Category: phobia

From Trauma to Loving Life–through TFT

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

TFT Relief for Haiti Earthquake Survivors

In July, 2010, Carolle Jean-Murat, MD, facilitated an ATFT Foundation training and treatment project in her native Haiti, following the devastating earthquake in January. Dr. Carolle recently sent this heartfelt words of gratitude:

The ATFT Foundation (charitable arm of the Association for Thought Field Therapy) provided a generous grant and the gracious help of a husband and wife team Dr. Howard and Nurse Phyll Robson, both TFT trainers from England, we provided a 3-day training involving 30 Haitian teachers, nurses, community leaders, medical and nursing students, from as far as Port-au-Prince.

The training not only helped them personally but also gave them the opportunity to help relieve the trauma of as many earthquake survivors as possible. Even more importantly, trainees learned techniques on how to relieve pain, which would be beneficial in an area when medical personal and pain relief medications are scarcely available.

Many community leaders asked me to convey their heartfelt thanks to the TFT team. I have talked to some of the attendees in Haiti for these past few days. Here is what they had to say:

“In a culture where a mental illness is frowned upon, the TFT training gave us a new perspective on how we human work. This tool is a lifetime gift. Many of us now see our fellow human being in a different light.”

“After taking the training, it has helped me improve my communication with those I serve.”

“After losing everything including my home, family members, and everything I worked for, participating in the TFT training gave me a new lease on life. I am now a healthy citizen who is using the tools I have learned to help those who were suffering just like me.”

“It was such a great gift that we received from the Robsons – who taught from the heart.”

“As a teacher, I use these techniques with my students; their attention span in the classroom has greatly improved.”

TFT Relief for Haiti Earthquake Survivors

The ATFT Foundation (ATFTF) is very pleased to be sending a TFT trauma relief team to Haiti on July 2, 2010. As on previous ATFTF missions, their purpose will not only be to relieve the symptoms of trauma of as many earthquake survivors as possible, but will also be to teach local leaders how to continue giving TFT relief to their community once the ATFTF team is gone.

The trauma relief team will be joining a medical team led by Dr. Carolle Jean-Murat, a physician from Haiti who currently lives and practices in the U.S. Having trained at the algorithm level in TFT, Dr. Carolle knows its power to relieve the effects of trauma and has spearheaded these efforts to bring relief to her home of Haiti.

Dr. Carolle writes:

The commune of La Vallee de Jacmel is situated in the Southeastern portion of Haiti and is comprised of 18 townships dispersed throughout the territory. The area was within the epicenter of the devastating earthquake of January 12 and its deadly aftershock on the 16th. There are about 4,500 homes that had an average of 3 to 5 members. The majority of these homes were badly damaged or completely destroyed.

Following the earthquake, they are overloaded with relatives –young and old, who had emigrated to Port-au-Prince or Jacmel, survived the earthquake but have lost everything. The average household is now 15 to 20. THERE IS NO MENTAL HEALTH HELP AVAILABLE!

Many who survived the earthquake are now dying of sadness, heart attacks, or just “going crazy.” I guess that it is a way for them to “check out” because there is no hope.

We are elated about the idea of offering a 2-day TFT training that will help alleviate the suffering of our people. Little help have reach them since the earthquake last January the majority of the population is living under tarps and few tents with no hope in site.

We are contemplating offering the two-day training to people in position to affect many others such as teachers, nurses, community leaders, medical and nursing students (the only medical school in Haiti was destroyed killing most of the doctors, patients and medical students), etc. Imagine all these people living under tents or tarps themselves. It would also be a great opportunity FOR THEM TO HEAL WHILE LEARNING!

I am sure that with time, trainees will eventually return to other areas of Haiti armed with an excellent tool for healing.

In view of the threat and the acuity of the mental health deterioration, I have already told my medical team that I would not spend time delivering medical care but be with the ATFTF team, whatever time it takes during our stay to make this a success.

Thank you so much for offering this opportunity to the earthquake victims. I am confident that it will create a lasting impact in their lives, as well as given them a tool for healing others as well.

Love and blessings,

Dr. Carolle

The ATFTF team will be led by Dr. Howard and Phyll Robson from the U.K., who are generously paying all of their own expenses and providing many medical items to take with them. The foundation still needs additional funds to cover the training events. If you’d like to support these efforts to relieve the suffering in Haiti, please click here.

If you know anyone in Haiti, or going to Haiti, and would like to provide them with instructions for the TFT trauma relief technique in French, you will find the instructions by clicking here.

TFT Relieves 10-Year-Old Boy’s Trauma from Dog Attack

By Dick Brown, PhD (from “The Thought Field”, Vol 2, Issue 2):

Jimmy, a 10-year-old foster child, came to his first therapy session with the hesitancy, reluctance, and resistance common to this population. In an attempt to engage him, he was invited to create some pictures but stubbornly refused. I then took the pencil and started doodling upside down and unconsciously sketched a person walking a dog.

He looked at the drawing and said, “I’m afraid of dogs.” Despite having this knowledge, I asked him to tell me about it. “When I was little,” he said, “a great big Doberman pinscher attacked me. He bit me on the inside of my leg. Continue reading “TFT Relieves 10-Year-Old Boy’s Trauma from Dog Attack”

TFT Enables Accident Victim to Drive Again After 20 Years

By Ildiko Scurr, TFT-Dx:

Several months ago a client came to me with a problem. Her problem was that she had been in a car accident when her mother was behind the wheel and consequently she could not get into a car and drive ever since. However it turned out that she had not been able to drive for over 20 years since passing her test.

This seemingly simple problem turned out to be very complex with many layers of trauma, anxiety, fear, addiction and self limiting beliefs and toxin issues to work through. Initially though she came to see me for two sessions during which we cleared her trauma from the accident and started treating her childhood issues.

Her father had left when she was nine years old and Continue reading “TFT Enables Accident Victim to Drive Again After 20 Years”

TFT Relieves Severe Traumas of Rape

The following is an article by Sharon Hales, TFT-Dx, rape crisis specialist, from “The ATFT Update”, Issue 11, Spring 2009:

TFT MUCH NEEDED IN RAPE CRISIS WORK

I’ve worked full time in a rape crisis centre for 14 years, counseling women who had been raped or sexually abused. It would typically take about 1- 2 years of weekly therapy sessions for survivors of rape to reach a satisfactory level of recovery, but not a complete cure, from their trauma. For survivors of child abuse, it could take anywhere between 2 and 4 years to stabilize.

In addition to our rape therapy, many of the survivors had previously accessed psychological support through the National Health System.

Repeating The Trauma Is Cruel

Although I accepted the longevity of this work, I equally felt it was very cruel. Throughout those 14 years, I studied as many different techniques as I could, and I strove to develop resources that would speed up this process for survivors.

When I received an invitation in 2002 to train in Thought Field Therapy, I was extremely skeptical and cautious. It sounded too good to be true. But, on the other hand, Continue reading “TFT Relieves Severe Traumas of Rape”