by Arjuna Ardagh, Huffington Post

Sometimes it seems like all we hear these days is talk of the tough economy. I actually conducted a little sociological experiment this weekend, and counted up how many times I heard people refer to the economy in a negative way. I got 43 hits, even though I stayed home quite a bit.

There is, of course, some objective measurable truth to all of this depressing talk. If you own a house, it’s probably worth considerably less than it was five years ago. If you own a business, you may be making less money than you were, and you may have even been faced with the difficult decision of laying off some of your employees. If you’re an investor in the stock market, you may have seen your portfolio go down in value.

But not everybody these days is having a terrible time. I’ve conducted another little amateur sociological experiment over the last several weeks. I asked a lot of my colleagues — writers, teachers, seminar leaders — how they would evaluate their year so far, not just financially, but according to a broader spectrum of measurement. How are your relationships? How’s your creativity? How’s your health? How much are you living your deepest vision? I’m a member of two extraordinary mens’ groups, one where I live in Nevada City, and another that I travel to in Marin County. I asked this question at the recent meeting of the Transformational Leadership Council. More than half the people I asked told me that 2010 was proving to be their best year ever, myself included.

I hear people ask a lot on the blogosphere and in the media, “How long is this recession going to last? When are we going to go back to where we were?” Well, here’s a shocking question for you now. What if we never, ever, ever go back to where we were? What if the old game is now coming to an end, and a whole different way of relating with each other financially and energetically is emerging?

Let’s cast our mind back for a moment to the early part of the twentieth century, and imagine that one of your ancestors was in the business of shoeing horses or making saddles. Looking at the increasing popularity of the motor car, your ancestor might have asked his friends and neighbors, “How long is this going to last? When will things go back to the way they were?” For someone completely immersed in anything to do with horses — shoeing them, building saddles for them, operating stables for them, cleaning up their droppings from the road — those years would have looked like a tough economy. For Henry Ford, it was boom time. You can extrapolate what I just said in many ways. The 80′s were probably a terrible time for people involved in the gramophone record industry. The Great Depression in the 30′s, which hit not only the United States but Europe as well, was a truly terrible time for most people but it was also the period when discount stores first got off the ground, and many other new things were born.

You get my point. Every area of decline is experienced by somebody as a period of growth, rebirth and opportunity. I got really interested to ask myself, and other people like me who are experiencing that this is their best year ever, what are the keys to thriving in this new economy?

From interviews and conversations with these “thrivers” I’ve been able to identify twelve primary qualities of thriving in the new economy, as well as as many as 20 other sub-qualities. A lot of these qualities are really easy to understand and assimilate, starting today.

Over the next weeks, I’ll be offering a series of blog posts and free tele-seminars, with a series of expert guests, on how to thrive in the new economy. Here are the twelve primary themes that I’ll be elaborating on in the series, starting in a few weeks.

1. Question your mind.
Pretty much everything you think you know about work and money has been conditioned by the old game, the one that is declining. Thrivers like Hale Dwoskin, the author of “The Sedona Method,” realize that we become wise through letting go.

2. Discover your deeper nature.
Everyone I’ve spoken to who is thriving has found a way to tap into a dimension of themselves beyond the personality, beyond the mind, beyond the personal story. We can call that a moment of “awakening.” Thrivers like Eckhart Tolle place awakening as the highest value.

3. Recognize your unique gift.
As we just begin to hover in the realm of awakening, a unique gift starts to emerge: your real reason for being here. Thrivers help others to discover their true gift.

4. Recognize and respond to opportunity.
People who thrive in the new economy work less with initiation, intention, and effort, and more with the relaxed ability to recognize and respond to the opportunities that come to them. Thrivers like Jack Canfield have learned the magic of “just say yes.”

5. Excel at what you do.
A number of books written in the past few years point to the fact that greatness and success are often simply a function of just repeating the same skills over and over until you get good at them. Thrivers like Stewart Emery have studied the secret mechanics of greatness.

6. Wake up your intuition.
Thrivers have, for the most part, recognized that logically working things out, balancing the pros and cons, is a much less effective way of giving your gift than tapping into a dimension where you “just know.” Thrivers like Sonia Choquette help people live from just knowing.

7. Be yourself.
It’s an old platitude, but today it’s more than just good advice, it’s an undeniable foundation for thriving. The proliferation of social media has made authenticity more appealing than slick advertising. Thrivers like Gay and Kathlyn Hendricks realize that you don’t need a rehearsal to be who you are.

