David Feinstein - meridians and emotions wolpe.pdf - Medytacje, Czakry, Aura [Meditations, chakras, the aura] - werka3005

THE MERIDIANS AND THE EMOTIONS:

WHY ENERGY PSYCHOLOGY CAN GO WHERE JOSEPH WOLPE NEVER DREAMED

(Draft of a paper being prepared for publication.)

David Feinstein, Ph.D. with Donna Eden, 2001

Available on the Energy Psychology Interactive CD ROM

Available at: www.innersource.net

Reprinted with permission.

When Joseph Wolpe (1958) developed systematic desensitization, he provided the next four

generations of clinicians their most potent single non-pharmacological tool for countering severe

anxiety conditions. In his words:

If a response inhibitory to anxiety can be made to occur in the presence of anxiety-evoking

stimuli so that it is accompanied by a complete or partial suppression of the anxiety

response, the bond between these stimuli and the anxiety response will be weakened (cited

in Gallo, 1999, p. 4).

The Ðresponse inhibitory to anxietyÑ that Wolpe cultivated is deep relaxation of the major muscle

groups. Based on the principle that anxiety and full physical relaxation cannot simultaneously co-

exist, the steps in systematic desensitization are to:

1. Teach the client how to relax each of the major muscle groups

2. Develop a hierarchy of anxiety-provoking situations, with the most severe at the top and

the least evocative at the bottom.

3. Relax the major muscle groups.

4. With the muscles relaxed, bring to mind thoughts or images from the bottom of the

hierarchy.

5. Shift the focus between holding the thought or image and relaxing the muscle groups until

the thought or image is progressively associated with a relaxed response.

6. Systematically move up the hierarchy, reconditioning the response to each thought or

image by replacing the anxious or fearful response with a relaxed response.

This article will demonstrate how the principles that underlie systematic desensitization are also

central to energy psychology, and it will explain how energy psychology (used interchangeably

here with Ðenergy-based psychotherapyÑ) extends itself beyond those principles to create a far more

comprehensive treatment modality

Energy Psychology

Energy psychology, as such, is a relatively new discipline. The first national professional meeting in

the United States was held in 1999. Although research is still relatively sparse, formal and informal

case studies describing the successful application of energy psychology with depression, anxiety,

phobias, PTSD, addictions, psychogenic illnesses, and other psychiatric disorders are being offered

by clinicians from a wide range of backgrounds. Hundreds of case studies, in fact, exist indicating

that both self-applied and therapist-assisted uses of energy psychology have led to rapid

improvement, often in situations where traditional psychotherapy has had little effect. Some of

these cases are on videotape and readily available.

Systematic research supporting the fieldÓs claims is only beginning to be conducted. [see website

reporting on the status of current research programs in energy psychology

www.energypsychresearch.org/]. In one pilot study, for instance, 35 subjects who met DSM-IV

criteria for specific phobia (in each case, it was small animals) were given 30-minute treatments

that utilized either deep diaphragmatic breathing (n=17) or an energy psychology protocol (n=18)

called EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques). Both treatments produced statistically significant

improvements in the phobic reactions, with the EFT group showing substantially greater

improvements. The EFT groupÓs improvement was at p=.001 on a behavioral avoidance test

(avoidance behavior is a key symptom in phobias); p=.001 on a fear questionnaire, p=.001 on

subjective distress when imagining the fear-producing object, p=.001 on subjective distress when

approaching the fear-producing object, and p=.01 on pulse rate. The diaphragmatic breathing group

showed less dramatic improvements on four of these measures, but no significant change in

subjective distress when imagining the fear-producing object. A summary of this study is available

at www.emofree.com/res-wellsphobias.htm.

The October 2001 issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychology, while taking a highly critical

editorial position, was devoted to investigations of Thought Field Therapy (one of the original

formulations of energy psychology). The full text of four articles from that issue as well as reports

of related studies can be found at www.tftrx.com/5ref.html. The status of current research programs

in energy psychology can be found at www.EnergyPsychResearch.org.

Energy psychology sits at the crossroad of psychotherapy and energy medicine. Energy medicine

draws upon ancient healing and spiritual practices (e.g., acupuncture, yoga, qi gong, and

shamanism), combines them with modern scientific procedures (e.g., empirical research methods,

biofeedback, EEGs, and MRIs), and adopts them into modern contexts. Energy psychology utilizes

these methods for making changes in psychological states, habits of thought, and patterns of

behavior.

