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Other Ways of Using EFT

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The Value of EFT Homework Page 2

Here is the “Victor-designed” treatment plan which he followed.  He didn’t want to go near any big tunnels at first (the Holland Tunnel leading to New York City was his eventual target but he wasn’t ready for that yet) and he decided to try using EFT while driving past, but not going through, a few local under-railroad tunnels in the vicinity where he lived.

Victor responded well to EFT in our sessions together.  He would regularly bring his SUDS level [0-10 intensity] down to near zero while he was in my office.  But out on the road it was different.  The anxiety would return in full force and at first would overwhelm him. This is something quite exceptional in the course of EFT treatment, because we usually see considerable carry-over from the office treatment into the actual real life situation.

I was eager to investigate other aspects of his problem that might be playing into this -- childhood memories, fears of the future, secondary gains, etc. – but Victor wanted none of this.  He insisted on sticking to the point and just getting it all over with.   So that’s exactly what we did – I met the client where he was!

Victor moved ahead step by step.  He went from first being able to approach only small local tunnels by stopping before he reached them (at my suggestion) to reduce his SUDS level to a zero before going through them.  He would then report his progress at the next therapy session.  During his sessions he would work, using “anticipatory” EFT, on the next step he was planning.

Bit by bit, Victor reduced his fear of tunnels.  He tackled increasingly bigger tunnels each week, until finally one day he found himself able to drive up to the dreaded Holland Tunnel, park at a service station near the entrance, tap his fear down to a zero, and then drive straight through the tunnel.  This wasn’t easy for him to do and his SUDS level rose again to a 6 while he was inside the tunnel but, as I had instructed him to do, he pulled over to the side of the road right after he emerged from the tunnel and tapped the anxiety down to a zero again.

He had to do this time after time before he could go through the Holland Tunnel without a sharp rise in anxiety.  But Victor simply drove the necessary 40 miles to reach that tunnel every other day for several weeks.  His determination was awe inspiring.   Each time his ease with the situation increased a little bit and he would come to his therapy session for reinforcement for the next try, and then go off to tackle the monster once more.

He was in charge of the treatment plan but he wanted my help, suggestions and encouragement.  I gave him all of these things.  I knew he’d come out on top. There was no doubt of it in my mind, and I’m sure I conveyed my confidence to him.

What does Victor’s eventual triumph teach us?   We know it had much to do with his character.  He was a systematic person, a hard worker, and he had a formidable drive to “get ahead”.  He was a classic Type A personality.  Even before graduating, his goal was to be recruited by a Fortune 500 company and to start a successful business career immediately after graduating.  He was determined that nothing should come in the way of it.

With this immense drive, he was able to overcome his fear of tunnels using EFT in a manner which took longer than I think might have been necessary had he handled some of the confounding aspects of these fears – but it was his way, and it worked.  Victor has remained free of the fear of tunnels to this day.  He had to do some additional work on other confined spaces such as plane cabins, but he eventually overcame these fears too, and was able to travel by plane to an important job interview just before his graduation.

Incidentally, he got the offer he was striving for from a Fortune 500 company, accepted it, and now flies all over the world for his company.

EFT Master, Dr. Patricia Carrington

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