8. Enough is enough.
Our interest in unlimited wealth, which made the topics of manifesting and the law of attraction so interesting just a few years ago, have now become oh-so-2005. Thrivers have come to enjoy the word enough: enough money, enough toys, enough of everything to be happy and give my gift. Thrivers like Lynn Twist expound the wisdom of sufficiency.

9. Be guided by greatness.
People who thrive in the new economy have discovered that learning is not just a phase you go through as a young person. It’s a life-long attitude to thriving. To be able to remain a learner, you simply need to put yourself in dialog with people who can do things better than you can. Thrivers like John Assaraf realize that coaching and mentoring are the short-cuts to a life of meaning.

10. Fuel the fire.
Thrivers have learned not to push the body past where it wants to go. They’ve canceled their subscription to Red Bull, lunches on the run and working until late in the night. They know how to replenish their energy while it is being used. Thrivers like Stephen Josephs and Anat Baniel teach business owners how to stay energetically topped-up.

11. Experience the richness of giving.
The old economy was based on the mathematics of lack. “You can only cut a pie so many ways.” Secrecy, campaigns launched with military precision and going into price war with the competition were the testosterone-driven ways. Thrivers like Ivan Misner, the founder Business Network International, have recognized that when your focus is on giving back more than you take, thriving is an inevitable byproduct.

12. Embrace the return of the Goddess.
You may have noticed that we are now witnessing a huge resurgence of feminine energy after thousands of years of the domination of the masculine. Thrivers like Marianne Williamson celebrate and welcome the return of the feminine.

As I’ve said, this is not an exhaustive list. We could come up with a dozen more “thriver’s qualities” in a finger-snap.

I put on a great tele-seminar on August 26th. We went into each of these 12 primary qualities of thriving in more detail. You can register below for the replay.

If you register for this event, I’ll let you know as soon as the twelve week series is scheduled to start.

REGISTER HERE

Six years, and 17,700,000 pages viewed by people all over the world. And now a “refresh” for www.thrivingnow.com with new colors, new logo, and expanded intentions to Serve.

To those of you who have supported us over the years, our blessings and deep gratitude. For our new visitors, we delight in knowing that there is Good Stuff and Great Energy here for anyone who wants to start Thriving… NOW!

On a practical, technology note… we’ve changed our publishing platform from ExpressionEngine to WordPress, and in the process imported, shifted, changed, massaged, and tweaked over 500 articles and a few thousand links. Uhhh, you may find some “issues” — and if you do, or you can’t find what you are looking for, do feel free to drop us an email at support@thrivingnow.com.

We’re excited and optimistic. We’re looking forward to connecting with you, hearing your stories, and welcoming you as part of our Circle of Support for a Thriving Life.

Much love,

Rick & Cathy

P.S. While you’re here, if you haven’t signed up for any of our free newsletters, we invite you to do so (see yellow box below).

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Yes, you and your clients can use Energy Tapping (EFT) Tapping to heal from the effects of past traumas…

Join 3 advanced trauma experts and learn how to help yourself and others release traumas from the body, mind and spirit!

Carol Look
Rick Wilkes
Sue Beer

IN THIS WORKSHOP YOU WILL LEARN:

* The “mechanics” of trauma and how it gets stuck in our bodies
* How to identify the “freeze response” and how/why it stays “frozen” in our bodies
* How to discharge the freeze response with EFT/ Meridian Tapping
* How to “unpack” trauma w/ tapping protocols
* The connection between trauma and addictions
* How trauma represents separation and how to come back into connection w/ ourselves & others
* How trauma forms our personality
* Why sexual and physical trauma are complicated yet entirely treatable
* How war traumas and PTSD need to be approached
* Why Energy Medicine “works” to rewire the brain in trauma treatment
* Methods of testing the trauma treatment to ensure long term relief

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

* EFT. Meridian Tapping, and Energy Medicine Practitioners ready to take their clients to the next level of healing
* Medical Professionals,  MDs and nurses, needing a new tool for patients who are stuck because of PTSD symptoms
* Psychotherapists and Family Counselors looking for new methods of help for their clients
* Mental Health Workers hoping to provide relief to their clients who have been suffering from childhood and adult traumas
* Individuals from any profession who are interested in releasing childhood or adult trauma from their lives

Beginning EFT/Meridian Tapping skills are required.

WHEN: Friday , Saturday, Sunday September 24 – 26th, 2010

WHERE: Stamford Marriott Hotel, Stamford CT

For all details and registration information, visit:

http://www.attractingabundance.com/eft/trauma-relief-workshop-sep-24-26/

SOLD OUT!

