Breaking News: APA Reverses Its Position on Energy Psychology CEs!

WE ARE CELEBRATING!

In 1999, the American Psychological Association banned its continuing education organizations from granting psychologists continuing education credit (CEs) for studying Energy Psychology. On Monday, November 19, they informed the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology (ACEP) that they are now an official APA Continuing Education Sponsor and that their courses may include Energy Psychology!!! While this is not an endorsement of Energy Psychology per se, it is a reversal of three major rulings in the past five years that rejected ACEP applications and appeals.

The implications are enormous. First of all, continuing education is one of the primary ways that new innovations are disseminated to health care professionals. But the door was closed for psychologists to learn Energy Psychology through their normal, ongoing training channels. Donna and David have been told by major organizations that they wanted them to be keynote speakers at their conferences but could not invite them because the psychologists in the audience would not receive CEs. The policy served as a de facto form of censorship. But even beyond that, it had the effect of branding Energy Psychology as an unproven therapy while giving support to those who consider it quackery.

So many people in our community who have seen how acupoint tapping quickly and decisively helps those with PTSD have said to us, with their heads shaking and judgment in their voice, "How can it be possible that the military and the VA are not using this?!" While this question has a number of complex answers, a core reason is this: How can the administrators of large, traditional organizations -- who are responsible for delivering the best treatments available -- embrace Energy Psychology while the profession's own gatekeeping organization is branding it as an unproven therapy that is not even worthy for its members to begin to explore in their continuing education programs? As David has said recently, when people make derisive remarks about the APA's position, "Psychologists pay attention to research. They will come around soon."

In fact, a recent paper published in the APA journal Review of General Psychology reported that of 51 studies in peer-reviewed journals showing that the method is effective, 39 of them were published since 2008. So we sincerely thank the American Psychological Association for staying open to the new findings and having the courage to reverse what has been a highly controversial position. Moreover, we are most proud to congratulate our sister organization, the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology, in this momentous breakthrough!

The Little Book of Energy Medicine

The Little Book of Energy Medicine is a simple, easy-to-use "pocket guide" to one of the most powerful alternative health practices in existence today, from world-renowned healer Donna Eden. In this book, Eden draws on more than three decades of experience to offer readers a simple introduction to the core Energy Medicine exercises she recommends for feeling rejuvenated, happier, more alert, and less anxious.

Featuring a Donna's Daily Energy Routine for restoring the body’s natural energy flow, in addition to information on specific Energy Medicine exercises that can help combat a host of health conditions from headaches and nausea to insomnia and the common cold, The Little Book of Energy Medicine is essential reading for anyone looking to improve general health and well-being.

Autumn is Donna's Favorite Season

Titanya Dahlin, Donna Eden, and Dondi Dahlin

Bennington, Vermont 2012

This is where Robert Frost is buried. Camera was on top of rental car clicking away.

"We had a lot of fun!!! It's been a long time to just have us girls together plus one little rascal-tiernan." ~ Titanya Dahlin

10 EEM Practitioners Attend the Omega Veterans Trauma and Treatment Conference

By a special and very generous arrangement from Omega Institute, Innersource was allowed to offer 10 of our EEM practitioner scholarships to Omega's groundbreaking conference on using mind-body approaches with veterans being treated for the aftermath of trauma. The conference was powerful, with more than 230 people attending, ranging from therapists in private practice to military officers in uniform. Inspiring keynotes were by some of the luminaries in trauma treatment, including Bessel van der Kolk, Peter Levine, Roland McCraty, and Jon Kabat-Zinn. TV personality Montel Williams gave a fascinating evening keynote. David offered a well-received session on Energy Psychology.

Our EEM practitioners at the conference networked with one another, as well as with many others who are doing important work in helping active military and combat veterans recover from the wounds of war. One of them wrote us: "If I had to use just one word to describe it, I think the biggest thing I took away from the conference was hope. It was very encouraging to see the strides people are making and to feel the genuine dedication of the people involved." In fact, many of them wrote us with reflections about the experience and shared specific stories. Among their comments:

David teaching at the
Veterans, Trauma, and Treatment
Conference at Omega

General Comments about the Conference:

