Project LIGHT: From Rwanda To Newtown

Nick Ortner  September 28, 2015

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT INFO: Lori Leyden, PhD (805) 636-1077

Lori@TappingSolutionFoundation.org, www.TappingSolutionFoundation.org.

 

Free Screening of Award Winning Documentary, 

Project LIGHT: From Rwanda to Newtown – A story of hope, healing, and possibility

Monday, October 19th

Newtown Middle School

6:00-8:00 pm

Newtown, CT (September 28, 2015) – The Tapping Solution Foundation (TTSF) is excited to announce the release of their award-winning documentary, Project LIGHT: From Rwanda to Newtown – a story of hope, healing and possibility. A free screening will take place Monday, October 19th, at Newtown Middle School from 6:00-8:00 pm. Refreshments, giveaways and babysitting will be offered.

This 60-minute documentary follows the transformation achieved by 12 orphan genocide survivors in Rwanda after participating in a new form of sustainable humanitarian aid called Project LIGHT. These young people, called Ambassadors, were trained to heal their Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and their hearts as well as teach others to do the same. In only two short years they paid forward their healing to hundreds, from Rwanda to Sandy Hook, Connecticut.

Produced by Academy Award winner Barnet Bain and narrated by Emmy-nominated actress CCH Pounder, the movie features Newtown High School Student, JT Lewis.

Dr. Lori Leyden, Head of TTSF and Founder of Create Global Healing, developed Project LIGHT as a result of her work in Rwanda with orphan genocide survivors since 2007. “With inquiries from around the world, my vision is to establish Project LIGHT programs wherever they are needed most around the world. When I witnessed JT’s transformation as a result of connecting with our Project LIGHT Ambassadors, I knew my vision was becoming a reality. (Newtowner JT Lewis, 12 years old at the time, brother of Jesse,).

Project LIGHT was a film festival finalist at Moondance, Unspoken, New York Peace, Illuminate and most recently, was the lead film at Anima, in Argentina where Dr. Leyden, sponsored by the US Embassy, represented the film to an international audience.

Jennifer Barahona, Executive Director, Newtown Sandy Hook Community Foundation, recommends Newtowners to take part in this special event: “This movie is a powerful reminder of the goodness and light that is possible following even the darkest of times.”

The documentary will be followed by a Q&A session with Nick Ortner – Newtown resident, NY Times bestselling author, and Founder of TTSF, Dr. Lori Leyden – Project LIGHT Founder and Head of TTSF, and J.T. Lewis – Founder of Newtown Helps Rwanda.

Newtowner, Nick Ortner, established The Tapping Solution Foundation in collaboration with Dr. Lori Leyden, Founder of Create Global Healing. TTSF has been delivering EFT/Tapping trauma services and professional training for parents, children, educators, first responders, mental health and health care providers since December 2012. TTSF has also developed a powerful network of local, national and international alliances to bring train-the-trainer trauma relief and resiliency services and educational programs to Newtown. This is a sustainable long-term, community-based initiative supporting healing in Newtown and globally.

EFT/Tapping is a stress and trauma somatic release method that is simple to learn, child-friendly and recognized by the American Psychological Association as an effective treatment for stress and trauma. This strategy has been used successfully in over 14 countries including Rwanda, Indonesia, Japan, Haiti, Kosovo, Israel, New Zealand and right here at home in Newtown. EFT/Tapping is just as highly effective for stress resiliency, anxiety, pain relief, test anxiety, panic attacks, and a host of other physical and emotional symptoms.

- See more at: http://tappingsolutionfoundation.org/press-release-for-project-light-from-rwanda-to-newtown/#sthash.vecgdBGT.dpuf

Bama Yao Ethnic Autonomous County

 In remote, mountainous, semi-tropical Bama County in China, it is customary for families to make a coffin for any relative who has reached the age of 60. Yet most coffins have rotted away long before they are needed and often end up being used to store corn instead of their designated elder. One 105-year-old who was visited by journalists in 2010 joked about the coffin made for her in 1958, which she can break into pieces with her hand. Another 116-year-old was reported to have seen four coffins decay before she was finally ready for the fifth.

For the truth is that the Bama people are some of the most vibrantly healthy, long-lived people in the world, with exceptionally high numbers of active, disease-free nonogenarians, centenarians and super-centenarians. A 2000 census recorded 74 centenarians amongst the population of 238,000, which is close to Okinawan levels. Studies show that only ten percent of nonogenarians in Bama have coronary heart disease and only four percent have excess blood lipids, whilst cancer incidence is a mere 4.4 people per 10,000.

The curative properties of Bama are legendary in China, with visitors coming from all over the country to soak them in. First, there is the vast, clear, Panyang river flowing through the valley with its mineral-rich water to bathe in and drink. Secondly, the Bama air, which is of just the right warmth and humidity year round, is known to be extremely high in negative ions and oxygen, thus creating a sense of exhilaration in those who breathe it. Bama also has high geomagnetism, said to benefit circulation, lower blood pressure and regulate the body’s ion balance. Throw in breathtaking scenery (so good for the spirits), an exemplary diet, and certain key lifestyle practices of the local people and you have a perfect storm of pro-health, pro-longevity conditions.

Bama people are themselves aware of the health-giving properties of their diet and lifestyle. The visitor is usually offered a bowl of ‘longevity soup’, made with hemp oil, an oil rich in both omega 3 and omega 6 essential fatty acids which are crucial for perfect health. Bama people also believe their Fragrant Pig, lean and organic, and Oil Fish from the Panyang River, to be ‘treasures of longevity’. Loving relationships, hard work and good deeds are all considered to be conducive to good health, and Bama also boasts a large golden board donated by a former emperor bearing the legend ‘Love Makes Longevity.’

Longevity Village in Bama, Guangxi, has undergone rapid development in the past few years as tourists come to discover the secrets of long life. 


Thick stands of bamboo, graceful eucalyptus and glossy chestnut trees line the road into Bama. Its stunning karst landscape is pierced by caverns and rises into steep crags.

"Even in winter it's not cold at all. The mountains are beautiful and the river is the colour of jade," said Dai Guifang, 65, who runs a construction firm in north-eastern China. "The air is very good. I feel uncomfortable if I smoke even half a cigarette in Shenyang – but in Bama I'm fine if I smoke a pack a day." Her late husband spent his last few months here. She believes the stay prolonged his life and reduced the pain of his stomach cancer. "A lot of people were sick but got better after living there – it's the water. It has a lot of minerals," she said.

Most tourists drink the waters and the bolder ones bathe in it, with mixed results. Some have drowned, report residents. Further up the valley, scores of middle-aged and elderly people perch on rocks in the gloom of the giant Baimo cavern. A few stand with their faces turned to giant boulders, pressing their hands to the stone. This is geomagnetic therapy, they say, enthusing about its beneficial effect on the heart, the brain and even varicose veins.

Cui Xuedong, 58, pulled up his shirt to show the scar across his torso; he had just had a second round of surgery for liver cancer. He was sceptical when a neighbour urged him to try Bama but said the impact was unmistakable: "After 30-odd days my face was rosy again. When I arrived I felt exhausted every afternoon, whatever I did in the morning. Soon I could swim a kilometre and still kick a shuttlecock around."

He has now moved to Bama and runs an organisation bringing city dwellers to the area, while his wife exports hundreds of tonnes of its water.

Cui believes the area's geomagnetism and negatively charged oxygen ions are as important as its relaxed, modest lifestyle. Experts scorn that and see simpler explanations for the town's longevity: in large part, poverty and isolation.

