Left to right: Prosper ISHIMWE, Celestin MITABU, Roger Callahan, Deacon Augustin NZABONIMANA, Fr. Jean Marie VIANEY

by Joanne Callahan, MBA, President, ATFT Foundation

During the month of September 2011, four of our top Rwandan practitioners, and leaders of our ATFT Foundation’s sister charitable organization, IZERE Center, and director of the Rwandan Orphans Project, attended training to become trainers and further spread TFT in Africa. This ATFT Foundation project took place with the help of the St. Stephens Catholic Diocese, five Hawaiian agencies, and the hard work and dedication of many Hawaiians.

ATFT Foundation’s on-going Rwandan team, Suzanne Connolly, Caroline Sakai, and Gary Quinn supported their training and needs while in Hawaii. Suzanne was team leader on the deployments to Rwanda and support for the planning and facilitation of this year’s project. Caroline was team leader for this project in Hawaii. Her organization of everything was masterful. Gary provided much love, care, transportation and fun for our guests.

Roger and I had the wonderful opportunity to observe the Rwandans at work with the TFT trained staff of the Hale Na’au Pono, Waianae Coast Mental Health Services. We were impressed with their skill and level of supervision as well as the skill, professionalism and care of the staff at Hale Na’au Pono.

Roger at Hale Na’au Pono. Left to Right: Carole, Ho’oipo DeCambra, Roger Callahan, Jacquirie, Po’ka, with a beautiful quilt made by the Rwandan Orphans as a back drop.

During our time in Hawaii, we were deeply touched by the stories shared with us from the Hawaiian volunteers and the discussions with the four Rwandans. Fr. Jean Marie VIANEY, Deacon Augustin NZABONIMANA, and Prosper ISHIMWE were originally trained at the IZERE Center in 2009/2010. Fr. JMV and Deacon Augustin are directors of the center and have helped over 3000 people since learning TFT.

Celestin MITABU is the Director of the Rwandan Orphan Project, which was our first mission to Rwanda, with Paul Oas to help the Kigali street children. It was here that Suzanne Connolly and Dottie Webster started the Rwandan Quilting Project as a means of income for the orphans. The study, done in 2006-2007 was published last year.

It is so rewarding to see how these hard working and dedicated young men have shared TFT with thousands of traumatized people in both Kigali and Byumba. We are so inspired to hear their hopes and dreams of healing their country and people. The ATFT Foundation is dedicated to a long collaboration with them, helping many.

We thank all the people who have donated funds, time and services to allow the training of our Rwandan TFT practitioners. They have become highly skilled trainers, sharing the healing power of TFT with those in need in Hawaii, and those traumatized in their own county and neighboring African nations.

It was truly an honor to be recognized by colleagues from around the world, for my thirty years of building Thought Field Therapy (TFT).   There was so much excitement and warmth from so many of the over 500 people attending the annual ACEP conference.

People came up to me throughout the four days telling me how pleased they were to carry on my work into the world.  Others said, “you saved my life three years ago”.   Some I have met previously but had not seen for years, others I did not know but all showed the same warmth and appreciation with a passion for helping others.   It was inspiring to see all the various forms of Tapping, the research being done and the humanitarian relief work that is helping so many people throughout the world.

Joanne and I received a standing ovation from our workshop “Thirty Years of Healing With Thought Field Therapy” as we demonstrated the power tools of TFT and showed the many changes and improvements that have taken place in TFT over the last three decades.  They were so grateful and some even expressed surprise at how much TFT has evolved from it’s early days as the Callahan Techniques.

I was so proud when our ATFT Foundation team, Suzanne Connolly and Caroline Sakai, presented their humanitarian relief work and PTSD studies and announced the acceptance for publication of the first study.  They too received a standing ovation and a very strong endorsement from one of ACEP’s lead researchers, David Feinstein.

The entire conference was exciting with a wonderful positive community spirit. I am pleased to see that our practitioner base is growing and we welcome all who are working with tapping, at the algorithm level, to continue on with their skills and grow with our new training programs in TFT.

A special thanks to all of our clients, practitioners and "tappers"... you've helped to make TFT the success it is today,

Roger Callahan.

