EFT - Natural Approach

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Emotional Freedom Techniques

• Tapping to Health
• By Natural Approach

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What is EFT?

• It is a very simple procedure that anyone can
  learn and use to alleviate stress or anxiety, and
  all the ways those emotions manifest themselves
  in our lives.

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EFT What is it?

• EFT is like acupuncture without the needles.
• In fact, new research indicates that simply
  tapping on meridian points is every bit as
  effective at relieving symptoms in the body as
  acupuncture.

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What is EFT?

• Tapping can be used to address the everyday
  stresses, emotions, frustrations, and aches and
  pains that we all have. It can relieve headache
  pain, even migraines. It can help you fall
  asleep. It can enhance your performance.
• Tapping is VERY good for all of that!!

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And, its something so simple to use that even
children can easily master it!
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Were Going to Give It A Try!

• 
  
• 
  
• RIGHT NOW! But first..

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Before we begin

• On a scale from 0 to 10
• with 0 being the least possible stress,
• and 10 being the highest level of stress
  imaginable
• what number would you assign to your stress level
  now?

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How can Tapping Work on so Many Different Things?

• HEADACHES
• DIFFICULTY
  SLEEPING
• STRESS
• 
  KNEE AND JOINT PAIN
• IMPROVING YOUR GOLF SCORE
• FEARS AND PHOBIAS
• Test Anxiety
  Fear of Public Speaking
• Limiting beliefs
  

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How is it possible?

• How can something as simple as tapping do so much
  to impact the body in a positive way?

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The Miraculous Body

• Think about taking a bite of food. You take that
  bite of food and your body immediately puts it to
  work in numerous ways to produce nourishment and
  health.

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The Miraculous Body

• Think about taking a bite of food. You take that
  bite of food and your body immediately puts it to
  work in numerous ways to produce nourishment and
  health.

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The Body

• Can utilize the healing aspects of EFT in the
  same way.
• Well be talking about exactly how EFT works as a
  calming mechanism within the body in just a few
  minutes.

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So, The Question Is

• Do you have two minutes to invest in your own
  wellbeing? Because that and EFT are all youll
  need to rid yourself of the stress that can lead
  to illness, or to a lack of productivity, or to
  less happiness and joy than is possible in your
  life.

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Because

• If any of those issues present a problem for us,
• it is because stress and anxiety define our
  relationship to them.
• Tapping treats the anxiety.

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How does Tapping work?

• Until very recently, it was our understanding
  that EFT worked by removing blockages to the free
  flow of your bodys energy system. And, this is
  true. It does that.

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How Does EFT Work?

• In the same way that blood flows through your
  body, energy flows through you as well.

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• We ARE energy, just as everything in
  the universe is energy.

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How does it work?

• The cause of ALL negative emotions is a
  disruption in the bodys energy system.
• -Gary Craig, founder of EFT, a form of
  Meridian Tapping

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The fact is

• If you never use tapping for anything beyond
  those things that create daily stress in your
  life
• it will be one of the greatest gifts youll
  ever receive. Pass it on to others, and youll
  be giving an amazing gift to them as well.

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How does EFT Work?

• In the last few years, new research on EFT has
  expanded our knowledge and understanding of
  exactly how Tapping positively impacts the body

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How does EFT work?

• Studies on the brain reveal that tapping on
  specific meridian points using the EFT protocol
  actually sends a calming signal throughout the
  body, particularly to those areas where anxiety
  or the fight or flight response is being held
  and is causing you distress.

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• This distress can show up in your body as an
  emotional
• or physical symptom, or both.

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• Some of you may have heard of EMDR.
• You might be wondering how EFT is like, or not
  like, EMDR.
• Lets answer that question right now.

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How is EFT like, or not like, EMDR

• EMDR
• stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and
  Reprocessing
• In 1987, Francis Shapiro discovered quite
  accidentally that bilateral stimulation could
  assist the brain in processing trauma.