Yang Ze, deputy director of the Institute of Geriatrics at Beijing hospital, began researching Bama's secret in the mid-90s. One key, he said, is natural selection. The area is remote and mountainous. In the old days, it took three days to leave the hills, so there was relatively little mixing with the outside world. In tough conditions, without medical treatment, the strong genes remained; the weak were eliminated.

In particular, he said, Bama residents have mostly inherited a gene from both parents that helps the body to produce a protein called apolipoprotein-E. That combines with fats to form a lipoprotein that reduces excess cholesterol.

Lifestyle played a part, too. People worked hard in the fields. Much of their food was steamed, not fried. When Yang first arrived, they ate "rice porridge with a bit of salt, and hemp oil", and seldom consumed meat. Old people were surrounded by relatives. "They were not lonely and were happy. They were calm, had fewer desires, did not compete, and were more optimistic," Yang said.

Now the area's new-found popularity is destroying its very attractions. "The new residents bring a Beijing lifestyle to Bama. They shout in the mountains; they turn up the music to do exercise in the morning," he added.

Hammers and drills disturb the once-tranquil scene thanks to the soaring demand for rented property. Cars clog the narrow streets, pumping out fumes. Residents complain the river is polluted because visitors dump rubbish and because the sewage systems cannot cope with so many people. These days, the young prosper by selling goods to tourists rather than by labouring. And the eldest can sit at home, on a couch, and wait for red envelopes.


As the area has grown wealthier and less isolated, it has also grown less healthy. Bama is a microcosm of China: its burst of development made its shift from diseases of poverty to those of affluence even more pronounced.

"The centenarians eat braised pork every day. Since they have got richer, their diet has been changing," Yang said. "Last time I was there, I told them problems such as high blood sugar and high blood pressure were appearing in this village, and that if they were not careful, it would lead to death. They did not listen to me and despised [my advice]. They said they had just started to get rich, and we were trying to stop them."

In 2005 there were 17 or 18 people aged over 100, but these days there are just two, he thinks – not seven, as the village claims. An Italian, aged 111, is officially the world's oldest man.

Yang believes Bama could soon lose all its centenarians. Not only are the next generation likely to have shorter lives, even those who are already elderly are unlikely to reach 100, he suggests. But having struggled for years to feed themselves, Bama's elderly see little to lament in this new world of plenty. "In my time there were a lot of wars. A lot of people starved to death. A lot of people were hungry," ruminated Huang Puxin.

"I have had a lot of happy times, but the best is now," observed Huang Makan, a few houses down, with a flash of her exquisite smile.

A tiny figure in a padded jacket, with a jade bracelet on each wrist, she says that she is 108, has never had a day's sickness, and enjoys the constant company. "Many people come to see me. I hope I live until 200," she confided.


How they did it?

Living a long life, Bama-style, according to those who have managed it:

Huang Puxin, 113: Be a good person. Have a good heart.

Huang Makan, 108: Eat green, organic, simple foods. I eat sweetcorn congee a lot. I don't have many demands.

Huang Meijian, 99: Work and walk around every day.

Dr Yang Ze's (strinkingly similar) advice
1. Treat yourself and others well, be more tolerant to yourself and others, be optimistic. Love life, love your family, have love to offer to people and be open-minded.

2. Have a healthy lifestyle. Neither eat too much nor stay hungry. Keep your diet bland. Eat more vegetables and fruits, and less protein and carbohydrates.

3. Do more exercise. All centenarians help themselves and do everything by themselves … They go farming in the mountains, they cook for themselves.


4. Bama women have children late: they give birth to their first baby at 27 and the last baby is usually around 42 or 43.

At 115, Boxin Huang is the oldest resident of China’s Bapan Village, also called Longevity Village. But he's not extraordinary there, where many live long past 100 years.

Cardiologist John Day, MD, of Intermountain Healthcare in Murray, Utah, visited Bapan and the Chinese centenarians and learned fascinating lessons about healthy living and healthy hearts, ones he shares with his own patients.

“Most people think it’s their genes, but the data don’t support it,” Dr. Day says about the Bapan centenarians. Research on about 3,000 pairs of twins who had identical DNA — the same genes — but as adults had different home environments and life choices, showed that only 25 percent of their longevity was due to genes. The other 75 percent was affected by lifestyle. Things within your control can make all the difference in lifespan.

I'll Have Vegetables With That

“In Longevity Village, the fascinating thing is that they eat vegetables as part of all three meals, even breakfast,” Day noticed. The food groups consistently associated with a healthy heart and long life are fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, legumes, and fish, Day says. He found that in Bapan, vegetables were always a main course. They ate a lot of fruits, nuts, and legumes as well.

“The diet we eat is absolutely critical,” says Day. He points to data from the California Seventh-Day Adventist study. Researchers tracked an extra seven years of life for men and four years for women, among more than 34,000 people who maintained a healthy diet, were active, and didn’t smoke.

Legumes — a food group that include beans, peas, and lentils — are a central part of the Bapan diet. “The longest-lived cultures use beans as a regular part of their diet,” Day observes. In Okinawa, Japan, for example — among the countries with the highest longevity rates — legumes are a regular part of the diet. Average life expectancy for people born today in Japan is the highest in the world, currently 84 years, according to the World Health Organization. In the United States, it's 81 years for women and 76 for men, according to an October 2014 study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Exercise? No. Movement? Yes!

The rural area of Bapan has no exercise culture, Day says. In fact, in Longevity Village, the elders laughed at him when he asked if they exercised, because “they were outside, moving their bodies all day.” On his visits to the area, most recently in 2013, he found people of all ages engaged in physical activities like farming. Everything was done by hand because this remote area had no access to mechanical equipment like power tools until very recently and, Day adds, no televisions or computers.

Research data also show that people who stay physically active get extra years of life. In a Taiwan study of more than 400,000 people, researchers found active people enjoyed an extra three years of life. They needed only a bare minimum of physical activity to prolong life — 15 minutes each day. The reason relates, in part, to heart health.

“It’s often said in the cardiology community that you are only as old as your arteries. If your arteries age, it wears out your brain, heart, and even kidneys,” Day explains. This is because by being physically active, you can slow the buildup of plaque in your arteries – and keep your heart and body healthy a lot longer.

Connect More, Stress Less, Live Longer

If you look at countries where people live longest, most are places where elders are revered. “In Longevity Village, 74 percent of the centenarians in the county lived in four- to five-generation homes, all under the same roof,” says Day. “They always ask the oldest person for advice; always serve them first at every meal.” Grandparents are very involved with the family and especially with child rearing. This social support has tremendous health benefits.

Only 25 percent of longevity is in the genes; the other 75 percent is lifestyle.

“Study after study shows the more social support, the longer people live. People have better survival when they are socially connected,” says Day. “Having a sense of purpose can significantly increase your longevity.” Research shows that men and women with stronger social relationships have a 50 percent higher likelihood of surviving longer, according to a review of studies including 308,000 participants.

In contrast to the U.S. experience, where youth is prized and prominent in advertising images, in Longevity Village, advertisements featured the oldest people. “They become a celebrity when they reach the 100-year mark,” says Day.

Stress is becoming increasingly challenging in our society, says Day. In his experience, “80 percent of emergency room visits are stress triggered.” Life is stressful, but it’s how you deal with it that matters. Too often we live isolated lives, and even our diet causes a buildup of stress we need to diffuse, he explains.

