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Dr. Stephen Kaufman

Denver, CO.

(303) 756-9567 contact us|

Stress reduction: a dramatic new breakthrough!

with applications for anxiety, fears of all types, panic attacks, depression, obsessive thinking, chronic pain of all types including migraines and headaches, appetite control and weight loss.

c.2003. Stephen J. Kaufman, D.C.

I have been working on the problem of stress reduction for many years and I finally have developed a really effective technique. This grew out of my studies in acupuncture, kinesiology , thought field therapy, and nutritional therapy with neurotransmitters. Thought field therapy has developed a number of very powerful techniques to relieve emotional problems, including depression, anxiety, panic, phobias, grief, PTSD, etc. After practicing TFT for twenty years and carefully analyzing its components, I believe I have come up with a method that is even more powerful , in several different ways. This procedure, Neural Facilitation Technique™, (NFT™) can also be done over the phone, and, in fact, in some ways it may work better that way.

As you may know, many people these days take Prozac, Zoloft, Effexor, and other antidepressant medications to help them cope with the effects of stress such as depression, anxiety, etc. The way these medications work is to increase the levels in the brain of various chemicals known as neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, dopamine, acetylcholine, epinephrine, etc. Using antidepressants to increase serotonin has also been found useful in panic and anxiety attacks, phobias, chronic pain, attention deficit disorder, appetite control, social phobias, and other situations. These are the same conditions that frequently respond to TFT. Unfortunately, these drugs all have major side effects (for information on the dangers of antidepressants, see Prozac Backlash, The Anti-Depressant Fact Book, or Talking Back to Prozac.) We can increase these neurotransmitters with nutrition and it often works as well or better than drugs, without side effects. (See How does NeuroSynaptic Rebooting™ work? )

I have been working with various acupressure techniques to do the same thing . I have finally discovered a simple method to do this. I feel that by tapping on certain acupuncture points in sequence, we can often raise the neurotransmitter production in the brain and cause a dramatic stress reduction, immediately! This often causes immediate improvement in anxiety, depression, fear, phobias, loss, emotional pain, grief, and even a lot of physical pain. Food cravings may respond to this treatment as well. The effect on the patient has been incredible, sometimes within minutes. This is extremely exciting, and the result of a lot of research from many different doctors for many years. I can even describe to a patient on the phone how to do this procedure, and aid them long distance. This treatment is now available to out of state patients without having to fly in to see me. In fact, there are aspects of this treatment which may work even better over the phone (the privacy of your own home.)

Incidentally, many physical problems are caused or aggravated by stress. This commonly includes allergies, headaches, low back pain, migraines, neck pains, stomach aches, irritable bowel syndrome, sinus problems, TMJ, joint pains, arthritis, asthma, dizziness and vertigo, high blood pressure, fatigue and chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, insomnia, hormonal imbalances, etc. Reducing stress in this way may play a valuable part in improving these conditions and many others:

Anxiety, obsessive thinking, and panic attacks. The words "stress" and "anxiety" are usually used interchangeably. The same drugs used to treat depression (SSRI's) are often used for anxiety, panic, and obsessive thinking. We frequently observe a huge, marked, lasting reduction in these symptoms when we apply the NeuroSynaptic Rebooting™ procedure. Anxiety and stress are usually quickly replaced with a profound sense of well being. This would seem to indicate that the level of neurotransmitters is being markedly raised .(Click here for a list of diseases that may be influenced by low neurotransmitters.)

Phobias fears, and post traumatic stress disorder. Phobias ,post traumatic stress disorder, grief, and emotional loss have for many years been very successfully treated by standard thought field therapy procedures. Neural Facilitation Technique™(NFT™) offers many improvements and additional treatment options.

Depression It is accepted that the main action of antidepressant medication is to raise serotonin levels, as well as other neurotransmitters. Medication typically takes several weeks or more to have an effect. Unbelievably, Neural Facilitation Technique™ (NFT™) treatment often has an immediate effect. In fact, many patients frequently experience euphoria, which may be a serotonin rush! Future research is needed to determine if the effect is permanent; early cases have been very promising. It can be bolstered with nutritional support, or used while waiting for medication to take effect. ( Of course, many patients may not need medication if this treatment helps.)

