About this time last year, I watched an inspiring video of a veteran named Jim Wolf, who for years struggled with homelessness, poverty and alcoholism. In the video he was getting a makeover, and like most, I was amazed to see him transform from a nervous and depressed looking man into a confident and energized one.
The best part of the video was the ending, which reported that, since having his makeover, Jim was getting his life together, attending Alcoholics Anonymous, and was even scheduled for housing.
A note on personal stories: This article shares individual experiences. Tapping supports stress and emotional wellbeing alongside professional care; it is not a treatment or cure for any medical condition, and results vary from person to person. Always consult a qualified health provider about medical concerns.
If you're a veteran in crisis right now: Veterans Crisis Line, dial 988 then press 1, or text 838255. Free, confidential support is available 24/7, whether or not you're enrolled in VA care.
If you haven’t yet seen the video, you can watch it here:
Isn’t that incredible? He has such different energy by the end of that video!
Unfortunately, external transformation wasn’t enough…
In spite of the progress he seemed to be making after his makeover, Jim soon began drinking again, and was incarcerated as a result. The story was covered on TV news, which included an interview with Jim from jail.
In that interview, Jim seemed to blame himself, saying that his drinking was his own doing. He also shared that he was committed to turning his life around, but that true transformation would have to come from the inside, first and foremost.
Many of us have had the experience of trying to transform, only to discover it’s a lot more challenging than we’d expected.
From a young age, many of us were taught to focus first on external issues like appearance and behavior. We’re told to exercise more, change our spending habits, or act more confident at work. Only to discover that we can’t make those changes stick.
In Jim’s case, the focus was on his drinking, which was presented as the true root of his problems. While addiction is a complex and challenging condition, as a culture, we often fail to consider WHY the behavior we’re trying to change happens in the first place.
So many veterans come home traumatized by what they’ve experienced and what they’ve witnessed. While more attention is being given to caring for veterans, still far too little attention is given to what they’ve been through, and to the PTSD they’re now living with.
Jon's Story: A Vietnam Veteran's Transformation
I’ll never forget the work we did with Jon, a Vietnam veteran, for The Tapping Solution documentary film. He had come to the retreat to overcome several issues that had been plaguing him since the war, including debilitating back pain, chronic insomnia, an extreme phobia of rats, and more.
By the end of our 4-day retreat, after tapping through numerous traumatic memories of war, as well as childhood, and the emotional trauma they’d inflicted upon him, Jon was smiling and laughing for the first time in years. His angry outbursts had eased, and his relationships with his kids started to improve. His back pain and rat phobia had lifted, and he was sleeping again.
Once his internal world had started to shift, external changes began to follow…
Through the tapping we’d done during those four days, he’d been able to start letting go of the trauma of war, and begin living life at home again. What he experienced was real and immediate, and by his own account it had a meaningful, positive impact on his life going forward.
If you or someone you know is a veteran who would like help with overcoming PTSD, I urge you to visit the Veterans Stress Project to find tapping coaches who work with veterans at little or no cost. In a peer-reviewed clinical study led by researcher Dawson Church, veterans who completed six one-hour EFT tapping sessions showed a significant drop in PTSD symptoms, with roughly 80% no longer meeting the diagnostic criteria for PTSD.
Jon’s story, and the stories of countless veterans who have gotten help through the Veterans Stress Project, are powerful testaments to what’s possible for veterans, and everyone who’s trying to transform themselves and their lives, when we give ourselves the chance to heal from the inside out.
Often, however, when we’re trying to change, we resist the idea that transformation is even possible. We may blame past attempts that have failed, or been told that we can’t change.
So, for veterans struggling with what they’ve experienced, as well as anyone who wants to transform themselves and their lives in a real and lasting way, I wanted to do some tapping on believing that lasting transformation really is possible.
Believing that you can change is ALWAYS the first step toward true transformation.
So, let’s start tapping!
A Tapping Script for Believing Transformation Is Possible
Start by taking a deep breath, and then begin
KC: Even though I don’t think I can really change for good, I deeply and completely love and accept myself.
KC: Even though it’s hard to believe I can really transform myself and my life for real this time, I deeply and completely love and accept myself.
KC: Even though I don’t believe I’ll be able to really transform myself and my life this time, I deeply and completely love and accept myself.
Eyebrow: All this doubt…
Side of Eye: so much doubt …
Under Eye: it’s just so hard to believe I can change for good this time…
Under Nose: it’s so hard to believe true transformation is actually possible…
Under Mouth: I’ve tried so many times…
Collarbone: but even when I succeed, the changes never last
Under Arm: I don’t know if true change is really possible…
Top of Head: Even when I do make changes, they never seem to last.
Eyebrow: I don’t know if true transformation is really possible…
Side of Eye: it never seems to last.
Under Eye: Why would this time be any different?
Under Nose: All this doubt…
Under Mouth: all this uncertainty.
Collarbone: The changes never seem to last…
Under Arm: but what if this time was different?
Top of Head: What if, this time, the changes could last?
Eyebrow: Maybe it IS safe to believe I can change…
Side of Eye: Maybe the reason I keep trying to transform is because I actually DO believe it’s possible.
Under Eye: I’ll never know if I don’t try…
Under Nose: I’ll never get there if I don’t keep trying new ways to transform.
Under Mouth: Maybe it IS safe to believe transformation is possible.
Collarbone: Maybe I CAN make changes that stick this time.
Under Arm: I’m choosing to trust that lasting transformation is possible…
Top of Head: I’m choosing to believe that I can change for good.
If you’re not yet fully convinced that transformation is possible, keep tapping. Beliefs like this tend to be deeply ingrained, so it can take time, and lots of tapping!, to overcome them. :)
Until next time...
Keep Tapping!
Nick Ortner
For the research behind these results, see our study-by-study look at tapping research for veterans and combat PTSD. Our full trauma and grief collection holds more articles like this one.
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