#5: Expanding on Specific Events – Table Top/Table Legs Metaphor.

This one idea vastly simplifies the healing process

The metaphor:

As it turns out, most ailments known to mankind can be contained within one simple metaphor involving a table top and the table legs that support it. This idea brings great clarity and simplicity to the healing process. Here’s the foundational idea…

A table top is held up by its table legs. Remove or weaken the table legs and the table top collapses.

A table top is held up by its table legs.

Stated in healing terms, the table top is someone’s main issue (e.g. a war veteran’s PTSD) while the table legs are the specific events that support it (e.g. war memories). Once the war memories (table legs) are removed with The Personal Peace Procedure, the PTSD (table top) collapses. No more anger outbursts, nightmares, intrusive thoughts, insomnia and the like. The causes (table legs) have been removed and thus the main issue (table top) must collapse for lack of a foundation.

Examples:

Please forgive the redundancy in the examples below. It was done to emphasize the simplicity of the idea. These examples point to our “one natural remedy for everything” concept and have central uses within The Optimal EFT Course.

For an anger issue (table top) locate your past specific events (table legs) that involved anger. Remove enough of those anger table legs with The Personal Peace Procedure and the general anger issue will fade for lack of a foundation.
For a guilt issue (table top) locate your past specific events (table legs) that involved guilt. Remove enough of those guilt table legs with The Personal Peace Procedure and the general guilt issue will fade for lack of a foundation.
For a fear issue (table top) locate your past specific events (table legs) that involved fear. Remove enough of those fear table legs with The Personal Peace Procedure and the general fear issue will fade for lack of a foundation.
For a grief issue (table top) locate your past specific events (table legs) that involved grief. Remove enough of those grief table legs with The Personal Peace Procedure and the general grief issue will fade for lack of a foundation.

Table top thoughts:

Please note that just about everyone tends to state their issues as table tops. That is, we tend to see our issues through “global glasses” and thus describe them in general terms using broad labels. Thus, typically, we do not need to look for table tops. They simply show up in our descriptions. Examples might be…

“”I have low self-esteem.”
“I am claustrophobic.”
“I’m overweight.”
“Men/women don’t treat me well.”
“I have a fear of public speaking.”
“I’m afraid of rejection.”
“I don’t feel worthy of acceptance.”
“I don’t deserve financial security.”
“I’m not comfortable with intimacy.”
“I have multiple sclerosis, migraine headaches, Crohn’s disease, etc.”
“I have a control issue.”
“I get flustered on stage.”
“I have PTSD.”
“I don’t trust people.”

Conversely, people tend not to name their issues in terms of specific events (table legs). For example, they rarely say, “I’m still angry at my third-grade teacher for calling me stupid in front of the class.” Rather, they state their concern in terms of a generalized symptom from this event, such as, “I have low self-esteem,” or “I don’t feel worthy of acceptance,” or “I’m afraid of rejection.” These symptoms are table tops and, of course, they have specific events (table legs) underlying them.

This is an essential point because, once you truly digest it, you will see how just about every man-made healing method aims at the globally stated table tops instead of the underlying table legs. Examples:

When the client says “I have panic attacks,” pills are typically prescribed to dampen the symptom (table top). This leaves the cause (emotionally charged specific events) unattended.
When the client says “I have disease X,” surgery, radiation or drugs are typically administered to help with the symptom (table top). Again, this leaves the cause (emotionally charged specific events) unattended.
When the client says “I have PTSD,” mind numbing drugs are typically administered or, perhaps, psychological exercises are given to “think of something else.” These remedies aim at the symptom (table top) and, yet again, this leaves the cause (emotionally charged specific events) unattended.

As you gain experience with this table top and table legs metaphor, you will see all issues in their proper light and will instantly search for the specific events underlying them. You will have less need for expensive man-made methods to help alleviate the symptoms. Rather, you will aim right for the cause. Success with the cause brings success with the symptoms.

Also, while this table top and table legs metaphor provides a structured way to dissect any issue, there is still an art to it. This is because no two people’s specific events are precisely the same, even though the outward labels for the resulting ailments may be identical. Thus, two people with stomach ulcers are likely to have widely different specific events underlying them. So, for best results, customization is required and that leads to flexibility and artistic use of the process. This comes with experience, of course, but can be substantially accelerated by studying the wide variety of live sessions that are included elsewhere in this Optimal EFT Course.

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With gratitude to Gabrielle Rutten, MD, her article below gives us special insights into the formation of many of our emotional issues/beliefs during our early years (starting in the womb).