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ACEP has been working hard, over the last 12 years, to get “energy psychology” and tapping therapies accepted by APA. After having been rejected several times, they now feel they will need to “raise the funds necessary to conduct the state-of-the-art research that cannot be ignored.”

ATFT Foundation has been funding humanitarian and research projects for over 6 years and has recently completed two of these “state-of-the-art research that cannot be ignored”, studies on PTSD. Together, Dr. Callahan, Callahan Techniques, Ltd., ATFT and ACEP can be a much stronger force in bringing recognition to our work and facilitating help for so many suffering from trauma throughout the world

As we all recognize, TFT is about healing and helping people, and not about competition, working with ACEP, participating in joint research and presenting at the upcoming ACEP conference will help provide a united front for a greater awareness of TFT and all of the meridian tapping therapies

I would like to share the announcement for the next annual ACEP Conference, and, that Dr. Callahan and I will be presenting Thirty Years of Healing With TFT.

Dr. Caroline Sakai and Suzanne Connolly, LCSW, will be presenting the ATFT Foundation’s PTSD studies, that state-of-the art research mentioned above. We are all very excited because this is the first time in many years where we will be working together with ACEP and the various energy Psychology therapies to expand awareness, increase research and create a stronger force to reckon with mainstream regulatory bodies.

If you are interested in attending this event, you can save by registering now. We expect this event to be sold out. I hope to see you there.

Joanne Callahan

June 3-6, 2010
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We have a preliminary report of the progress being made following our ATFT Trauma Relief interventions this August in Byumba, Rwanda. We are attaching the draft that we received from Brother Augustine. The report sent by Brother Augustine, summarizes the reports sent in by each of the thirty-six therapists we trained this August. The therapist’s reports had to be translated from Kinyarwanda to English by Brother Augustine, and this report, attached, contains the responses thus far translated. It is a busy season now in Rwanda and we may get a more complete summary sometime early next year.

It is good to know that the thirty- six therapist the ATFT Team trained have treated 622 people since our departure at the end of August. That is in addition to the 200 plus persons treated by the Rwandan therapists while we were there. It seems that TFT is making a big difference in the lives of the therapist’s, in the lives of those whose lives the therapists touch, and in the larger communities in which they live.

Good work ATFT members! All of you have helped in some really significant way. Thanks especially to team members, Caroline Sakai, Gordon Barrett, Carmen Carrasco, Gary and Cyndie Quinn.

Happy Holidays!

Suzanne M Connolly, LCSW
ATFT Foundation Trauma Relief Committee Chairperson.

_________________________________________

Association for Thought Field Therapy IZERE/RWANDA
(ATFT IZERE/RWANDA)

THE SYNTHESIS OF THE “THREE MONTHS FOLLOW-UP THERAPIST’S SELF-REPORTS”

1. HOW MANY COMMUNITY MEMBERS HAVE YOU TREATED WITH TFT THESE THREE MONTHS?

During the three months, the 36 Rwandan therapists had treated 622 persons suffering from trauma and others psychological problems.
The average time for each client it was 25 minutes.
• I treated 40 students
• In these 3 months, I treated 45 people using TFT
• I treated 13 people
• Using TFT, I treated 18 people
• In these 3 months, I treated 42 people using TFT
• I treated 38 people
• As a policeman, I treated 27 people
• I treated 17 people
• In these 3 months, I treated 11 people using TFT
• I treated 15 people
• Using TFT, I treated 41 people
• I treated 13 people
• In these 3 months, I treated 49 people using TFT
• I treated 15 people
• In these 3 months, I treated 35 people using TFT
• I treated 10 people
• Using TFT, I treated 35 people
• In these 3 months, I treated 15 people using TFT
• I treated 38 people
• Using TFT, I treated 18 people
• In these 3 months, I treated 42 people using TFT
• I treated 38 people
• As a policeman, I treated 27 people

