What is Thought Field Therapy?

Thought Field Therapy was discovered & developed by Dr Roger Callahan over 20 years ago. The therapy is a non-invasive system aimed at eliminating the cause of negative emotions. This is done by sequentially tapping specific “acupuncture meridian energy points” with fingertips in a precise & defined sequence

Thought Field Therapy is a natural, drug-free, non-invasive system to eliminate the root cause of negative emotions. It works on the body’s own energy field and, using a precise and defined sequence of gentle tapping on specific Energy Meridian Points, has an unprecedented success rate of up to 97%.

Most people gain lasting relief from their problem within a few minutes! No other treatment presently available, conventional or complementary, can claim the same exceptional success rate, speed and completeness. The key to this has been the discovery by Dr Roger Callahan PhD, one of America’s most experienced and distinguished Clinical Psychologists, of the Natural Code that governs the healing of psychological problems. And, vital to a TOTAL CURE, he discovered the phenomenon of ‘Psychological Reversal’ which causes some people unconsciously to self-sabotage their own recovery. He also discovered the way in which this Psychological Reversal problem can instantly be solved.

How was Thought Field Therapy discovered?

Dr. Callahan was shown 27 years ago that by tapping on specific energy meridians, the problem is cured. He had been treating a woman called Mary Ford for eighteen months using every cognitive method known to try to help her extreme phobic fear of water. One day, at the precise time when he had been learning about the energy meridians in the body, which were first discovered in China about 6000 years ago, he noticed that Mary was suffering very real fear. Knowing that the stomach meridian started under the eye, he told her to tap just under her eye. He wasn’t expecting much, but to his amazement, she immediately said that the sick feeling in her stomach had completely gone! She then volunteered that she believed her fear of water had also gone! Not believing her, he suggested she went out to his swimming pool. All her past reticence at this idea had completely gone and she positively ran to the very deep end of the pool, bent down and splashed water on her face, ecstatic at her total lack of any fear!

At this moment Dr. Callahan had absolutely no idea why the instant cure had taken place, but knew that his life’s work would now be to discover how to harness this amazing curative process. Fifteen years of research using causal diagnosis and working with thousands of people has resulted in our present therapy. It was from this amazing beginning that Dr. Callahan was able to create a technique that has been shown to be completely on line with reality.

Thought Field Therapy treating psychological problems

Thought Field Therapy goes directly to the root cause of all psychological problems and therefore the CURE – defined as the complete absence of upset and distress as reported by the client – is proven to be the normal result of this treatment.At its highest level of proficiency Thought Field Therapy has an unprecedented success-rate of up to 98%, evidenced by a study carried out in 1986 and replicated in 1996 and 1998.

To answer this question, we need to look more closely at how TFT differs from all other techniques and why it is totally on-line with reality in its ability to produce cures for psychological problems.

TFT, s able to cure psychological problems quickly and painlessly because it directly addresses the “root cause” of the upsetting emotion – and – is also acknowledging and working WITH the inborn intelligence of the mind and body to be healthy, instead of concentrating on the hard and fast facts of the outwardly manifested sickness and dis-ease.

Unlike most scientific discoveries, where a theory or hypothesis is first formed and then later proved to be fact by practical experiment, Dr. Callahan had the facts of TFT suddenly presented to him first and, after learning their meaning, was then able to create this new therapy which is therefore totally on line with reality.

Tne morning when he discovered that one of his Petri dishes was not just growing mould but was producing a chemical capable of killing bacteria. This observation eventually led to the discovery of penicillin. This necessarily means that any theory we have to explain the process of TFT is secondary to the highly reproducible facts and Dr. Callahan has made it generally known that he is very willing to examine any theory, which is more able to explain the facts better than his present existing theories.

Dr Callahan posits that the root cause of psychological problems cannot be due to neurological function or malfunction in the brain because to change anything for the better, let alone cure a problem as is common with TFT, then we should have to be working with neurones and synapses in the brain. This we accept is not possible as the brain is effectively “hard wired”.

He further claims, as common fallacy, that upsetting emotions are caused by disruptions or blockages in the body’s energy system. In fact these emotions are caused by the exact opposite of disruptions. The body reacts to very exact and specific instructions and the emotions react to a precise control system. It is the information given to this control system that is the underlying cause of the negative emotion.

The fact that an attuned disturbing thought field (that is one which we consider contains perturbations supplying the information causing the upset) can be transformed into a non-disturbing thought field within a matter of minutes, in a highly predictable way, demonstrates the operation of a control system for the negative emotion. Disruptions or blockages would effectively prevent this control of the negative emotion and a cure would not be possible.

