Dr. Stephen Kaufman

Denver, CO.

(303) 756-9567

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Phobia and Trauma Cure With Thought Field Therapy in Denver !

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

 

   I have  been practicing Thought Field Therapy  since 1982. I have  published several papers and made several significant contributions to this method. I believe this is without question the best treatment for phobias, grief, loss, post traumatic stress disorder and other emotional problems. Thought Field Therapy has a very high  success rate when done for these problems! For more information on a dramatic new treatment for stress reduction which I have developed out of my research, click here.

   

   Last year I treated a five year old girl who was extremely, pathologically shy. She would not look at or talk to anyone other than her immediate family, even if she knew them for years. This included neighbors, grandparents, aunts and uncles, teachers, etc. When I first met her she completely ignored my presence and just huddled with her mother. After her initial treatment, she made eye contact with me, talked to me, and followed me into another room! She made a phenomenal, dramatic turnaround and started talking to everyone! Her mother and everyone that knew her were stunned!

 

Dr. Kaufman's unique credentials as a thought field therapist.

 

   "TFT is the most remarkable and invaluable method for treating a wide variety of conditions in an extremely fast, simple and effective manner with phenomenal success. I have never seen anything like it and use it regularly in my practice."

Roopa Chari, M.D., Internal Medicine

 

What is Thought Field Therapy ?

   Thought Field Therapy (or TFT) is a revolutionary technique used in the treatment of psychological problems. This method was originally developed  twenty years ago by a California psychologist, Dr. Roger Callahan. He developed  it as a modification of some applied kinesiology techniques. During  Thought Field Therapy, the client is asked to think about an  issue that bothers them. This is usually  anxiety, a phobia, an  emotional or physical trauma, a loss, PTSD, an addictive urge (for food, drugs, alcohol, etc.) ,anger, etc .

   Usually, the client has had these strong negative feelings for a long time,  and  other therapy has not resolved them. The client is asked to quantify the feeling on a scale of 1 to 10, with ten representing the most intense feelings of upset, and 1 being very little upset. ( the SUDS (subjective units of distress) scale.) Next, the doctor taps on specific places or acupuncture points on the patient in a specific sequence. The  surprising thing for patients and therapists alike is that it  works really  rapidly! After treatment , the client  tries but cannot get back the original feeling of upset about the  issue, even though the memory still remains.

    I have treated over a thousand patients with this method. The vast majority have had dramatic improvements. Of course, it doesn't work for everyone. Nothing does. Some propose that TFT can be used as self-help. I have known some people that could do this successfully and many  who couldn't. I have also seen some therapists that could not get TFT to work when they applied it to patients. Unfortunately, these patients then thought that TFT was not of any use. This is really a shame, since TFT is extremely effective when done correctly. Some therapists are not able to perform it right , probably due to issues of timing, misunderstanding, etc.   

How Long Does It Last ?

   Because most people don't believe that tapping on acupuncture points  will  help  psychological distress, neither the placebo effect nor positive thinking seem to play a part in  TFT.  Callahan has said  that Thought Field Therapy "probably doesn't get it's fair share of placebo effects" because people usually don't expect that the procedure will work. The reality of the placebo effect itself has recently been  questioned .  Patients sometimes ask after successful TFT,  "how long will it last?"  In our experience over twenty years, the results are usually long lasting after a few sessions. Dr. Figley has reported that the successful results attained in his study were reported by subjects in a six months follow up to have lasted . Dr. Callahan's first patient , "Mary",  was treated with TFT over twenty years ago for a water phobia and remains, by her own  report, "cured." In my experience, once resolved, trauma or phobias rarely return.

"How does it work?" 

Research on Thought Field Therapy

   Thought Field Therapy has been used  successfully  to treat a wide variety of emotional disorders. One  study, conducted in early 1995, by Charles R. Figley, Ph.D. and Joyce Carbonell, Ph.D. of the Psychological Stress Research Program and Clinical Laboratory at Florida State University yielded outstanding results in the treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. For this study, four new treatment approaches were selected on the basis of previous merit. These methods were Traumatic Incident Reduction (TIR), Visual Kinesthetic Dissociation (NLP), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) ,and Thought Field Therapy ( TFT). Figley reported : "TFT stood out from all other approaches  for five reasons:

  1. It is extraordinarily powerful; clients receive nearly immediate relief from their suffering and treatment appears to be permanent.

  2. It appears to do no harm.

  3. It does not require the client to talk about their troubles, something that often causes more emotional pain and discourages many from seeking treatment.

