Tag: violence

The Power of TFT

The following article is from “David Baldwin’s Trauma Information Pages”  and was written by Charles R. Figley, PhD,  Director of the Tulane University (formerly of Florida State University) Traumatology Institute. On behalf of the institution, he is editor in chief for Traumatology, the field’s independent, peer-reviewed, scientific/medical journal.

Charles R. Figley, PhD

Psychosocial Stress Research Program & Clinical Laboratory
Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4097
June 27, 1995

Dear Colleagues,
As some of you may recall, I sent out early last year, via Internet and other media, nominations from clinicians about approaches that appeared to offer a “cure” for PTSD. I had become frustrated that, although we knew a great deal about the etiology, incidence and prevalence of PTSD, there was no known cure. My intention was to find a cure. and if one could not be found, build upon those offering the best hope for providing one.

Thanks to the help of colleagues all over the world, we were able to find four approaches that appeared to hold great promise for reaching our goal. We were so impressed with them that we invited the innovators of these approaches to our clinical laboratory for a week to participate in our systematic clinical demonstration study. The primary purpose of their visit was to treat our clients, while meeting with our Tallahassee clinical practitioner colleagues prior to and following their work here. The Four approaches we studied were: Traumatic Incident Reduction, Visual Kinesthetic Dissociation, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, and Thought Field Therapy (TFT).

Here I would like to tell you about one of the four approaches. I do this not because we are suggesting that it is better than any other approach. All four of the approaches we investigated generated impressive results. But TFT stood out from all other approaches of which I am aware because of five reasons:

  1. It is extraordinarily powerful, in that clients receive nearly immediate relief from their suffering and the treatment appears to be permanent.
  2. It can be taught to nearly anyone so that clients can not only treat themselves, but treat others affected.
  3. It appears to do no harm.
  4. It does not require the client to talk about their troubles, something that often causes more emotional pain and discourages many for seeking treatment.
  5. It is extremely efficient (fast and long-lasting).

In this brief space I would like to describe how it works in sufficient detail to permit you to try it yourself. By doing so, my hope is that the necessary work of clinical research will begin in as many laboratories as possible. It is only after the difficult work of science in testing the utility of the approach and an explanation for its effectiveness will it be sanctioned by our fields and utilized extensively. And, then, will we have a chance of realizing the full potential of this important discovery.

Dr. Figley then describes how to use the basic TFT trauma algorithm and invites colleagues to join him as “collaborative investigators” into the effects of TFT.

 

TFT Transforming the Wounds of Genocide

By Caroline Sakai, PhD, TFT-VT:

2010 ATFT Foundation Deployment to Byumba and Kigali in Rwanda

The Rwandan community leaders in Byumba who were trained as TFT therapists in 2009 and 2010 have treated over 2000 people in their community. The Izere Center has established an ATFT Rwanda branch, and TFT treatment offices that are manned by volunteers and part-time practitioners twice a week treat an average of 30 people a day with TFT on those treatment days.

In the Bishop Servillien Nzakamwita of Byumba Diocese’s opening reception, a government official noted that traveling down the streets he noted that the people of the sector had changed from depressed and not working, not smiling, not waving—to being productive and positive, smiling and waving and greeting each other since the ATFT team had been there the previous year and the TFT treatments of trauma had commenced.

This year the ATFT Foundation team led by Suzanne Connolly included Caroline Sakai, Cyndie Quinn and Gary Quinn. Caroline Sakai and the team did a review and abbreviated diagnostic training for the 33 therapists trained in 2009.

Suzanne Connolly led an algorithm training for 34 new therapists. The 2009 and 2010 therapists were all community leaders selected from orphanages, education, clergy, social work, psychology, business, police, nursing, government service, and others by Father Jean Marie Vianney Dushimiyimana of Izere Center, principle priest of Nyinawimana Parish and Brother Augustine Nzabonimana.

Then both the previously trained and the newly trained Rwandan therapists treated 603 people from the community who were suffering from 667 traumas and related issues. For the 667 traumas and related issues the mean SUD before treatment was 8.4, and the mean SUD after treatment was 0.2. The median SUD pre-treatment was 9, and the median SUD post-treatment was 0. There were 518 females and 82 males treated.

The major problems treated were trauma, anger, rage, fear, sadness, grief, pain, anxiety, depression, guilt, shame, and phobia. For a few of the people who were treated that had more complex issues that algorithms did not fully address, the Rwandan therapists who had the diagnostic level training treated them with supportive supervision. The ATFT Foundation team provided supervision as needed.

Additionally some villagers who were treated the year before just came by to express their appreciation for having TFT in their lives, as they were no longer suffering from trauma, rage, anger, fear, guilt, and pain symptoms.

In Kigali previously trained therapists did a review, and new therapists were trained. Also many of the participants of the PTSD research project done in 2008 returned to do a two year follow-up on the same assessment measures. Many of the participants spontaneously shared about their progress over the past two years since treatment of their traumas and related issues.

As the forgiveness and reconciliation efforts to reintegrate the Rwandan community have been in progress for a few years now, a number of Rwandans mentioned wishing that they had had the tools of TFT earlier to help with healing the wounds of trauma, calming and fears and anxiety, and working through the rage, resentment and anger that many harbored deep within despite their many attempts to think, talk, wish and pray them away.

They expressed their gratitude at having more means of healing the hurts, resolving the rage, facilitating the restitution and reconciliation efforts, reaffirming their faith, and restoring their hope. For the ATFT team, it further encouraged our convictions voiced so clearly by the Rwandans one after another, that TFT must be made more widely available to help all genocide survivors, all who have suffered from large-scale trauma.

 

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 After Brutal Rape of 13-Year-Old

Dr. Roger Callahan, founder of Thought Field Therapy, wrote the following in the newsletter “The Thought Field”, Volume 6, Issue 4:

A health care professional became very interested in my work when she observed obvious improvements in some of her patients and herself as a result of TFT done by a colleague. After observing such events over a period of two years, she began to wonder if TFT might be able to help her daughter who had been raped two years earlier when she was only 13 years old. Lenore (a fictitious name) had been in psychotherapy for two years with a very dedicated psychotherapist. Despite the fine efforts of the therapist, Lenore was still suffering terribly.

The possibility did not initially occur to the mother that TFT might help her daughter’s condition since her many disturbances were clearly due to a terrible reality situation. Believing the conventional view, she assumed that the problem would have to be treated gradually over a period of years and that a rapid treatment could not possibly have a good effect on such a terrible and real situation.

Prior to the rape Lenore was a very sociable, happy, and generally outstanding child. Lenore was doing very well in school and was doing well in a number of ways.

After the rape, Lenore became a completely different youngster. She began to overeat and purge. She constantly obsessed about the rape and had regular severe nightmares. Formerly a superb student, she became a very poor one. She was hospitalized in an institution specializing in eating disorders. Unfortunately, she became worse while in the hospital and began cutting herself and taking laxatives. Continue reading “TFT After Brutal Rape of 13-Year-Old”

TFT Trauma Relief in Sign Language

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fv2ofMtulKo&fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&hd=1]

We are pleased to announce that we now have three videos narrated in Sign Language (ASL) for the benefit of those who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing. Many thanks to Chrissy Mayhew for producing these videos and to Doris Millios for narrating them.

The videos can be accessed by clicking below or on the appropriate page listed at the right of this page. They include:

1) The principles and brief history behind Thought Field Therapy (TFT)

2) TFT Trauma Relief Technique Instructions

3) Collarbone Breathing Technique Instructions