The ÐenergiesÑ that both disciplines work with include the familiar electromagnetic spectrum as

well as more ÐsubtleÑ energies, such as the chi that is the focus of acupuncture and qi gong. The

term subtle energy has been used in the West to refer to energies that have no amplitude or

frequency but are known for their effects. Various ingenious methods have been created for

mechanically quantifying such effects. The School of Engineering at Princeton University, for

instance, has found that random events generators display different patterns when in the presence of

a group of people whose intention is focused than with a group whose attention is scattered (Radin,

1997). Prayer, which has been shown to influence healing on people from a distance, might also

involve such subtle energies. Subtle energies are, in fact, believed to travel throughout the body and

to prefigure neurological and other physiological changes. Energy healing works in tandem with

both electromagnetic and more subtle energies.

The notion that the physical body is paired with an Ðenergy fieldÑ or a Ðsubtle bodyÑ or an Ðenergy

bodyÑ is central in both energy medicine and energy psychology. The anatomy of this energy body

includes 1) centers where energies concentrate, 2) pathways along which energy travels, 3) energies

that surround and protect the body, 4) energies that connect and harmonize the various energies

systems, and 5) energies that control the cycles of life. Numerous cultures and healing systems

emphasize one or more of these energy systems. For instance, in yogic tradition the energy centers

are known as Ðchakras,Ñ acupuncturists speak of the ÐmeridiansÑ when describing the pathways

along which energy travels, and the energies surrounding the body have been called the halo or

The Meridians and the Emotions - 2

aura. In energy psychology, dysfunctional patterns of thought and behavior are understood as being

coded or carried in the energy field. They are treated by shifting the energies that are maintaining

them. As with Chinese medicine, to which some of its roots trace, the theoretical core of energy

psychology is simple: Whatever the presenting problem, it has a counterpart in the clientÓs energy

system and can be treated at that level.

Practitioners of energy psychology may concentrate on the meridians, the chakras, the aura, or

another aspect of the energy field. Because the meridians have been the most widely used energy

system, meridian-based psychotherapy is the focus of this paper.

Comparisons of Systematic Desensitization and Meridian-Based Treatments

The meridian-based psychotherapies depend upon a related principle. In both methods, an

involuntary, problematic response to a memory, thought, image, or recurring circumstance (an

internal or external stimulus) is associated with a new involuntary response that is not problematic.

In the meridian-based psychotherapies, however:

the problematic response may be any emotion that impairs thought or behavior, not just fear

or anxiety (the primary focus of systematic desensitization)

the stimulus is reconditioned to a new response in the meridian system (the body's 14 major

energy pathways) rather than to a new response in the muscular system.

The meridians form the energetic infrastructure of physiological events. The underlying premise is

that not only does energy flow according to the physical structures of the body; matter also follows

energy. The neurochemical processes that determine emotions, thought patterns, and habits of

behavior are, in this formulation, influenced by subtle energies. Psychological conditions co-exist in

the energy system and the neurochemistry. Interventions into the energy system impact the brainÓs

chemistry as surely as does medication, but they can be targeted with far greater precision and

safety than pharmacological interventions. By changing the energy patterns that underlie a

psychological problem, changes in the associated neurochemistry follow.

The procedures used within meridian-based approaches to energy psychology have been well-

mapped for both popular (e.g., Gallo and Vincenzi, 2000; Lambrou and Pratt, 2000) and

professional (e.g., Feinstein, 2002; Gallo, 2000) audiences and will not be detailed here. In brief,

they are based upon interventions that correct a disturbed energy response within a meridian. The

acupuncture points, identified by traditional Chinese medicine and verified now by a variety of

measures (Collinge, 1998; Gerber, 2001), may be stimulated through tapping, holding, or

massaging (as well as by more invasive procedures such as needles or electrical stimulation), to

affect the flow of energy in the meridians. More than 360 such points are situated on the meridian

pathways and are the key to altering the problematic psychological response to an internal or

external stimulus. The essence of this treatment is to:

1. Identify a thought, image, memory, or circumstance that triggers energy responses which

impair thought or behavior, and

2. Pair this stimulus with a new response in the energy system by activating appropriate

acupuncture points while the problematic situation is psychologically engaged.

The Meridians and the Emotions - 3

As with systematic desensitization, the problematic response is extinguished by bonding the

stimulus to a neutral or undisturbed physiological response. Another strength that both systematic

desensitization and meridian-based psychotherapies share is that both apparently impact not only

the frontal lobe, the domain of most traditional areas of psychotherapy, but also the limbic system.

Like eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) methods, they apparently affect the

data-processing functions within the limbic system that are disturbed by traumatization and other

forms of severe psychological stress but not easily accessed by Ðtalk therapyÑ (van der Kolk, 1994;

Weil, 2001).