  4. It is extremely efficient (fast and long lasting)."

   In 1996, Dr. Joyce Carbonell of Florida State University did a double blind study (as yet unpublished) using TFT and a placebo treatment to treat fear of heights.  Neither the subjects nor the therapists knew which was the TFT treatment and which was the placebo treatment. The subjects who were treated with TFT had the greater average improvement.

   In October 2001, The Journal of Clinical Psychology (Vol. 57 , 10) published a special issue "Thought Field Therapy: Initial research. " This issue contains several  pilot studies using TFT to treat a variety of emotional problems.  One  article , written by Johnson, et. al. "Soothing the Bad Moments of Kosovo" , reports that 247 of 249 patients with trauma treated in Kosovo were treated quickly and successfully . Dr. Skkelzen Syla, the surgeon general of Kosovo, has made TFT an official therapy of Kosovo.     

     "Over the past 28 years, I have studied and tried a number of different types of nontraditional psychotherapy techniques... While some of these innovative techniques, such as those offered by NLP, were improvements on traditional treatments, none of them have even come close to the kinds of results I have gotten with TFT. I have to say......even though I was skeptical, I got the same predictable good results and I have not been disappointed ..... "  Monica Pignotti, CSW, TFTdx,VT

   " Thought Field Therapy (TFT), is the "power therapy" of the next century. It is a revolutionary new method for the rapid treatment of psychological problems, including trauma, anxiety, panic, addiction depression, and phobias.

   "When I observe a number of suffering patients who did not respond to our usual treatment modalities, suddenly get better after TFT algorithms are given, I don't need a double-blind controlled study to tell me the value of TFT."

James McKoy, MD

Chief, Pain Clinic, Rheumatology Service

Assistant Chief, Neuroscience Department, Kaiser Permanente, Hawaii region

 

Some of Dr. Kaufman's Patients:

Emotional scars from sexual molestation                  June 22, 2000 
By my nature, I am a skeptical man.  I read most testimonials with a wary eye.  Yet I feel compelled to write this one to you – the reader.  In June of 2002 I attended a lecture given by Dr. Stephen Kaufman.  the talk demonstrated his techniques in treating effects of post traumatic stress.  Several people volunteered to undergo a simple series of questions, tests, and adjustments.  The problems presented ranged from a fear of going to the dentist to deep-seated childhood memories.  Within a few minutes, to my surprise, each volunteer expressed emotional relief from their concerns.  I was impressed.  I was also doubtful that Dr. Kaufman’s technique could help me.
   You see, I was sexually molested three times between the ages of 12 and 13.  For years I had covered up this feeling of guilt, embarrassment, and shame.  Nothing had helped.  Dr. Kaufman’s treatment seemed encouraging, but I had my doubts.  I called him the next day to set an appointment.      I arrived at his office.  We talked for a few minutes.  He asked a few questions, performed a few simple tests and made a few adjustments.  It took all of two minutes.   I can’t tell you what happened or explain how it happened.  But it was clear to me that something did happen.  I can only say that as of 5:00 p.m. on June 15, 2002 a burden was lifted from me, and for the first time in 34 years I experienced a sense of grace.    Thank you seems simple, but proper.
---Jim  Shutte
          

Depression, Headaches, Low Back Pain, PMS, Fatigue ,TMJ

"Thank you so much for all you have done for me.  Although I originally sought your help for depression you have cured that and all my other chronic ailments as well.  Even some I didn't know about, like lack of concentration, headaches from computer use, and low back pain.  I could go on and on.  We were blessed to have you in San Diego."                 ---Mary LaManor  

Depression, phobias, anxiety and panic attacks, menopausal hormonal imbalance

“It is with much sadness that I say farewell to Dr. Kaufman.  When I first found him I was looking for an alternative to the anti-depressants and hormones being recommended by my traditional physician.  Due to his caring, listening skills and expertise, I feel like I have been given my life back.  His treatments and the supplements he has recommended have allowed me to sleep at night, restored my cheerful, optimistic outlook on life, balanced my hormonal cycle and even cured me of claustrophobia.  I have been able to seek his help for everything from bronchitis to dislocated joints.  He has never failed to make me feel healthy and well.  I know I will not be able to find another practitioner of his caliber.  I wish him well.”                                                                   ---Rebecca Riddle

Claustrophobia, Insomnia , Anxiety

“When I started seeing Dr. Kaufman I was severely claustrophobic.  I was uncomfortable in elevators, airplanes, rooms with low ceilings, etc.  My chest would tighten up and I would feel like I couldn’t breath.  Now I enjoy airplane rides, and I am very comfortable in tight spaces that would have had me climbing the walls before.  I even climbed to the top of the Statue of Liberty in August, with no fear or loss of breath.  I sleep better now, am calmer and have less of a tendency to react negatively to stress.”

