“Each year the International Day of Peace is observed around the world on 21 September. The General Assembly has declared this as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples.” The United Nations website
What better way to honor and celebrate this international day of peace than by sharing the TFT trauma relief technique with others? We now have instructions in 15 languages. If you know anyone who is suffering from the effects of trauma, or anyone who is working with people who are, please direct them to this site.
We invite you to also share the following trailer to the TFT Foundation’s film, “From Trauma to Peace,” which is scheduled for release at the end of this month. The film is a powerful demonstration of how effective TFT is in promoting peace.
In memory of those who suffered from the 9/11 tragedy–and in the effort to relieve their suffering and that of the many others who are traumatized by violence–we are reposting Ms. Bahr-Groth’s story of visiting New York five days after the event to help survivors with TFT. For another profound 9/11 TFT story, click here.
On Sunday, September 16, 2001, Kay and Jan, two women I trained in TFT, and I left our seemingly safe little town of Stamford, Connecticut and drove toward New York City. Unable to simply watch the horror of the World Trade Center disaster and its aftermath days before we decided to make our way into the city and find a way to help those in need. Armed with 2,000 copies of the Thought Field Therapy trauma/anxiety algorithm, a simple paper sign reading “Free, Trauma Relief”, a few bottles of water and a little folding table we began our somber journey.
It was one of those lovely late summer days with a perfectly clear blue sky and bright sun. We decided to put the top down on my convertible hoping the sunlight would lighten our spirits. The beauty of the day made it seem more incredible that such horror could have occurred.
As we passed the George Washington Bridge, just minutes from midtown Manhattan, the truth of the disaster could be seen and smelled. The awful sight of the empty skyline shrouded in white smoke shocked me beyond words. I, of course, had seen the news day after day and knew that the World Trade Center no longer stood tall and majestic in the sky. Still, I heard the words in my mind over and over saying “It’s not there…… It’s not there.”….. The tears streamed down my face as the truth and reality of all I knew set in.
The acrid scent of the smoke filled our nostrils and reinforced the certainty that so many had died. While driving and trying to absorb the shock of the situation, I treated myself with the trauma algorithm, often fixing my reversal. I noticed Kay and Jan treating themselves as well. We drove for miles in silence looking at the skyline which is now and forever changed.
We drove to lower Manhattan and tried to get as close to Ground Zero as possible. We miraculously found a parking space just in front of the memorial sight at Union Square Park. It is a lovely little park naturally filled with flowers and trees and but now filled with photos, candles and posters of those who were missing.
Thousands of New Yorkers were walking through the park bringing flowers, praying and connecting with others. It was there, close to the makeshift memorials, that we began Continue reading “9/11 Trauma Relief in New York”
The TFT Foundation’s documentary, “From Trauma to Peace”, is in post-production and almost complete. I will post when the DVD is available. Our new trailer gives an inkling of the power of the stories told. Please share it to give people an idea of the real possibility for peace in this world.
As you may know Chile is a country where natural disasters happen every now and then. Thus most people are always willing to help and to assist those in needs when something happens, each one doing its best according to experience and knowledge.
In March we had a “minor” earthquake (7.0) in the northern region (Iquique, a port in the north of Chile) , which was not so harmful but left people in a state of unease and expectation to what might be coming next. On April 1 a much bigger earthquake (8.3) hit the same region at 8 pm. Fortunately most were already at home with their families , which was a very positive. The first reaction people have with these events is to desperately know if their relatives are ok.
It is also important to know that for many weeks there were important aftershocks which kept people under continuous stress . Some did not want to sleep in their homes for fear it would hit again at night, and many wanted to stay in the surrounding hills, as after earthquakes there is always the danger of a tsunami afterwards. The memory of what happened in March 2010 (earthquake plus sumani).
In these cases, the best way to help is to do it through a local organization. A group of TFT therapist were eager to help, so we got in contact with a mining company who was organizing psychological help for people affected by this earthquake. One of the volunteers was somebody who has done the Algorithm course and lives in Iquique.
The team traveled to Iquique twice for one week. Most of the times they worked with a whole group (algorithm for the trauma plus emotions), the only way to give help in larger number. And in some cases , they did individual sessions (using mostly diagnostics).
The work involved the trauma (s) of the situation, plus the anxiety of what the next one to come, as earthquake specialist were saying that not all of the pressure had been released , which means that there must be another one in a near future. This caused a lot of anxiety in all of the people treated, and mainly those who had to drive up to the mines, which means taking a winding road that may be very dangerous during an important earth movement. Thus we also had to address this anxiety and give them tools to do tapping on their own while driving up the road or whenever they felt uneasy or afraid.
While we were doing these interventions, we had another big disaster on April 23. In Valparaiso, a hilly town near the sea there was a huge fire that burned down 2.900 homes affecting 12.500 people, all of them of very low means of income. The fire was extinguished only after a week; the town was covered in smoke, the houses burned to ashes, people living in shelters, stray dogs and cats in need of food….
Local authorities asked to concentrate all help through organizations working in Valparaíso so as to limit the number of people coming to the city. In this case we worked through the School of Psychologist, who had the necessary contacts to go and work with the people, mainly in shelters.
In this case the traumas were not only the one of the fire but also that of losing all their belongings, all their “treasures” (pictures, family items, etc)., the uncertainty of the future (the local government is rebuilding those homes but that takes time), children who had lost their pets, whose school had burned down, plus the daily problems that rise when living in shelters with many other families.
