TFT Transforms an Abused Young Man

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A Completely Transformed Young Man…

by Kristin Holthuis, MD

Here is a case study, with a client yesterday, it was so powerful, and, I just used some Algorithms…

Client was a 19 year old male, P, with a history of sexual abuse of nephews, and severe physical abuse by his father. His sister had been almost killed by his father several years ago, and also had been severely sexually abused.

I had been seeing his sister for multiple issues and she is doing so well that she decided to share her therapist (me) with her brother.

Note: They both live still with their father, who is trying to behave (after police intervention several years ago) but who recently has been emotion- ally abusive to this son again.

P. came in to work on what he calls ̈his frustration ̈ of not having work.

He looked very angry, with a kind of dark cloud around him. He has been looking for a job for 2 years now, with no success, and the family has gone through great financial challenges. He never smiled, almost didn ́t look me in the eyes, and was quite reluctant to talk.

I used some time to establish rapport, explaining about TFT and telling him he didn ́t have to tell me details. (His sister told me that he had been sexually abusive to his younger brother, which he was very ashamed about… he didn ́t mention this to work on in this session).

He asked me if I thought he was bipolar or so, and I explained that in any case it was important to address traumas, in order to be able to be free from the past… some tears came to his eyes, like regaining hope.

So when I asked if something else was going on he told me he doesn ́t speak to his father anymore since 3 months, and the situation in his house is very tense. I suggested we work on that first, since he stated he was so disappointed and angry with his dad, that he felt his presence as a dark energy, a 100 on a scale of 0 to 10!

We started to work on his anger and the deception of his father,

Beginning SUD was 100 (in his words), with a dark overwhelming feeling when thinking of his father. We used the complex trauma algorithm with anger, and it dropped to 8, a little smile and surprised expression came to his face.

We corrected several reversals, the 9 gamut and completed the sequence and the floor to ceiling eye roll and he reported his SUD was 0… He started to laugh and couldn ́t stop!! (It all took but 5 minutes.)

I then asked him to focus on his father and his shouting at him, and he didn ́t get upset at all!!

Then he wanted to work on his frustration of not finding a job, anxiety and lack of hope and self- esteem. His beginning SUD was 8.

I chose to use the complex trauma algorithm with guilt, and his SUD dropped to 5, so we completed the 9 gamut and sequence and it dropped to 4.

He referred to sadness and lack of self-esteem… so I repeated the sequence again and added the gamut 50 and some reversal corrections. After the eye roll his SUD was 0…

He laughed out loud and was completely transformed, with a sparkle in his eyes.

I gave him flower essences, and will see him back in one month.

Home work: PR corrections every hour and look for a strategy to get some experience in his job offering his services part-time for free.

During the session it was about 30 minutes rapport building and explanation, two times 5 – 10 minute treatment sequences, five minutes of laughter and 10 minutes of future strategies.

A completely transformed young man… I am looking forward to see how family dynamics might change too!

Excerpted from “the thought field”, Vol. 21, Issue 4 

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TFT Relief After Decades of Flashbacks

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Like Acupuncture for the Mind

By Michelle (Miki) Butterworth

Having regressed to my life as a 4-year-old—crouched, screaming and fighting off imaginary blows—I was hospitalized for the second time in 10 years. The first time, I had been released after four days as the safety of the hospital had brought me out of abreaction (the reliving of events as if happening at the present moment), and my functions returned to normal.

This second time though, the flood gates opened and spilled over my years of insistent denial. The physical, sexual and psychological traumas of childhood poured forth.

Many devoted healthcare professionals worked with me over the next 20 years. Blessed breakthroughs did come in the way of integrating the past with the present and changes in the way I acted out that pathology.

However, after trying every new therapy for PTSD that came along—the night terrors, flashbacks and regressions continued.

After retiring to Sedona Arizona, and though living a wonderfully rewarding lifestyle, I still suffered from PTSD. Just seeing something familiarly violent on a television show might trigger days of dissociation, self mutilation (the act of inflicting pain on self by cutting) and regressions.

Having learned over the years that PTSD symptoms are never completely eliminated, I dealt with these episodes as they came by staying recluse for periods of time. After one recurrent triggering event left me suicidal, I again sought help from the mental health community.