                                                            ---Becky Riter  

Fear of the Dark

Before this treatment, when I was in bed at night I was so afraid because I believed there were monsters in my room.  I kept on making out pictures of monsters.  I wasn’t afraid of most of them but there were some that I was afraid of.  But now that I’ve had this treatment I’m not afraid.  Well I am a very, very tiny bit.                                          Hank, age 7  

Fear of Dogs, Fear of the Dark, Sinus/Allergy Condition

My daughter and son have both been treated by Dr. Kaufman.  My daughter had a very strong phobia of dogs.  She would scream and try to climb up you at the sight of one.  Since her treatment she has petted and let dogs lick her hand.  She is very happy to go to our pharmacy where a dog is there during business hours and give her treats from her hand.  It’s great not to have her deathly afraid of dogs.

My son was treated for a sinus/allergy condition ,and for a phobia of the dark.  He now has no fear of his bedroom in the dark, and has slept downstairs in the basement with his cousins for a sleepover.  He also has had a significant reduction in his sneezing, itchy eyes and blowing his nose.  It’s great to see him need the tissue box considerably less.                                            Marjorie Anderson  

 

How Does It Work?

   I  differ from Callahan and almost every practitioner in the field in my ideas on how TFT works. In a paper on inner ear disorders I quote the work of Levinson to describe evidence that inner ear dysfunction probably plays a role in the production of phobias and PTSD. It's quite possible that TFT and similar techniques influence the inner ear mechanism. In another article on stress I theorize that brain neurotransmitters are almost certainly involved, due to the speed with which TFT works. In other words it probably uses the same mechanisms as Prozac type drugs to increase serotonin, norepinephrine, acetylcholine, etc.  levels. These explanations complement each other, are physiologically based, and allow for further development and investigation of TFT in a biological model. 

   Almost all practitioners of TFT have a background in the mental health field but unfortunately no underpinning in the biological sciences. Lacking training in physiology, anatomy and neurochemistry, they resort to explanations based on nebulous "energy" theories. They frequently refer to "chi" as they feel Chinese acupuncture describes it. In China and around the world however, current scientific investigation focuses on explaining acupuncture phenomena in neurological terms. Chi is not measurable and is considered only a useful (and possibly outdated) theoretical construct. Gamma and delta afferent nerve fibers, however, are measurable and provide the most likely explanation of acupuncture's effectiveness.

   My point here, without getting too technical, is that TFT will eventually be explained totally in  physiological, biochemical, and neurological terms. To say it works by "balancing body energy" is non-explanatory. It's like saying Prozac works by balancing body energy. Nevertheless, from the patient's point of view the only important thing is that TFT does work, and works really, really well.

   For more information on how it works, click here.

 

Dr. Kaufman's unique credentials as a thought field therapist:

There are several things that make Dr. Kaufman's approach to TFT unique and substantially different from most other people practicing it.

1) He has been doing it since the first paper was published by Callahan on TFT in 1981, longer than the vast majority of TFT practitioners. "Official" trainings of professionals did not begin until the 90's.

2) TFT was developed as a technique within Applied Kinesiology. Very few TFT practitioners have any background in Applied Kinesiology; most of them are mental health professionals. Dr. Kaufman has practiced AK since 1975, was a member of the International College of Applied Kinesiology for over 20 years, and has published over 65 original clinical research papers on AK. These facts make him one of the most accomplished applied kinesiologists in the world.

3) Dr. Kaufman has published several original research papers on TFT, beginning in 1988.

4) As a doctor of chiropractic, Dr. Kaufman is  trained and licensed to diagnose and treat physical and emotional illness. Many TFT practitioners are not licensed to diagnose or treat.

5) TFT was developed out of acupuncture theory.  Dr. Kaufman is certainly one of a very few TFT practitioners who have been trained and licensed to practice acupuncture; in fact, he has been studying and practicing acupuncture since 1974.

6) His background in Applied Kinesiology enabled him to add a large number of techniques to the TFT armamentarium, making it much more effective. In fact, his most recent research has produced  dramatic improvements ( click here).

 

Early research study on Thought Field Therapy.

Thought field Therapy and Heart Rate Variability

Thought Field Therapy™ and Traumatic Stress Recovery for Refugees and Immigrants
                                                                                                                                                   

Objective Evidence of the Superiority of TFT In Eliminating Depression

Professionals nod to TFT.

Summary article on TFT