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Bilateral Stimulation

• There are a number of ways to create bilateral
  stimulation within the brain.

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EFT VS. EMDR

• Alike? Different?
• You might say, they are both a little strange,
  at least in the way we normally think about
  healing.

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EFT and EMDR

• They are quite different in how they work within
  the body,
• and yet, the results they achieve may look very
  much the same.
• They may be thought of as spokes of the same
  wheel.

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How EMDR works

• EMDR works by activating the clients information
  processing system through bilateral stimulation.
  It involves an 8 step process and a trained
  clinician is expected to guide the process to
  facilitate a successful reprocessing of a
  traumatic event.

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How does EMDR Work?

• EMDR seems to have a direct effect on the way
  that the brain processes information. Normal
  information processing is resumed, so following a
  successful EMDR session, a person no longer
  relives the images, sounds, and feelings when a
  traumatic event is brought to mind. You still
  remember what happened, but the strong emotional
  charge attached to the event is dulled or removed
  entirely.
• That sounds very much like what happens in EFT.

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How does EMDR Work?

• EMDR appears to be similar to what occurs
  naturally during dreaming or REM (rapid eye
  movement) sleep.
• Therefore, EMDR can be thought of as a
  physiologically based therapy that helps a person
  see disturbing material in a new and less
  distressing way.

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How does EMDR work?

• American Indians engaged naturally in bilateral
  stimulation as a way of processing events.
• When returning from the hunt, they danced around
  the campfire to the beat of a drum and told
  their story of the adventure.

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EFT and EMDR

• EFT, on the other hand, works directly on the
  bodys energy system.
• EMDR and EFT achieve very similar results and
  both have been shown to be extremely effective in
  the treatment of trauma, or PTSD.

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Why EFT?

• For me, the beauty of EFT is that it puts your
  healing in your own hands. It takes away the
  need for a clinician to facilitate the process.
  You dont have to make an appointment and wait
  until the clinician is available. You can use
  EFT right NOW!!

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Will tapping work for me?

• In order for tapping to work, you have to be
  WILLING to give up your symptom(s).
• Not everyone is willing to give up their
  symptoms.
• Sometimes there is secondary gain involved.
• Ask yourself Is this issue serving me in some
  way?

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Giving up your symptom

• Maybe the symptom is too tied to your identity.
• Who would you be without the symptom?
• If I tap on this symptom, whats going to have
  to change? Am I ready for that?

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Ask Yourself

• Ask yourself What is the downside of letting
  go of this problem/
• symptom?
• What is the upside of holding onto it?

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Lets Dig

• A LITTLE DEEPER NOW into what tapping is
  capable of doing for you.

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Brain Plasticity

• As recently as the 1970s we believed that after
  the teen years our brains were unchangeable.
  Research on brain plasticity has changed all
  that.

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Brain Plasticity

• Now we know that the brain is able to change and
  change rapidly. Trauma is laid down rapidly in
  the brain, and healing can occur just as
  rapidly, as it does with EFT.

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Stress Hormones

• When the body/brain suffers a trauma, or even the
  memory of a trauma, it releases stress hormones
  into the brain adrenaline and cortisol.

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Stress Hormones

• Cortisol is referred to as the stress hormone
  because it is released in high quantities during
  the flight or fight response.

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Cortisol

• Higher and more prolonged levels of cortisol in
  the bloodstream (like those associated with
  chronic stress) have been shown to have negative
  effects, such as
• Impaired cognitive performance
• Suppressed thyroid function
• Blood sugar imbalances such as hyperglycemia
• Decreased bone density

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Cortisol

• Higher and more prolonged levels of cortisol in
  the bloodstream can produce
• Decrease in muscle tissue
• Higher blood pressure
• Lowered immunity and inflammatory responses in
  the body,
• slowed wound healing, and other health
  consequences

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Today We Life High Stress Lives

• Stress has become almost a normal and accepted
  part of our lives.
• Almost universally, people acknowledge the high
  stress levels they live with every day.