Connection matters. In Longevity Village he found a connection to nature, to the earth, to family and friends, community, and food. Day says, “Even their food was connected and in a natural state. The fish they caught in the stream they ate later that same day; the vegetables they harvested in their garden they ate that day.”


Simple Secrets to a Long Life

The people living in Longevity Village are a five-hour bus ride away from the rest of civilization, so air pollution is not a problem there, at least not yet. But even here, you can take steps to ensure your air is as clean as possible. If you smoke, stop. And invest in an air filter if you need to, says Day.

“I cannot overstate the importance of breathing clean air,” he adds. This is on the top of his list, along with five more directives:

~Be physically active
~Eat a healthy diet
~Get restorative sleep.
~Manage your stress.
~Be socially connected.


Day believes you can have the best of both worlds, by making conscious choices that are healthy for your heart and beneficial for a long life. He and his family have learned a lot from Longevity Village, says Day: “We’re definitely going back.”

Hundreds of years ago, the emperors of imperial China ordered the vast resources of their empire focused on the pursuit of xian xue, the "science of longevity." What they uncovered is a secret open to anyone interested in better health—that living longer and having more energy is as easy as moving, breathing, and eating.

Chinese Secrets of Health and Longevity instructs you in these original strategies for maximum energy and life span. Based on the concept of "correspondence," Chinese medicine sees a vital link between your environment, your daily habits, and your health. By making simple adjustments in your diet and lifestyle, you can feel more alive every minute of the day, perform better at work, and have more energy for enjoying life.

In China, the most successful doctors are those who treat the fewest patients. They "treat" people with natural, noninvasive techniques before illness develops. Join Dr. Bob Flaws, one of the Western world's leading authorities on Chinese healing, and learn how easy it is to master these simple, life-changing health strategies. Topics include:

Diet—how to eat for maximum energy and immunity from disease
Lifestyle—regulating your daily activities, including sleep, sex, and exercise, into a balanced whole, proven to fight illness
Stress reduction—meditations and exercises for relaxation and emotional balance
Exercise—graceful chi kung exercises to gently unblock and energize your body's chi (life force)


Chinese Secrets of Health and Longevity presents a uniquely practical prescription for total wellness that will keep you out of the doctor's office, and in the best health of your life.


Chinese Secrets of Health and Longevity Bob Flaws

In China, the most successful doctors are those who treat the fewest patients. They "treat" people with natural, non invasive techniques before illness develops. On Chinese Secrets of Health and Longevity, Dr. Bob Flaws, one of the Western world’s leading authorities on Chinese healing, teaches a complete 12-session curriculum on these proven, life-changing health strategies. Topics include: Diets to build energy and immunity; meditations for relaxation and emotional balance; qigong exercises to unblock the body’s qi (life force); and much more.

There's Only One Of Us

The World Within Our Senses (The Sensory World) insists that there are billions of us inhabiting this planet and all of us are unique.  Even identical twins look slightly different and vary in their beliefs, decisions, preferences and so on.  Even though we are learning that this is a mirage, it is so compelling that we must compensate for it in our daily lives.  Accordingly, almost every decision we make is influenced by how the world, and the imaginary people in it, will respond.

But our goal is to see beyond that.  We must recognize what Quantum Physics and countless people with spiritual experiences like mine are clearly telling us, i.e. that there is no separation and thus there is only one of us.  To do so, requires that we perceive ALL other people as joined with us in an ultra-loving state in The World Beyond Our Senses.  No differences whatsoever.  Love makes no distinctions.  As indicated in previous articles, this realization is likely to be a gradual process.

Now let's explore this Oneness notion and lay out some of its features:

• If we are all One then, despite how it appears, everyone else is a mirror of you.
• This includes those we label angelic as well as those we consider robbers, rapists, murderers and pedophiles. It includes our very best friends ... and ... our worst enemies.
• Thus within our dream this kaleidoscope of "people features" represents our potential to both love and hate ... to nurture and reject ... to experience both peace and turmoil.
• So when we come across people we don't like, we are actually experiencing reflections of things we don't like about ourselves.  It may not seem that way.  In fact, we may argue for an opposite conclusion.  But if we are all One then you ARE those people and they ARE you.  It may take some more convincing for this to sink in but, until it does, the denial of this form of Oneness is keeping us in that prison we call The Sensory World.
• In The World Beyond Our Senses there is only One thing ... Love.  Everything else fades into nothingness because there is no "everything else."

Now here's a fascinating thought.

If those who irritate us are actually part of us then we MUST see beyond their "shortcomings" if we are to perceive ourselves as Love.  Spiritual Love is all encompassing.  There can be nothing else.  Thus if we see any part of us as even slightly offensive then we have denied the complete state of Love that is our reality.

This is where True Forgiveness comes in from a previous article.  We must learn that this Sensory World is nothing but a dream and the unloving behavior of everyone, including that of you, me and those who offend us, is but a fiction.  As we approach that realization, True Forgiveness becomes easier because, ultimately, there is nothing to forgive.  And if there is nothing to forgive then the slate is clean and we are left with a glorious state of Loving Oneness.  No resentments.  No judgments.  Just Love.

WE ARE One

e-hugs, Gary

The EFT Silent Sea of Disappointed People

"EFT offers great healing benefits."

Deepak Chopra, MD

“But it doesn’t work for me”
Many get little or no results via EFT Tapping – this need not be.

The EFT Silent Sea.
(under-served and disillusioned)

 

This article is about an EFT opportunity for a swelling ocean of under-served and  disillusioned EFTers and how they can gain the results that have, so far, eluded them. A little history will help me in this effort.

History

When I founded EFT in 1995 I did so with an “Open Hand Policy” wherein people were encouraged to innovate with it, blend it with their other techniques and so on.  It was free.  No royalties or other restrictions were placed on it. This began what we now call my “Worldwide EFT Classroom” and has grown to millions of people in over 20 languages.  It has been on TV more times than I can count and over 100 books, DVDs and movies now feature EFT. Further, it has gained the attention of celebrities such as Wayne Dyer, Deepak Chopra, Jack Canfield and Louise Hay. This is the good news.

The Problem

The not-so-good-news is that it is rare to find any two people who do EFT the same.  Why? Because this proliferation of EFT has naturally been filtered through thousands (or millions) of belief systems and is being taught throughout the world by a throng of enthusiastic people, each believing in their customized version of EFT with integrity and the will to do good.  This is very confusing to the newcomer.  See About Those EFT Tapping Spin-Offs: A Candid Discussion.
Also, in these diverse teachings, you will rarely find any detailed treatment of vital, in-depth topics such as...

• Finding Aspects within the EFT Tapping Process, 
• Testing Your EFT Tapping Work or
• Tapping on Specific Events - An Essential Concept Within the EFT Process. 

This results in “Surface EFT” wherein EFT tends to be aimed at the symptoms of the various issues rather than their causes.  While this can sometimes be effective, it often creates results that are temporary, partial or non-existent.  The people who experience these sub-par results represent the EFT Silent Sea of Disappointed People.

By contrast, some people get extraordinary results with Surface EFT and these results are heavily promoted on the internet and other media.  This makes it seem like EFT cures everything and does so instantly for everyone.  Or at least that’s the impression given by many EFT promoters.  I even thought along these lines myself at first.  This is because people would write to me about their “miracles” and I would publish these stories on my website.  This brought more miracle stories and the quick fix reputation of EFT began to mushroom.