Today’s accepted practices all use cognitive therapies to improve a psychological condition over time and do not, of course, ever claim to cure a problem. This is because they teach a coping technique, which goes nowhere near the root cause of the difficulty, and so a cure is not possible.

Over 30 years ago, before his discovery of TFT, Dr. Callahan was one of the pioneers of Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy, a form of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, which he used in his practice. He does not need these techniques now, especially as he feels CBT actually teaches patients how to suffer more than they thought they could.

Thought Field Therapy explains that the underlying cause of negative emotions is information contained within an energy field outside the brain. The concept of a field was introduced by Michael Faraday – a genius of science – and can be defined as an invisible non-material structure in space which has an effect upon matter. It is called ‘Thought Field ‘ because it can be tuned at will, (as in the tuning of a radio), according to whatever the person cares to think about. If the tuning of a particular thought field causes emotional upset, this is because within that field there is information present in the form of perturbations.

Perturbations are isolatable aspects of a thought field which are responsible for triggering all negative emotions. These perturbations (dictionary definition: “a cause of mental disquietude”), far from being a “disruption”, are the generating structures which determine the chemical, hormonal, neuronal, cognitive and brain activity commonly associated with negative emotions. It is suggested that perturbations are the cause of all negative emotions.

While the client is thinking about their problem, (that is the particular thought field containing the perturbation information is attuned), if precise energy meridian points are stimulated in a precise order, the perturbation is immediately subsumed and can no longer deliver its information to the brain and so no further upset can be experienced. This is not dissimilar to the action of a combination lock – it’s necessary to enter the correct numbers in the right order. This treatment effect usually happens in minutes, often leaving the client feeling incredulous and endeavouring to bring back the emotional upset that had been present for so long!

What can TFT help and what to expect?

Originally developed as a treatment for Phobias and Traumatic Stress, due to further research and development, TFT can now be used to treat a wide variety of problems: Anxieties, Traumas and PTSD; Addictions; Obsessive Habits; Panic Attacks ; Bereavement, Grief and Anguish; Guilt, anger and Rage; Lack of self-Worth; Chronic Pain.

Working with your Therapist, you are asked to ‘think and hold the thought’ of your problem as clearly as possible in your mind. Whilst doing so you are taken through a precise sequence, an Algorithm, of tapping with your fingers on specific Energy Meridian Points on your face, hands and upper body. This activates the Thought Field associated with the problem and then subsumes the perturbations within it. These perturbations – discrete and isolatable parts of the Body’s Energy System – are recognised in TFT as the cause of negative emotions.

As each perturbation in the Problem Thought Field is subsumed, the distress experienced diminishes until it is no longer present. You can remember the problem, but experience no further emotional distress whatsoever. This process is not dissimilar to the way in which a Combination Lock works – it is necessary to enter the correct numbers in the right order. The treatment effect usually happens in minutes, often leaving a person feeling incredulous, and then endeavouring (without success!) to bring back the emotional upset that had been present for so long.

You are always given full information and taught how to treat yourself at home if a problem re-occurs or if it should need further treatment in an “ongoing” situation which can cause fresh upsets. Adverse effects from Thought Field Therapy are unheard of. The worst TFT can ever do to you is nothing – and even this is very rare!

Unlike conventional psychotherapy you wont have to talk about or confront problems. With TFT there is no need whatsoever to talk at length of your problem over many hours of consultation. You will only need to think of it for a short period. It is important to note that the nature of TFT means the sessions are pain-free and non invasive. There are no drugs, needles or any other instruments involved.

How many TFT sessions may be required?

TFT treatments either work immediately or not at all. Therefore a single session lasting up to about 90 minutes for a simple problem may well be all that is needed. However, more complex problems usually necessitate further sessions as deeper layers of the upset reveal themselves. Whether you will need additional visits will be determined by your therapist at the first meeting. It is rare for a TFT healing to need more than 4-5 visits. By comparison, traditional psychotherapies will usually require you to continue therapy for months or even years, often producing little improvement.

Is TFT suitable for children?

Children are particularly responsive to the treatment and enjoy ‘the tapping game’! Its simplicity and safety make it especially suitable for nervous children whose anxiety makes conventional treatments very difficult. There is also no age barrier. All that’s needed is for the child to understand and obey simple instructions.

Article Submitted By
Robin Ellis, Thought Field Therapist, Rumwood Therapy Centre, Cambridge

Date Published
22/04/08

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