The Meridians and the Emotions

Each meridian is associated with a characteristic set of emotional and behavioral themes. Where

systematic desensitization is most effective for treating anxiety and fear, the precision afforded by

being able to target the specific emotional response in any of the 14 meridians allows the techniques

of energy psychology to be applied to a range of psychological problems that Wolpe could not have

anticipated. While the specific meridian-emotion links vary somewhat from person to person, many

generalizations seem to hold. For instance:

The functions of the heart meridian tend to correspond with poetic associations to the heart:

loving feelings flourish when it is in a healthy balance; heartache and heartbreak correspond

with a disturbance in the energies of the heart meridian.

The governing meridian (which runs along the backbone) seems related to confidence

(Ðstanding tallÑ) when its energy flow is unimpeded and a lack of courage (Ðno backboneÑ)

when it is out of balance.

The stomach meridian, when in balance, supports a sense of basic trust; but when its flow is

impeded, the reactive emotion is obsessive worry. This is the energetic link to stomach

ulcers and some forms of indigestion.

In addition to stimulating specific acupuncture points, practitioners of energy psychology have

introduced a system of Ðverbal treatments,Ñ essentially affirmations that are formulated around the

emotional issues associated with the meridians involved in the psychological problem. These

affirmations are often stated while the meridian treatment points are being stimulated. In addition to

any subliminal, auto-suggestive, or reconditioning effects they induce, these verbal statements

provide a bridge between the energy treatment and the clientÓs conscious involvement with the

issue and its specific impact on the meridian energies. For some clients, the affirmations are the

most memorable part of the treatment.

Associations between each meridian and specific emotions date back some 5,000 years to Ð5-

element theoryÑ (summarized in Eden, 1999, Chapter 7) in Chinese medicine (still the most widely

practiced form of medicine in the world). Other formulations have also been introduced within

energy psychology (e.g., Diamond, 1997). Because emotions are multi-determined and each person

is psychologically and energetically unique, it is not surprising that there has been controversy

regarding which emotions and themes are associated with which meridians. Since assumptions

about the meridians and the emotions they govern are implicit within some of the treatment

The Meridians and the Emotions - 4

protocols used within the meridian-based psychotherapies, accurate generalizations could be of

enormous value, and it is an area that begs for research.

Meanwhile, a testable set of associations between the meridians and the emotions, based upon

Chinese 5-element theory, early formulations within energy psychology, and clairvoyant reports on

the emotional consequences of meridian imbalances have been proposed {see below "List of

Proposed Meridian Emotions and Affirmations" and Feinstein, 2002).

One clinical application of the presumed relationship between the meridians and specific emotions

is that pre-determined sequences for stimulating the acupuncture points on specific meridians are

used to treat specific emotions. One protocol is used for jealousy, another for grief. While such

simplistic formulas often require sophisticated adaptations to account for the many variables in any

given situation, clinical reports from over 30 practitioners interviewed by the authors suggest these

simple protocols are effective in a wider range of cases than any paradigm which does not account

for subtle energies would predict. Research into claims of rapid cures using simple protocols is only

beginning to be conducted.

In addition to stimulating specific acupuncture points, practitioners of energy psychology have

introduced a system of Ðverbal treatments,Ñ essentially affirmations that are formulated around the

emotional issues associated with the meridians involved in the psychological problem. These

affirmations are often stated while the meridian treatment points are being stimulated. For example:

If the heart meridian is involved in the problem, affirmations that may be used while

stimulating heart acupuncture points are ÐI breathe love into myself!Ñ (internal focus) or ÐI

can [do what is required] with love!Ñ (external focus).

For the governing meridian, an affirmation that augments courage might be ÐYes, I CAN

[overcome this problem]!ÑFor the stomach meridian, an affirmation that counters obsessive

worry might be ÐI trust the larger picture!Ñ

In addition to any subliminal, auto-suggestive, or reconditioning effects they induce, these verbal

statements provide a bridge between the energy treatment and the clientÓs conscious involvement

with the issue and its specific impact on the meridian energies. For that reason, some clients find the

affirmations to be the most memorable part of the treatment.

The remainder of this paper offers a set of meridian-emotion relationships that are proposed as

generally reliable within the practice of energy psychology. They are based upon Chinese 5-element

theory (see Eden, 1999, Chapter 7), earlier formulations that have been used within energy

psychology, and the first authorÓs ability to clairvoyantly ÐseeÑ meridian imbalances and the

resulting emotional consequences. For each meridian, the list presents:

The meridianÓs ÐreactiveÑ emotions (the disturbed response) [see note 1]

The meridianÓs ÐbalancingÑ emotions (the emotions characterized by that meridian being in

balance). This is also the emotion that, when evoked (by an affirmation, for instance), helps

bring the associated meridian into balance.

The Meridians and the Emotions - 5

David Feinstein - meridians and emotions wolpe.pdf

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