But, alas, I primarily saw the successes because only a scant few wrote to me about their failures.  The under-served people remained silent while the more fortunate ones sang EFT's praises. Now, years later, I realize that a huge number of people are in this EFT Silent Sea.  They are lost, disillusioned and often say, “But EFT doesn’t work for me.”

The Solution

The solution, obviously, involves proper education with an in-depth standard for everyone to use.  That is why I created the free Gold Standard EFT Tapping Tutorial.  This hallmark of EFT excellence is only presented on my website because only in this way can every feature be properly controlled, updated and organized.  Stated differently, it cannot be adjusted or diluted by others and thus provides quality EFT for everyone.

It is freely available to anyone with access to a computer and, unlike printed books, it is filled with video examples of the important concepts.  Professionals can use it as a standard for their EFT activities (books, workshops, client sessions) and self-helpers can know that they are learning the “real deal.”  Both can access the growing library of supporting materials and become as expert as they choose.  With this essential tool, the Silent Sea will be much better served and will join the smiling evangelists within the EFT Worldwide Classroom.

So, if you are a member of the EFT Silent Sea, make sure your workshop presenter or EFT practitioner is thoroughly grounded in Gold Standard EFT and uses its principles.  Otherwise, consider going elsewhere.  Avoid those using Global Approaches in the EFT Tapping Process, or EFT Tapping Scripts or brief youtube videos.  These are likely doorways into the EFT Silent Sea.
e-hugs, Gary.

About Those EFT Tapping Spin-Offs: A Candid Discussion
         

"They all look something like EFT but underneath
they are substantially different, even from each other.
Frankly, I don't know whether to gasp or giggle at this outcome. 
Conflicts everywhere. What’s a newbie to do?"

My concerns

EFT's proliferation is
not without its concerns.

 

EFT’s worldwide proliferation is bringing hope to humanity but, due to issues that I caused, the movement is not without its concerns.

When I introduced EFT in 1995, I had no idea it would eventually land in the hands of millions.  If I had, I would have made sure that everyone learned the method equally.  Clear teaching.  Consistent classes.  Standards for the whole movement.   This way all EFT'ers would speak the same language and innovations could build upon a common foundation.

But, alas, I dropped the ball and, as it stands, there are now hundreds of EFT spin-offs, each reflecting a different set of beliefs and preferences.  No standards whatsoever. They all look something like EFT but underneath they are substantially different, even from each other. Frankly, I don't know whether to gasp or giggle at this outcome.  Conflicts everywhere. What’s a newbie to do?

I suggest, of course, that you learn EFT here ... from the source ... where everything is detailed, consistent and absolutely free.  But, if you wish to explore the spin-offs, you will find them all over the internet.  They tend to use some form of the name EFT or its well known nickname, Tapping, in their titles.

While there are a small handful of exceptions, the vast majority of the promoters have not taken any in-depth training in EFT from the source and, as a result, they put forward "lighter" versions of EFT.

Unfortunately, I have reports that one of these spin-offs has badly traumatized people, including sending some into suicide thoughts.
Obviously, I cannot support or endorse the greater majority of the spin-offs.  I wish I could.  It would help the proper spread of EFT.
e-hugs, Gary

PS:  None of these issues exist with our newest advancement, Optimal EFT.  It is only taught through this website and thus there are no variations using the Optimal EFT name.

The Pros and Perils of EFT Tapping Scripts

Purpose

Pros & Perils of EFT Tapping Scripts

 

This article brings further perspective to those wishing to use pre-written bits of language (Tapping Scripts) that some people use hoping to better aim EFT at their issues. If you have not been exposed to Tapping Scripts, then we invite you to skip this article and move on to 'What can I expect from EFT Tapping'? so that your EFT learning process is not interrupted. Those who have been exposed to Tapping Scripts will benefit from the information provided here before moving forward.

The Pros of this approach center around convenience and the possibility to gain more benefits than what just the EFT Basic Recipe provides.  On the other hand, the Perils include possible traumatization, partial results, misrepresentation of EFT and potentially serious legal issues for those providing them.  These scripts are well meant by their promoters and are at least partially helpful for many clients.  But they are superficial in nature, possibly harmful for some, and should be described as such by their promoters.

I don't mean to be overly dramatic on this as, on balance, using Tapping scripts has produced much more good than harm (my opinion).  However, their risks and shortcomings need to be explored.  Pointers for more skillful approaches are given later in this article as well as throughout the remainder of this Tutorial.

Background

In the early days of EFT, our targets for Tapping rounds were on the general (global) side. It took me years of refining to discover that being more specific would produce much better results, especially for the more complex cases. Meanwhile, EFTers continued to experiment with global approaches, trying to make a difference for as many people as possible.  From this effort, the “Tapping script” was born.

A Tapping script involves predetermined Setup/Reminder language that is designed for the general public to use with the EFT Basic Recipe for relief on a common issue. For instance, a Tapping script for weight loss might start like this...

Even though I feel so bad about carrying all this weight
and I don't think I deserve to lose it...

 

On the surface the idea makes sense, especially to someone who hasn’t studied EFT or wants the quick relief promised by an approach like this. It appears to be convenient but the potential downside is significant and it doesn’t come anywhere near the professional results we can deliver by an individualized approach.

Using Tapping scripts is like
trying to paint the Mona Lisa
with a 6 inch wide brush

Tapping scripts are often found in books and on individual websites, designed by practitioners who specialize in a particular issue. There are Tapping scripts for hundreds of issues … from trauma to phobias to OCD to everything else.   Anyone could locate a website that provides these scripts, including a diagram of EFT points and some language to use that seems to target underlying issues. The assumption here is that most people with similar issues will have the same contributing details. But that's a major error.  No two people experience the same details, or in the same way, and thus no Tapping script can reflect the exactness that is often required.  In this regard, using Tapping scripts is like trying to paint the Mona Lisa with a 6 inch wide brush. 

The Pros

The allure to these scripts involves a convenience factor wherein a ready made approach is provided that requires no customization or detective work. Just tap on the EFT points while repeating words that someone else provides.  Easy. It’s a one-size-fits-all or “EFT in a Box” approach.  Plenty of script users have reported positive results using this method and I am pleased that this simplistic approach has helped expose multitudes of people to EFT.  While many have benefited, there remain limitations and downsides.  We will cover those next.

The Perils

Those promoting Tapping scripts are attempting to "treat" people that either (1) they don’t know or (2) have issues too substantial for a mere Tapping script to handle.  Accordingly, their “clientele” will eventually include people with severe emotional or physical frailties who are enticed to “try it out.”  These tender souls should not attempt ANY healing method without the presence and guidance of a qualified health professional because abreactions and severe consequences are possible.    As EFT becomes more mainstream, it is inevitable that these issues will surface and lawsuits may emerge against those promoting Tapping scripts.

Professional uses of EFT, such as those discussed in our Gold Standard EFT Tutorial can significantly reduce the exposure to these risks.

In addition, Tapping scripts tend to provide only partial results.  They rarely get to the roots of the issues and thus the true causes of the problem remain active underground.  It is only a matter of time before these weeds show up again and cause clients to conclude that “EFT didn’t work.”  Even worse, these surface approaches can partially clear some aspects of the problem and, in the process, allow buried traumas to emerge and bring about anxiety, nightmares, headaches and the like.  No script is able to handle this unexpected stress and thus these clients may report that “EFT made things worse.”  In reality, though, it wasn’t EFT that made things worse.  It was the erroneous use of a surface approach for a deeper problem.

