EFT for Fibromyalgia, page 8
Even though it is not yet scientifically possible to prove this, there is ample clinical evidence that the symptoms of any disease in the body can be framed as a response to some form of inner mental, emotional, and spiritual constriction. Fibromyalgia is a perfect example of a “spiritual dis-ease” in the body-mind-spirit system. The symptoms of fibromyalgia are fatigue, sleep disruption, pain, and depression. As Gary Craig said to me once, “Fibromyalgia is to the body like low self-esteem is to the personality.”
Much of our religious heritage implies that the soul is “somewhere else,” resident in a different realm from the body. I believe that the body is an aspect of the soul, that the body is “distilled soul,” as it were. Wouldn’t it make sense that the fatigue, pain, and sadness of fibromyalgia are physical and emotional responses to, or maybe a mirror of, our blocked joy, love, and creative spiritual expression?
An original meaning of the word “breath,” in ancient languages such as Aramaic and Hebrew, is “spirit.” You could say that the movement of spirit and life throughout the cosmos is the “breath of God,” the respiration of cocreation. Ideally, this breath should move in us and through us freely. We are each a “lung of the sacred,” and we expand and contract so that spirit moves freely and empoweringly through us to all the world.
We can learn to reimagine ourselves, see ourselves as sacred, spiritual beings, not in spite of but because of being here. To incarnate is a divine activity. After all, the cosmos is an incarnation, the original one, and all other incarnations, manifestations, and expressions of life replicate it.
We can learn to experience ourselves in a way that expands us, and restores us to a feeling of openness and flow. It doesn’t mean we become completely free of wounds, challenges, problems, pains, doubts, and all the rest of those feelings and experiences that constrict us. It does mean that these constrictions take place within a larger context of flow. They are capable of being healed, transformed, and restored to openness and flow themselves.
Then we can engage and cocreate with others in ways that feel right to us. Then our actions and choices can carry and assist the power of the flowing energy of the universe itself. This is true healing.
I believe that fibromyalgia is a message to our humanity—indeed, a cry to the best in us, to say that we are selling ourselves short. People with fibromyalgia are like the canary in the coal mine. Remember how the old-time miners used to send a canary in a cage down into the mine to see if there was enough oxygen down there to support life? If the canary lived, the miners would be sent down to work. If the canary died, well, I guess it was too bad for the canary…
Perhaps, like all illness, fibromyalgia in our times is a message that our bodies are sending to our conscious awareness: “We are not getting enough spirit in here! Open up! Relax and enjoy yourself! Live your purpose.”
How to Tap for a Disharmony of Spirit
As tappers, our underlying premise is that the flow and balance of the body’s electromagnetic, subtle energies are important for physical, spiritual, and emotional health, and for fostering well-being. EFT works within the ancient Chinese meridian system to balance the whole energy system.
If we start tapping for fibromyalgia by saying the Setup Phrase, “Even though I have fibromyalgia, I deeply and completely accept myself,” all kinds of inner objections may instantly pop into our minds. We may find ourselves thinking, “How can I accept myself? I have so many flaws. I am just not good enough. I hate this pain. I am so angry with my body for doing this to me! Why can’t I just get rid of this? What is wrong with me? This illness must be a punishment.”
The Setup Phrase might be a starting point, but it is really only useful at the beginning to uncover all the beliefs and feelings that lie under it. How we feel about having fibromyalgia is a big clue to how we feel about ourselves. Harboring those feelings may be contributing to the syndrome of fibromyalgia.
Tapping for fibromyalgia means reaching to the deepest levels of how we think about ourselves and what is possible for us in the world. When we tap, we are not “treating” fibromyalgia in the Western medical sense or as a TCM doctor would. We are tapping for the specific pattern of energetic constriction in our bioelectric field that is showing up as our physical discomfort, our feelings, our beliefs, and our self-talk. Each person with fibromyalgia is unique.
A good place to start is to tap for the pain.
After you tap for the pain itself, try asking yourself: “If this pain, or discomfort, or these tears had a voice, what would this voice be saying?” This question will bring up many feelings, thoughts, images, and beliefs that you can incorporate into your tapping.
When we really listen to what our symptoms are saying, they want us to change our lives, and change how we think about and talk about ourselves. Inner balance and harmony will follow our thoughts. Tapping can open the door for harmony at all of our energetic levels. But it requires that we allow our lives to change deeply, too. For many people, that is the hard part.
Meridian System Imbalances
You probably know already that each energy meridian or pathway is part of a network and each is related to a body organ or, more accurately, a function. Unlike Western medicine, TCM considers the functions in our body, rather than specific organs. Each function embodies a way of thinking, a story about what is happening inside us, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. This story reflects and tells about our way of responding to life.
For example, insomnia is common among people who suffer from fibromyalgia and related syndromes. In TCM, insomnia is a message about an inner energetic imbalance of the fundamental substances (called by acupuncturists chi, blood, yin, yang, jing, and shen) or of the major organ systems (Lung, Heart, Spleen, Liver, and Kidney).