Post expires on Monday September 27th, 2010 4:01am

Team members please login to access these recordings.

Team Call 2010-07-03 What Would It Take To Feel More Free?
- I’d have to be less afraid
- Bigger business, better wife, perfect product
- Compulsion to have “it”
- Self-judgements getting in the way of my dream

Team Call 2010-07-04 Body Image Study Group
- Changing distractions from food to internet
- Afraid eyedrops for surgery will give me a reaction
- My inner sabotour

Team Call 2010-07-06 Open Call
- Really hard time not having an air conditioner
- Little overwhelmed because I can’t DO anything… even though I just had surgery
- Other people’s pain and body YES and body NO

Team Call 2010-07-09 Open Call
- Who am I?
- Procrastination
- Supposed to have wonderful things for everyone else, not for me
- If I’m beautiful, I will never be hurt

Team Call 2010-07-11 Financial Abundance Study Group
- Talking about money with a romantic interest
- Choosing the right job
- Lots of channels, not a lot of flow
- I have to be responsible
- I HAVE to, don’t I?
- Why can’t I have something new?

Team Call 2010-07-13 Open Call
- Too old to learn marketing, so discouraged
- Need to get motivated
- How can I give myself a break?
- I don’t deserve to move forward, I didn’t fix them
- I don’t deserve help or good things.

Team Call 2010-07-18 Body Image Study Group
- Whole lot of grief… waiting for the dam to break
- Listening to the body
- Getting to peak of letting go
- I can’t accept my body/emotions the way they are!
- Overwhelmed lately
- I need to keep them happy (even though the situation is anything BUT happy)

Team Call 2010-07-20 Open Call
- Anything good will be taken away
- No one is going to hear me
- Panic attack
- No desire to do work
- Big scary questions
- Not ready

Team Call 2010-07-23 Open Call
- Eye still blurry which is tiring and exhausting
- My eyes as vibrational receptors
- Fear about participating in life
- Shyness and irrational beliefs

Team Call 2010-07-25 Financial Abundance Study Group
- Affiliate offerings
- Dangerous! I need to be secretive
- Blocks to investing in my business
- My money is just sitting there waiting for inflation to make it worthless!
- Tremendously guilty that I HAVE and they DON’T

Team Call 2010-07-27 I’m Afraid to Feel Good, I Can’t Enjoy Myself
- I don’t deserve to be happy
- I can’t feel better than my mother
- Parental programing, shame and guilt
- I’m not up to Mom’s standards

Team Call 2010-07-31 Open Call
- It has to be hard to make high vibration money
- I don’t know how to be safe
- I’m a bad person
- Not the best, not good enough

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On Sale $47 – Reg. price $67 (includes 147-pages and 5+ hours of coaching & tapping audios)

Getting Unstuck!

Are you stuck? When you’re stuck, the frustration builds. You feel angry and hopeless… like you will NEVER get what you WANT!

The fact is that the way our brain works, the reasons you are stuck are probably hidden from you… and will stay hidden until you ask 3 key questions:

1) Is it safe to move forward or change?
2) Do I deserve to move forward or change?
3) Who I would be if I moved forward or changed?

If we don’t feel safe in our primitive (survival) brain or body, we will NOT move forward.

If we feel undeserving (or that we need to be punished for some dusty crime), we will sabotage ourselves by staying stuck.

And as whacky and illogical as it may seem, if we’re used to being a failure in our own heads, those habitual thoughts are energetically incompatible with success! So we stay who and where we are. STUCK!

Sure… willpower may win out for awhile, but it is a constant fight. Exhausting. And once we are tired out, we’ll find ourselves back where we were. Stuck in the same ol’…. stuff.

In this program we teach you how to identify which of these blocks are affecting you right now… the specific events that contribute to these stuck energies… and together we’ll use Tapping (EFT) to release them so you can move forward with confidence and ease.

Includes: 5 Audio Coaching and Tapping Sessions (MP3′s) with Transcripts (PDF’s)

Is It Safe To Feel Safe? (MP3) – Transcript (PDF)
If you’re feeling stuck, or just not moving forward as quickly as you would like, a basic fear may be getting in your way. As illogical as it may sound, some people do not feel SAFE feeling SAFE! Their primitive brain thinks it is dangerous to let go of constant vigilance.

Let’s test how this is for you. Say out loud:
“It is SAFE for me to feel safe.”

Does that feel 100% true and comfortable in your body? Is there an underlying tension when you think of feeling wonderful and calmly confident?