• This changed the way I view returning vets.  It was a wonderful way to network with like-minded people working with veterans and their families.  It not only gave us insight into the trauma but gave solid treatments.
• The depth and range of knowledge and experience of the presenters as well as the other participants were both impressive and inspiring.  It was a breath of fresh air to freely discuss the science and applications of Complementary and Alternative Medicine approaches without having to justify at every turn their efficacy and effectiveness or our experiences and training.  It was particularly exciting to hear advances across many fields from the researchers who did the work.
• I have a greater understanding of the physical, emotional, and mental traumas caused by PTSD and traumatic brain injuries, and their effects upon veterans' families. It was particularly exciting to hear about new treatment modalities for helping veterans overcome their traumas and limitations.
•  I was so happy to see Dawson and David speak about Energy Psychology as it is so helpful for trauma with veterans. In fact in many breakouts that weren't on energy psychology I wished the instructors were aware of how helpful EP tools are for trauma.
• We had a wonderful group that were all blessed by David, you, and Innersource awarding us scholarships and making it possible for me to be part of this weekend. For that I will be forever grateful.
• I feel Blessed to have been part of the veteran's conference and have so much gratitude to you and David for allowing me to attend on scholarship. . . . Once again I thank you so much for the scholarship and will continue to pay forward all that I learned. 
• It is so hard to say what was the best or most rewarding part of the conference. I loved it all...so much positive energy, so much knowledge, and so much hope for the future with alternative medicine for our veterans! The speakers were so passionate about all they do, and I left with such a warm hopeful feeling radiating through my body.
• It was an honor for me to meet David and Dawson as their research and publications have been a huge help in developing our work with veterans.
• All I can say is it was one of the best weekends I can remember and thank you so much!
• Thank you, Dondi, and thanks so much to David and Donna for making it possible for me to attend this memorable and extremely important conference. I feel so honored to have been a part of it.
• It was so nice to meet the other people in our EEM group and to hear what they are doing in the field.  Our meals were oftentimes just as informative as the sessions!

Insights:

• I understood before I arrived that we are in a crisis with so many of our veterans returning home with PTSD. Dawson Church brought this home in a powerful way when he said that "the lifetime cost of treatment for PTSD is $1.4 million" per veteran.
• The keynote and breakout on Heartmath motivated me to start using some of the tools for heart coherence on a regular basis.
• PTSD affects the expression of over 1000 genes. (Dawson Church)
• Watching Peter Levine work with a small baby using his somatic experiencing model was amazing. We saw the process unfold as the baby was able to complete the unfinished work of moving through the unprocessed earlier trauma. Within a short time, the baby's whole affect softened and he was able to finally relax into his mother's love. Beautiful! The trauma is held in the body.
• As veterans tell their stories to therapists, they rev up their fight or flight chemicals and their bodies respond with endorphins to ease the pain.  This rush of uppers and downers is highly addictive.  After the sessions, the people often feel bad and develop a feeling of dependency on the therapists, and the addictive cycle continues.  It would help to give veterans tools to use on their own for self-regulation.
• Within one hour of the same thoughts running through the mind, synapses in the brain double in number. Thus as veterans have repetitive flashbacks or ruminate on the same bad memories, their PTSD and TBI gets worse over time. 
• Bessel...I always learn so much from him. He is brilliant. He talked about the importance of the concept of heart rate variability. And he said, importantly, that people don't recover from PTSD by telling their stories, as so many therapists believe, but by going within and befriending the internal. The rational brain, says Bessel, has NO pathway to the emotional brain. 
• Help them feel better, and the mind will follow. (Bessel Van der Kolk)
• One of the most powerful presentations for me was Jon Kabat-Zinn. He said that we need to come to our senses on every conceivable level. The heart of mindfulness is relationality . . .  He said, "A wandering mind is an unhappy mind" and that 50 percent of the time, our minds are wandering and not happy.
• I love the new tapping points that David showed us, that Donna came up with, and will be using them in my sequences.
• Another incredible presentation was Montel Williams and Dr. Yuri Danilov. Their work and revelations with the PoNS device, and the hope that promises for our vets, was something entirely new. Many people I spoke with about it said the same thing I was thinking: This could change everything. Everything!! I totally believe that Montel will bring this to fruition.
• Montel Williams's talk stands out for me as well. There appears to be a life-changing device to help people with MS, Parkinson's, traumatic brain injury, etc.  I have shared that information with clients and friends who suffer from those diseases and they were so very grateful and hopeful.
• The autonomic nervous system is the means by which energy techniques (magnetic, electrical, and natural energy) affect the body. 
• A very hopeful note was struck in the closing presentation by Dr. Tracy Gaudet when she talked about the new direction the VA is taking in addressing the vet's healthcare needs by moving to a more client-directed model. Her passion and commitment to making this a reality was extremely exciting and a great note on which to send us back to our work with vets.

Attachment Theory Webinar

Attachment Theory is just that--a powerful, persuasive, illuminating theory.

