aim is to draw you like a magnet toward the
goal they seek. Repeating the Choice during the EFT session
should be a source of real pleasure and comfort so that you
really want to keep saying the Choice over and over simply
because it is so enjoyable to do so.
Examples:
* Let it be easy to…
* Surprise myself by…
* Find a creative way to…
* Find it fun to…
Alternatively you can add any of these adjectives
to give it more appeal:
* Comfortable
* Satisfying
* Delightful
* Ingenious
* Safe
* Unexpected
Third Rule of Choices: Go for the
Best Possible Outcome
The rule of thumb here is to be inwardly "truthful"
in what is asked for. You need to choose what you really want
in your innermost self, not what you think you should want
- and it should be the very best you can imagine having.
Examples:
It is not enough to chose to have a "new
apartment," because a "new apartment" might
be a dingy 6th story walk-up with poor heating, tiny rooms,
etc. Yet technically it might be "new" for you.
A much more effective Choice would be to state exactly what
you really want, such as "I choose to live in a quiet,
sunny, delightful apartment.
The more positive and specific you are the
better the Choice will be.
Fourth Rule of Choices: State Your
Choice in the Positive
Those who have worked with affirmations know
that the literalness of the computer-mind makes negative words
or phrases a large problem. Our mind tends to ignore the negative
and we get exactly what we were hoping to avoid.
We are always better off being as positive
as we can when framing any sort of command to ourselves -
and affirmations are basically commands.
When making a choice therefore you should
avoid using such negative words and phrases as:
* No
* Not
* Never
* Don't
* Be Rid of
For Example:
* Poor Way: I want to be rid of my headache.
* Better Way: I choose to feel clear headed, healthy, focused
and enthusiastic.
Fifth Rule of Choices: Do Not Choose
for Others
This rule is important to emphasize because
some people will choose other's behavior as though they had
control over other people, which none of us have.
For Example:
* I choose to have Mary love me.
* I choose to have the people at work think I'm the best.
* I choose to have Ken understand me.
There are many ways that the above incorrectly
worded Choices can be reworded so as to be non-manipulative
an ethical in nature.
Preferred:
I choose to feel that Mary loves me. Here
the person is making a Choice about their own reaction to
Mary, something quite within their control.
The details are less important than the intent
when applying this rule. The point here is not to act as though
we were all-powerful in another person's life, but rather
word the Choice so as to be as genuinely helpful to them as
possible without imposing your values on them.
To find out more about the Choices Method
go to www.eftupdate.com.
Psychological Reversals
The most common reason that psychological
reversal does not change is that the affirmation was not said
strongly enough or with enough emphasis. Most people will
quietly state the affirmation I have frequently seen that
it was necessary for the client to nearly shout the statements
prior to the reversal shifting.
Criteria Related Reversals
These are subconscious mechanisms that may
be in place and blocking the client's ability to successfully
resolve their reversal.
Deservedness
This is the most commonly seen of the criteria-related
reversals. Common sense dictates that if a person consciously
or unconsciously holds the position that he or she does not
deserve o get over a problem, attempts to alleviate the problem
will be met with considerable resistance. This reversal is
common among trauma survivor, patients, with eating disorders,
and those who have violated closely help personal values and
morals.
Safety
If the client experiences the problem as affording
some level of safety, it will not easily be resolved. This
consideration does not necessarily apply to situations that
are truly unsafe or dangerous. This reversal is common among
clients with anxiety-related conditions and even clients suffering
from chronic pain.
Possibility/Doubt
Some clients experience deep doubt about their
ability to resolve the presenting problem, for whatever reasons.
While doubt by itself does not signal a reversal, if it is
deep enough it will be consistent with a reversal.
Permission
In many instances this operates in conjunction
with another, such as safety or deservedness. It is as if
the energy system is saying, "I won't allow myself to
get over this problem because it isn't safe to get over it"
or "I won't allow myself to over this problem because
I don't deserve to get over it."
Deprivation
Especially in the treatment of addictions,
the issue of deprivation may serve to block progress. When
this type of reversal is diagnosed, a discussion around this
issue is appropriate.
What to Do When You Are Not Getting Results
Negative beliefs may interfere with EFT, or
any energy treatment from working very effectively.
Some of the more common ones that might need
to be treated include:
* I don't believe these treatments will work.
* I believe EFT works, but not for me.
