Imagine
visiting a therapist and coming away completely relieved of
the trauma, depression, anxiety, or whatever your malady may
have been. Imagine if that could be accomplished within a few
minutes, one or a very few sessions at most. Wouldn't that efficiency
be more to the liking of most people?
Over the past several years, I have
found that most of the time we can achieve this ideal. People
enter my office with a psychological problem and leave without
it. While a certain amount of talking is involved, the curative
aspect of the therapy is not simply in the talking, but rather
through the activation or correction of an increasingly coming-to-be-known
bodily energy system. This is the same system that brought
you acupuncture and that makes regeneration and healing possible.
But more on that later. First a couple of brief case examples.
The Case of Barbara
In 1992, I had the opportunity to see Barbara, a 33-year-old
patient whom I had treated many years previously. While the
earlier treatment was of benefit to her, there was an event
that occurred in her childhood for which I was not able to
help. That event was a rape. She was 13 at the time and an
18 or 19 year old boyfriend forced himself on her. She never
told her parents about it but suffered silently. She would
frequently experience nightmares, turned to drugs and alcohol,
and in most ways was highly depressed. She believed that she
was not worthwhile and, as perplexing as it may seem, she
even blamed herself for the rape.
When Barbara returned to see me, she
was upset about some recent altercations with her mother.
This was causing her to recall a number of distressing memories
concerning their relationship. After listening to her concerns,
I explained that I had been doing a new form of therapy that
involved having patients tap on specific points on their bodies
to relieve their problems. I suggested that we do this for
her, and she was agreeable. Within a matter of a few minutes
she was feeling much calmer, not distressed in the least about
her mother. She felt more positive and hopeful about their
relationship.
Next I broached the subject of the
rape, asking if it still bothered her. Immediately Barbara
began to cry. She was obviously still distressed about the
rape and made many statements about it being her fault, about
the fact that she never listened to her mother, and so on.
Barbara's behavior at that moment created the impression that
she re-entered the 13-year-old girl who was traumatized 20
years previously.
With her permission, I guided her to
tap at various points on her body: between her eyebrows, under
her eyes, beneath her collarbones, on edges of certain fingernails,
and the like. Within a few minutes of this treatment, I observed
a miraculous transformation in Barbara. All signs of distress
were erased from her face. There was now calmness, serenity.
She reached over to my desk and took a Kleenex and dried the
tears from her face. Then she sat calmly, looking at me with
a relaxed, peaceful expression. It is an understatement to
say that I was amazed at what I was witnessing. I asked Barbara,
not very successfully concealing my amazement, "How do
you feel?" Her response was a simple, "Fine."
As if to say, 'What makes you ask?'
"What about what happened to you?"
I asked.
"It's just something that happened
to me when I was a kid," she said calmly.
"You were raped!" I exclaimed.
"Doesn't that bother you now?"
Barbara shook her head and simply said,
"No it doesn't."
I wanted to test the stability of this
apparent transformation, so I asked her
again, "Do you still think you were to blame?"
"No," she said congruently.
"I wasn't to blame. If anything, he was. But that's all
over with now."
I was totally and utterly amazed! Dumbfounded! Blown away!
I had never seen such a remarkable change occur in such a
short period of time. Practically immediately! I saw Barbara
several times after that and also phoned her in follow-up
for several years. That trauma has never bothered her since.
All the talking we had done previously, all the visualizations,
all the attempts at getting her to think more "rationally"
about the rape, all of the previous emoting, etc. None of
it did anything compared to a few minutes of tapping, which
quickly changed how she felt and thought about the rape and
herself.
The Fireman
Another horribly traumatic event: A firefighter came to see
me about a problem he had with anger. While we were successfully
treating this issue, he came in one day reporting inability
to sleep for several days and a general feeling of depression
related to a traumatic event that he witnessed the previous
week. He had reported to the scene of an automobile accident
in which many people were badly injured and a young girl was
killed. He assisted in removing the body of the young girl.