Many TCM practitioners believe that when a person suffers from insomnia, the two organ systems that are most often out of balance are the Heart and the Liver. (Note that when I capitalize these terms, I am referring to the meridian of that name rather than just the organ that the meridian regulates.) Each of these organ systems houses an aspect of the spirit. If the function of these organ systems is in disharmony, they may not be able to house the spirit properly, and the spirit may “wander.”
The Energetic Pattern of the Spleen
Many people who suffer with fibromyalgia have digestive disturbances, and a life-long pattern of worrying and “swallowing their feelings.” In the energy terms of TCM, a key to fibromyalgia is the Spleen meridian. One of the Spleen meridian’s functions is to partner with the Stomach meridian on the way to nourishing the Heart. The Spleen, according to TCM, also nourishes muscles, which explains the occurrence of muscle pain in fibromyalgia.
Western medical facts are consistent with the TCM view. The spleen organ “recycles” the blood; that is, it filters the blood, removing old or damaged red blood cells and bacterial or viral pathogens to protect against infection. The spleen also functions as reserve storage for blood. Since red blood cells transport oxygen, which is what every cell needs to make its own energy to function, the spleen really does hold the nourishment for the heart and the muscle tissue!
In their article “Chinese Medicine for Fibromyalgia” (see www.tcmpage.com/hpfibromyalgia.html), Wei Liu, TCMD, MPH, LAc, and Changzhen Gong, PhD, MS, of the American Academy of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, explain how imbalance in the Spleen meridian can occur:
Chinese medicine sees the Spleen as being the key to (the) spiral into fibromyalgia. The Spleen is responsible for transforming the food that we eat into the energy (Chi) and blood that sustain our bodies. Obviously, the health of the Spleen can be affected by inappropriate diet, but it is also strongly affected by the emotion of worry, or over-concentration.
Chronic worry or too much studying eventually interferes with the Spleen’s ability to generate and convey sufficient Chi and blood to the muscles and flesh, which is an area of the body that the Spleen is especially responsible for.
The principal muscle that the Spleen needs to sustain is the Heart. The Heart is considered to be the home of the Spirit, and has a close relationship with the Spleen. When the Spleen cannot generate enough substance to nourish the Heart, the Heart Chi does not have enough power to house the spirit properly, and symptoms such as anxiety, palpitations, and insomnia result.
A Spleen Deficiency condition can result in fatigue, muscle stiffness, and pain; a Heart Deficiency condition usually brings emotional unrest and insomnia. These two deficiencies then feed into each other: insomnia causes muscle pain and stiffness, and muscle pain makes sleep more difficult.
The spleen’s job is to transform what we eat into nourishment that sustains our body’s health. The Spleen meridian can become constricted and weakened when we fall into chronic worry, and the over-concentration of trying to be perfect, a pattern that is typical of the fibromyalgia profile.
You could ask yourself, “Am I burdening myself with toxic materials or thoughts? How am I at breaking down problems into digestible parts? Do I have enough sweetness in my life? Do I have too much sweet in my life?” (Sweets can damage the spleen.)
A person with fibromyalgia probably grew up in a family that fostered a deep need for approval and a powerful expectation of success. When we feel like we must be extremely successful and we need to find our approval outside ourselves, we tighten up inside. We worry that there is something wrong with us, that we won’t measure up.
Repeatedly thinking worried, anxious, approval-seeking thoughts can cause constraint in blood vessels and muscles or meridians that deprive the body of essential energy (chi) as well as blood and oxygen. Over time, this constriction can lead to the symptoms of fibromyalgia.
We are tapping on the end of the Spleen meridian when we tap on the point under the arm (four inches below the armpit). This point is Spleen 21. In fact, this point is specifically used for fibromyalgia-type pain.
Tapping for Spleen Meridian Issues
Tap for old beliefs that reflect Spleen energy imbalance:
I had to be perfect, or else...
I am all alone, I have to do it myself.
I have to tough it out and soldier on.
I just forge ahead as if nothing is hurting me.
I have to pretend everything is okay when I am really feeling lonely or sad.
I am sensitive to criticism and I am hard on myself.
I worry that I am not doing enough, I’m not good enough.
I am really conscientious.
When I must compete or be observed while performing a task, I become so nervous and shaky that I do much worse than I would otherwise.
I am always trying to figure out what everyone else wants instead of I want.
I have to get it right the first time.
The Spleen’s positive psycho-emotional attributes are trust, honesty, openness, acceptance, equanimity, balance, and impartiality. We can tap for inviting and choosing and opening into these qualities in our lives.
The Heart Is the Home of the Spirit
Constraint in the Spleen meridian means that it cannot generate enough substance to nourish the Heart, and then the Heart chi does not have enough power to house the spirit properly. Fibromyalgia symptoms such as anxiety and insomnia may appear and eventually show up in the body as fatigue, muscle stiffness, and pain.
Constraint in the Heart, in TCM terms, usually suggests emotional unrest and insomnia. These two deficiencies then feed into each other: insomnia causes muscle pain and stiffness, and muscle pain makes sleep more difficult. Anything that affects the Heart can affect the Spirit.
