2014 Psychotherapy Networker Symposium

Greetings!  

With the enthusiastic applause of 300 people in Seattle and 315 in Portland ringing in our ears, we are madly packing to catch a flight to Vancouver, B.C., for the last stop of our February Northwest teaching tour. We love turning people on to the understanding of how easily the energies running through their bodies can be optimized for better health, greater vitality, and increased joy and clarity of mind.

Ironically, part of our attention on this trip has been on efforts within the Maryland state legislature to restrict the practice of energy healing and the backlash we produced with several sister organizations, which caused the authors of the bill to withdraw it (see below). Beyond simple self-help tools for optimizing the body's energies, we are reminded by this month's case history of how powerful energy healing methods can be in the hands of a skilled practitioner, this time working with the aftermath of childhood sexual abuse.

As we prepare now for upcoming events this year, we look forward to swimming with dolphins and walking through Mayan ruins at the ports of call during next month's Caribbean cruise. It is a luxury we rarely get to enjoy anymore, for Donna to be able to work for more than a week with a relatively small group, teaching the basics of Energy Medicine in depth. Looking further down the schedule, we are deeply honored that Larry Dossey, M.D., has agreed to round out the prestigious keynote lineup for September's International Gathering of Eden Energy Medicine (IGEEM) Conference. 

Back to the now, Triple Warmer is the peskiest of the energy systems designed to keep the body healthy, and you can learn from the one-minute video below a simple technique for helping it do its job while keeping you warm in the process. As these final days of winter begin to show the budding promise of springtime, we hope your soul feels light and your eyes are smiling.

Love,
Donna and David

Another Sneak Peak at The Energies of Love

It looks like things are on track for The Energies of Love to be published in time to be first presented at IGEEM in September. Chapter 8 is called "Sex Is Nature's Energy Medicine for Couples: Invoking the Passion." It actually covers many topics, such as looking at the energy dimensions of tantric sexuality and of the Taoist "Arts of the Bedchamber," but it also addresses the way previous sexual trauma can interfere with a person's ability to enjoy and benefit from new sexual experiences.

The following case, from a section called "Sexual Wounds and Their Healing," is one we have used before that people suffering from the aftermath of sexual abuse have found hopeful and inspiring.

Sandy and her fiancé came to one of our colleagues, Alan Batchelder, for premarital counseling. Among the issues they were concerned about was their sexual relationship. Although Sandy had been married before, she found herself reacting with uncontrollable negative feelings when her partner initiated sexual play.

He was willing to be patient, kind, and understanding, and he seemed genuinely interested that sex be a shared experience. While she freely acknowledged that she had no problems with his attitude, she still would usually become upset and turned off by his overtures. They asked for help with this problem, and a private session with Sandy was arranged.

When she came in, the therapist gently asked, "Is there something in your earlier years that you could talk about?" She immediately burst into tears. Red blotches appeared on her skin, and her words were punctuated with heavy sobbing and gasping as she began to relate her story.

Larry Dossey, M.D., is IGEEM's Fifth Keynote Speaker!

Proposed Bills Against Energy Medicine Withdrawn   

Energy workers in Maryland recently faced a significant challenge to their right to practice. Two bills, SB 817 and HB 1156, were introduced in a misguided attempt to curtail the practice of non-licensed "massage" therapists in brothels. These bills would have made it illegal to work with the human energy field by anyone other than an elite group of therapists licensed through specific national accreditation organizations.

This legislation posed a significant threat to legitimate energy workers, and grassroots action was immediate across social media and the internet. Working with change.org, Energy Medicine Professional Insurance spearheaded a campaign of letter-writing to the Maryland legislators and collected more than 5,000 signatures on a petition to stop these damaging bills. On Monday morning, February 17, 2014, the power of the people was obvious, and the bills were withdrawn.

Eden Energy Medicine (EEM) mounted a Facebook campaign, was in the process of mobilizing our practitioners to write letters to Maryland legislators and local papers, and was gearing up to testify at a Senate committee hearing when the good news came in. We applaud the Maryland practitioners of EEM, Healing Touch, Reiki and other energy modalities for taking an active role in getting these bills stopped.

 

Erin Harris of Energy Medicine Professional Insurance pledges to work toward "legislation that clearly defines alternative and complementary medicine and protects those modalities that operate without a license. It will also work to put in place safeguards that every practitioner can follow to allow for a safer and more transparent working environment."

 

Bravo! Everyone wins when the right to choose your own health care is protected and competent practitioners are free to practice safely and effectively.