The memory was plaguing him. Understandably he could not get
this off his mind. After discussing the appropriateness of
being relieved of this painful memory, I again applied a tapping
routine similar to what had been done to help Barbara. It
only took about two or three minutes. The memory no longer
bothered him. We were both able to recognize that the event
was a sad and tragic one, but my client was no longer devastated
by it. In a follow-up visit two weeks later he reported that
the fire station had a "trauma session" for the
firefighters who were present at the scene of this accident.
They were supposed to talk about the event, let it all hang
out and come to a healthy acceptance and understanding. My
client informed me that although he could understand the possible
value of the group session, he had already arrived at acceptance
and understanding. He felt that the session at the fire station
was not really necessary for him. He was certainly cured of
this painful memory. Again follow-up over the course of several
months revealed no recurrence of emotional distress when reviewing
this memory.
The Body's Energy System
The therapy I provided to Barbara and
the Fireman, as well as to about a thousand other individuals
over the past several years is based on the fact that the
body has an energy system that follows pathways referred to
as meridians. These meridians interact with a number of more
concentrated energy centers called chakras, as well as with
detectable energy fields around the body. And if energy really
does pervasively saturate every cubic centimeter of space
throughout the universe, as physicists David Bohm and William
Tiller inform us, then the meridians are part and parcel of
our connection with each other, as well as to everything else
for that matter. But that's another story. Before explaining
the basis of this Bioenergy Therapy more fully, let us consider
some facts about acupuncture.
Acupuncture and Meridians
Five thousand years ago, give or take a century or two, an
anonymous person or persons in China discovered that the body
has an energy system that follows specific pathways that are
referred to as meridians. Predating the Chinese findings by
a couple thousand years the same bioenergy system was elucidated
in India. There is also evidence that similar knowledge sprung
up ages ago in other parts of the world, including Egypt,
Arabia, Brazil, among the Bantu Tribes of Africa and the Eskimos.
The Chinese system elaborated twelve
primary bilateral meridians, each of which pass through a
specific organ of the body, including the lungs, heart and
stomach; in addition to collector meridians which intersect
the front and back of the body and enter the brain. Additionally
there are a number of lesser-known collateral's that interconnect
with the primary meridians. The entire system is interconnected
such that the flow of energy, referred to by the Chinese as
Qi or Chi, (pronounced chee) travels from one meridian to
the next, circulating throughout the body.
How the meridians were discovered remains
a mystery. Besides the likelihood of trial and error, it has
been proposed that this system was discovered by observing
the effects of injuries to soldiers in battle. The locations
of the assaults were recorded and correlated with various
effects. If a soldier were injured at a specific location
at the shoulder, for instance, the vicinity of a significant
point related to the Lung Meridian, possibly a respiratory
condition that he had been struggling with for years would
miraculously vanish. Many events of this nature could have
led to an understanding of an interconnection between the
shoulders as well as other bodily locations and the lungs.
Similarly other organs were correlated with various locations
on the body.
Another perhaps rather comical theory
is that the energy system was discovered by tailors who accidentally
inflicted injuries upon themselves and their patrons. Possibly
in time the precise locations of such injuries were compared
among members of the garment industry and this information
eventually migrated into the medical establishment.
Still another theory is that the people
who discovered the bioenergy system possessed higher sensory
abilities such that they could see or palpate the flow within
the meridians, and were thus able to precisely delineate the
meridian geography. Today while many acupuncturists employ
specific recipes for needle placement, other more highly skilled
practitioners of the art are reported to detect the stagnant
or over active flow of Qi via palpation of twelve specific
pulses on the patient's wrists.
Regardless of how the discoveries came
about, an extensive compilation eventually appeared in the
twenty-four volume Nei Ching, the oldest writing on
acupuncture, attributed to Huang Ti, the "Yellow Emperor,"
who, although it is debated, reportedly ruled China for a
hundred years from about 2697 BC to 2597 BC. Modern day acupuncture
has deviated little from this text, suggesting that the system
was developed and refined over the course of many preceding
centuries.