Beginning this Thursday, October 25, Psychotherapy Networker is streaming a new video webcast series, Attachment Theory in Practice, will give you concrete tools for helping your most hard-to-reach clients.

You'll learn how Attachment Theory can give you new tools and methods for approaching the most challenging issues you face in your practice.

Attachment Theory In Practice   

October 25 - December 6

Click here for full course details.   

Featuring David Feinstein on December 6, 2012!

Here's a chance to increase the depth and power of your work by learning from some of the Psychology field's leading innovators:

• Diane Poole Heller will demonstrate proven techniques for engaging difficult clients with avoiding, anxious, and disorganized attachment styles.

• Susan Johnson will show how to move couples into more secure, integrated sexuality by enhancing their attachment bond with each other.  

• Bruce Ecker will provide a clear, practical model for determining whether or not attachment issues should be the clinical focus with a given client.

• Dan Hughes will present a powerful 4-part approach for helping overstressed, burned-out parents get through to their shut-down kids.

• Maggie Phillips will offer a fascinating look at how Attachment Theory can relieve the suffering of chronic pain sufferers.

• David Feinstein will demonstrate how simple, easy-to-learn tapping techniques make a huge difference in work with clients stuck in old attachment injuries.

These are just a handful of the things you'll learn and will be able to put to use immediately in your practice.

Don't miss this great opportunity to move to a new level of effectiveness in your practice.

Just click here for more information.

Balance Your Energies for a More Balanced Lifestyle

 October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Eden Energy Medicine (EEM) techniques can make a big difference in breast health at many levels. Not only can EEM be important in breast cancer prevention, they can also play a role in addressing cancer and coping with chemotherapy.

The lymphatic system in your body (pp. 47-51) plays a key role in helping to counter conditions that can lead to illness, ranging from colds to cancer. Rubbing the Neurolymphatic Reflex Points (Figure 2-4, p. 50) sends messages to the lymphatic system, helping to release toxins into the bloodstream so they can be eliminated from the body.

The use of underwire bras can stop energy flow and clog the Neurolymphatic Reflex Points located around the breasts. This can harm the lymphatic tissue in the breast itself. Energy and lymph naturally move through these areas, but this movement may become blocked for many reasons, including the use of an underwire bra (both metal and plastic underwires have this impact). Clogged energies and physical tissues can create pain and an internal environment that invites future health problems, including cancer.

Rubbing the lymphatic points around the breast is a great tool for promoting breast health and preventing the stagnation caused by the wire in your bra. In fact, in Donna's classes, she recommends that all women wear bras without underwires. For a list of wireless bras, click here. 

Note: Page numbers reference Donna Eden's book Energy Medicine for Women (Tarchar/Penguin, 2008).

The Child Whisperer

This Tuesday, October 23, our dear friend and colleague, Carol Tuttle, released her new book, The Child Whisperer, which teaches how to read the hidden messages your children send you every day. The book offers eye-opening information and helps reduce the struggles between parent and child. It teaches you what your child has been trying to tell you all along. Many parents don't know how to decode these messages. A reader of a pre-publication edition, Tanya Roylance, called The Child Whisperer "an answer to my prayers":

I have been concerned about my "shy," "wimpy," little boy and didn't want him to be labeled that way. . . . Reading this book has opened my eyes to seeing him in a whole new way, and I am so grateful. .. I love this book.

As part of her "launch," Carol is offering $317 in online bonuses when people in our EEM community order before Friday.

Check it out at this link to learn about the book and  the bonuses.

Energy Psychology in the Professional Literature

For Energy Medicine and Energy Psychology to be taken seriously by health professionals and mental health professionals, articles that describe energy healing and its research support, clinical applications, or "mechanisms of action" have to be available in the professional literature. David "tithes" some of his time each month to writing papers for these generally unglamorous publications. Over the next several months, four new papers he has been working on for the past two years—which address these three areas—are finally coming to completion and being published. 

The topics of the papers include 1) a review of the research addressing the question of whether Energy Psychology works, 2) the role of "energy" in Energy Psychology treatments, 3) the evidence for surrogate (at-a-distance) tapping, and 4) a close look at why Energy Psychology is so effective in treating PTSD. The first surveys 51 peer-reviewed papers describing outcomes of Energy Psychology treatments and just became available in the "Online First" area of Review of General Psychology, a flagship publication of the American Psychological Association. It stands to be a key in shifting the way psychologists view Energy Psychology.

Emacs!