As you can see, it is a multitraumatic situation. In this case, what we mostly did was train volunteers to work with the appropriate algorithm. This work is still being done; volunteers mainly work on week-ends. They have also been trained to teach parents algorithms to have tools to help their children. This empowers them and gives them tools they can use with others.
Once again, TFT has proved to be a wonderful tool to help people in need, help them get over their traumas, to do tapping with their children, to get back the energy to address their daily routines, help them have faith in the future.
Since the year 2004, 10 years after the Rwanda genocide took place, April 7 has become an annual Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Rwanda Genocide. The commemoration actually lasts the entire month of April and commemorates the deaths of 800,000 people who were murdered during the 1994 genocide. Celestin Mitabu is a TFT practitioner and trainer who is dedicated to relieving the suffering of his fellow Rwandans. The video above is a synopsis of how he and others helped heal trauma with TFT during the 2014 commemoration, the 20th anniversary of the genocide.
Following is a further description:
By Celestin Mitabu, TFT Trainer, Greats Lakes, Rwanda:
During the first week of the commemoration on 7th 4/2014 we send our team to Amahoro National Stadium to help people. Many of our therapist that served at Amahoro stadium are University Students survivals of the Genocide known as ARG. TFT–Have trained many of the ARG students and we have been working well with them and they are very committed to help people during this time.
We have a total number of 184 TFT therapists who helped people during this period of commemoration, and they have been giving me daily reports after every treatment. I have received many encouraging reports from practitioners….We are planning to have a common meeting at the end of the commemoration which will include all 184 therapists and we will hear testimonies because they treated many people and they have different testimonies. Some told me that after treatment some of the clients asked them contacts so that they will meet another time which to me is very good.
Sandrine told me that when she was treating some one in Nyamirambo Stadium there came a Medical Doctor working with the Ministry of Health he is an Egyptian man he was like confused while watching Sandrine practicing TFT until he told her to leave the client alone, but Nancy, who is in charge of Mental Health at the Ministry of Health, told Sandrine to continue and the results was positif at the end.
Last year during the commemoration, TFT started at the grass root level (Villages, Cells, Sectors, and Districts), but this year we started at the National level (National Stadium of Amahoro, Regional Stadium of Nyamirambo, and famer site of Nyanz Kicukiro among others). Last year, because we started at the lower level wherever we went, TFT controlled the treatment, but this year, because we started from the top and were mixed with different teams (Medical Doctors, Mental Health agent, different Humanitarian Organizations: Ibuka, CNLG, Haguruka, etc.), we all worked under the control and protocol of the Ministry of Health. That is why, before starting to get involved in the treatments at the top level, we applied to the Ministry in charge and CNLG for recognition. And we did the TFT Campaign ahead of the treatment, and the campaign was taken to the Universities where you find people that are in charge of the Humanitarian work/helping.
Another great thing that we did during this first commemoration week is that I taught TFT to two different Rwanda Community Radios: Musanze/Ruhengeri Community Radio and Rubavu/Gisenyi community Radio. Each Radio station gave me one hour and fifteen minutes. The topic was Trauma Control. At Musanze, I was interviewed by a journalist first to tell the listeners what TFT means and how it came about. Then how we do our activities and what are the results. Then I taught the Trauma Algorithm. I told them about the Major treatments of trauma, the 9G , 2 reversals, and how to set the SUD. Our listeners called us asking questions for help. They are still calling. At the end of the teaching, the chief Editor requested if we can have a permanent teaching on the Radio, saying the teachings are very relevant and appropriate to the event.
From Musanze/Ruhengeri we went to Rubavu, which is a different District, and we had the same teachings and the same methodologies, but we were interviewed by the Chef Editor and another Journalist. After teaching we were asked more questions by the Journalist and listeners–more than the first interview. At the end, the Chef Editor said to us it would be good for every village in Rwanda to have at least two therapist trained in TFT.
To us this is a great achievement, to spend 2hrs and 30 minutes teaching TFT on different Radio stations and have million(s) listening to us, especially that the teachings took place at 5:00 and 8:00, when everybody is at home after work relaxing.
Some of the pictures taken from the studio, it as still day time but the second teachings at Rubavu /Ruhengeri it was night and pictures are dork but the journalist who is working for our documentary told me that he will add light to those night pictures.
Thought Field Therapy Efficacy Following Large Scale Traumatic Events: Description of Four Studies Thought Field Therapy (TFT) has been shown to reduce symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress (PTS) with trauma survivors in four studies in Africa.
In a 2006 preliminary study, orphaned Rwandan adolescents, who reported ongoing trauma symptoms since the 1994 genocide, were treated with TFT. A 2008 Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) examined the efficacy of TFT treatments facilitated by Rwandan Community leaders in reducing PTS symptoms in adult survivors of the 1994 genocide.
Results of the 2008 study were replicated in a second RCT in Rwanda in 2009. A fourth RCT in Uganda (in preparation for submission) demonstrated significant differences in a third community leader-administered TFT treatment. The studies described here suggest that one-time, community leader-facilitated TFT interventions may be beneficial with protracted PTS in genocide survivors.
To view the full article from Science Publications, click here.
Cite this Article: Dunnewold, A.L., 2014. Thought field therapy efficacy following large scale traumatic events. Curr. Res. Psychol., 5: 34-39.