Besides providing information about
the pathways themselves, the Nei Ching text details
information as to specific acupoints. For example, along each
meridian there is a tonification point, which, when stimulated,
increase the availability of energy within the meridian. Sedation
points, on the other hand, reduce overactive energy. A number
of other important points are also discussed in this text
Acupoint Stimulation and Applied Kinesiology
It is common to think of acupuncture as being performed with
needles, since the meridian acupoints can be stimulated with
needles. However, the term acu-puncture (which means to puncture
with needles) is a misnomer in many respects. It is perhaps
better to refer to this treatment as Meridian Therapy, since
there are many forms of stimulation that can be applied to
effect the Qi within and between meridians. These means include
pressure, rubbing, running one's hands in the direction of
the meridian flow, suction cups, herbs, vitamins, minerals,
glandular extracts, specialized exercises, manipulation of
specific muscles, burning moxa (moxibustion), etc.
Chiropractor George Goodheart, founder
of Applied Kinesiology, explored the effectiveness of tapping
or percussing at specific acupoints to alleviate physical
pain. To determine where the tapping has to be applied, Goodheart
employs an elaborate muscle testing procedure and what he
refers to as Therapy Localization. This method involves having
the patient touch specific locations on his or her body while
the doctor tests the strength in an indicator muscle, which
can be any isolated muscle.
In a related manner, psychologist Roger
Callahan and psychiatrist John Diamond have found that tapping
on acupoints is beneficial toward eliminating negative emotions
such as anxieties, phobias, depression, anger, and so forth.
This is similar to the ways in which I successfully treated
Barbara and the Fireman. Those of us who conduct psychological
therapy via the bioenergy system have found that by having
patients tap on specific acupoints, while focusing on the
psychological problem, makes it possible for many intractable
problems to be easily alleviated.
Needless to say, this approach to therapy
does not fit neatly into our ordinary ways of thinking about
change. We have come to believe that the only way psychological-emotional
change can occur is through adjustments in the environment
and the circumstances in which we live, alterations in the
ways in which we think, or by the wonders of modern chemistry.
There is no obviously convincing basis for believing that
tapping at different locations of the body while thinking
about a psychological problem can cause a dramatic change
to occur. Many people would tend to think that something like
that could only work by way of distraction or placebo, even
though distraction commonly results in only temporary relief
and placebo is effective only about a third of the time.
While it is possible to achieve psychological
change by environmental, cognitive, and chemical means, generally
such approaches do not produce rapid, profound changes. They
work over time and frequently result in noteworthy amelioration
but not total elimination of the problem. I believe that this
is due to the fact that these approaches do not specifically
address the energy system that governs emotional responses.
That is, when a negative emotion occurs it is initially triggered
by a change in the energy system, the initial domino that
sets the whole emotional process in motion. It is not that
circumstances, thoughts and chemistry are irrelevant. They
are also intricately involved in the production of negative
emotions. While producing adjustments at these levels is a
useful and often necessary aspect of the overall treatment
package, when treating specifically at the energy level we
are essentially turning off the switch that turns on the negative
emotion.
Proof of Qi and Meridians
If we could prove that the bodily energy system or Qi exists,
perhaps this therapy would be more readily accepted to our
Western minds. In an effort to investigate Qi, some researchers
have reportedly photographed the meridians by using radioactive
isotopes, although others have searched similarly in vein.
But another line of investigation has proven more fruitful.
Orthopedic surgeon and researcher,
Robert O. Becker has conducted extensive research supportive
of the existence of a primitive bodily energy system responsible
for regeneration and that also accounts for the effects of
acupuncture. With regard to regeneration, he provides convincing
evidence that the current of injury that is evident at injury
sites is not merely a byproduct of injury to cells but is
rather consistent with a primitive energy-control system that
guides regeneration. In this respect he has found that the
direct current at the site of injury on frogs, which are not
highly regenerative, is positively charged; whereas, the current
of injury on salamanders, for which regenerative capacities
are paramount, is negatively charged.