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Heres Some Very Good News

• Research has demonstrated that tapping is able
  to dramatically and quickly lower cortisol levels
  in the body.

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Epigenetics

• The field of epigenetics is also changing our
  understanding of how the body works.

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Epigenetics

• Research in the field of epigenetics shows how
  the functioning of a gene actually changes as a
  result of the environment the gene exists in.
• What does that mean?

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Epigenitics

• Well, it means that a persons emotions,
  thoughts, and experiences of a traumatic nature,
  or of a spiritual nature, etc., actually impact
  the functioning of their genes.

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Dr. Bruce Lipton

• Dr. Bruce Lipton is a cellular biologist and a
  pioneer in the field of epigenetics. His work
  shows scientifically how your beliefs actually
  change the cells in your body.
• You can read more about it in his book, The
  Biology of Belief.

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What does EFT have to do with Epigenetics?

• Tapping is an excellent way to get at and release
  the underlying belief structures that limit us
  and now we know can actually define us at a
  cellular level.

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So, its not just our energy system thats
impacted by tapping

• Its the limbic system in our brain that
  controls the flight or fight response.
• Its the hormonal system that controls the
  release of stress hormones in our body.
• Its our genetics as well.

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Tapping is New To You?

• We live in a culture in which the medical model
  is supreme.
• That means not fully recognizing and accepting
  that body and mind are one entity.

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• We live in a culture where we are most
  comfortable leaving our health decisions in the
  hands of the experts (doctors, psychiatrists,
  therapists) who will instruct you as to what you
  must do to be healthy.

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But

• Lets just imagine for a moment that YOU are the
  expert on YOU!
• 
  REALLY -
• How can anyone know YOU like YOU do???

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Maybe

• You can take a much more active role in your own
  healing and wellness than you might imagine, or
  than you currently do.

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How EFT Helps and Heals

• How are those blockages
• in our energy system
• produced? Where do
• they come from?
• Well, believe it or not, they come from our
  thought patterns.

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How EFT Helps and Heals

• Remember what Gary Craig said
• Negative thoughts or memories create negative
  emotions which result in a disturbance, or
  blockage, in our energy system.

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But Im a Positive Thinker!

• We have somewhere between 12,000 and 60,000
  thoughts per day
• Yet, only 7 percent of our thoughts rise to a
  conscious level.

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Conscious vs Unconscious

• Fully 93 percent of our thoughts each day remain
  at an unconscious level, where they are not
  assessed, edited, or judged for their merit.

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Sooooooo

• If only 7 percent of our thoughts are at a
  conscious level, then its the 93, or all the
  unconscious thoughts, that are running the show
  of our lives most of the time.

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And

• That can be a problem. Because its the way we
  think about things that creates our experience of
  them.

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What happened? Why do I see it this way?

• Up until the age of six, you were like a small
  but powerful computer

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You simply downloaded

• everything that came at you. (All the good
  stuff, but also All the negativity, the pain, the
  rejection, the fear, the sense of abandonment,
  even the trauma.)

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You downloaded it all

• without having the maturity or the insight
  to be able to edit it, or refute it, or simply
  discard it as wrong.

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No, not you?

• No, we didnt all live with mean, awful people
  bent on damaging us.

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True, some of us might have.

• Many of us grew up with well-intentioned, loving
  families, were educated by caring teachersand
  yet we STILL felt hurt, pain, and rejection.

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What this is Not!

• Its Not about finding someone to blame for
  the limiting beliefs you have about yourself
  today.
• And, please understand this

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Youre In Good Company

• There are very few of us who dont have beliefs
  about ourselves that hold us back from realizing
  our full potential in some way. You are in good
  company on this!

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So, here it is.

• Those beliefs that you downloaded as a young
  child, that said something to you about
  yourself.
• that defined you and created a pattern of
  limiting beliefs about yourself and your
  capabilities, and the possibility of being able
  to fulfill your dreams..
• Those beliefs continue to inform your decision
  making and your beliefs about yourself TODAY!

