Have you ever seen the movie: “What the bleep do we know?”? In a very scientific and entertaining way, this movie explains the basic principles of quantum physics. Quantum physics reveals a world of possibilities. It proves scientifically that our thoughts can affect not only our body reactions, but also our environment and even our reality.
One of the movie’s key messages is that we are addicted to our emotions. What do we know about addiction? It’s something that we think we just can’t live without and that we can’t stop doing.
What about emotions? Where do they come from?
All the information processed by our brain is always filtered and influenced by past experiences. That means there is an emotional response to the information stored. The moment that we experience an emotional state in our body or in our brain, the hypothalamus(1) is activated. The hypothalamus assembles the peptide(2) to form a neurohormone(3) or a neuropeptide(4) that matches our emotional state and then releases it into the bloodstream through the pituitary gland(5). Once it’s in the bloodstream, it finds its way to different centres and parts of our body.
Every cell of our body has thousand of receptors on the outside. Peptides will act as keys into the cell receptors and send a signal to the cell. This will start a series of chemical reactions in the cell and can even modify the nucleus of the cell.
All our body’s reactions are influenced by emotions.
There are chemicals for each emotion state that we experience: anger, sadness, fear, lust, anxiety, love etc.
For example, if a person experiences anger on a daily basis, long-term neural networks related to this this emotional state develop in the brain. It’s like a programming in our brain.
You may have noticed that some people always seem to be angry, sad, anxious or afraid. According to this theory, even though experiencing these upsetting emotions makes these people unhappy, they nevertheless are constantly seeking out these emotional states, because they cause a hormonal discharge, a “buzz.” This is an unconscious process. No one wants to constantly live with disturbing emotions.
When we are saying that we are addicted to our emotions, we are not only talking about the psychological level but also the biochemical level.
It is said that every cell in our body has an awareness, so you can see the important role our emotions play in our body’s physiological and biochemical reactions, as well as at the higher level of our self-awareness.
We don’t simply live in a static environment as passive actors in a play, unable to act on our own.
It is within our power to become observers of our own life. We can decide to make choices about what is right for us and CREATE OUR REALITY.
But how? Where do we start?
Many years ago, I had the privilege of discovering a wonderful technique that allowed me, my clients and my friends to release upsetting emotions. It was emotional freedom. Wow!
Gary Craig from the United States created this powerful technique: Emotional Freedom Techniques™ (EFT) (see APPROACHES section).
The basic concept of EFT is that: “The cause of all “negative” emotions (anxiety, fear, sadness, anger etc.) is a disruption in the body’s energy system”. EFT helps balance the body’s energy system by tapping with the fingertips on acupuncture points of the face and body while mindfully stating the issue to be addressed. The original version of this technique also included a series of action aimed at reprogramming the brain’s hemispheres.
Why this technique instead of another? EFT is remarkable because it’s easy to learn, versatile and gentle, and only takes about a minute to complete a “basic recipe” (cycle). The results are generally permanent.
With EFT, there is no need to vividly recall painful events to release upsetting emotions.
The results are often extremely fast. I’ve noticed that a lot of problems can be solved in a matter of minutes, whether it is a new problem or an older one. It is important to note that some problems might take longer to resolve if there are several aspects involved. For example, a fear of flying might include fear of taking off, fear of heights, claustrophobia, fear of chocking, fear of the wings falling off, agoraphobia, fear of landing, and so on. In this example, it is important to address each of these aspects to release the person’s fear of flying.
For major health issues, it’s often necessary to use EFT several times a day for a period of time to release all related aspects of the health problem.
To summarize, EFT represents a simple, fast-acting and effective tool that clients can learn and use for various emotional issues (fear, sadness, anger, anxiety, etc.), phobias, physical issues (pain and various physical ailments), to improve sports performance, and more. Clients can use it (with a practitioner or alone) for themselves, for a friend, for a child and even for pets.
Glossary:
Hypothalamus: Region of the forebrain below the thalamus which coordinates both the autonomic nervous system and the activity of the pituitary, controlling body temperature, thirst, hunger, and other homeostatic systems, and involved in sleep and emotional activity.
Peptide: Any of various amides that are derived from two or more amino acids by combination of the amino group of one acid with the carboxyl group of another and are usually obtained by partial hydrolysis of proteins.
Neurohormone: Any of various substances formed in the nervous system and delivered to an effector organ through blood circulation.
Neuropeptide: Short chains of amino acids, with some functioning as neurotransmitters and some functioning as hormones.
Pituitary gland: Small, oval endocrine gland attached by a stalk to the base of the brain and consisting of an anterior and a posterior lobe: it secretes hormones influencing body growth, metabolism, the activity of other endocrine glands, etc.