Tolstoy observed, "There is something in the human spirit that will survive and prevail; there is a tiny and brilliant light burning in the heart of man that will not go out no matter how dark the world becomes."

The Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting tragedy was followed by hopeful stories about bringing energy psychology and EFT tapping to communities after a human-made disaster.

This widely reported, heart-breaking event occurred in 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut. A 20-year-old former student of the elementary school shot and killed 28 people, including 20 children between 6 and 7 years old, 6 adult staff members, the shooter, and his mother.

Nick Ortner, a long-time resident of Newtown, happens to have founded one of the most influential organizations promoting an acupoint tapping approach to healing and personal development. He was determined to bring his knowledge of energy psychology and EFT tapping, as well as his local and global connections, to do something that would generate genuine healing for Newtown.

Long-Lasting Results

On the day after the shootings, Nick contacted Dr. Lori Leyden, an internationally known trauma expert. He asked Dr. Leyden's advice about providing an immediate response and facilitating long-lasting healing. Three days later, Dr. Leyden arrived and began conducting sessions with individuals as well as groups.

Because the effects of long-term trauma are well-known, and because of her success working with other survivors of horrific violence, she was able to immediately bring this experience to the task of establishing a community approach for Newtown that incorporates long-term, sustainable practices for relief.

A Vision of Hope, Love, and Healing

To help create and build a long-term healing model for Newtown, Nick sent out a request for volunteers to his 500,000 strong mailing list. He and Dr. Leyden then hand-picked 35 volunteer tapping practitioners out of hundreds of responses.

The volunteers spent an additional 35 to 60 hours in training and many more in supervision to prepare for the immediate and future needs of those directly and indirectly affected by the tragedy. Here are is a sampling of comments from family members, first responders, and the volunteers:

Scarlett Lewis, Mother of 6-Year Old Jesse Lewis, Slain During the Shooting:
"Nick Ortner introduced me to tapping, and I always finish these sessions with a deeper understanding of myself, feeling better, with a lightness of being and hope. Tapping makes me feel better when nothing else does…"

A Physician and First Responder, from the Office of the Medical Examiner: “Dr. Leyden offered her services just days after the tragedy, spending hours with technicians, doctors, investigators, and other staff directly involved with the Sandy Hook shootings. Her tapping and breathing exercises, as well as the group discussions have been very helpful to me and my staff. . . . I personally am sleeping better and functioning better.”

Alison Held, Volunteer:
"There is significant positive change happening in Newtown and beyond as a result of tapping! The EFT Stress and Trauma Relief Project is unfolding in the most beautiful way imaginable, with a core community of talented volunteers with a clear and unified vision of hope, love, and healing."

A Poignant Full-Circle Story

Following the Sandy Hook tragedy, a poignant "full-circle" story involves a 12-year-old boy whose 6-year-old brother was killed during the shooting. While the boy's mother had quickly embraced tapping, the boy was highly skeptical. He was understandably extremely angry about losing his brother.

Dr. Leyden had previously worked with orphaned genocide survivors in Rwanda, first for healing but then teaching them to become "heart-centered" leaders. The program was later formalized as "Project LIGHT: Rwanda." Graduates of the program are referred to as "Ambassadors," and a goal of the initiative is to connect traumatized young people around the world to support one another.

An online video meeting was arranged between the 12-year-old boy in Newtown and two of the Rwanda Ambassadors, young people like himself who had been through the worst of human tragedies. They shared deeply, tapped together during the long call, and genuinely bonded.

The boy in Newtown was so inspired that he returned to school the next day to make a speech to his classmates about why it is important to care about people who have experienced even worse tragedies.

Completing the full circle, he created a non-profit organization that raised money for two of the Rwanda Ambassadors to attend university. Several years later, he traveled to Rwanda for an emotional reunion with the Ambassadors who had helped him so much while he was deep in grief about his brother's death.

Easing the Aftermath of Major Trauma

The Sandy Hook tragedy is just one of many real-world disasters where tapping has been successfully used to help survivors find relief from tremendous emotional, mental, and physical pain. Applications of energy psychology interventions following disasters in more than 30 countries have shown great promise.

Please Note: This article is based on research and findings in a paper entitled “Uses of Energy Psychology Following Catastrophic Events” by David Feinstein, Ph.D. You can read the full summary of the paper and the original paper here.