Louis Langeman, in his research of
gynecological conditions has also observed variations of electrical
charges. To summarize, in a sample of 123 women with cervical
malignant conditions, between the ages of 21 and 61 plus,
Langeman found that 5 evidenced a positive DC charge in the
cervix, whereas 118 were found to have a negative charge.
Thus 96 percent of the sample revealed a negative DC electrical
charge as compared to 4 percent evidencing a positive charge.
A sample of 78 females with no gynecological conditions (ages
10 to 61 plus) evidenced the reverse pattern: 95 percent positive
charge versus 5 percent negative.
Becker also conducted research that
offers support for the specificity of acupoints and for the
existence of meridians. In the early 1970's research into
acupuncture was encouraged by the National Institute of Health
after Nixon's visit to China serendipitously brought acupuncture
into research vogue after Western journalist, James Reston,
was effectively treated in China for postoperative pain with
acupuncture.
Many of the initial investigators thought
that acupuncture worked as a result of a placebo effect and
that needle placement would prove irrelevant. In The Body
Electric he wrote, "Thus, much of our earliest research
merely disproved this fallacy, which the Chinese...had done
long ago." Becker approached the problem differently.
He figured that the meridians were electrical conductors that
carried messages back and forth between the brain and the
injury site, promoting healing while producing a pain message
at the same time. He suggested that the purpose of the acupoints
were to serve as boosters to keep the current up to snuff.
If this were in fact the case, then a difference in electrical
resistance would be detectable at the points as compared to
the surrounding skin. And this proved to be the case. He also
found that variations on the surfaces of the skin in the locations
of meridians were distinct as compared to non-meridian skin.
Thus the meridian are real.
Self Treatment
In closing, I'd like to offer the reader an example of a Bioenergy
Self-Treatment that may prove of some benefit and also promote
an experiential understanding of what has been covered in
this article. I can't guarantee that this technique will prove
helpful to everyone, since often the assistance of a Bioenergy
Psychotherapist is needed in order to get the full benefit.
However, there is nothing about this technique that is harmful,
so it will either help or do nothing at all. You have nothing
to loose except the negative feelings, so it's worth a try.
1. Begin by thinking about something
that causes a mild level of emotional discomfort, say a 5
on a 0-10 scale. This might be a painful memory or the thought
of doing something that produces some discomfort (e.g., a
disturbing memory of something a friend did, giving a speech,
etc.). After you learn how to do this process, you can use
this for more intense emotional reactions later.
2. Next tap firmly with two fingers
on your forehead directly between your eyebrows, at what is
called the Third Eye point while continuing to think about
the memory or activity. You may find it difficult to keep
the thought in mind. But constantly tap until it is impossible
or difficult to get in touch with the negative feeling. (With
a more intense emotional memory, after briefly bringing it
to mind, is not necessary to think about it while doing this
technique.)
3. Other treatment points to consider
are the following: under your nose, under your bottom lip,
and at the center of the chest (on the upper section of your
sternum). You can use these points in addition to the third
eye point.
4. At this point stop tapping and notice
how you feel while thinking about the issue. If you are able
to detect any present discomfort, resume tapping. One or a
few rounds of this simple treatment often eliminates the negative
feelings associated with the issue. If the discomfort returns
at a future time, a few more self-treatments may be needed
to permanently eliminate the problem.
So there you have it: A simple way
to balance the bioenergy system and erase a negative emotion.
Emotional CPR, if you will. Sounds too simple, doesn't it?
But often it is that easy. Use it in good health.
Recommended Reading
Gallo, F. P. (1998, 2005). Energy
Psychology.
Gallo, F. P., & H. Vincenzi. (2000).
Energy Tapping.
Gallo, F. P. (2007). Energy Tapping
for Trauma.
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