Now say:
“Part of me is scared to feel too safe.”

Does this feel true at all?

For some people, the fear of feeling safe may not be an issue. But if it is for you, even at a low intensity level, your primitive brain is fighting your progress and slowing you down. If this fear applies to you… what specific reasons or memories are coming up around this? Tapping on the beliefs and memories can smooth your journey and allow you more insights and doorways to healing.

What Still Scares Me… (MP3) – Transcript (PDF)
We look at some of the fears people carry that may block them from moving toward what they desire and tap to bring relief. Tap along and borrow benefits to release your fears.
- Stress and Pain from old medical testing
- Fear if running out of money
- Allowing myself to be hopeful
- My son’s teenage years

I Don’t Deserve to Get What I Want (MP3) – Transcript (PDF)
We sometimes know very clearly what we want (our goal), see other people getting it, and we’re NOT. Why??? In this audio recording we address the limiting beliefs around deserving… deserving health, wealth, happiness.

Even if there is abundance in many areas of our lives, most of us have some aspect in our lives that just doesn’t flow.
- Whether it is losing weight,
- finding a romantic partner,
- healing a part of our body, or
- improving our finances…

We have tried and tried, and not shifted it.
Incredibly frustrating! Sometimes we think we must not deserve it.
Why do people believe that?
- They haven’t ever gotten it — isn’t that proof?
- They feel they haven’t earned it.
- They are convinced they will lose something else if they get it.
- They were told they were selfish or spoiled.
- They feel guilty.
Where did you learn that you didn’t deserve whatever your goal is?
- Is it around this current experience?
- Did you learn it as a child?
- Did your parents or teachers show you this limiting belief?
Who or what showed you that you were unworthy of what you want?

Who Would I Be? (MP3) – Transcript (PDF)
Our identity is very important. If we have a block around changing aspects of ourselves because we aren’t sure who we’ll be, it can get in the way. We look at the ways some people are stuck around this concept and tap!

- If I could shine
- Fear of singing out
- If I didn’t have chronic pain
- Conflict around boundaries
- If I weren’t unacceptable
- Primitive brain trying to protect me
- If I weren’t focused on my weight

I Just Don’t Want To Feel This! (MP3) – Transcript (PDF)
Intense feelings can be overwhelming and scary
Many of us don’t have good coping skills for “negative” emotions, especially when they are intense
Just being with it, and accepting ourselves can be powerful. Sometimes challenging
If you are having trouble, what judgement or thoughts are underlying this?
- This is too hard
- I may not survive
- I shouldn’t be feeling this
- This isn’t normal
- This is my fault
- Good people don’t feel this
- It isn’t safe to feel this way
- It isn’t fair! I don’t deserve this
- I must be bad if I’m feeling this

When we get the self-judgements and blame out of the way, some of the intensity may go away, or at least it won’t  be as stuck in our bodies.

We can also take baby steps. We don’t have to “process” it ALL right now. We can take breaks. Tap on one aspect of the issue or feeling.

And we can ask for help so we don’t feel alone

On Sale $47 – Reg. price $67 (includes 147-pages and 5+ hours of coaching & tapping audios)
30-Day Money Back Guarantee

We know from personal experience how invaluable a helping hand can be when you are dealing with these kinds of issues. We have a group coaching program that is structured to provide such support.

Learn More about the Thriving Now Team Group Coaching Program

We also offer private sessions (limited availability).

We have enjoyed the insights and teachings of Dr. Phil Mollon, a British psychoanalyst who works with a combined attention to the dynamics of the mind and the energy fields of the body – resulting in the approach called Psychoanalytic Energy Psychotherapy. Here is an article of his on Trauma:

Brief comments on trauma – and the contribution of psychoanalytic energy psychotherapy

Phil Mollon PhD.

All traumas – experiences that overwhelm a person’s coping capacities – are difficult to recover from, but some are worse than others. Some traumas smash the soul. These are those malign experiences in which a person’s humanity has been systematically destroyed by a sadistic other, or group of others. Such events are of a different category than those that do not involve human malevolence – such as an experience of a car spinning out of control, for example.

Trauma shatters our illusion of safety, causing an influx of existential dread [Mollon 2002a]. Thus the effect of a trauma is not only to leave a legacy of fear in relation to situations closely associated with the traumatic event, but also to render the person generally fearful and in full awareness of ordinary human vulnerability. Where the person has been subject to systematic torture, whether by a state, a gang, or a family, he or she is in addition exposed to human malevolence.