The Heart meridian begins in the middle of the armpit and flows down the little finger side of the arm, ending at the inside tip of the little finger. The two points on the Heart meridian that we would most likely contact when we tap are: the inside of the little finger; and the wrist on the little finger side just below (i.e., away from the hand) the wrist crease and on the inside of the tendon there. The latter point is called Shen Men/Spirit Gate. In acupuncture, it is utilized specifically for insomnia, anxiety, panic, and mania.
Often when I ask people one of my favorite questions—“Where do you feel that emotion in your body?”—they will say something like “a tightness in my chest,” “my heart hurts,” “my heart feels heavy.” TCM cites one of the Heart meridian’s functions as “opens into the tongue.” The meridian point Heart 5 is specifically used for the treatment of aphasia—inability to speak.
As spiritual beings, we honor “speaking from the heart” as speaking our own truth.
Tapping for Heart Meridian Issues
Here are some beliefs that reflect a troubled, constricted Heart. As you read them, say each one out loud, while you tap each of the twelve EFT points:
I take everything to heart.
I don’t know how to connect with others without “drowning.”
I take on everyone else’s feelings.
I want to please.
I so often leave myself last, if I do anything for myself at all.
I seem to have trouble saying what I want, especially if I think my preference will hurt someone I care about.
I end up keeping quiet and the same pattern continues.
I feel sad, I feel resentful, I feel depressed and stuck, but I keep my truth inside.
I endlessly worry about what “they” are thinking.
My issue is about not standing up/speaking up for myself.
Connection is more important to me than anything.
I will sell my soul to stay connected.
You might also include these TCM thoughts in your tapping:
Unbalanced Heart energy leads to being careless, forgetful, distracted, restless, and maybe unrealistically idealistic.
Balanced Heart energy is joyful, radiant, outgoing, loving, generous, optimistic, and giving in a grounded way (rather than a giving-myself-away manner).
Move Anger out, Let Your Liver Live!
Sheila, the teacher in our beginning story who experienced the bitter divorce, had a common energy pattern of fibromyalgia, which acupuncturists call “Liver Chi Stagnation.”
I am always captured by the name of this organ. Metaphorically, the liver is the part of us that is in charge of our living, the organizer of our living fully.
You have probably experienced how anger and fear can interfere with your digestion. I often hear people describe their stomach or their gut as “tied up in knots” when they are upset. If fear, worry, or anger was often present in them in their childhood, but it wasn’t safe or considered appropriate for them to express what they felt, they had to swallow what they were feeling. As an adult, all that emotion still sits there in the belly with no place to go.
One of the main functions of the Liver is the smooth flow of chi, blood, and emotions. Extreme or unexpressed anger can compromise its functioning, rendering it “stagnant.” We don’t want our Liver to be stagnant, either organically or metaphorically! Chinese medicine says that Liver meridian problems “invade” the Spleen or Stomach. This fits with the fact that many people with fibromyalgia—40 to 70 percent, according to one estimate—describe symptoms that are diagnosed by doctors as irritable bowel syndrome. With a lifetime of anger stored in the gut, it is no wonder it gets irritable!
Think of what the digestive system is meant to do—taking in what nourishes us, and letting go of what we no longer need.
Tapping for Liver Meridian Issues
Often as I am tapping with someone whose insides are in a knot of turmoil, I will offer this thought as we tap, perhaps on the Karate Chop point:
Your body knows how to take in, digest, utilize, and release what it no longer needs…. So just let it know that you trust it to process everything that you thought you had to swallow and hang on to…all that anger and fear.
You know instinctively, down deep inside, how to let yourself be nourished by the insights and the knowledge that you have gained from those awful experiences…they have taught you what you don’t want, and given you a sense of what you do want instead…so now you are free to move this on through, move it on through now…and let go of what you no longer need.
Your body and your energy system know how to do this…just let that anger and fear go.
The Liver meridian runs from the lateral side of the end of the big toe up the inside of the leg, on both sides of body along the inner part of the ribs. The end point is right under the breast, directly below the nipple, one rib down from the bottom of the breast in both men and women.
EFT tappers seldom utilize this Liver point now, but it is a powerful balancing and harmonizing point for our whole being, and worth including in your tapping round.
Tapping for Small Intestine Meridian Issues
The Small Intestine meridian is paired with the Heart meridian. With long-term stress, such as people with fibromyalgia experience, the Heart can become disturbed and thinking becomes confused. (Long-term stress affects the Spleen first, leading to the Heart disturbance). We become exhausted, breathless, and anxious.
As discussed, the Heart holds the Spirit, the totality of the person’s life force as it expresses through the personality. So the physiological function of the Heart energy network, according to TCM, is to propel the blood, enfold the Spirit, and maintain awareness. The Small Intestine meridian’s essential purpose is to support our choices about what information to incorporate when we are feeling divided, or pulled in more than one direction. This makes sense when we think of what the small intestine does physiologically. Its job in digestion is to separate what is most useful in the food from what will become waste.
When our system’s energy is flowing freely, our Small Intestine protects our Heart by filtering out negative input, both from food waste and damaging energies like shocking surprise or deep sorrow. Even overwhelming joy can be hard on the Heart!