So, if you are promoting Tapping scripts, please inform your customers of the limits and potential side effects of using an approach like this. Better yet, abandon those Tapping scripts and reduce that risk by moving toward the more professional, individualized EFT approaches offered on this website.  Of particular interest may be our article entitled What Should I Say During the EFT Tapping Process?

The YouTube and Internet Summits Problem

You’ll see this same Tapping script approach used in different forms on YouTube videos, as well as various internet summits and symposiums where one or more practitioners lead an anonymous public through Tapping rounds on whatever issue they choose for the day (like procrastination, deserving happiness, creating abundance, finding your soul mate, or freedom from stress). These global approaches lead people in superficial directions where results are limited and the aforementioned possibility for serious consequences is magnified.

The Solution: Getting to the Roots & Customizing the Process

As a practitioner, it is actually easier to ask the client a few questions and burrow down to the specifics than it is to recite scripts and fumble around when the client’s situation begs for more help.  The process is taught in Part II of our Gold Standard EFT Tutorial.  Even do-it-yourselfers can learn the principles and make greater progress on their issues. It will take a little practice at first but the more you use it, the better you get.  You might start with the Personal Peace Procedure, or ask a few simple questions that point toward Specific Events. Here are some questions that have served me well over the years.

• When did you first notice the issue?
• Does it remind you of anything in your past?
• If you could live life over again, what person or event would you prefer to skip?

As a do-it-yourself-er, if you get stuck, a properly trained professional can help you dig up issues that you couldn't find on your own. Professionals can get additional training to find the hidden issues needed for best results.

REVIEW:

In this article you learned about Tapping Scripts in the EFT process.

• Tapping Scripts seem to provide convenience, but are quite global in nature and do not provide an individualized approach. For this reason, they do not follow the Gold Standard EFT process.
• Tapping Scripts and other global approaches can cause harm when used without proper guidance, so if you choose to try them, do so with caution.
• For the best EFT education possible, avoid Tapping Scripts and other global variations, and stick to the Gold Standard principles taught in this Tutorial.

 

Health Ageing or Healthy Age

Today, for the first time in history, most people can expect to live into their sixties and beyond. A longer life represents an important opportunity, not only for older people and their families, but also for societies as a whole. Additional years provide the chance to pursue new activities such as further education or a long neglected passion, while continuing to make valuable contributions to family and community. Yet the extent of these opportunities depends heavily on one factor: health.

10 facts on ageing and health


1.The world’s population is rapidly ageing
The number of people aged 60 years or older will rise from 900 million to 2 billion between 2015 and 2050 (moving from 12% to 22% of the total global population).

Population ageing is happening more quickly than in the past. For example, while France had almost 150 years to adapt to a change from 10% to 20% in the proportion of the population that was older than 60 years, places like Brazil, China and India will have slightly more than 20 years to make the same adaptation.

2.There is little evidence that older people today are in better health than their parents

The proportion of older people in high-income countries needing help from another person to carry out basic activities such as eating and washing may have declined slightly over the past 30 years. However, there has been little change in the prevalence of less severe limitations in functioning.

3.The most common health conditions in older age are non-communicable diseases

Older people in low- and middle-income countries carry a greater disease burden than those in the rich world.

Regardless of where they live the biggest killers of older people are heart disease, stroke and chronic lung disease. The greatest causes of disability are sensory impairments (particularly in low- and lower-middle-income countries), back and neck pain, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (particularly in low- and lower-middle-income countries), depressive disorders, falls, diabetes, dementia and osteoarthritis.”

4.When it comes to health, there is no ‘typical’ older person

Biological ageing is only loosely associated with person age in years. Some 80 year-olds have physical and mental capacities similar to many 20 year-olds. Other people experience declines in physical and mental capacities at much younger ages.

5.Health in older age is not random

Although some of the variations in older people’s health reflect their genetic inheritance, most is due to their physical and social environments, and the influence of these environments on their opportunities and health behaviour. Importantly, these factors start to influence ageing from childhood. This means that an older person from a disadvantaged background is both more likely to experience poor health and less likely to have access to the services and the care that they may need.

6.Ageism may now be more pervasive than sexism or racism

Ageism – discrimination against a person on the basis of their age - has serious consequences for older people and societies at large.

Ageism can take many forms, including prejudicial attitudes, discriminatory practices, or policies that perpetuate ageist beliefs. It can obstruct sound policy development, and it can significantly undermine the quality of health and social care that older people receive.

7.Comprehensive public health action will require fundamental shifts in how we think about ageing and health

Health in older age shouldn’t be defined by the absence of disease. Healthy Ageing is achievable by every older person. It is a process that enables older people to continue to do the things that are important to them.

While health and social care expenditures for older people are often viewed as costs to society they should be understood as investments in realizing opportunities and enabling older people to continue to make their many positive contributions.

8.Health systems need to be realigned to the needs of older populations

Most health systems around the world are ill-prepared to address the needs of older people, who often have multiple chronic conditions or geriatric syndromes. Systems must be capable of providing older person-centered and integrated care, and focus on maintaining capacities as people age.

9.In the 21st century, all countries need an integrated system of long-term care

In some countries, this means building a system from almost nothing. In others, it means rethinking long-term care: from a basic safety net for the most vulnerable, towards a broader system that maximizes older people’s functional ability and upholds their autonomy and dignity.

The number of older people who need support for activities of daily living in developing countries is forecast to quadruple by 2050.

 

10.Healthy Ageing involves all levels and sectors of government

Examples of inter-sectoral action include establishing policies and programmes that expand housing options; making buildings and transport accessible; promoting age-diversity in working environments; and protecting older people from poverty through social protection schemes.

Making progress on Healthy Ageing will also require a far better understanding of age-related issues and trends.

YOUR BIG OPPORTUNITY

You have only one judge—your word. Jesus Christ said; "I say unto you that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment, for by thy word thou shalt be justified, and by thy word thou shalt be condemned."

Every day is a day of Judgment. We used to be taught that it would be at the end of the world. Look back in your life and see how you have attracted either happiness or disaster through your words. The subconscious has no sense of humor. People joke destructively about themselves and the subconscious takes it seriously. It is because the mental picture you make while speaking impresses the subconscious and works out on the external. A person who knows the power of the word becomes very careful of his conversation. He has only to watch the reaction of his words to know they do not return void. People make their worst mistakes by speaking while they are angry or resentful, because there is so much ill-feeling back of their words. Owing to the vibratory power of words, what you voice, you begin to attract. People who continually speak of disease, invariably attract disease.

Invisible forces are ever working for man, who is always pulling the strings himself, though he does not know it. We read in the Bible "life and death are in the power of the tongue." Yet most people are speaking destructively from morning until night. It is because they have formed a habit of criticism, condemnation and complaint and are eager to tell you of their misfortunes and how mean all their relatives are. They wear their friends out and people avoid them. They are talking themselves into a flock of troubles. Now that we know the power of the word why not take advantage of it? We take advantage of the radio, the telephone and aeroplanes but live with the Mound-builders in conversation.

Science and religion are now coming together. Science is discovering the power within the atom; metaphysics teaches the power within thoughts and words. We are dealing with dynamite when we deal with words. Think of the power of the word in healing! A word is spoken and a chemical change takes place in the body.


