Kyle, age 7, didn’t want to go to school. He refused to tell his parents or teachers why he didn’t want to be there. When the truth finally came out, his parents learned that every day since kindergarten Kyle had been bullied by another boy. Fortunately, before they even knew about the bullying, Kyle’s parents were wise enough to recognize their son needed help and engaged a therapist. After thirty minutes of treatment, Kyle felt relief and his confidence increased. A few more treatments over the next month changed Kyle’s attitude and his life. That quickly, bullying was no longer a problem for him.
The treatment Kyle’s therapist used is called EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), an energy therapy that has proven to be extremely successful in treating post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in returning vets or in anyone who has experienced severe trauma, either psychological or physical. I doubt anyone familiar with the effects of bullying would disagree that victims suffer PTSD. And like military personnel who find relief with EFT, targets of bullying who receive the treatment are recovering from the trauma of being bullied.
Developed by Gary Craig, EFT utilizes the body’s energy meridian points. These meridian points are stimulated by tapping on them with your fingertips, which taps into your body’s own energy and healing power. Children, with their open minds and love for games, enjoy EFT, especially if some humor can be injected into the process. For them, it becomes “The Tapping Game.” The best thing about the technique is that the procedure is fast and simple. You can teach it to yourself by watching training videos, which also makes it free or at least inexpensive, since people who don’t want to learn the method themselves or prefer to use an expert, can hire a trained therapist.
To learn about EFT or to locate a therapist, go to EFT Universe, where free tutorials are available, as well as DVDs and books. You can also search the site’s archives for articles on treating victims of bullying. Read more about Kyle’s experiences in the article “EFT Heals 7-Year-Old Bullying Victim’s Trauma.”
You can access an article by a practitioner who used EFT with her son who was being teased about his freckles and red hair in “Children’s Issues.”
More information is available in “Invisible Wounds” in Psychology Today, which discusses energy therapies—including EFT—that are being used to defuse bad memories.
Children can access a simple, illustrated script called “Overcoming (Cyber)Bullying With EFT” that they can use to teach themselves the technique.
The following is a video demonstration by practitioner Brad Yates of the technique for young people, with a specific focus on bullying:
In the video Taking a Stand, Part One, another practitioner, Joseph Anthony, uses EFT to help the bullies themselves.
In Part Two, Anthony addresses their victims, the bullied.
I am a strong advocate of EFT and have used it successfully to treat a variety of issues for myself and others. I am not, however, familiar with, and consequently do not endorse, any of the practitioners on these sites, but do want to make you aware of a few of the many resources available.
Emotional Freedom Technique. A technique that’s inexpensive, simple to learn and use. And it works! What could be better? Nothing. Except an end to bullying. And perhaps EFT might help with that.
If you or a loved one try EFT for bullying, or if you use it on your child, I’d love to hear from you.
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ADDED 5.3.2012: A new book has been released, written by Jack Canfield (Chicken Soupseries) and Pamela (EFT expert), describing EFT. In Tapping into Ultimate Success, How to Overcome Any Obstacle & Skyrocket Your Results, EFT is described as “a new, cutting-edge technique . . . to make achieving success easier than ever before. Meridian Tapping, sometimes known as Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), is a revolutionary new tool to remove the fears, doubts, and upsets that keep you from living according to your values and ideals. This book and DVD give you a step-by-step guide to overcoming any obstacle that is keeping you from success. If you’re familiar with tapping, you’ll love the fresh, transformative methods in this book. If you’re not yet familiar with these techniques that hundreds of thousands of individuals are using to transform their lives, you’ll love the ease and simplicity of these methods. With Tapping Into Ultimate Success, the rewards you’ve been looking for are literally at your fingertips.”
BULLY AT AMBUSH CORNER 