EFT self-help, practising as a therapist and becoming an EFT educator led to EFT Mentoring. I loved being an EFT mentor.
Key Questions
The art of asking questions often showed up in EFT mentoring sessions. From the beginning of a session to the end of a session, the questions you ask and how you ask them function like keys that unlock doors to liberating possibility.
Thoughtful questions give you and your client permission. At the start of a session with a client, instead of asking how they are doing or feeling, questions such as if they would like a glass of water, or if they are comfortable in the chair, or how was their journey, can help them become present. Begin with loving curiosity. Ask yourself what kind of questions keeps you engaged when you want to zone out and see if those questions work for your client.
Most skilled practitioners are good at asking questions mid-session, but forget that they can also close a session with questions. I close all my sessions with questions such as, "Does that feel like a safe place to close this session?" "Would you be able to give yourself some time to integrate the work we have done so far?" "What are you planning to do after this session?" "We have covered a lot of ground today, I know you wanted to also work with (...), would it be OK to allow what we have explored to have some space to breathe?"
A List for Uncovering Trauma with Emotional Intelligence
Below is a list of some of the aspects of trauma that can keep the impact of trauma in place. We have had some lively discussions around these pointers in group EFT mentoring.
- Prejudice of all kinds
- Privilege
- Racism
- Ageism
- Cultural pain
- Religious prejudice
- Addictions
- Sexual abuse
- Childhood abuse
- Accidents
- Weather calamities (known as Acts of God in insurance documents)
- Disability
- Disease
- Poverty
- Financial loss
- War
- Gender issues (sexism and sexual phobia)
- The so-called small t-traumas which can feel the same as big T-Trauma
- Lack of love
- Loss
- Mental, physical, emotional assault
- The suffering of being a Victim, Rescuer and/or Perpetrator (the 'Drama Triangle')
- Pandemic
Tips for Teaching Online
When teaching online became common I put this list together for our trainers. How you engage with students online is very different from in person. Here are some factors to be aware of:
- Technology fatigue
- Students zoning out
- You may feel like you are speaking to yourself
- There is a time lag
- The screens juggle so it may be hard to stay focused
- Answering questions is very different from in person
- Elicit questions by testing learning more frequently than in person
- The sound can drop suddenly
- The quality of the microphone matters
- Watch out for echo and video judder
- You have to be able to multi-task
- Don’t panic when the internet drops out
- Give yourself breathing space to log people in and out
- Using PowerPoint online is very different from using it in person
- Embrace technology
- It is harder to focus on everyone, as you can get fixated on one window
- Develop Presence – it is OK to pause
The Most Powerful Sessions I Have Facilitated
During EFT mentoring I am invariably asked what were the most profound sessions I have experienced with a client. Here are four things that I incorporated into my sessions and trainings that had the most profound impact:
- Holding the EFT acupoints instead of tapping. This made the process meditative and calm. I noticed over the years that some clients shut down with tapping stimulation. For example, those with severe PTSD would dissociate as the tapping triggered a fight, flight or freeze response. In the sessions when we just rested our fingers on the acupoints, the client would be able to access intense emotion without dissociating or going into a noticeable abreaction, and there was somehow more flow.
- Silent EFT. This was definitely a favourite for clients and students. The client listened into their own inner dialogue without revealing or saying a word and the practitioner tapped along being present and paying attention to the client with compassionate presence.
- Listening EFT. The client speaks, the practitioner listens, and both engage the energy system either by holding or tapping. The practitioner says as little as possible so the client can vent and also land on the 'Aha!' moments free from any input. Magical.
- EFT with the chosen name and form of the Beloved (God/ Cosmic Consciousness/ Creator Source). The client’s connection, faith and trust in a power that represents divinity enables the client to accept, let go, forgive, transmute, and realise their innate ability to heal much faster. Once they feel plugged into divinity with the name and form of their choice, their sessions become sacred and miraculous for them.
Thank you, dear reader, for your kind attention.
Love and blessings, Ranjana
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Ranjana Appoo is a retired EFTi practitioner and trainer, as well as an artist, author, mentor and co-creator of LiberatingTouch®. For over three decades, she has supported individuals and groups worldwide through an integrated approach that weaves together fine arts, energy psychology, meditation, conscious living and spiritual inquiry. Drawing on extensive experience as an educator, facilitator and guide, Ranjana distills therapeutic and spiritual insights into practical tools that help people reconnect with their innate wisdom, power, healing capacity and joy. Find her other articles in the EFTi Articles Library.
Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash
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