One of my friends was seriously ill. The doctor said she had chronic bronchitis and was on the verge of pneumonia. Her daughters and the doctor rushed her to bed and she had a nurse, but weeks passed and there was no improvement. She was a Truth student but for over a year had attended no meetings nor had she kept up her reading. One morning she telephoned me and said, "Please speak the word and get me out of this! I can't stand it any more; I'm not sick, I'm just disgusted. So much negative talk and thought have almost floored me." Through the spoken word and her affirmation of Truth immediately there was a change for the better. She had a strong hunch to go out and was told it would be dangerous, but by this time she was following Divine Guidance. She went out and called on me and said she was going to attend a luncheon the next day. What had happened? The words of Truth were making a change in her mind and a chemical change was taking place in her body. We are told that if we believe, never doubting, we can say to that mountain, "Be thou removed," and it would disappear into the sea.

The inexhaustible energy in man is released by good-will. A man free from fear, undisturbed by appearances, sending good-will to men and nations, could say to these mountains of hate and war; "Be thou removed" and they would return to their native nothingness.

Resentment and intolerance rob man of his power. We should have signs in the subways and shops "Watch your thoughts!" "Watch your words!"

Let us now be careful in directing this dynamic force within us. Let us direct it to heal, bless and prosper and direct it in waves of good to the whole world. It goes out a mighty force, but noiseless! Thought, the strongest power in the Universe is without sound. Your good-will sweeps all obstacles from your pathway and your heart's desire is released for you.

What is really yours? The answer is: "All that the kingdom affords is yours." Every righteous desire of the heart is promised you. There are three thousand promises in the Bible, but these gifts can come to us only if we can believe them possible, for everything comes through you—not to you. All life is vibration. Feel rich, and you attract riches. Feel successful and you become successful.

I knew of a small boy who was born in a little country town with no advantages, but he always felt successful; he had the conviction that when he grew up he would be a big artist. No one could discourage him because he was success; he had only success thoughts; he radiated success. At an early age he left the small town and went to a big city and to support himself he got a position as a newspaper artist on a daily paper, all this without previous preparation. It never occurred to him that it could not be done. He went to an art school and immediately became a shining light. He never studied in an academic way. Whatever he once saw he remembered. In a few years he went to a still larger city and became a well-known artist. This success came to him because he was always seeing success. "I will give to you the land that thou seeth."

The children of Israel were told that they could have all the land that they could see. The Bible is a metaphysical book and it is speaking to the individual. This minute, it says to each one of us, "I will give to you the land that thou seeth." So, what are you seeing with your inner eye? What pictures are you inviting into your life? The imaging faculty has been called the scissors of the mind. If you have failure thoughts, reverse the thought with a success thought. This sounds easy enough to do, but when a failure thought has become a habit, it takes eternal vigilance to dislodge it. That is when a powerful affirmation is needed. You cannot always control your thought but you can control your word, and eventually the word impresses the subconscious and wins out.

If you are in a negative state of mind just take the statement: "I look with wonder at that which is before me!" It creates an expectancy of something wonderful and something wonderful will come to you. Cultivate the feeling that miracles and wonders are coming to pass. Cultivate a success expectancy.

Very few people bring into life what is rightfully theirs. They live on the outskirts of their heart's desire. It always seems too good to be true. To the person spiritually awake nothing is too good to be true.

If you want to hear people talking who are still asleep in the Adamic dream, go to a hairdresser's establishment. The Adamic dream is the illusion of opposites. Adam fell into a deep sleep having eaten of the tree of illusion. Of course, Adam stands for generic man— the race-man. The race- man vainly imagined loss, lack, failure, sin, sickness and death. The awakened man knows only one power, God, and one condition, good. But now we will return to the beauty parlor. The following is an exact quotation and a good example of what one hears: A woman sat down near me and said in a loud voice, "This place is too warm! Turn something on or open something." The attendant said to her, "How are you feeling today, Mrs. S?" She replied with a heavy sigh, "Oh, I'm pretty well, but I have a hard time keeping well." To the manicurist she said, "Why don't you wear glasses?" The girl replied, "I don't need glasses, why should I wear them?" The woman replied, "Because everybody wears them. You'll find there is something wrong with your eyes if you have them examined." When she finally leaves they all feel limp and wonder if they are really well or only seem to be well. She leaves a trail of apprehension and gloom. This is a sample of what one hears from nearly every booth; the way most people talk. It is appalling when one knows the power of the word and what they are attracting, for they are nearly all describing illnesses or operations.

You combine with what you notice so do not describe anything destructive for you begin to combine with it. What is really yours? The blessings you bring to yourself, through your spoken or silent word; the things you see with your inner eye. Only your doubts, fears and resentments keep your good from you. If you hate or resent a situation, you have fastened it to you, for you attract what you fear or dislike. For example: someone has been unjust to you and you are filled with wrath and resentment. You cannot forgive that person. Time rolls on and another person does the same thing. It is because you have a picture of injustice engraved in your subconscious. History will repeat itself until you think you are cursed with misfortune and injustice. There is only one way to neutralize it. Be absolutely undisturbed by injustice and send good-will to all concerned. "My good-will is a strong tower round about me. I now transmute all enemies into friends, all inharmony into harmony, all injustice into justice." You will be amazed at the working of the law. One student brought harmony out of chaos in her business affairs by that statement.

Do not look back and hash over hard times, or you will be drawn back into these conditions. Give thanks for the dawn of a new day. You must be immune to all discouragement and adverse appearances.

All that you desire or require is already on your pathway, but you must be wide awake to your good to bring it into manifestation. After making statements of Truth you suddenly have a flash of realization. You suddenly feel yourself in a new environment. You feel old negative conditions falling away. I once said to a woman "The walls of lack and delay now crumble away, and you enter your promised land, under grace." She said she had a sudden flash of a wall crumbling away and that she stepped over it. Soon after that, the change came, and she really did enter her Promised Land of Plenty.

I knew a woman whose daughter's desire was a home and husband. In her early youth she had had a broken engagement. Whenever a possible marriage appeared on the horizon, she became frantic with fear and apprehension, picturing vividly another disappointment, and she had several. Her mother came to me to speak the word for her right marriage, Divinely designed, which could not be interfered with. During the interview the mother said continually: "Poor Nellie! Poor Nellie!" I said: "Do not call your daughter 'poor Nellie' again. You are helping her to be demagnetized. Call her 'Lucky Nellie,' `Fortunate Nellie, for you must have faith that God now gives to her the desires of her heart." The mother and daughter persisted in making their affirmations. She has now fulfilled her destiny for she is Mrs. Nellie, the demon of fear dissolved forever.

There are wonderful statements in the Bible referring to the breaking down of negative thought forms. "The power of the Spirit is mighty even unto the pulling down of strongholds." The human mind is helpless to cope with these negative thoughts. The victory is won by the God within, the superconscious mind.

"Brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, and there be any praise, think on these things." Phil. 4 : 8.

If people obeyed this, general conversation would come to a standstill for a while, until people learned to talk about constructive things.

Healing Waters by Dr Bruce Becker

If you think the water just makes people feel 
good, you don’t know the half of it. Here’s a 
physiological explanation of the surprising and 
amazing ways the simple act of being in the 
water promotes well-being.

It doesn’t take long to notice that people in pools 
are having fun. Nor does it take long to see 
happy faces in a group of aquatic exercisers, or a 
smile replace the facial stress lines of someone
sinking into a hot tub. The feeling of relaxation 
after a vigorous pool workout is wonderful, and
unlike most other exercise experiences.