2. WHAT WAS THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF TIMES YOU SAW EACH PERSON FOR HIS OR HER PROBLEMS?

• It took me long time for 22 students. I used to meet each of them twice a day. After, I taught them to treat themselves using TFT.
• The average time per person was 60 minutes
• The average time per person was 15 minutes
• The average time per person was 45 minutes
• The average per person was 20 minutes
• The average per person was 35-50 minutes
• The average is 20 minutes
• The average time per person was 50 minutes
• The average time per person was 20-40 minutes
• The average per person was 20 minutes
• The average per person was 25 minutes
• The average time per person was 15 minutes
• The average time per person was 105 minutes
• The average time per person was 40 minutes
• The average time per person was 45 minutes
• The average per person was 20 minutes
• The average per person was 35-50 minutes
• The average is 20 minutes
• The average time per person was 50 minutes
• The average time per person was 15 minutes
• The average time per person was 45 minutes
• The average per person was 20 minutes
• The average time per person was 30 minutes

3. DID YOU FEEL THAT THOUGHT FIELD THERAPY MADE A DIFFERENCE IN THE PEOPLE’S LIVES THAT YOU WORKED WITH? PLEASE TELL US ABOUT THIS. WHY OR WHY NOT? WHEN DID IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE AND WHEN DID IT NOT?

• There is a big difference after treatment using TFT. There is much improvement after treatment. Students thought it was a joke, but as time went on they found I was not joking and they started using it seriously.

• The difference is vivid. I keep on watching on my clients after treating them and I observed big positive change in their lives.

• The difference is clear. For example, there is a client who used not to talk and now that client can talk after the TFT treatment.

• TFT made really a difference in the people’s lives. You treat a person and after you teach him/her how s/he can treat him/herself.

• People are happy. For instance, there is a client who told me that the nightmares and other strange images disappeared after treatment.

• My clients tell me that there is much positive change. The majority got cured and those who were not completely healed still use the algorithms I taught them according to their trauma.

• TFT brought big difference in my clients’ lives. For instance, one client told me that depression was very deep to the point of wanting to commit suicide, but after being treated with TFT the depression disappeared for good.

• TFT made a difference in the people’s lives I worked with. Many times my clients were depressed, and their anger could be seen on their faces, without happiness, even some of them were screaming before I started treating them. After treating them I was surprised to see their faces changing, they started rejoicing and laughing.

• The people I worked with gave testimonies of the wonders brought into their lives by TFT treatment. They are now doing their developmental works with confidence of a prosperous future. They used to fear interacting with other people but now they mix freely and socialize with others.

4. WERE THE PEOPLE YOU TREATED PLEASED WITH THE RESULTS THEY ACHIEVED BY USING TFT? PLEASE TELL US ABOUT THIS.

• Yes, they were all pleased with the results they achieved by using TFT. But, as I dealt with students, some of them were laughing at me in the beginning until they realized that TFT is helping them in their trauma problems.

• Yes, the people I treated were happy after treatment. When their trauma comes again the clients come back to me with much confidence to be treated, others come to ask me the appropriate algorithms to use in order to treat themselves.
• The clients I treated were pleased with what I did for them using TFT. Some of the people I treated told me they will help their neighbors who also have trauma.

• People have found the treatment of their trauma problems in their homes, and this treatment is effective in a very short time.
• I treat people and they go back spreading the good news brought to them by TFT.

• I treated my clients and taught them to treat themselves, and now I am happy with them. They tell me that they are also treating their family members using TFT
• Yes. The people I treated were and are still pleased with TFT results. Imagine to see a person who had lost his/her laughter laughing again, a person who was living in loneliness recovering from that loneliness, a person who had lost his sleep sleeping again, a person with nightmares getting again hi/her normal sleep, etc.!

• About my using of TFT, it is clear that treating my clients using TFT yielded and is still yielding much fruits and people are pleased with this.

5. DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOUR USING THOUGHT FIELD THERAPY TO HELP INDIVIDUALS IN YOUR COMMUNITY MADE A DIFFERENCE IN YOUR COMMUNITY? PLEASE DESCRIBE WHY OR WHY NOT.

• So far I am working in a boarding school and I have not yet gone outside the school to treat the people who are not students.

• Yes, my community is happy of TFT. For instance, there is a wife who used to quarrel with her husband, but after treating them using TFT there is peace in their family.

• The community is happy with TFT. For example, there are some people who lived desperately but now are no longer living in loneliness.

• Yes, there is happiness in the community in which I work because they know I live with them and I am there for them.

• Stating myself as a vivid example, I was one of the people suffering from trauma. I treated myself and I pushed ahead to treat other people. We are all better.