When we are shocked and frightened, it is natural for us to want to turn to other human beings for comfort. In some circumstances it is those same human beings who are the agents of our trauma. This is both terrifying and mentally indigestible. Human beings seem mostly to manage to hold on to a sense of the existence of goodness in others until this is shattered by an encounter with intense badness.

For a child, the exposure to malevolence from a caregiver is probably an intolerable perception – an awareness that is therefore blocked. This is the central thesis of the book Betrayal Trauma by Jennifer Freyd [1996]. It was also a core theme in the work of the Scottish psychoanalyst Ronald Fairbairn [1952], who worked with abused children. He coined the term, the ‘moral defence’, referring to the child’s tendency to blame the self, to assume that the self is bad, rather than perceive the neglect or malevolence of the caregiver. Such blaming the self also provides some illusion of control – ‘it was my fault because I am so bad’ – in contrast with the true perception of helplessness.

A woman known to have been extensively sexually abused by her father, from an early age, objected to my use of the word ‘abuse’ when I interviewed her. She sternly rephrased my enquiry by replying “The first time I allowed my father to touch me sexually was when I was age 4”. In this way she shifted the locus of control from her father to herself.

It follows that a major hidden injury for those who have suffered interpersonal trauma is to the sense of trust – trust in others and trust in the self. Any attempt to bypass this issue and to persuade the traumatised person to trust are likely to compound the problem. Paradoxically, for those who have suffered interpersonal trauma, trusting others is felt to be the most dangerous and foolish position – and, thus, if such a person begins to trust, he or she will feel even more frightened and vulnerable [Mollon 1996]. At core, the belief may be that it is not safe to trust anyone – that the best stance is to assume that no-one can be trusted. Nevertheless, the urge to attach, to seek comfort, and to trust remains – and this conflict over reaching out versus remaining armoured within is at the heart of the dilemma of trauma.

Trauma tends to throw our natural direction of energies into reverse. Instead of seeking life, love, and joy, there is a flowing of life energy backwards [Diamond 1985] – an addiction to trauma, a fixation on traumatic memories, and a preoccupation with death. We are sucked into a psychic black hole – a maelstrom of trauma from which it can in some cases prove impossible to emerge.

We become identified with the trauma – fixed in the traumatic perspective. All life then becomes interpreted from the point of view of the trauma. It consumes our being. The traumatised person may also identify with the ones responsible for the trauma. These become internal voices, haunting reminders and continuing perpetrators of the trauma – taunting and disparaging from inside [Mollon 1996]. A woman reported having been subject to a horrifying and prolonged gang rape and torture session many years previously – and described being continually tormented by internal voices mocking her and addressing her with the same abusive words used originally by the gang members.

When we have been subject to prolonged interpersonal trauma, feelings of shame and guilt – and sense of one’s fundamental badness and worthlessness – become intensified, a state of toxic shame [Mollon 2002c]. Held naked before the black sun of human malevolence, all sense of personal value becomes burnt away. This is a common, yet insufficiently recognised result of prolonged abusive relationships amongst adults, where there has been a combination of physical and emotional violence – a systematic undermining of self-worth. Although not as damaging as childhood traumatic abuse or severe torture, the malign effect of toxic relationships on self-esteem, self-image, and mental health generally, should not be underestimated. Indeed the term ‘toxic relationship syndrome’ might often be relevant.

The brain of the traumatised person is altered by the overwhelming events – flooding with cortisol and other stress hormones can cause real physical alterations, especially if prolonged – resulting in sensitisation, such that stress responses are released ever more easily [van der Kolk et al.1996]. The amygdala fires relentlessly, generating fear, whilst hippocampal functioning is impaired, disrupting the normal coherence of perceptual and cognitive experience. The body too continues to resonate to the impact of the original trauma – generating the same physiological arousal, particularly to any cues associated with the trauma.

Trauma consumes the mind, the brain, and the body. Attempting to address the mind alone, as in traditional talking therapy, without taking account of what has happened to the brain and the body, is both futile and frustrating. This point is often emphasised by the Harvard psychiatric neuroscientist and trauma specialist Bessel van der Kolk, who advocates a variety of body-based approaches, including EMDR and ‘energy psychology’ methods.

In aiming to help the traumatised person, attention to building trust and a sense of safety in the therapeutic relationship is crucial – but often not sufficient. In addition, the traumatic memories themselves, along with associated beliefs and patterns of (now dysfunctional) safety-seeking behaviour need to be addressed and resolved. Unfortunately (and despite the ubiquitous hype about cognitive behaviour therapy) talking therapies are not able to do this very well. Often a traumatised person will feel much worse if asked to talk about their trauma. Repeatedly talking about it just makes the situation worse, stirring up affect and the physiology of stress whilst providing no relief or resolution. The traumatic memories need to be addressed, but approaching them too directly may have catastrophic results – a therapeutic process of ‘exposure’ or ‘flooding’ may be successful, but it can be a disaster.