As a scientist, I’ve been impressed with the 
consistency and universality of these observa-
tions. When I began to work with Olympic 
athletes who were used to vigorous exercise 
routines, they often commented on the difference
in their post-exercise comfort from an aquatic 
exercise session vs. their normal exercise routine
. But there’s too much scientist in me not to 
wonder why these findings occur with such 
frequency and regularity. As I researched the 
medical literature,I couldn’t find much to 
explain such common events. But when I began 
to dig into the basic science literature, I did find 
information that provided some potential 
explanation.

The physiology of immersion has been studied 
extensively since we prepared to put man into
space in the late 1960s because the closest proxy
to weightlessness on the planet is to be found
when immersed in water. To study the physio-
logical changes that would occur in space, it
became important to study those changes 
occurring during immersion. The physiological 
alterations were profound and led to further 
research of specific body systems. Still, most of 
this research was not translated into medical 
applications, but rather, was located in highly 
scientific physiology journals.

Even today, there’s relatively little research on 
the clinical applications of aquatic activity or 
exercise to be found in medical journals. This 
crossover from basic science into clinical
application is called translational research
and it is only beginning to emerge for aquatics.
But as more people turn to the water for therapy 
and healing, that body of evidence is growing 
daily. If the industry can capitalize on these
findings, understand and promote them
effectively, aquatics could become the next big
health craze, with the promise of helping
everything from high blood pressure
to heart failure. 
Given that the American Heart Association says
72 million Americans suffer from high blood 
pressure and more than 79 million have cardio-
vascular disease, that could be a powerful 
incentive. The nation, in turn, could save huge
amounts in health expenses if the public were 
educated about the value of aquatic activity, if 
the political powers directed public expenditures
toward pool construction to improve public 
access and the medical establishment understood
the potential value of aquatic activity across a 
wide range of clinical problems. But it must start
with us. It must start with understanding why 
water is so healing.

Finding balance

To understand why aquatics is so good for your 
health, you must first understand some basic 
physiology. Our bodies are constantly trying to 
seek a physiological balance point called 
homeostasis. This state preserves optimum 
function despite changes in position, activity, 
stress, aging or disease. The effort to find 
homeostasis is what propels most of the 
functional adaptations that occur during 
immersion in water, with some changes being 
immediate and others only after a period of time.
Like many adaptations, a cascade of other 
physiological changes occur, some sequentially 
and some concurrently.
Here’s how it works: Because water compresses
the body, it pushes blood into the deep vessels
during immersion. As the bather steps into 
deeper water, blood is pushed upward, first into
the large capacity vessels of the pelvis and 
abdomen. Then as depth increases yet further, 
blood is pushed above the diaphragm into the 
chest. With neck depth immersion, nearly three-
quarters of a quart (1 US quart=946.353 ml) of 
blood is displaced, with two-thirds of it going 
into large pulmonary vessels and one-third into 
the heart.
The heart responds to this extra volume of blood
by increasing the amount propelled with each 
beat, which is called stroke volume. At rest 
during neck-depth immersion, stroke volume 
normally increases approximately 30 percent. 
The total volume of blood propelled by the heart 
during a minute is called cardiac output, and this
also increases nearly 30 percent. That’s approxi-
mately the same increase that occurs during light
exercise, so even at rest during neck-depth
immersion, the heart is performing just as it 
would during exercise on land. At the same time
, the body senses that more blood is being
pushed into circulation,so to adjust, the arterial 
blood vessels relax without causing an increase 
in blood pressure. Thus, healthy individuals will
lower their blood pressure during immersion, 
and usually so will individuals with elevated
blood pressure (hypertension.) The magnitude
of this drop is related to the temperature of the
water.

Usually, there’s an initial brief increase in blood 
pressure upon entering cold water and also 
extremely warm water. Maybe that’s why in the 
past, it was often stated that individuals with 
hypertension should avoid hot tubs. Many 
physical therapy texts also say that patients with 
elevated blood pressure should not undergo 
aquatic therapy. In actual fact, immersion may 
benefit such patients.

Heart and health

Patients with congestive heart failure are another
clinical population that has been counseled to 
avoid aquatic exercise or even immersion. But 
several recent Japanese and Israeli studies have 
found that for people with mild to moderate 
heart failure, aquatics may be a very useful and 
therapeutic environment. That’s because 
immersion offers a unique combination of 
benefits: It decreases circulatory resistance and 
improves heart contraction efficiency. One of 
these studies compared the effects of aquatic 
exercise with rest in a group of patients with 
moderate congestive heart failure. It was found 
that the aquatic exercise group of patients 
significantly improved in muscle function, 
walking distance, aerobic fitness and exercise 
capacity.
They also experienced nearly 40 percent
improvement in their quality of life. One reason
may be that during immersion, the increased 
blood volume is pushed into deeper tissues. 
Muscle circulation then improves and there’s a 
consequent increase in oxygen delivery, which 
is useful for muscle healing or recovering from 
exercise. A study done on astronauts in training 
showed that the blood flow into their calves was
increased by nearly 250 percent at rest during
neck-depth immersion. At the same time, the 
kidneys see an increase in blood volume. 
Sensors within the heart and elsewhere interpret 
the increase in blood volume as a potential 
overload, so the body sends signals to the
endocrine system to reduce this blood volume. 
As a result, the kidneys begin their role in 
regulating blood volume through excreting 
sodium and potassium, and along with those 
ions, water. As all aquatics professionals have 
experienced firsthand, this process produces an
increase in urine volume and the kidneys also 
become slightly more efficient. In ancient Greek
and Roman times, when medications were very
limited, immersion was actually used as a way 
to treat individuals with kidney disease.
Stress is another ailment that immersion can 
help alleviate. Some of the same hormones that 
the body uses to regulate arterial function and 
tone are a component part of our body’s 
response to stress. These hormones are called 
catacholamines. During immersion, the body 
sends out a signal to alter the balance of these 
catacholamines in a manner that is similar to the 
balance found during relaxation or meditation.
Not all of the effects of this alteration are known
, but probably these changes are important in 
modifying the heart rhythm in a manner to 
mimic a relaxed state, and also in creating some 
of the feeling of relaxation that occurs following 
aquatic activity.

Exercise and endurance

The connection between exercise and stress 
reduction has been well-established, and the
work the body must do in water may be one 
reason. During immersion, compression of the 
chest wall combined with the increased blood 
volume makes it more work to breathe — 
approximately 60 percent more with water up 
to the neck. This, in turn, can lead not only to 
lower stress,but also better performance during 
land workouts.
In my experience working with Olympic level
athletes, a frequent comment was how much the 
aquatic workouts had added to their overall 
feeling of fitness. I believe what they were 
noticing is that strengthening the muscles of 
respiration had significantly improved their 
respiratory efficiency, so during a land based
workout they didn’t feel so “winded.”
If the workload increase is 60 percent during 
inactive immersion, there is almost certainly a 
much greater workload increase during 
immersed exercise. Blood and water are viscous
substances, and the force required to move 
against viscosity is related to velocity in a 
complex equation. Essentially, as the frequency 
of respiration increases, so does the work of 
displacing blood from the chest cavity to allow 
air in. The chest wall must then expand against
the compression of surrounding water. As a 
consequence, deep-water exercise potentially
could be a very useful method of strengthening 
the muscles of respiration,which could be 
helpful in athletes, as well as in the rehabilita-
tion of people with respiratory weakness or 
other lung diseases.