• TFT solved the disputes in the families.

• Using TFT brought a positive change, especially at my working place.

• Yes, my using TFT to help individuals in my community made a difference in my community. This is because the problems of one person in the community affect in a way or in another the whole community. For instance, when a person is traumatized, lonely, depressed, selfish and guilty, that person cannot develop his/her community as long as s/he is not yet freed from those problems.

• TFT helped individuals in my community finding solutions to different trauma based problems and this made and is still making positive impact in my community.

6. IS THERE ANYTHING MORE YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE THESE THREE MONTHS USING THOUGHT FIELD THERAPY TO HELP OTHERS?

• In truth, my experience is not yet very high. As I am working with students, time came for them to start long holidays and this made me not continue practicing TFT in order to up bring my practical skills.

• TFT is a lasting solution to the problems caused by trauma, but the people I treat are scattered in the hills. If I could find means to transport, I am sure my service can yield more fruits that those I have so far yielded.

• TFT is helping our people. People’s trauma is decreasing and there is much improvement in people’s lives.

• It would be very beneficial for both therapists and clients if trained Rwandan therapists could also be trained in counseling in order to integrate it with TFT in treating trauma.

• Today in my community it is not a surprise to see people being freed from their trauma using TFT.

• I am now able to treat many people in a very short time with much confidence.

• What I can say in addition to what I have said so far is that I am living myself in a continual surprise of the effects of TFT to my clients.

• I am neither a medical doctor nor a psychologist by profession, but I see with my proper eyes people getting healed from their trauma and some other psychological problems.

• The clients give testimonies of their relief and this makes people like TFT.

• Thanks be to God that ATFT is a nonprofit association. If it were not, I would call it an up-to-date self funding organization. It brings satisfaction to us to see many people revering us simply because we are bringing positive change into peoples’ lives.

• Trained Rwandan therapists deserve advanced training both in TFT and in Guidance and Counseling to keep high their performance.
Thanks

photo credit: Rachel Strohm

Caroline Sakai, PhD., a psychologist and TFT practitioner, based in Hawaii, headed a team of therapists who worked with children in an orphanage in Kigali, Rwanda. The children survived the Rwandan genocide in 1994, in which 800,000 to 1 million people were slaughtered during the course of 100 days. Dr Sakai was interviewed by Michiko Ishikawa for Share International.

Share International: How did you come to work with the genocide survivors in Rwanda?

Caroline Sakai: The idea came up when I was in New Orleans as part of an ATFT Foundation Trauma Relief Team working with Hurricane Katrina survivors and first responders – doctors, nurses and security people who were working with the survivors. One of the team members, Paul Oas, a psychotherapist and minister, asked me if I could work with the genocide survivors of Rwanda. His church has been helping to support the El Shaddai orphanage in Kigali, Rwanda, by providing necessities like food and shelter. He was seeing the effects of the genocide trauma among the children in terms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) – nightmares, flashbacks, insomnia, bedwetting, depression, withdrawal and rage. Reverend Oas wanted to take a TFT team there and work with the genocide survivors. Since I had headed the clinical team in New Orleans, he asked if I could do that in Rwanda.

The complete TFT treatment for trauma would be essentially following up with what else comes up for the client after successfully processing through the targeted trauma.

Targeting any residual body sensations often brings up further information to process through, more perturbations. This would be continued until no more perturbations can be found, and client now thinks about the trauma or phobia with clearly changed perspectives, affect, thoughts, intensity, vividness, body sensations, perceptions in all sensory modalities, etc.

Using the Peak Performance protocol to enhance and improve confidence in coping effectively in dealing with the problem is an important component that parallels the future template. The usual instructions for the client to call if there are any recurrence of symptoms would also be in effect, as well as follow-up session(s) to work on residuals or other material that emerges subsequently in awake or dream states.

SI: What is unique about your method of working with trauma?

CS: Thought Field Therapy is the most rapidly effective, and most gentle, treatment of trauma I have come across.

I have worked as a clinical psychologist at Kaiser Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii, for 31 years, and have used many other, more traditional treatments for PTSD. They usually involve some amount of abreaction (a re-living of the experience) as people work through the trauma, a lot of intensification of the feelings. That may be frightening for some people, who decide they don't want to continue with the treatment.

