Start tapping your pain away.
By Shaan Bajaj
As someone who has experienced her fair share of anxiety and depressive moods, I was keen to talk to Shalini Joshi Yamdagni, author of the bestselling book, Instant Pain Relief, and international expert on Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), on what inspired her to write a book about this alternative form of therapy.
Born in India but raised in Thailand since she was five, Shalini graduated from Ruamrudee International School and completed a Bachelor’s in Psychology from Lady Shri Ram College in Delhi, and a Master’s in Medical Social Work from Delhi School of Social Work. At the age of 38, however, Shalini found herself bedridden due to chronic pain. She healed herself using EFT, also known as tapping, and has since become an international expert in pain relief, using EFT to help people for the past 14 years. In March this year, she published Instant Pain Relief on Amazon, and shortly after its launch, the book became a phenomenon, topping the ‘New Releases’ and ‘Holistic Medicine’ categories for two weeks. In the book, Shalini discusses her journey and how anyone can use EFT to heal themselves. She speaks to Masala further about what exactly EFT is, and the ways it has changed her life and others’.
How does EFT work, and what does it help with?
EFT is a universal self healing aid. It is a blend of modern psychology and ancient acupuncture. Based on traditional Chinese medicine, life-energy flows through our body via an intricate network of energy channels, called meridians. The life-energy is also known as ‘chi’ in Chinese and ‘prana’ in Sanskrit. When this energy flow is blocked, you experience imbalance in your blood, oxygen and body systems. Once energy flow has been restored, your body experiences balance and harmony, hence good health. While acupuncture uses special needles in specific key acupressure points to release these blockages, EFT is like acupuncture but without the needles.
Instead of using needles, you use your own fingertips and physically tap on specific
acupuncture points. Additionally, addressing the role of your thoughts and emotions is
key. You tune inwards to the thoughts and emotions that are upsetting you. Emotions
are energy in motion, and upsetting emotions create energy disturbances within the body. If these emotions are not processed or expressed, they can be stored in the body, depleting the body’s immunity and eventually they manifest as pain and disease. EFT helps release stuck emotions and restores your body’s energy flow to its natural flow. You then experience great health and well-being.
How did you discover EFT?
I was diagnosed with an illness, costochondritis, and because of it, I was in chronic pain.
Medications, hot packs, or cold packs bought no relief. Instead, pain kept spreading all over my upper back, neck and shoulders. The intensity of the pain kept increasing too. After nine months, I was asked to quit my job and be on bed rest. I was frustrated.
My kids were only five and six years old at the time, and it was a dark and depressive phase of my life. My life had come to a standstill mentally, emotionally and physically, and I was desperate to find alternative ways to help myself. I attended a chakra diagnosis and balancing workshop hosted at Indus, and I was introduced to the world of energy healing. I was amazed to see how it brought down my pain levels, so I asked the hosts how I could permanently heal my chronic pain, and they suggested EFT. I Googled the one
and only EFT website back then, which had been created by the founder of EFT, Gary
Craig. I learnt and used EFT through video training and noticed significant shifts in my
pain levels. After two months of consistent and diligent use, I had completely healed my
chronic pain and disease.
How has EFT changed your life?
It has been a divine gift. I never thought something so simple and easy could have such
a deeply profound impact. It helped me heal my pain and illness, allowed me to take charge of my life, and helped me discover my passion and purpose – equipping and empowering people to heal their pain and heal their life.
I use EFT daily for emotional and mental hygiene; it helps me clear out daily frustrations
and anxiety. It provides me with greater clarity to make better decisions and have greater
focus.
How did you receive your EFT certification?
The only way to obtain certification in 2007 was by completing the courses by EFT’s
founder. I completed their online basic EFT certification course and started to practice with clients. After six months, I completed the Advance EFT Certification and became
an advanced practitioner.
What inspired you to write a book on the topic?
I was fascinated how something so simple can help bring about deep and permanent
healing, and how an ordinary person like me could apply this tool and see instant results.
I realised truly anyone can learn this to heal themselves. After working with thousands of
clients for 14 years, I had a ton of data and proof about healing chronic pain permanently.
Most people were making the mistake of addressing their physical pain through medication and treatments without addressing the root emotional and psychological pain. I wanted to create awareness and share this simple approach in a big way.
After 12 years of healing my chronic pain, I experienced chronic arthritic pain in 2019. I could not believe this was happening to me. I felt weighed down and depressed but I knew
I had to dig deeper and release unprocessed emotions. Once again, I used EFT diligently
and completely healed all the pain, and I felt a clear and deep desire to write a book about
it. I felt compelled to share the discoveries and mistakes I had made, and the tools I had
used to heal my chronic pain. I wanted to tell the world that there is a simpler, easier, faster way out of chronic pain.
What is the main takeaway from your book?
The biggest one would be to see your pain as a message from your body. Your pain is not
your enemy. The message is not about what is going on with you physically, but is about
the stress you are experiencing mentally and emotionally. EFT can help you release and
let go of the stress at the root of your pain. It is a simple yet powerful mind-body-spirit tool that you can use.
What was the process of publishing your book?
I self published my book on Amazon under the guidance of my mentor, Dr. Joe Vitale. He is a world renowned motivational speaker, NY Times bestselling author, and star of the movie, The Secret (2006). The editing process was quite overwhelming. I reached out to someone whom I had previously worked with when I coauthored the book Pebbles In the Pond, and she helped me with book publishing and promoting. I also created social media accounts to help with promotion.
This journey has been informative and educational, and has taught me important
lessons about asking for help getting the right support. However, the most important lesson has been to trust the path that led you on this journey. If it has led you here, it will help you see it through. All you need to do is stay free of stress, worry and resistance, and as you go with the flow, it will all unfold with much greater ease.
Why do you think it has received the accolades and recognition it has for a topic that is pretty niche?
I think there are multiple reasons for this. The topic of my book is pain relief and everyone has undergone unprecedented levels of pain in the past two years. The pandemic has left deep emotional, mental, physical scars that will continue to impact us in years to come. I also believe people are able to relate to my story and they enjoyed the conversational style of writing. Additionally, my book is endorsed by Dr. Joe alongside Nick Ortner and Brad Yates, who are renowned personalities in the EFT tapping world.
Are people generally sceptical about EFT, and if so, how do you manage that? Scepticism is a natural trait. I, too, thought there was no way this simple, strange technique could do anything for me. To the sceptics I say, EFT is simple to learn and does not require special clothing or equipment. It has no side effects and you can apply it anytime and anywhere. There is no reason not to give it a try.
Do you think everyone should start using EFT? If so, how would it help?
Yes, it’s free and it’s available at your fingertips. Stress has been called the “health epidemic of the 21st century” by the World Health Organisation. Each of us experiences some level of stress. If you leave stress unchecked, it can reduce your immunity and cause pain and disease overtime. It can help with releasing anxiety, stress, pain, healing your past, and releasing patterns that keep you tethered to pain.
How could someone try it out if they wanted to?
The easiest way to try out EFT is to listen and follow along with my YouTube videos on
EFT tapping, on my channel, EFT WITH SHALINI. There are videos related to stress
relief, pain relief, and even releasing the past. If you’re looking for an in-depth study, my book includes a step-by-step process that anyone can learn and use to help themselves.
For more information, visit www.eftthailand.com |
www.instantpainreliefbook.com or email shalini@eftthailand.com