Food cravings, appetite control and weight loss. Prozac type medications have been used to reduce excessive appetite, causing weight loss. Research indicates that natural supplements such as 5HTP, tyrosine, and mucuna puriens ( containing l-dopa) , and possibly EGCG ,may also cause weight loss by stimulating satiety. Again, stimulating serotonin production naturally with Neural Facilitation Technique™(NFT™) has been observed to greatly reduce strong food cravings for sugar, bread, etc. This treatment may need to be repeated a number of times to insure lasting results.

Attention Deficit Disorder. There are four million kids on Ritalin, which works by increasing the levels of norepinephrine in the brain. It's possible that this may also be greatly enhanced by our little treatment. Other researchers have found that inner ear disorders are usually present in kids with various forms of ADD, and treating these in a number of ways can be extremely helpful. Nutritional therapy is extremely important, as well. (see some of the huge amount of research that has been done on nutrition here ) Some excellent books are by Lendon Smith, Abram Hoffer, Flesch , etc. (For more info, see our page on A.D.D.)

Migraine Migraine headaches are related to serotonin imbalances; these cause spasm and than expansion of the arteries in the head. Treatment that increases serotonin levels may help. (You guessed it, we're suggesting our approach.) The arterial spasms that cause migraines are not limited to the head; one can also get migraine type attacks in the intestines, the eyes, etc. Nutrients that may also enhance serotonin production and be useful are 5HTP and tyrosine.

Pain. It is well established that acupuncture works by stimulating the production in the brain and nervous system of chemicals that reduce pain. These chemicals include endogenous opioids, endorphins, enkephalins, and our good old friend serotonin. Serotonin is a major part of this process. Neural Facilitation Technique™(NFT™) is a much improved method of stimulating areas to get a greater effect than acupuncture, with no needles. In many cases there is an immediate and dramatic reduction of pain of all kinds, which is often lasting. Even severe and chronic pain often (but not always) responds.

There are two aspects to pain. One is the pain itself, the other is our reaction to the pain. Very often our reaction is more overwhelming than the pain itself. Our reaction is usually strongly emotional, and may be fear, anxiety, anger, depression, guilt, etc. This emotional reaction may intensify and perpetuate the pain itself. Often pain that would have resolved quickly remains for months or years because of our reaction to the pain. By reducing the emotional component with this treatment and also with our cognitive awareness treatment , we can often greatly reduce pain, and speed up healing. I have seen and heard of many cases of all types of pain having quick, and sometimes permanent response with this treatment.

How does work? (very technical stuff; unless you're a doctor you'll want to skip this)

In simple scientific language, this treatment uses summation of temporal and spatial stimuli to engender a self regulating response via a threshold phenomena to up-regulate neurotransmitter production and repletion.( Just kidding.) (about it being simple, that is) ( I just wanted to use a lot of big words to impress you.). In other words, we feel that stimulating acupuncture points on the head and body produces an increase in neurotransmitters (chemicals in the brain , such as serotonin, epinephrine, dopamine, acetylcholine, etc.) that strongly affect our emotions, such as fear, grief, panic, depression, addictive cravings, etc. Simply put, our negative emotions are usually immediately changed for the better by the treatment.

We have further discovered that this system needs to be stimulated in a different manner and more extensively than standard Thought Field Therapy procedures. By doing this we get a much more powerful response! In fact it's almost unbelievable in it's ability to reduce stress, physical and emotional, and promote a feeling of well -being. This neurotransmitter production is a self regulating system in that you can't make too much serotonin, for example, by doing this tapping. You can, however, take too much Prozac. It's the same with breathing being self regulating; if you breathe too much, you'll hyperventilate and pass out. If you hold your breath (like I used to try to do as a kid), you'll pass out before you die. It's self regulating; your body won't let you over breathe or under-breathe for very long.

For a little bit more information on how it works, click here.

For more info on how it works, click here

It's pseudoscience, but at least it has the word "science" in it!

Dr. Kaufman can be reached at (303) 756-9567.

" The lame hear, the blind walk , and the deaf can see!"

I always thought the bottom line was a proctology clinic.

And remember, only your brains are all in your head!

www.drkaufman.net