TFT does not create a lot of abreaction and distress. It is also empowering because it is actually a treatment that people use on themselves. From a feeling of being victimized, they are able to heal and help themselves. When results happen, when there is a lowered automatic emotional reaction, when the flashbacks and nightmares stop, when all the symptoms of PTSD remit, they realize the power that they've had to heal themselves.

SI: Does Thought Field Therapy work quickly?

CS: Yes. In fact we were amazed with the rapidity of treatment in Rwanda. We had only four therapists, and were faced with 400 orphans at El Shaddai orphanage. We found that 174 of them were genocide survivors. With the kind of atrocities they had experienced, we anticipated that it would take at least an hour per child, working individually. We thought we would need three consecutive days, working intensively. It actually turned out that most of them were treated in 15 to 20 minutes.

We followed up in the next two days, checking to see if there were any more nightmares, returning flashbacks or other traumas because many of them had experienced multiple traumas during the genocide.

SI: What were some of the traumas they experienced?

CS: They may have witnessed the murder of their family, and subsequently saw or heard of other murders. Having had firsthand experiences, they re-experienced their own trauma vividly as they heard reports of others. Some of them are among only a few survivors of an entire village. They experienced the loss of many members of their community.

The severity of the Rwandan genocide in terms of traumatic impact was so intense because they were not distant killings with rifles or gunshots. The killings were done in close proximity, mainly with machetes. Many victims were neighbors, friends and relatives of those who were the perpetrators.

SI: What were the ages of the children at the orphanage?

CS: The children ranged in age from 13 to 18, with most of them in their mid-teens. We also treated some adults from the village, whose ages varied.

SI: Who runs the orphanage?

CS: El Shaddai was created by Sylvestre Nzitukuze, a young teacher and coach. He started bringing homeless street children into his home. They were orphans surviving by doing drugs and prostitution, really victims of genocide, AIDS and poverty. When there were too many children for Sylvestre's home, he started El Shaddai in an old abandoned warehouse and had the children congregate there.

Sylvestre got a church congregation in Rwanda involved and then Reverend Oas'church in southern California. They work together to help the orphanage with necessary expenses for food and water, salary for the teachers, maintenance of the facility, and so on.

SI: What is Thought Field Therapy, the treatment that you used with the children?

CS: Thought Field Therapy is a self-treatment that involves the meridians used in acupuncture and acupressure. The treatment includes tapping on the meridian points, eye movement and other activities that activate different parts of the brain.

The technique was developed by Dr Roger Callahan, a clinical psychologist in California. He made the discovery in the 1980s and has continued to develop and improve it.

SI: How did you begin working with the children at the orphanage?

CS: First we did some PTSD assessments. We had the assessment forms translated into Kinyarwanda, which is their language. The teachers, as guardians for the children, did the assessments. The students themselves also did their own subjective assessments. We compared, ranked and ordered them according to their assessments.

The most severely traumatized children were seen individually and intensively. Because we were only there for three weeks and had only four therapists, we saw most of the children in small groups and then in larger groups, and saw the rest in class. We went through the treatment protocols with them. There are different treatments for different problems. If they are dealing with PTSD, there is a trauma treatment involving tapping several meridian points. There were also a lot of people dealing with anger or guilt, so we would do those particular protocols which involve different meridian points. The tapping is done firmly but gently, about 5 to 10 taps, depending on the protocol.

SI: Did the children do the tapping themselves?

CS: We showed them the taps, and our interpreters would show how and where to tap. The children were very quick learners.

Let me give you an example:

There was a 15-year-old girl who was three years old at the time of the genocide. Her family had taken refuge inside a church when the perpetrators started coming in and killing people. The girl related how her father had told her to run and not look back no matter what happened. She started to run as fast as she could and then heard her father yelling and screaming. He sounded like a crazy man, which was uncharacteristic of him. Even though she remembered that he had said not to look back, because she kept hearing him scream she turned to see why. A group of people with machetes were attacking her father.