Traumatic memories function like internal phobias. Just as a phobic person will avoid external situations that trigger their anxiety, and this avoidance will generalise over time, a similar process occurs in relation to internal foci of anxiety. The internal cognitive avoidance of traumatic memories steadily generalises, and more and more mental resources are consumed in the effort to avoid – mental and behavioural life become increasingly narrowed over time. This is the sad but common ‘natural history’ of trauma. Fortunately, there are effective non-verbal methods, adjunctive to talking, which can often help considerably.[see cautionary footnote regarding memory].

Part of the therapeutic task is to address and process the traumatic memories, without the person being left even more traumatised and destabilised as a result. The first effective treatment for trauma was Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing – developed by clinical psychologist Dr. Francine Shapiro in the late 1980s. Not in any way based on a theory, but deriving from empirical observation, EMDR makes use of eye movements, alternating sounds in each ear, or taps on the body, to provide bilateral body-brain stimulation whilst the person focuses on a traumatic memory. Typically distress initially rises as the traumatic memory is accessed, before eventually subsiding. The bilateral processing is continued until the memory can be considered calmly without distress. This method works well. Despite various controversies over its mode of action, and whether it differs fundamentally from ordinary exposure therapies, those who learn to use it with skill are almost always persuaded, by experience that it is superior to more simple cognitive and behavioural methods [Mollon 2005]. The drawback is that where the trauma has been prolonged, very severe, repeated, or links to extensive childhood trauma, EMDR can be hazardous. The body-tapping variant of EMDR seems gentler than the eye movement version.

For people who cannot tolerate EMDR, or for those who prefer a gentler approach, the various body-focused methods of ‘energy psychology’ are ideal. These involve having the person stimulate ‘energy sensitive’ areas of the body, such as acupressure points and chakras, whilst thinking of the trauma. For some reason these methods do not seem to require such vivid accessing of the trauma as does EMDR. Just a partial contact with the trauma, like dipping a psychic filament into the toxic memory, seems sufficient to bring about rapid desensitisation. Growing out of the early work of chiropractor George Goodheart and psychiatrist John Diamond in the 1960s-70s, the first clear version of what later came to be called ‘energy psychology’ methods was Thought Field Therapy, as developed by clinical psychologist Roger Callahan in the early 80s [Callahan 2001]. Callahan found that anxiety and trauma are patterned into the body’s energy system – this is the ‘thought field’. By addressing the body at the same time as the psyche, in rather particular and skilful ways, he found it was possible to eliminate the distress rather rapidly. Initially developed as a treatment for phobias, TFT was later found to be very effective for trauma – and has been used extensively in the wake of military and societal trauma and natural disasters [Callahan & Callahan 2000]. During the 1990s a number of others began teaching, adapting and researching Callahan’s methods. In 1995, a simplified version of TFT, called Emotional Freedom Techniques [EFT] was launched through a website. A California acupuncturist, Tapas Fleming, developed a very elegant and easy method involving holding meridian points and chakras on the head, whilst working through a short series of meditative thoughts. This has been found very effective and has been used successfully to treat military trauma. Asha Clinton, a Jungian psychotherapist and anthropologist, developed a deep and thorough approach combining psychotherapy and energy psychology – originally called Seemorg Matrix, but now renamed Advanced Integrative Therapy. My own approach, called Psychoanalytic Energy Psychotherapy, combines aspects of many energy psychology modalities with the perspectives from psychoanalysis and also cognitive therapy [Mollon 2008]. By 1998, the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology [ACEP] had been formed by a group of well-credentialled clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers in the USA , to provide a professional base for supporting research, dissemination of clinical findings, and the development of a code of ethics. It now has an excellent certification programme for those interested in a broad grounding in energy psychology.

In working with the traumatised, we need to draw upon all the knowledge, skills, and relevant techniques available, (including neurobiology and psycho-endocrinology). No single approach has all the answers – but I am certain that the incorporation of energy psychology provides a huge leap forward in the therapeutic possibilities for people who have been traumatised.

References Callahan, R.J. 2001. Tapping the Healer Within. Chicago. Contemporary Books.