I was introduced to a therapist who, after listening to my story, asked if I would be willing to try an unconventional therapy that involved tapping on points of the body while recalling the trauma. I politely told her, “NO!”

Spiritually devoted and as open a person as I am, I was not going to spend time and money on some ‘Sedona Woo-Woo’ technique.

I suggested we stick with regular therapy.

Two sessions later, she mentioned she would be out of town for the next month (doing her woo-woo in some other country). 

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Immediate Relief from Family Trauma

From “The Thought Field”, Volume 18 Issue 4

(photo not of actual client)

 

TFT Can Soften Life’s Traumas and Begin Healing

By Jennifer Harp, TFT-Dx

(Client name changed to Sara)

Sara is a 45 year old mother of two daughters, age 15 and age 13 as well as one son, age 17. She resides in Wyoming with her live in boyfriend and her daughters. Her son resides with his biological father in Florida.

Sara has endured a lengthy history of sexual, physical, emotional and mental abuse at the hands of her biological father from ages 5-18. She was later assaulted physically by numerous boyfriends as an adult. Her ex-husband, raped her on numerous occasions.

Her grief was compounded 8 months ago when she was told by her daughter that her son sexually molested her on a visit to Florida last summer. Her son is currently undergoing criminal proceedings for the assault. Sara sought counseling 5 months ago to assist her in managing her feelings of despair, shame and anger.

In working with her, I utilized the algorithm of complex trauma with anger and guilt to address her thought field of the perpetration of her daughter by her son.

I chose the algorithm for two reasons 1.) it was my first time using TFT in my own practice and I was more confident with the technique 2.) I thought that this would be a good place to begin with her symptoms of intense trauma as the algorithms have been tested and proven with so many clients.

Prior to going through the sequence, her SUDS level was a 10 on a scale of 1-10. After the first time of using the tapping sequence she experienced a reduction in SUDS to an 8. At this time, we corrected for specific reversal by adding the karate chop to the beginning of the sequence. After this process her SUDS dropped to a 5.

Another correction for recurring reversal was added to the sequence by rubbing the sore spot, this dropped the SUDS to a 2. The 9 gamut sequence was provided and then repeated the sequence of complex trauma with anger and guilt. To finish a floor to ceiling eye roll was facilitated. Sara’s final SUDS level was a 1.

No identifiable toxins were detected with Sara.

Upon administering this treatment, Sara commented that the technique was “unbelievable.” It took her several minutes to be able to identify her final SUDS level as she “could not feel it anymore.” Sara continues to tap on a daily basis with various algorithms as required for her symptoms.

Sara was the first client that I had utilized the TFT techniques with. It was remarkable the immediate relief that she felt in 7 minutes of TFT therapy that she did not receive in 2 months of cognitive behavioral therapy prior to the algorithms.

Sara and I frequently tap in session; I use both TFT diagnostic and algorithms to address her symptomology.

Jennifer Harp LPC-850, Northern Star Counseling, LLC, Cheyenne, WY 82001 Office: (307) 637-7906

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Eliminating Severe Effects of Rape

Thought Field, Vol 1 Issue 1

Beliefs, Attitudes and TFT

Fred P. Gallo, Ph.D., Hermitage, PA

In “Transcending Painful Memories: and the emergence of the new psychotherapies”, I reported on one of my first cases of successfully applying TFT. I used the pseudonym of Barbara in the section on Rape Trauma. At age thirteen Barbara was raped while on a date with an eighteen year old boyfriend. The trauma continued to cause her suffering well into her thirties.

Additionally Barbara had a drug and alcohol problem, suffered severe bouts of depression with suicidal intent, and evidenced a number of other symptoms subsumed under diagnoses such as major depression, dysthymic disorder, bipolar disorder, poly-substance dependence, and borderline personality disorder.

She had received treatment at a number of facilities, both outpatient and inpatient, and she was not doing well at all when I first saw her.

When Barbara discussed the rape with me, she definitely appeared to be “reliving” the event to some extent. She cried deeply and evidenced profound remorse and referred to herself in the most negative of terms.