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Why Tap???

• Its not what happened to you in the past thats
  the problem its how you think about yourself
  today as a result of that event.

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When you tap

• The details of the story dont change, but the
  thinking/the perception/the emotional charge the
  story holds for you, does.

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The Good News

• What youve made up (about yourself) you can
  unmake up. (Not the trauma itself, but what we
  tell ourselves or believe about ourselves as a
  result of that trauma.)

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Traumatization is an inside job.
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Why does it matter?

• Whether you believe something negative, or
  something positive about yourself as a result of
  the things that have happened in your life,
  youll continue to have experiences
• that support that belief.

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• The thoughts you put out attract experiences,
  people, etc, that are an exact match.

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Why does it matter?

• Sometimes things happen and we say,
• Why is this happening to me?

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• The more productive question might be
  What am I believing about myself to have this
  experience in my life?

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Lets tap on Limiting Beliefs
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Those small t traumas

• We are more likely to confuse the small stuff
  the small t traumas
• with who we really are.

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• Many people come to see Big T trauma as
  something that strengthens them They survived
  it!

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When you tapHow do these things show up?

• You may notice memories, events, or moments from
  long ago, suddenly popping up in your mind.

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• Youll be tapping on anger, and youll remember
  something something that doesnt feel at all
  related to what youre tapping on right now
• And, yet???

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• Dont be too quick to dismiss those thoughts or
  ideas as not relevant.

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• Why
• People
• Dont
• Heal..

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Surprisingly

• It may be easier to hold on to the anger than to
  bump up against some of the issues that may arise
  if you really examine it.

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Bear in mind

• Resistance is feedback It doesnt necessarily
  have to get in the way of growth.

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Reaching for Congruence

• Congruence is whats critical What you state to
  yourself and the world out here, in
  consciousness, has to match what youre telling
  yourself on the inside, unconsciously.

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The unconscious mind has a mind of its own

• The language of the unconscious is where all
  change occurs.
• It needs to be able
• to trust that its
• safe to change.

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• For some, the spiritual answer to being wronged
  is to Forgive and Forget.

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• Trauma (undischarged) is a lot closer to the
• rock in the shoe.
• You have to bring the unconscious to the
  conscious level in order to heal it.

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No one is stuck theyre afraid.

• Everybody wants change, but nobody wants anything
  to be different.

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What will change?

• If I address this, what else will have to
  change?
• I might have to learn to say No, or to be more
  visible in the world, etc.

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What pushes your buttons?

• Things that trigger you
• You have to have a template inside of you for it
  to bother you (now).

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Your triggers

• You wouldnt be worried about being called
  stupid (or moody, or incompetent, etc.) if you
  didnt already have a template for it inside you.

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So, the question to ask is

• Do I remember a time in the past when I was made
  to feel that way?

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• Do I remember a time when someone I cared about
  made me feel stupid, or called me stupid, or
  treated me like I didnt know anything?

• If so, thats important tapping material.

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Symptoms as Blessings

• Appreciate your symptoms.believe it or not, they
  are trying to help you.
• They are talking to you,
• and they will continue to
• talk, louder and louder,
• until you hear them.

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• Remember
• This problem was once a solution.
• Once we pop a symptom then we have something to
  work on, to tap on.
• What was going on in your life before, or at the
  time, your symptoms came on?

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People often ask
Am I saying the right words when I tap?
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There are no Wrong words!

• If it helps, write down all the negative
  self-talk that fills your head on the subject
  THOSE are the words and phrases you need to tap
  on.
• And, be as
• specific and
• detailed as
• possible.

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For example

• Ill never be a success.
• Im no good at this kind of thing.
• People would reject me if they knew
• Im a total failure at _____________.
• Bad things always
• happen to me.

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Henry Ford said

• Whether you believe you can,
• or you believe you cant,
• youre right!

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And, remember

• Positive thinking is great, but
• it only exists at the conscious level.

