This is the story of "Johnny", a 9-year-old boy whose parents have been in difficult divorce negotiations for almost two years now. During this long time of emotional turmoil his dad moved out of the house. All this has affected Johnny very much, to the point that his mom brought him to me to find out how we could help him get through this a little easier.

Johnny is a cute, slim boy, highly sensitive, with enormous big brown eyes. When he smiles at me I feel like the sun is becoming brighter and warmer. I get the impression he listens to some inner music, dreams his boy dreams often as he goes about his day. He easily cries or looks completely devastated, depending on what is going on around him. Johnny is very particular and thorough with everything he does; he likes to spend time on creative projects that need to be assembled, and he has been very good at that since he was a little boy.

On top of having to suffer through the painful changes going on at home Johnny has never liked school; school with all its demands and rushes used to be a big problem. He always needed more time for his assignments than others. He often missed recesses because of that. He didn't like reading and wasn't good at it. It seems he felt pressured most of the time to keep up with the other kids. Every morning before school he started crying bitterly and saying how much he hated school.

His school problems had become worse since his dad had left the family.
As we started to tap on:

• "Even though Dad and Mom don't want to live together anymore"

• "Even though I really miss my dad"

• "Even though I feel sad about this situation..."

I suggested for him to say "...but I am such a cool kid anyway...."

In an instant he stopped me in my tracks and said instead: " ... but I am still fun to be with!"Kids often blame themselves for the problems their parents have with each other; for Johnny it was important that others liked spending time with him. As we talked about his friends and the games they play together, he again insisted on saying

"Even though I play with some of my friends more than others ... I am still fun to be with."
We ended the session with

"Even though Mom and Dad don't like to be with each other any more ... they both still like to be with me ... they both love to spend time with me .... and I know that I'm still fun to be with!"

His face had changed, his eyes had a sparkle and there was a big smile. He gave me a hug and decided that he was doing great now and ready to leave. We briefly discussed a few tapping issues for him to do at night and when he'd feel sad or lonely.

A few weeks later his mom gave me this update:

Johnny has much improved in school. He doesn't cry any more before school. He doesn't mind reading now, his reading has improved a lot. He is not missing recesses any longer, because he is not getting behind anymore. He finishes assignments on time; he stays on track now. His energy level has improved greatly and he generally is in a good mood. Besides the improvements in school he has been able to adjust and live more easily with the complicated situation in his family.

The other day his mom overheard him talking on the phone, explaining the tapping points and procedure to his dad.

What a joy to teach EFT to kids.

Love to all!

Baerbel Froehlin, CHt./HypnoCoach, EFT-ADV
www.smoothchanges.com