Every day following the attack 12 years before, the girl had flashbacks of that scene; she called it a day-mare. She would have this day-mare of seeing her father being killed, and would have nightmares about it every night. As we were working it through and she was tapping the different meridians, she suddenly stopped and started to smile. She said she could remember her father playing with her, and that she had had no childhood memories before. The genocide was so much in the forefront of her memory that it blocked out everything else.

Then I asked her what she was feeling when she thought again about what had happened in the church. The interpreter, who was a pastor, looked at me hesitantly, as if to ask: "Why are you are bringing it back up again when she was doing fine?" But we need a complete treatment. The girl started crying and remembered seeing other people being killed. She recalled how she and another child who survived had escaped, and realized that her father had saved their lives by what he had done to distract the perpetrators' attention. She was crying as she remembered different scenes.

We continued to work through each of the traumatic events, and after about 15 or 20 minutes, she started laughing. We asked her what was coming up for her now, and she talked about her father. Her mother didn't want them eating very sweet fruits because they were not good for the children's teeth. But her father would sneak them home in his pockets and when her mother wasn't looking he would give them to the children. She was laughing wholeheartedly, and we laughed with her. Then I asked, now when you think about what happened in the church, what comes up? She paused and said without tears: "I can still remember it, but now it seems like a distant memory, like 12 years ago." She started to talk about other fond memories. Shortly thereafter, we ended her session for that day and made arrangements to see her the next day. She came in the next day looking much more cheerful. She told us that for the first time she had no nightmares and was able to sleep well. She started recounting many more happy memories.

SI: That story still moves you when you talk about it.

CS: Yes, it was very moving. We were very moved by the people in Rwanda and their wanting to be able to give back and show appreciation. They had a tremendous resilience, a tremendous capacity for forgiveness, an ability to experience and express their joy and appreciation of life.

One example was an elderly gentleman from the village. He was watching us work and asked if we could also work on him. He had been made to watch the slaughter of his wife and children and other villagers. Then the perpetrators started hitting him with machetes. Twelve years later we could still see the huge wounds on his neck and head. It was a miracle that he managed to survive. The wounds were healed but there were huge scars. He said he had constant flashbacks and nightmares.

We worked with him using TFT. The next day he came back and said he slept well for the first time in 12 years with no nightmares. He asked if we could help him with his dizziness, which caused him to fall frequently. We thought that he might need some medical or neurological help, but obviously the villagers don't have much access to, nor the money to pay for, medical services. So we thought we would try the diagnostic level of TFT, which provides an individualized treatment. Most of the treatments we provided in Rwanda were the standard practices found in Roger Callahan's book, Tapping the Healer Within.

SI: Those standard treatments worked with most of the people?

CS: Yes, for the traumas. There were only a few with unusual symptoms, where we had to use the diagnostic treatment. After we did the diagnostic treatment with this gentleman to help with his dizziness, he walked around and said: "I am not dizzy any more." We were a little puzzledbut thought perhaps the dizziness was related to the trauma. We've seen a lot of symptoms that are actually secondary to the trauma. Even after physical injuries are healed, there may be residual symptoms that are trauma-related, like depression and chronic pain. The next day the gentleman came back and reported that he had no dizziness, no flashbacks and no nightmares. He told everyone in the village about it, and about 30 villagers followed him to El Shaddai asking for this Thought Field Therapy that had helped him. Later in the week, he came to the Easter Sunday service at El Shaddai. During a sharing session at the end, he stood up and said he was now well for the first time in 12 years. He said he wanted to give back by taking in three or four orphans into his humble home. It was very touching.

SI: It's hard to believe that such deep traumas could be erased in such a short time by such a simple method. Do the traumas return?

CS: Most traumas and phobias don't come back. There may be some exceptions if it is not a complete treatment. There are some other conditions that may have recurrences, like panic, obsessive/compulsive behavior and chronic pain. There may be the effects of other things such as toxins that can retrigger the symptoms. There are ways to figure out what those are and to treat them as well.

SI: You treated all 400 children and other local people in Kigali, Rwanda?

CS: Yes, we spent two weeks at El Shaddai. Then we spent a week giving training sessions on TFT to nurses, teachers, pastors and church members elsewhere before we left.

SI: I understand that you went back a year later.