Psychologists pay attention to research findings, and every one of the studies reviewed in the paper reported positive outcomes! Conditions helped included PTSD, phobias, specific anxieties, generalized anxiety, depression, weight control, physical pain, physical illness, and athletic performance. Eighteen randomized controlled trials (the gold standard in clinical research) were identified and critically evaluated for design quality. The report concludes: "These studies have consistently demonstrated strong effect sizes and other positive statistical results that far exceed chance after relatively few treatment sessions." The papers were authored or co-authored by more than 100 separate investigators, with similar findings having come from more than a dozen countries.

Even though this study—and the substantial body of evidence it presents—is appearing in a prestigious APA journal, the struggle for credibility is not over. The APA's 1999 policy still stands: APA partners who provide professional continuing education can lose their CE sponsorship status by offering credit to psychologists for taking an Energy Psychology course! In short, one side of the APA's brain isn't coordinating with the other. Unfortunately, the losers are the many suffering with PTSD and other painful and disabling conditions who turn to psychologists and mental health agencies that have not looked into Energy Psychology because of the APA's far-reaching influence. The new study, however, means that those of us who are working with the APA, and encouraging it to change its position, have firmer ground to stand on.         

Innersource's Support of "Project Light"

Where have American mental health workers most convincingly demonstrated the impact of Energy Psychology on PTSD?  With American veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, you would think. But you would be wrong. Ask the practitioners and you will hear how close to impossible it has been to get the VA to officially allow therapies that involve tapping. Fortunately, a few heroic efforts outside of established channels have led to important studies published in major journals showing that Energy Psychology is effective with U.S. combat veterans.

But the right answer to the above question is "Rwanda."  With so many still traumatized after the 2004 genocide, the country's citizens have been open to anything that can demonstrate that it works. And five studies conducted in Rwanda have shown that people who have been suffering for more than a decade with insomnia, flashbacks, nightmares, the inability to hold a job, bed-wetting, difficulty concentrating, et cetera, have overcome these symptoms in as little as a single session. One of the studies, using standardized measures for PTSD, found the improvements lasted two years after a single-session treatment. Another single-session study did its follow-up one year later and also found that the improvements were durable.

Innersource has worked closely with the people involved in carrying out these treatment programs and the research documenting their results.  In many cases, the work did not stop when the treatment teams left. Energy psychology self-help techniques became part of the culture, with local leaders teaching it to their communities.

Imagine being able to heal the pain, hatred, and deep damage of warfare and genocide. Imagine being able to help a country that has been crippled open doors so its young leaders can thrive and be effective in shaping a future where wounds are healed and hope becomes realistic. Everything we need to know to be able to do all of this is available, today!  

One of the teams from Rwanda, led by our dear colleague, Lori Leyden, is bringing this work to other countries now with a program called "Project Light."  Click here to watch an inspirational seven-minute clip about Project Light and to find out how you can become meaningfully involved in supporting this important work. 

How to Rid Yourself of a Tension Headache

The traditional headache points in Chinese medicine have been used for thousands of years and are effective (time—about a minute):

1. Massage the traditional headache points at the indents where your neck meets your head, move up to the ridge of the skull, and massage all across the back of that ridge, rubbing hard with a circular motion.

2. Place your fingers at the bottom of your neck, next to your spine. Push in on the back of your neck with a circular massage.

3. Maintaining pressure, drag your fingers out to the sides of your neck.

4. Repeat, moving up a notch higher. Work your way up to the top of your neck.

Excerpted from Energy Medicine 2008 Tarcher 

How to Escape the Grip of Fear

When you are caught in fear, anxiety, or a phobia, tapping a point on the triple warmer meridian, which governs the fight or flight response, can alleviate the fear. The next time you feel afraid (time—about a minute):

1. Start tapping on the back side of your hand halfway between your wrist and fingers, aligned with the point where your fourth and fifth fingers converge. Tap for about a minute.

2. If you still feel fear, tap on the other hand.

Even for a longstanding phobia, repeatedly using this technique begins to alter the underlying energetic pattern.


Excerpted from Donna Eden's book Energy Medicine, 2008 Tarcher.

Overcoming Depression

Overcoming emotional and physical challenges doesn't have to be difficult.

Our ability to help people overcome self-defeating emotional patterns, achieve higher levels of psychological well-being, and open their spiritual sensibilities is accelerating at an extraordinary pace.

The capacity for joy is wired into your body, carried along a network called the radiant circuits, whose energies are crucial for maintaining health as well as feeling good. When the radiant energies move, they bring strength and resilience, joy, and vitality.  You can engage these energies with Donna Eden's Daily Energy Routine.