Turbo Tap Addictions Away

Many patients have had enormous success integrating healthier habits by learning the energy psychology tool, Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT). Turbo Tapping is a clever use of EFT designed to resolve many aspects of an issue in a concentrated period of time. Aside from dealing with addiction, other kinds of issues conquered with Turbo Tapping include:

• Cold symptoms
• Anger toward a parent
• Fear of working on issues

So How Does It Work?

1. I always state that "we're going to get serious with this now," or something along those lines, because I find it really sharpens my clients' attention. Many of them sit straighter in their chairs and really focus in on me and what I'm telling them. The improved posture and the sharpened intent really create a positive shift, helping to allow energy to flow easier and more readily.

2. I ask the client to tell me everything they can about the issue at hand. And then, as they speak, I write like crazy so I catch as many phrases and nuances as I can in my notes. If they get stuck, I offer suggestions to help them come up with more aspects, etc.

   Background and example: A woman with whom I was working had an incredible addiction to the soft drink Coke. It was all she drank, literally -- five or six bottles a day. As a Nutritional Consultant, I had advised her that many of her uncomfortable physical symptoms were likely related to this addiction, and she agreed that she'd like to kick it, but obviously couldn't without some help. I told her that I knew it was possible, and that I was certain we could get her to actually DISLIKE Coke by the end of a session. Naturally, she was incredulous.

   I asked her to produce the unopened bottle of Coke that I suggested she bring to the session. I took it from her, unscrewed the top and asked her to simply smell it. Though I've dealt with addictions before, I was surprised at her reaction. Her hands shot out toward the bottle and she started breathing quickly. She really wanted that soda! At that point, I took a SUDs level (on a scale of 0-10 she exclaimed she was certainly a 10, and that she "HAD to have it"). Then I had her take the smallest little sip and took another SUDs level ("20!" she said, and was still visibly shaking).

   I capped the bottle, put it out of sight, and then with my pen and paper at the ready, I asked her to tell me:

   WHY she liked it ...

   -- "It tastes good."
   -- "It's sweet."
   -- "It makes me feel cool."
   -- "I like its caramel color."
   -- "I like the fizz when it tickles my nose," etc.

   WHERE she liked it ...

   -- "I buy it at the drive through on the way to work every morning."
   -- "I drink it in my car."
   -- "I drink it in my office."
   -- "I get it at X Mexican Restaurant with my lunch."
   -- "I always drink it in my living room," etc.

   WHEN she liked it ...

   -- "When I'm with friends."
   -- "When I'm at work."
   -- "When I'm watching TV or a movie."
   -- "When I'm on the road."
   -- "When I'm lonely or depressed."
   -- "When it's really hot outside."
   -- "When I have lunch or dinner," etc.

   HOW she liked it ...

   -- "Really cold."
   -- "With a straw."
   -- "In a glass with crushed ice."
   -- "In those big 24-oz. bottles," etc.

   In addition to all these things, I also wrote down any "stray" comments that felt important, such as: "Y'know, my mother always had Coke around," and "That girl Maya on the Coke commercial is totally sexy," etc. It all comes in useful with Turbo Tapping.

3. I tell the client that in a moment we'll begin "what I call Turbo Tapping, which means that I'll lead you through many quick tapping sequences. So it's important that you follow me, repeating the phrases I use at each point." Again, this serves to really tune them into what we're doing, and bring our intention into focus together.

4. Then I start on the karate chop point with a simple, global statement.

   "Even though I am totally addicted to Coke ..."

5. After one full round (including the 9 Gamut), I start tapping on everything from my list, moving from point to point quickly and keeping eye-to-eye contact with my client as well as I can. And this is precisely where my intuition really kicks in. Beginning with the first aspect on my list, I begin to feel "impressions" that direct the tapping and usage of key words and phrases.

   For me, the use of intuition in Turbo Tapping is like a shortcut to success. Sometimes I stay on one aspect for a whole sequence ("I like it really cold"), other times I'll combine aspects in a single sequence, alternating between meridian points (e.g. "My mother always had Coke at home," and "I drink Coke when I'm lonely or depressed"). I follow my intuition when I move from one aspect to another, not necessarily going in the order in which I wrote them down. Sometimes, I even bring out new aspects that need to be named and disarmed, often to the surprise, but complete agreement, of my client.

   Sometimes I direct the tapping with one hand, other times with two. Really, it's a giant "flow" moment, and the more present I am with that flow, the better the results and the more focused my client is during the whole process.

   While I think that intuition is really quite helpful in this technique, I also imagine that just going through all the points quickly, in rapid succession, can collapse many of the aspects. Indeed, if you do enough tapping, something has got to move! The quickness of this technique doesn't allow the mind to stray, especially if the client has to follow my lead and hear/say what I'm suggesting. This kind of focus really helps, I believe, and is possible even without heavy reliance on intuition.

6. The entire process usually takes about 30 minutes. At the end, the majority of the time, my client is exhausted, which signifies to me that a lot of energy has been released (I'm very rarely tired out by this, myself, which I feel supports my theory). This is the time for testing the results.

   I brought the Coke back out. No reaction from her. I unscrewed the top and had her smell it. "Wow," she sounded shocked. "It smells so sweet!" I asked her to taste it, but she didn't want to. A little pressure got her to sip it lightly and her response was classic: "Blech! All I taste is chemicals!" I responded, "That's what Coke is!" Then I too took a sip and to my astonishment that's all I tasted as well! Tapping with her had totally negated any draw I had felt -- even subconsciously -- toward Coke. We laughed together at the faces we were making, having tried the soda and having found it totally disgusting. Then she happily dumped it down the drain and we both downed large glasses of filtered water instead.

7. I always try to end a "Turbo Tapping" session with a Choice (a la Dr. Carrington). With the client's help, we fashion a statement that resonates with him or her. I write down the affirmation on a card and tell them to "tap this in" three times in the morning and three times at night, using the procedure as outlined in Dr. Carrington's "Choices" manual.

"Even though I've had this Coke addiction, I choose to be incredibly happy and healthy while drinking water."

That concludes the tapping session.

One year later, my client had still not had a single Coke. She went to her family's home for the holidays and decided to have a soda -- the first time in a year! She said she took one sip, tasted the sugar-laced chemicals and simply didn't want any more of it. Period. Today, she has been "healed" of her addiction for a year and a half and as a direct result, has noticed a cessation of many of her physical ailments (e.g. bloating, cramps, digestive issues, etc.). All this from 30 minutes of Turbo Tapping!

You just gotta love this EFT stuff!

Warm regards,

Ryan N. Harrison, MA, HHP, NC, EFT-ADV