We decided to test that possibility in astudy 
completed last year at Washington State 
University. We worked with two groups of WSU
students, 50 in each group. One group did land-
based aerobics for a 50-minute period, three 
times per week for a semester.
The other group did aquatic aerobics 50 minutes
per session three times per week. We measured 
aerobic conditioning, percent age of body fat, 
and a number of measures of respiratory 
efficiency and strength. All of the students 
increased in their aerobic fitness, all decreased 
their body fat percentages, and all improved in 
some of the respiratory measures. But only the 
aquatic students showed improvement in their 
respiratory endurance measures. We plan to 
repeat this study with more focus on higher-fit 
student athletes to see if the same effect is noted.
There is a potentially major benefit of improving
respiratory endurance because as the muscles of 
respiration fatigue, the body begins to shunt 
blood from the lower extremities up to the chest 
muscles to support respiratory effort. Obviously, 
in an athlete who is reliant upon the legs, 
robbing these muscles of blood flow to supply 
the muscles of respiration causes a decrease in 
athletic performance. A basketball player who is
getting respiratory fatigue will “hang on his 
shorts,” which can be seen often at the end of a 
basketball game. This action aids the accessory 
muscles of respiration. But if at the same time, 
the leg muscles are being starved of blood, the 
player is going to feel like his or her legs are 
“dead.” Studies have shown that exercise 
activities to improve endurance of the muscles 
of respiration actually do improve athletic 
performance, but deep-water exercise would be 
an easier and potentially more efficient means of
producing such an effect, while allowing the 
athlete to decrease stress forces upon the spine 
and lower extremities simultaneously.

Rehab and weight loss 

This latter effect occurs because of the off-
loading effects of buoyancy. At waist-level 
immersion depth, the hips, knees, ankles and 
feet have a 50 percent reduction in loading due 
to buoyancy; at mid-chest depth, there’s a 75 
percent offloading. As a consequence, this effect 
may be used to excellent clinical benefit in 
facilitating recovery from training, or 
rehabilitating from a lower extremity or spine 
injury. The combination of joint offloading, with
the improvement in deep-tissue circulation 
makes the aquatic environment very useful in 
rehabilitation. In fact, even before these effects 
were known, deep-water exercise was used to 
improve racehorse performance without 
exposing the animals to the trauma of the 
racetrack. Owners found they could nearly triple
the expected race career of a horse if they used 
aquatic training for a significant part of the 
workout regimen. In working with Olympic 
distance runners through the Nike development 
program, we tried to have about one-third of the 
training done in water, which seemed to reduce 
injuries as well as improve performance. The 
value of aquatic exercise in patients with osteo-
porosis has been controversial. The aquatic 
environment would be ideal for this group 
because of the frequent coexistence of joint 
disease and the decreased risk of fractures from 
falling during land based exercise. Many such 
patients have a fear of falling that limits their
 tolerance of a land-based walking program, an 
activity that has been shown to build bone 
mineralization and reduce osteoporosis. Most 
studies of aquatic exercise have not shown a 
useful benefit upon bone mineralization, 
however. Studies comparing regular aquatic 
exercisers with regular land-based exercisers 
have shown better bone mineralization in the 
land-based groups at nearly all ages from 
adolescence through senior groups. This does 
not mean that aquatic exercise lacks a place in 
this group of individuals. In my practice, I will 
typically start such a patient in an aquatic
exercise regimen, which has been well shown to
boost lower extremity strength and endurance, 
as well as improve balance. The combination of 
increased strength and balance skills is usually 
sufficient to enable that individual to embark 
upon a walking program safely and begin the 
bone-building process. Another controversial 
point is how aquatic exercise works for obese 
individuals. Because of the offloading produced by buoyancy, the aquatic environment seems ideal, especially in persons with decreased lower extremity strength. It has been shown that aquatic exercise is less efficient in decreasing body fat percentages than land-based programs. Even at Olympic levels of training, these athletes have a higher percentage of body fat than their track athlete peers, as can be seen readily. The swimmers have sculpted 
beautiful bodies with higher percentages of body fat,
whereas the track athletes have greyhoundslim
bodies with very, very low percentages.
Despite this concern, the value of
exercise in obese individuals is absolutely
essential, and aquatics may be a tremendously
useful method of initiating a program
and losing weight over time. While
it may not be as efficient from an absolute
standpoint, it is still effective and likely to
be better sustained because of the lower
risk of joint injury in aquatics for this group.

STRESS RELIEF During immersion, the body sends out a signal to alter the balance of a certain
type of hormone, which creates a balance similar to relaxation or meditation. 

Many of these individuals can participate
successfully for years in a group format, and
I’ve seen people whose lives were totally
changed because of such a program.

On the whole, the response of the human
body to the aquatic environment is profound.
Perhaps it is because all of us spent the initial
formative months of our lives immersed
in a warm-water pool of amniotic fluid that
we can so readily sink into a pool with
relief. Such an environment would provide
protection and the optimum conditions for
growth during this critical period.

But the combined effects of all the properties
of water, from buoyancy through
hydrostatic pressure to its thermal conductive
properties make the aquatic environment
tremendously useful and effective for health
recovery and maintenance, and recreation.

At Washington State University, we are striving 
to create a body of clinically directed 
translational research so that such an
understanding might emerge within the
public, as well as the medical profession.
We’re also trying to create a broader 
understanding of the immense value of aquatics
for high-level athletic training because the
public seems to relate to the effectiveness of
this kind of effort as well.
It is my hope and belief that in the
future, we will see a wetter, happier and
healthier world. ■

WAYS TO BROADEN SUPPORT

FOR AQUATIC HEALTH
■ Broad public awareness campaigns
■ Education within the medical community
■ More active community involvement
■ Legislative advocacy
■ Promotion and dissemination of clinical
research in consumer and medical media.

This diagram shows what’s happening in the body before a person enters the water, and what happens afterward. The changes are significant, especially those involving blood flow and the heart. The deeper a person is immersed, the more the health benefits increase. At neck level, even the brain
is affected because more blood is forced upward from the lower extremities.

PHYSIOLOGY AND IMMERSION

Negative atrial pressure
Negative pleural pressure
Flattened diaphragm
Blood pooled in abdomen,pelvis,and lower
extremities

BEFORE IMMERSION DURING IMMERSION
More venous compression. Heart size
increases 30% and rate slows 20%.
Heart pumps more blood; chest wall is
compressed. Plural pressure increases.
Lungs contain more blood and body
works harder to move air. 
More blood is distributed to kidneys and brain.
The diaphragm is elevated higher during 
inspiration and expiration.
As the water level rises, the abdomen is 
compressed and more blood is forced
upward into the chest cavity.
Pelvis vessel compression occurs.
Venous and lymphatic compression begin
progressively pushing blood upward.

Neck Level

Diaphragm level

This diagram shows what’s happening in the body before a person enters the water, and what happens afterward. The changes are significant, especially those involving blood flow and the heart. The deeper a person is immersed, the more the health benefits increase. At neck level, even the brain is affected because more blood is forced upward from the lower extremities. PHYSIOLOGY AND IMMERSION Negative atrial pressure Negative pleural pressure Flattened diaphragm Blood pooled in abdomen, pelvis, and lower extremities BEFORE IMMERSION DURING IMMERSION More venous compression. Heart size increases 30% and rate slows 20%. Heart pumps more blood; chest wall is compressed. Plural pressure increases. Lungs contain more blood and body works harder to move air. More blood is distributed to kidneys and brain. The diaphragm is elevated higher during inspiration and expiration. As the water level rises, the abdomen is compressed and more blood is forced upward into the chest cavity. Pelvis vessel compression occurs. Venous and lymphatic compression begin progressively pushing blood upward. Neck Level Diaphragm level
(CLICK FOR DIAGRAM )