When employing EFT with clients, feel that, with each round, we are peeling off layers of emotions and beliefs based on incorrect childhood (or from the past in general) programming and conclusions about ourselves, life and others.

With the effective removal of the disturbed or distorted energy fields associated with each problem, we discover the intricate and often strange and surprising associations, which have developed through our past experiences thus creating our present physical and emotional problems.

Thus, I would like to share from my personal experience and resulting view point some of the discoveries we have made together with patients as we do this work and also point out some common aspects to look for - especially when the SUD is not going down.

Some of the various aspects, which might need to be addressed, are the following:

1. Parallel Aspects: Sometimes it is useful to switch to other emotions in order to remove obstacles to the aspects we are presently working with. This may require, at times, asking if there are other emotions present and which is most predominant at this time. An example would be that we simultaneously feel fear, injustice and hurt.

2. Underlying Aspects: When dealing with emotions such as anger, hate or rage, we sometimes need to deal with the fear, hurt or guilt which underlie them.

3. Secondary Emotions: These are emotions which we might have when become aware that we other emotions or beliefs. For example we might feeling angry with ourselves because we fear, or feel shame because we are angry. These secondary emotions often need to be removed before we can free ourselves from the originally targeted emotion.

4. Physical Embodiment: At times the emotional energy field will be felt more physically than emotionally and thus we will need to work the pain or other physical phenomena and then return to the emotion which is the issue.

5. Childhood Experiences: Frequently while working on a specific emotion, a related childhood experience will flash in the mind. We may need to switch to those and after having collapsed the various emotions associated with the various aspects of that experience, come back to our primary present issue.

6. Resistance to Change: We may have beliefs, which are conflicting with our need to get free. Thus, we have a type of psychological reversal which needs to be addressed perhaps not only by rubbing the sore spot or tapping on the side of the hand but also by doing complete rounds for the emotions or beliefs which are resisting our progress.

In such cases, although the belief may be more obvious and accessible, it is better to discover the emotion created by that belief in order to employ EFT on. For this reason, after each belief we have placed a few possible emotions.

Some of those emotions or beliefs which may cause us
not to want to let go of a particular emotion.

1. I have felt this way a long time and do not know what it will be like to be without this emotion. It will be like losing an important part of myself or my life.
(We have become attached or addicted to feeling this way.)
Possible emotions:
a. Fear of unknown.
b. Fear of being different than I am.
c. Fear of others not being acceptable to others if I am different.
d. Fear of loneliness.

2. I believe that I need this emotion in order to protect myself from others.
(Possibly anger, depression, injustice, pain)
Possible emotions:
a. Fear that others want to hurt or use us.
b. Fear that I do not have any other way of protecting myself.
c. Fear of not getting what I want if I let go of this emotion.
d. Fear that others will not pay attention to me if I am not angry or crying.

3. I will lose my power or control over others. (Perhaps anger, depression, dissatisfaction.)
Possible emotions:
a. Fear that I won’t, in any other way, be able to get what I want from others.
b. Fear that I if I do not control them, that they will control me.
c. Fear of that I will lose my self-worth (or something else important to me) if I do not control others.

4. I will lose others’ attention if I do not have this emotion.
Possible emotions:
a. Fear that others will not pay attention to me in any other way.
b. Fear that I do not have anything worthwhile about myself for others to be interested in.
c. Fear that if I do not have others attention, then I will have no self-worth.
d. Fear of loneliness.

5. I will lose my self-worth if I do not feel this way. (Especially feeling the victim or angry from which we seek to get our feelings of goodness, rightness - self-worth)
Possible emotions:
a. Fear that I have no self-worth except when I am angry.
b. Fear that I have no self-worth except when I am done injustice to.
c. Fear that I will not be right if I am not angry or crying.
d. Fear of loneliness.

6. I will allow others to be free from feeling guilty or responsible about me. I will lose control over them.
a. Anger towards others for what they have done to me.
b. Guilt if the others are not guilty (someone has to be guilty - if it is not them, then I must be)
c. Fear to lose control over others.
d. Fear of loneliness.

7. I will need to take responsibility for my life.
Possible emotions:
a. Fear that I am not capable to handling life on my own.
b. Fear of loneliness.

8. I will need to be happy - something which scares me.
Possible emotions:
a. Fear that if I am happy, something bad will then happen.
b. Fear that I do not deserve (I am not good enough) to be happy.
c. Fear that if I do not need others and am happy, I will lose their attention.
d. Fear that if I am not a victim, then I have no self-worth

9. I will have to recognize my self-worth - which also scares me.
Possible emotions:
a. Fear that if I believe in my self-worth then I will be egotistical and not good or pure.
b. Fear that I do not deserve to believe in my self-worth.
c. Fear of the power, which comes with believing in myself.

10. Others (you fill in)

Alternative Set Up Phrases

(For the phraseology for the Set Up for these various aspects, refer to the chapter on dealing with aspects when working with emotions)

It is sometimes useful to repeat alternative positive affirmations after using the basic "Even though phrase while we rub the sore spot (or karate point), such as,
a. I want to be free from this…
b. I choose to be free from this…
c. I deserve to be free from this…
d. I deserve to be without pain…
e. I am a good person…
f. I am becoming free from this…
g. I realize that it is in my benefit to be free from this ...

Verifying a Change in Perception - Cognitive Change

Asking patients why they are not bothered anymore by this stimulus (after reduction of disturbance) can help them integrate this new emotional and energy reality into their life perspective.

So when they tell me, "I feel no emotion anymore about this issue", I ask them why they do not feel that feeling anymore, to check if any type of change of cognitive perception of that issue.

In 90 % of the cases they have a very simple and logical answer for why this does not upset them anymore.

In the next chapter I am sharing a number of case histories which demonstrate the above mentioned aspects.

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