At first I interrupted the reliving episode by having her attend to the external environment by describing what she saw heard, smelled, tactually felt, etc. After she calmed down, I told her that I was working with a technique that might help to relieve the pain that she felt each time that she thought about this event. I asked her if she would be willing to give it a try, and she agreed.

Within several minutes of treating her for psychological reversal and using the basic trauma algorithm, Barbara no longer felt emotional pain while reviewing the memory. What amazed me even more so at the time, however, was the fact that Barbara’s beliefs about herself and the incident were simultaneously transformed.

For example, I asked her what she thought about the event and she replied in an almost casual tone that it was “just something that happened when I was a kid”. I even pushed her on this to test the reality of the transformation by asking with an accusing tone, “Don’t you think that you were to blame? Don’t you think it was your fault?” Her response to me was an unshaken and softly stated, “No, I don’t think I was to blame. I was just a kid.”

I couldn’t believe it. Just moments previously she had gone on about what a no-good so and so she was, and now she was doing an about face! How could this happen in an instant?

I saw her about a week after the treatment and she reported that she continued to not feel bothered about the rape. She told me that she tested this out at times over the week by thinking about the rape, and she did not feel any distress. That was about two years ago and I know that Barbara has continued to do well, since I have had intermittent contacts with her concerning other issues in her life.

As I reported in the article, Barbara was not instantaneously and totally cured, even though the traumatic memory was completely cured within a brief period of time (or even outside of time, depending on how one thinks about such things). While relieving the trauma certainly seemed to have a positive ripple effect throughout Barbara’s life, I should note that I also taught her treatments for addictive urges, anxiety and depression. These treatments were mostly employed during therapy sessions, although she did practice the algorithms at times on her own when she remembered to do so.

Today Barbara is not dependent on drugs and alcohol and her self esteem appears to be on the rise. She went on to complete an undergraduate degree in psychology, is now working on a graduate degree in social work, and is holding a responsible job in the field.

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Mother Calms Panicking Son with TFT

This post was sent in by “a proud mom and TFT-Dx practitioner in Canada”:

Perhaps it is a mother’s bias, but I love my kids. They have all grown up to be wonderful adults and I now have grandchildren as well.

Mother’s Day 2011 was wonderful. I received a BBQ dinner, a spa gift certificate, and they also did some yard work for me. My morning started off with my son, the youngest, making breakfast for me. It was simple and seemed thrown together, but I didn’t think much of it despite his sister harassing him for so little effort.

I love my son. He is a bright kid with a big heart. He graduated last year and wanted to take some ‘time off’ before continuing with school or looking for work. I supported his decision knowing full well he deserves a break. You see, my son is labeled ADHD and has a few social issues.

There is also history of mental health issues on both sides of the family so I have been diligent in trying to keep on top of anything that might develop. Through years of counseling we learned that he has problems with ‘central auditory processing’ which means that sometimes the dots just don’t connect with him. He often asks questions that seem annoying to most people because the answers may seem so obvious he if would just ‘think it through’.

He endured many years of bullying throughout his school days and really does not have many friends to hang out with. However, he has found a following of friends in the online world of gaming. He plays games and makes music videos. He is quite skilled, I might add.

Sometimes his fascination with all this online world may seem silly to some, but I read a news article a few years ago where a 12 year old boy hung himself because his parents took away his gaming privileges abruptly. I understand that these online friends he communicates with are just as real as someone next to him and this keeps him company when his local friends are not available.

When I was introduced to Thought Field Therapy techniques and starting taking courses, I saw the amazing results of these new skills with friends and family. All along I had hoped that I would be able to use these skills with my son, but a year and a half later he still thinks mom’s tapping stuff is weird and he has been unwilling to let me show him anything.

Mother’s Day 2011 was over and we all went to sleep, or so I thought. About 5:30am my son barged into my room and collapsed into my arms, visibly distraught. He said I needed to get some anti depressant pills for him immediately!

I was half asleep, but I have done TFT for so long that I just started doing the complex trauma algorithm surrogately while my son admitted to me that he was scared of the thoughts he was having of grabbing a kitchen knife and hurting himself.