CS: We went the next year on the anniversary of the genocide. We went deliberately at the worst possible time for their symptoms because we wanted to address any recurring or residual symptoms. The nation was in mourning. They were remembering the genocide with the hope and purpose of this never happening again. They were all focused on that and didn't have distractions like singing and dancing during that period.

When we did the assessments with the children, we were a little surprised to see that they were not showing signs of PTSD. As we interviewed the children and teachers, we discovered why. They had been treating themselves because they knew the self-treatment.

The teachers had been able to treat the children and remind them of the treatment. Some children said that when the anniversary of the genocide began and they started thinking about it, they started having bad dreams. But they would just get up and start tapping on the meridian points. One child would start tapping and soon there were seven or eight kids tapping together. They said that's why they didn't have the problems when we saw them.

SI: Is it important to remember the trauma to do this therapy?

CS: Yes it is. That is the thought field, the focus of the thoughts on the trauma. That is why we had the students concentrate on the traumatic scene and have them think about it while they are tapping to work it through.

SI: They focus on the trauma just for the few minutes that you are using the therapy?

CS: Yes. As they focus on the traumatic event during the therapy, the impact of the trauma seems to fade. It is common to have people say: "I can still remember it, but it is not vivid. It seems like a faded, distant memory now." Also, working on the meridians seems to reduce the physiological symptoms of the emotional reaction. That makes it a lot easier for people to think clearly and process things differently because our perspective is different when we are flooded with emotion.

SI: When you returned a year later, how had the children changed?

CS: It was amazing. They were really transformed. The teachers reported that the children had increased self-esteem and feelings of self-worth. Many who had felt victimized and had a sense of hopelessness, now had hope and more pride in their surroundings. They cleaned up around the orphanage, including the dirt on the floor, and asked to plant trees, flowers and vegetables. They also had large areas of land at the back of the orphanage where they were growing vegetables, which were starting to produce. So in addition to their usual diet of beans, rice and water, they had vegetables. In fact, they had so many vegetables that they were able to sell some for money to feed all the orphans.

SI: Did the children voluntarily do the work?

CS: According to the teachers, the children did the work very willingly. In fact, they initiated some of the projects. Also, some of the kids who had been depressed and withdrawn became more interactive. The ones who would never initiate any ideas would come up with ideas and share them without the impact of the traumatic flashbacks andnightmares that were depressing and lowering their functioning level. They were more enthusiastic, more creative and more assertive. They were able to concentrate better and many passed their competitive exams to go on to regular secondary schools.

The teachers also reported that there was a marked decrease in fighting behaviors and bedwetting. Many children who had been withdrawn and who avoided other kids because of their hurt and anger, reported getting along and playing with other kids and not having anger.

SI: Do you have any other thoughts you'd like to express about your experience in Rwanda?

CS: We would like to see more people able to benefit from this self-treatment. It was put very well by a number of teachers and students. They said that TFT needs to be made available to all sufferers of genocide, all sufferers of severe trauma, so they can experience relief from the traumatic symptoms and experience the joy of living again. The people of Rwanda expressed that very clearly. The treatment doesn't cost anything. As a number of people in Rwanda said. "It's free. You can do it on yourself."

Sylvestre Nzitukuze, a teacher and coach, of El Shaddai, said very eloquently: "It is like an answered prayer. These techniques have helped the children's lives. Their traumas have been set free so their eyes are set on the future".

The Association for Thought Field Therapy Foundation is a non-profit membership organization whose volunteers provide psychological help to people traumatized by wars, natural disasters, genocide and poverty. The group's Trauma Relief Teams, including psychologists, counsellors, doctors,and social workers, are trained in the Callahan Technique of Thought Field Therapy (TFT). They have assisted trauma victims in many parts of the world, including New Orleans and Mississippi in the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina disaster; Tabasco and Chiapas, Mexico, after major flooding there; and in Kosovo, the Congo, and Rwanda to treat genocide survivors.

photo credit: mrflip

He requested 500 wallet sized trauma relief cards and other easily transported support materials.  Dr. Roger and Joanne Callahan sent them out immediately, so pleased to be able to support our troops with these simple self-help procedures.  He requested materials that he could use for rapid treatments and self help tools for our troops serving in harms way. Will keep everyone updated.... Caroline Sakai, PhD, TFTdx, VT

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