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• You have to clear the negative/limiting beliefs
  you hold about yourself
• at the unconscious level.

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Tapping Strategies

• The Tell the Story technique
• Just tell the story of what happened,
• and tap as you do. (Keep answering the
  question And
• then what
• happened?)

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• Ask What if statements as you tap
• What if I decided to accept myself?
• What if I believed it would all work out?

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Tapping on Pain

• Working with Pain A way to view the pain
• My body is trying to talk to me and Im not
  listening.
• What is my body trying to tell me?
• My body is pretty smart, and Im ignoring it.
• If the pain in your knee was trying to tell you
  something what do you think it would be?
• If my pain was an emotion, what would it
  be?

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Remember Whats your Number?

• But firstbefore you begin
• On a scale of 0 10, with ten being the
  highest level of distress possible and 0 being no
  distress at all, how distressing does this
  event/memory/thought feel when you think about it
  now?
• Its important to determine this so you can gauge
  the effectiveness of your tapping.

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To begin

• Begin with a couple of rounds where you really
  explore and acknowledge your negative feelings
  about the issue.

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If you could choose

• Thenyou can suggest a transition, another way to
  think about it as you tap. How would you like to
  feel about this?

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I choose

• to see this situation as part of my growth.
• to accept that I dont have to be perfect.
• to see this person as trying to help me.
• to feel confident and competent in this
  situation.

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I am willing

• Even though I feel so much anxiety about this
• - I am willing to see it in a calm and
  stress-free way.
• - I am willing to see it as helping me.
• - I am willing to be calm and relaxed
  every time this occurs.

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Tap before something

• It helps to tap in advance of something
• An event
• A presentation
• A social/family gathering
• An interaction with a person/client/colleague
  that you feel might be stressful
• This can instill positive energy that will create
  a much less stressful and more successful
  experience.

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After youve tapped

• And, youve taken a deep breath and let it out
  sloooowly
• Nowask yourself What do I notice? Whats
  coming up for me now? (There are no right or
  wrong answers here. Just notice.)
• What thoughts, if any, has the tapping triggered
  for you?

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After youve tapped

• In the end You have to test your work!

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After youve tapped

• You have to look at the issue youve tapped
  ontell the story again, or picture the situation
  again.
• Test your emotions, your feelings on the topic.
• Where are you now? (Scale of 0 10)

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Aha moments?

• Write down your Aha momentsthose
  ideas/thoughts that come forth at the end of a
  round of tapping, if you dont plan to tap on
  them right then.

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Aha Moments

• They can be valuable gems of wisdom as to where
  the trail leadswhat you should tap on next. But
  if you dont tap on them immediately, they can
  easily get lost in your unconscious again.
• It happens to me all the time.

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FinallyYou should be aware

• What happens with tapping goes far beyond what
  occurs for you during the actual tapping
  experience.

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Finally

• The result/effect can come in days later and you
  only notice because youll find you are
  responding differently to a situation.

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If you need help

• Sometimes the most difficult thing is to figure
  out what questions to ask yourself in order to
  find the underlying issues to tap on.

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If you need help

• While you can tap on your own and make very good
  progress, there may come a time when you would
  benefit from working with a practitioner in order
  to better focus your work.

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Finally

• We are so much more than we believe ourselves to
  be.

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Finally

• We are so much more capable, more powerful, more
  in every way than we could ever imagine.

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Knowing

• We are infinite and vast and theres a part of us
  that KNOWS this, knows that we are so much more
  than our bodies and our past traumas and our
  limitations.

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You can heal your life!

• This Knowing really makes the difference.
• Knowing you can heal allows you to believe in
  the possibility of healing in others.
• You will telegraph that belief to others.

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Healing is a process, not an event!

• Every moment is a left right moment!

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With each step you take

• ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS
• TURN SLIGHTLY,
• IN THE DIRECTION YOU WANT TO GO.

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Use EFT

• And you WILL get to that place of peace and
  healingthat place you want to be!