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From Trauma to Loving Life–through TFT

Written by Gabrielle Williamson, Australia, Oct 2010 (from Volume 17, Issue 3 of “The Thought Field”):

In 2000 I was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after a brutal physical attack. Because of head injuries I was unable to complete thoughts or make any sense of the world. This led to debilitating depression as even simple tasks like cooking had become difficult. I was also suffering from severe anxiety and did not know how to engage in society. I became a relative hermit and put on a lot of weight. All I could manage was eating, sleeping and watching videos. My depression grew and intense rage emerged as I ruminated day after day on the attack.

Five years passed in this manner then one day I was introduced to a local TFT Practitioner who listened to my story and offered to give me a treatment with TFT. I was totally skeptical, yet after several treatments I lost the depression and became more functional. Soon, not only did my fear of people and being in public places disappear, but I began to rekindle my former career as a singer/ songwriter and performed my songs at local venues. Previously my memory had been so damaged due to head injuries that I had had trouble remembering my songs. It improved using TFT.

I also became a TFT practitioner and continued to clear phobias, stress, confusion, love pain and rage as they emerged and began helping my friends with TFT as well. Soon I had several regular TFT clients. Chronic depression and anxiety became things of the past.

I realized with gratitude that I had started living my life again and it was better than it had been even before the assault!

In 2006 I won $1,000 first prize in a major local songwriter’s quest and went on to record an album of my songs. I organized every detail of my own album launch which had been an unfulfilled dream for 30 years.

Today I have 4 different part-time businesses which I run myself including a small TFT client-base, many friends, hobbies and interests and am living the life I always wanted to live, as cliche as that may sound! I am an active member of my community and the world at large and feel I have something to contribute. I have no doubt that I am capable of moving on to achieve even greater goals as my life unfolds.

This year, 2010, I will be 50 years old and have never been happier than I am right now. I believe that TFT has very significantly contributed to my healing process when very little else seemed to be working. It is simple, fast and effective as a modality of therapy and easy to administer to myself and others when the need arises. I highly recommend it to anyone. I will continue to rely on its help as it is an invaluable way to be free of all kinds of problems both mental/emotional and physical.

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TFT After Brutal Rape of 13-Year-Old

Dr. Roger Callahan, founder of Thought Field Therapy, wrote the following in the newsletter “The Thought Field”, Volume 6, Issue 4:

A health care professional became very interested in my work when she observed obvious improvements in some of her patients and herself as a result of TFT done by a colleague. After observing such events over a period of two years, she began to wonder if TFT might be able to help her daughter who had been raped two years earlier when she was only 13 years old. Lenore (a fictitious name) had been in psychotherapy for two years with a very dedicated psychotherapist. Despite the fine efforts of the therapist, Lenore was still suffering terribly.

The possibility did not initially occur to the mother that TFT might help her daughter’s condition since her many disturbances were clearly due to a terrible reality situation. Believing the conventional view, she assumed that the problem would have to be treated gradually over a period of years and that a rapid treatment could not possibly have a good effect on such a terrible and real situation.

Prior to the rape Lenore was a very sociable, happy, and generally outstanding child. Lenore was doing very well in school and was doing well in a number of ways.

After the rape, Lenore became a completely different youngster. She began to overeat and purge. She constantly obsessed about the rape and had regular severe nightmares. Formerly a superb student, she became a very poor one. She was hospitalized in an institution specializing in eating disorders. Unfortunately, she became worse while in the hospital and began cutting herself and taking laxatives.

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TFT Relieves 11-Year-Old Boy of Trauma & Shame

TFT even works with people who don’t want to reveal what their upset is about, as Dr. Theresa Gormly, chiropractor, demonstrates in the following story:

I had such a great experience with TFT today with an 11 year old who was very depressed and crying all the time according to his mom. He was begging her not to tell me about his shame related to seeing a sexually explicit picture on the internet. Anyway I told him just to think of the experience (without telling me what it was about) and we tapped it out. Evidently before treating him he was preoccupied with thoughts about it and had alot of shame around it.

He transformed before our eyes. At the end I asked him to think about it and he couldn’t get it to come to mind. He hugged me and his mom and kept saying “thank you”. After I treated his mom I went into the waiting room to say “good-bye” and he looked at me and said “I still can’t think about it” with a “thumbs up”. So nice!

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