A Closer look at the anatomy of emotional problems

There is a special layered build up in the stratification of emotional problems. The diagram on the right portrays what happens in the first 6-7 years of life. The conclusions on this table top are examples of our ‘negative core belief’. Although many of these conclusions probably seem to fit in your situation, it is usually only one that resonates the most and is really foundational to all the others.

This 6-7 years time-span can be divided further:

A) Age 0-2

Research shows that the interaction with the outside world starts about 3 weeks after conception. Until approx. the age of two, a child cannot distinguish between themselves and their environment, they are one with it. In this two year period, the fetus-infant-toddler is small, powerless, it’s life depends on the mother/caregivers and it doesn’t comprehend events that happen “suddenly” without warning. Relatively small events can therefore have a big impact (i.e. mother being sick during pregnancy, a baby that is left crying alone for a long time, problems with feeding, an argument between the parents, a death in the family, etc).

This period is therefore very decisive for the way the child learns to deal with his surroundings. It lays the foundation for the emotional and behavioral responses later in live. The child doesn’t understand what is happening, only senses that ‘something is wrong/not good’. All negative physical and emotional experiences are projected on themselves because the child is not aware of a separate ‘surrounding’ and other people.

As soon as a child is able to put words around what it is thinking and feeling, it will formulate an important negative conclusion that will play a role for the rest of his/her life: “something is not good, I am not good (enough)” and they also think they are the cause of the negative feelings, it’s their fault. Furthermore, a newborn is so vulnerable that it will die if it is not kept warm, fed and protected. This means that many negative experiences from that very early period are associated with fear of death.

As soon as the child begins to talk (approx. 18 months), parents start their upbringing in earnest. Their ‘success’ depends on how well the child behaves in social situations and performs in school in later life. This necessary socialization process always involves rejection because parents tend to focus on what the child does ‘wrong’, what it needs to change in order to get approval (love). This is how the negative core belief takes root: with each rejection the child comes to the conclusion “I am not good enough”, “I do not belong”, “I should not have been here”, etc. Through trial and error, the child learns what behavior will get approval (and makes it feel loved) and what it must do (or not do) to prevent rejection. This becomes “the writings on our walls” that we will (subconsciously) consult for the rest of our lives. The rejection of others feels so (life) threatening that we (subconsciously) choose to reject ourselves rather than to have to experience the rejection by others. This keeps the negative core belief firmly in place.

B) Age 2-7

In the time-frame from 2 to 6-7 years of age, the child is in a trance-like state due to the immature brain that is still growing. Self-awareness develops slowly during this period. For these years, “magical thinking” is characteristic. The child comes up with all kinds of connections between themselves and events in the environment (causal relationships) that are not there, of course. It is known, for example, that many young children of divorced parents really think that if they would have behaved better, cleaned up their room, been a ‘better’ child, etc. mommy and daddy would not have had a fight and would still be together. The divorce is their fault. This period cements the negative core belief in place. By the end of this period, every rejection, disapproval or criticism results in the activation and reaffirmation of the negative core belief.

And here the buildup doesn’t end yet. The brain is only fully mature around age 23 or 24. Only then does an adolescent have full access to the potential of the brain. This, of course, implicates decisive influence of education, (first) work experience and (first) relationships on the structure of our worldview and self-image. This period plays an essential role in further cementing the negative core believe in place. The experiences and events that have a negative impact in this phase of life are reaffirming the earlier conclusions. They become ‘proof’ for “I am not good enough”, “I do not belong”, “I am worthless”, etc.

Incidentally, the above applies mutatis mutandis, also for all positive events, from which positive conclusions are drawn and from which a positive self-image and world view arise. Luckily so!

Note from Gary:

The good news about all these negative core belief is that NONE OF THEM ARE TRUE AND NONE OF THEM ARE YOUR FAULT. You were simply handed these beliefs from your new environment. They should be considered possible contributors to your issues that are collapsible with proper use of The Unseen Therapist.

Questions and Exercises

How does the metaphor simplify the healing process?
Add two more examples (for resentment and sadness) beneath the four listed above.
Add four more examples to the list under Table top thoughts.
Why is there an art to using the metaphor?
Why do you suppose people tend to describe their issues in general terms (table tops) instead of causes (table legs)?
Make a list of man-made healing methods such as medicine, chiropractic and others. How many of them aim at the symptoms (table tops) rather than the causes (table legs)?
If someone says, “I have disease X,” give examples of possible table legs (causes) underlying it.
Where do negative core beliefs (such as “I’m not good enough”) come from?
What happens in the womb and up to age 2 to help form your core beliefs?
What is meant by “magical thinking” and at what ages does it tend to occur?
How many of your negative core beliefs are true and how many are your fault? Explain your answer.

THE PALACE OF

Possibilities