In addition to being an EFT practitioner, I am also a primary school teacher and a children's book author. I am happy to report on my efforts to integrate EFT into the Greek school system.
The first time I came in touch with EFT tapping, about 17 years ago, I felt immediately how much I could benefit from it. The very first thing that came into my mind was that I had to get it into the school system.
Eager to learn more, I took every available course related to EFT that I could find here in Greece or through the internet, trying to understand why and how it works and trying to help myself at the same time. The desire to get it into the school system never subsided; time gave me insights, ideas, and opportunities to take action.
Spreading the Word
The first thing I did was to write a report on EFT and teacher burnout and submit it to a conference held for us, the teachers. It got accepted and I made my first presentation; more followed, eventually leading to an opportunity to present it to colleagues in my district. I continued with three more groups of teachers, with the result being that 150 teachers had heard for the first time about the existence of tapping by the time the pandemic interrupted these efforts.
To help the information spread, I also created my professional website so my colleagues could learn more about EFT and connect with me. The same year (2019), I completed my second postgraduate degree in creative writing in the Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki. Combining these two passions, I created a children’s book in Greek that introduces EFT to kids and had the chance to apply tapping in a Greek school. The book was published in 2003; it is the first children’s book on EFT Tapping for Greek-speaking children and it is titled “Οι πράσινοι και οι κόκκινοι: Τεχνική συναισθηματικής νοημοσύνης για παιδιά έως 10 ετών” (2003, Εκδ. Αλφάβητο Ζωής)—translated as The Greens and the Reds: Emotional Intelligence Technique for Kids Up to 10 Years Old.
Last year I wrote and illustrated another story that introduces tapping to kids, titled “Hercules and his Lernaia Hydra: Tapping for Kids,” to use in schools. I also proposed an educational program which was approved by the department of primary education in my district, and will visit the schools that apply for the program.
Gathering Momentum
My belief, based on my experience, was that teachers were reluctant to use tapping in their classrooms because it lacked an official sanction or because they were resistant to trying new things. Now, I've come to believe that the pressure we all experience in our work environments leaves us without the tie and energy to explore something new, even when it could benefit us and our students enormously.
As for the children that come in touch with tapping, they show through their drawings, their writings, their questions, and their remarks that they benefit from it and that they love it! Working with children in the classroom and tapping together has been an exciting experience for me, too.
I surely have no idea how all this is going to go here in Greece but I can see a positive difference in how people are reacting when they hear about EFT! Let’s all hope for the better.
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Marina Koutra is a certified accredited EFT practitioner based in Thessaloniki, Greece.
Image credit: Element5 Digital on Unsplash
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