* I doubt that EFT will work.
* Even if EFT does work, I am afraid it won't last.
* I don't trust myself to stay free of these problems from
now on.
* I am afraid that these treatments won't work.
* I am afraid that the problem will come back.
* Here are common dynamics that show up as treatable problems.
One needs to be alert to these.
* I'm afraid to give up my hopelessness, helplessness, fear,
dependency, etc.
* I doubt it will happen.
* I'm supposed to be rejected.
* I don't trust myself to live it out.
* I'm supposed to be disapproved of.
* I don't feel safe with… (whatever the situation is)
* I have to be perfect about everything.
* I fear something like this problem will happen again.
* I doubt that I will really be able to do this.
Relationship Problems
The following list is an extensive, but certainly
not exhaustive, compilation of thoughts, attitudes, beliefs
and emotions that are often problems, especially in relationships.
Abandoned*
Despondent* Horror* Rage* Untrusting* Agony* Devastated* Horrified*
Rebellious* Vulnerable* Afraid* Disappointed* Hurt* Rejected*
Wasted* Alone* Discouraged* Inadequate* Rejecting* Wary* Angry*
Disgusted* Indignant* Resentment* Worried* Anxious* Dismay*
Insecure* Sadness* Worn out* Apprehensive* Disoriented* Invalidated*
Deep Sadness* Ashamed* Doubt* Lazy* Scared* At a loss* Dread*
Lethargic* Scorn* Betrayed* Embarrassed* Lonely* Self-conscious*
Blame* Empty* Loss* Shame* Bored* Emptiness* Lost* Shattered*
Burdened* Enraged* Mad* Silly* Cheated* Exhausted* Melancholy*
Sorrow* *Concerned* Fatigued* Mortified* Deep Sorrow* Confused*
Fearful* Offended* Suffering* Crazy* Hapless* Outraged* Suspicious*
Crushed* Heartache* Overwhelmed* Terror* Cornered* Heartbroken*
Persecuted* Tired* Defeated* Heartsick* Pressured* Tortured*
Dejected* Heaviness* Punished* Trapped* Depressed* Helpless*
Put down* Traumatized* Despair* Humiliated* Put upon* Uncertain*
The bolded words are common when dealing with
issues of loss such as the death of a loved one. These items
can appear in a variety of situations. A person may have the
feeling toward someone else as well as toward themselves,
feeling rejected or disgusted and feeling disgusted and rejecting
toward the rejecter at the same time.
Tearless Trauma Technique
1. Identify a specific traumatic incident
from their past. Ideally it should be at least 3 years ago
to minimize any complications from the dynamics of a current
event. An example might be, "the time my father punched
me when I was 12." By contrast, the phrase "my father
abused me" would be too broad because, chances are, the
abuse took place over many, many incidents.
Please stay on your original issue because
it will be easy to shift to other issues as you resolve the
original one.
2. GUESS at what your emotional intensity
would be (on a 0-10 scale) IF you were to vividly imagine
the incident. DO NOT to actually imagine it (although some
will close their eyes and do this anyway). This GUESS is a
surprisingly useful estimate...and...it serves to minimize
emotional pain. Write your GUESSES down.
3. Develop a phrase to use for the EFT process
such as "this father-punch emotion" and then proceed
with a round of tapping.
4. After this round of tapping, GUESS again
and go around the room asking them to state their new number.
5. Additional rounds of EFT usually a total
of 3 or 4 rounds will bring just about everyone down to GUESSES
of 0 to 3.
6. Once everyone is down to acceptably low
GUESSES, then perform another round of tapping and, after
this round, you will vividly imagine the incident.
When Should You Do EFT?
You can do it:
1. As soon as you wake up
2. Before every meal
3. Every time you go to the bathroom
4. When stopped at stoplights
5. When you go to bed
Goal Setting
Your Consistent Thoughts Become Your Reality
All personal growth reduces down to the above
sentence. Dreams don't necessarily come true but they DO take
you in directions.
Your habitual vocabulary has a subtle and
powerful ability to condition your mental system. Which is
a better statement, "I can't" or "I don't know
how yet"? Shifting your vocabulary will shift your entire
outlook.
You get what you focus on. Pessimists see
what is wrong in the world. Optimists see opportunity. Yet,
it's the same world. What do you see? Whatever it is, it's
a reflection of your consistent thoughts.
Dr. Mercola: "When
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