by Corby Furrow
How many of us pride ourselves on ‘keeping it together’? The ability to do this in specific circumstances is an asset – but when we do it daily, it becomes part of our routine. As we reinforce this behaviour by doing it over and over again, we eventually lose the awareness that we’re doing it and it becomes a ‘normal’ part of our life.
I recently was on a 4-hour flight home, from NeftTI’s DISCOVER the POWER of EFT professional training, when the lady beside me put her tray down and leaned forward resting her head between her hands, elbows on the tray, rubbing her forehead; she explained she had a migraine. I felt for her. How terrible to be ‘keeping it together’ through this pain for the next 4 hours.
I felt compelled to help, as I knew I could use my EFT training to relieve some of her symptoms. I went back and forth in my head if I should say something, if it was appropriate, I was desperately seeking for a sign to let me know if I should offer help, I even went as far as using my stone bracelet hoping it would work like a pendulum to give me a yes or no to my question. Finally, I was so compelled to help that I asked how bad her migraine was. I told her what I did and that if she was open to trying it may help her symptoms. She was very open. So we set about working on what was going on with her migraine. She found relief and she also found tears.
As we spoke, in those tears were her struggles of the past 5 years, her marriage had dissolved, she had lost a couple of jobs, was well educated but, couldn’t seem to find the right job. She had been in relationships but she keeps holding onto everyone else’s garbage and is in the middle of raising 3 children part time as a single mom. As if that’s not enough, at one point her health had deteriorated to the point of hospitalization. Her cortisol levels were through the roof (no wonder!) and most of all, she was exhausted. She felt stuck, running the same road and being detoured back onto the same route, over and over and over. She didn’t know how to get off that detour and onto a different road.
In her mind she was ‘keeping it together’; and she was, but her body was paying the price. The body doesn’t want to store all of the crap we carry around as we ‘keep it together’. It is toxic and ‘keeping it together’ at this level just keeps us stuck.
I’m happy that I decided to share with her how the wonderful use of Emotional Freedom Techniques gives us the option to safely and gently stop ‘keeping it together’. She was amazed at how it took her migraine away. The next day she emailed me saying she was still migraine free and even though she was still feeling emotional she felt more in control.
If you want to get off the detours that you are stuck on and find the green lights on your Road to Joy, email me at corbyfurrow@gmail.com . I will help you discover your possibilities so that ‘keeping it together’ returns to an asset you can occasionally use rather than a desperate habit that keeps you on the road to stress and suffering.
Great article Corby! Our body will tell us despite our best efforts to ignore.
Hi Corby, Thanks for keeping it real, I can relate to the story that my body store anger, frustration even back to our child hold, thanks for writing this article about EFT so I do not have to stay in this way.
Having recently discovered EFT I too am feeling like this is the missing piece in my work as a psychotherapist. I also resonate with that desire to offer it to those I see struggling around me, but find that a lack of time gets in the way. How wonderful to have had all that time on your flight to dive into it with your co-traveller!
This is a great blog Corby! You are amazingly brave to offer your help and I’m sure it was a life-changing flight for her. I loved how well you brought home that “keeping it together” is actually hurting you. Tap, tap, tap on it 🙂
Awesome Corby – also just shows you how EFT can be used anywhere anytime to stop stress response – whether in a plane, office, car or just about anywhere. So nice she connected back with you as well with an update – it obviously had great impact on her and hope she continues to use it to help her daily. Good job!
I love how your inner guidance knew exactly what this woman needed and how you’d be able to help her. Wonderful!
Nice work Corby. Sharing the power of EFT has a “Wonder Woman-like” quality :). Banishing evil pain and restoring balance to the world, one person at a time. If someone cut their finger you would offer them a band aid and EFT is a beautiful tool in your Emotional First Aid Kit! Kudos!!!