Callhahan, R.J. & Callahan, J. 2000. Stop the Nightmares of Trauma. Thought Field Therapy: the Power Therapy for the 21st Century. Chapel Hill. Professional Press.

Diamond, J. 1985. Life Energy. St Paul. MN. Paragon House.

Fairbairn. R.D. 1952. Psychoanalytic Studies of the Personality. London. Routledge.

Freyd, J. 1996. Betrayal Trauma. The Logic of Forgetting Childhood Abuse. Cambridge, MA. Harvard University Press.

Mollon, P. 1996. Multiple Selves, Multiple Voices. Working with Trauma, Violation, and Dissociation. Chichester. Wiley.

Mollon, P. 2001. Shame and Jealousy. The Hidden Turmoils. London. Karnac.

Mollon, P. 2002a. Cracking the shell of illusion: a brief theory of trauma and dread. Chapter 1 in Mollon, P. Remembering Trauma. Second Edition. London. Whurr.

Mollon, P. 2002b. Remembering Trauma. A Psychotherapist’s Guide to Memory and Illusion. London. Whurr.

Mollon, P. 2005. EMDR and the Energy Therapies. Psychoanalytic Perspectives. London. Karnac.

Mollon, P. 2008. Psychoanalytic Energy Psychotherapy. London. Karnac.

Van der Kolk. B. A. McFarlane, A., & Weisath, L. [Eds.] Traumatic Stress. The Effects of Overwhelming Experience on Mind, Body, and Society. New York. Guildford.

Website links:
Psychoanalytic Energy Psychotherapy: http://www.philmollon.co.uk
Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology: http://www.energypsych.org
Thought Field Therapy: http://www.thoughtfieldtherapy.co.uk http://www.tftrx.com
Emotional Freedom Techniques: http://www.eftuniverse.com
Tapas Acupressure Technique: http://www.tatlife.com
Seemorg Matrix/AIT: http://www.seemorg.com
Bessel Van der Kolk: http://www.traumacenter.org
Dr. John Diamond: http://www.drjohndiamond.com

Stress. Strain. Pain. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just FIX IT… like a flat tire or broken headlight?

Our “engineering” is miraculously different from that of our car. As living beings our trend is what matters, and we have considerable control over that trend (whether we practice it or not). For example, if our thoughts and actions build up stress in our body day after day after day without relief, our trend is towards less and less “ease” in our body. In other words, towards DIS-ease.

However, if we balance the natural stresses of daily life with thoughts and actions that bring us peace, joy, and bliss… our body refreshes and renews itself. It heals. It radiates well-being.

This is where a shift in attitude from “FIX ME!” to one of curiosity and play can make a potent impact. Consider a situation where you have a headache. One approach is to ask, “What can I do to GET RID OF this headache!?!?” When you go to this state, you are actually adding stress to your body-mind. You are trying to “get rid of” a part of you that is in pain and asking for relief. Your energy is anxious, frustrated, angry… even despairing. In answer to your request to “get rid of” the headache, your nervous system does its best to disassociate you from the pain and its messages.

Sometimes this works. Long term, it is a strategy that leads to chronic pain syndromes, fatigue, and loss of vitality. (I know… been there, done that!)

An alternative approach is to be curious. “How might I help my head feel just a little better, a little more relaxed? What if there is a baby step I could take in the direction of relief? I wonder what my headache is telling me?”

Curiosity engages head, heart, and gut. Our intuition activates.

It’s then that we get insights like “rub an ice cube across my forehead” or “take a hot washcloth and rub my feet” or “lie down in the grass for 5 minutes.”

Playfulness goes arm-in-arm with curiosity. “Hmmm… how can I make this even more enjoyable?”

Could you apply this to your work? How might a task you don’t enjoy be made a BIT more like play?

Where could you add slow, delicious movements into your day? Skipping? Whistling? Massage?

One client who I encouraged to combine playfulness and curiosity reported that her headaches would ease when she started making silly noises… blub blub freeeeee catcha goo goo gaaaaaa! Was it stress in the jaw? Throat? Who knows. Her intuition combined with some playful curiosity lead her to relief.

Where might it lead you?

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Team Call 2010-06-06 Body Image Study Group
- Too many diets, my body doesn’t want to be forced.
- Why bother losing weight, I won’t be able to afford new clothes.
- I want to be myself, but I need his appreciation
- I can’t be taken seriously if I’m ill

Team Call 2010-06-10 Open Call
- Anger and rage coming out sideways
- Impatience and frustration
- I can’t have boundaries with them and it makes me angry (then they pick on me)
- It’s my fault! And he’s a big od fat grouch…
- Dealing with other people’s anger

Team Call 2010-06-12 Freedom To Express Myself
- Too much shame
- Too difficult, they won’t like me
- Just can’t!
- Never encouraged
- Stop crying or I’ll give you something to cry about!
- Slapped down
- Oher people’s judgements
- Out of control

Team Call 2010-06-13 Financial Abundance Study Group
- How dare I be me?
- Not a lot of trust in abundance and success
- Want to be able to express a different opinion
- Selling my house, anxiety, resentment, worry
- Rich cousins in touch again

Team Call 2010-06-14 Open Call
- When I say no to her, she gets so sad
- Discouraged… all over my body
- Second guessing myself
- Confused about wanting to break up with my boyfriend

Team Call 2010-06-15 Oh The Time I’ve Lost – These Old Regrets
- I cheated on my boyfriend
- I lost all that time with their intolerance of the learning process
- “Don’t abondon me” energy

Team Call 2010-06-20 Body Image Study Group
- Shaming and self-judgement
- Worried people will think I’m ugly
- Holding on to dull, boring, obese lifestyle
- Sabotaging in the evening, the kitchen is closed
- Always feeling wrong

Team Call 2010-06-20 Oh Dad, How Could You…?
- Wanting to bond with Dad
- Ignoring my needs
- Anger at dad for abuse
- He threatened her
- Looking for faults

Team Call 2010-06-22 Open Call
- Overwhelmed… Mixed energy… errands and obligations
- Bad pain in my feet
- Anger! He’s not listening!
- My mother used me.

Team Call 2010-06-23 Open Call
- Inner critic sabotage
- There must be something wrong with me
- Don’t want to lose my freedom, inner conflict
- Resentment at my wife

Team Call 2010-06-27 Financial Abundance Study Group
- Not much abundance in my past
- Watching my money run out
- I just don’t enjoy life
- There is just not enough
- Staying connected to parents energy and beliefs
- I wasn’t there for him

Team Call 2010-06-29 Their Judgements are Stopping Me!
- What a stupid idiot
- Constant judgement from Mom
- Its all my fault
- Need to be brave no matter what
- My very existance was judged

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On Sale $77 – Reg. price $87 (includes 245-page e-book and 8.5 hours of coaching & tapping audios)

Isn’t it time to feel safe in your body? To understand how to live your life vibrantly and vitally? Isn’t it time to FREE YOURSELF from fear and emotional confusion?

In honor of your own personal Independence Day, we invite you to take part in our new program:

Free Yourself from Inner Confusion and Fear: A Practical Guide to Emotional Clarity

In this PRACTICAL approach to healing, we include exercises, tapping rounds, and information to provide you an operating manual for life. You will learn concepts that will help you understand your boss, your partners, your parents, your customers, and most importantly, yourself. These skills will allow you to self-heal at a deeper level and give you a surprising inner clarity.

If you’re ready for emotional relief, and want a clearer understanding of what makes humans tick, read on…

After listening to the recordings, doing the simple exercises, and tapping along, you will feel much more comfortable:

• Connecting and listening to your body.
• Understanding why you feel the way you do.
• Shifting your vibration from stressed to okay… and then from okay to thriving.
• Applying Law of Attraction and Energy Tapping in your day-to-day life in an effective way.
• Understanding of how humans store trauma and how to release it from your body and your mind.
• Setting healthy boundaries and taking action.

And you will have clear direction for working on:

• Removing blocks to connecting with your body.
• Finding ways you can nurture the good feelings… and yourself.

You will find yourself looking at people in a different way. Instead of being confused and reacting to others’ behavior from a place of fear, you start to understand the reasons people might be frightened or angry, and you are able to make more empowering choices.

In addition, you will find that:

• Your primitive brain will become more resilient and calmer.
• Your intuition will become stronger and filled with richer meaning.
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• You will have more time and energy for creativity and joy.

When you purchase, you will get:

8.5 hours of audio coaching and energy tapping.
245 pages of transcripts.
Instantly downloadable MP3 and PDF files.

Covering:

1. Introduction
2. Before Self Evaluation
3. Body YES and Body NO
4. Vibrational Scale
5. Body Safety 1: Why do I feel disconnected… unsafe and unhappy in my body?
6. Body Safety 2: Reconnect with Safe and Happy Feelings
7. Body Safety 3: Creating Safe and Healthy Boundaries
8. Body Safety 4: Proactive Approach to Safety
9. After Self Evaluation
10. Next Steps…

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