Getting Down to the C.O.R.E. of the Matter: Alternative Therapy for the Mind, Body and Spirit
By Lisa Wanta
From the April 2006
Issue of Applaud Magazine

“Spiritually enlightening—unique and fascinating—absolutely amazing—positive and magical…” No, this is not a description of the recent movie “The Chronicles of Narnia” or even of the latest Harry Potter book. Instead, these are phrases used to describe the work of Dr. Erika Duffy, holistic therapist and counselor, who hangs out her sparkling shingle in Goffstown, New Hampshire. “It (her work) is unbelievable,” said Matt Croteau of Hampton, NH. “She’s one of the very few people I look up to… she has a lot of wisdom and know-how…she helped me make sense of things.” “She’s a unique person to work with,” said Emily Klein, who lives in the greater Boston area. “She really has gifts helping people to find more awareness and healing.” Duffy, who has been involved with alternative therapy for approximately twenty years, has as many facets to her career as do the crystals she uses occasionally in her work. She is certified to do Reiki healing, S.T.E.P. parenting classes, weight loss counseling, and personality analysis, among other things. However, it is her doctoral certification in C.O.R.E. education that Duffy uses primarily in her day-to-day work. C.O.R.E. education is a form of alternative psychological therapy that Duffy said works more quickly and effectively than traditional counseling. “Traditional therapy brings emotions up, but when the session’s over, people have to just sit there with those (negative) feelings,” said Duffy. “C.O.R.E. actually teaches people healing—how to release that emotional connection, that energy.” C.O.R.E. stands for Conscious- Ownership- Retrieve/Release- Engage, which are the steps that Duffy teaches clients to take on the path to a “life of elegance and enchantment.” (A.S.A.T. org.) Using a person’s conscious desire to work on their issues, Duffy shows clients different ways to raise up their buried feelings, using techniques such as meditation and self-hypnosis. Once clients are aware of the emotions of the past, which may be crippling their present, Duffy helps people heal painful memories, release the negative energy surrounding those emotions, and learn new ways to deal with similar situations in the future. “The brain is like software; I teach people to go in and rewire the software,” said Duffy. She also said that the brain’s emotional memory does not distinguish clearly between fact and fiction; so, if you alter the brain’s perception of a past event, in a sense you can alter reality. Duffy herself is no stranger to painful memories, or to the desire, that many feel, somehow to alter reality. After a traumatic childhood, Erika spent years struggling with feelings of guilt, depression, and fear. Since no one taught her how to confront these feelings, much less how to defeat them, the emotional pain began turning into physical problems. As a young woman, Erika suffered from vertigo, blackouts, and spinal problems, one of which left her temporarily crippled. She also developed agoraphobia, a fear so intense that she was unable to leave the house. Traditional doctors and therapists worked with Erika, offering her pills and psycho-analysis, but Erika did not improve. Finally, Erika sought help through alternative therapy, determined to find what connection, if any, her past emotional injuries had to her current state of sickness. In Erika’s own words: “The more I resisted these emotions, the more intense they became. So... I stopped trying to control how I felt and instead started working with it.”( taken from Erika’s book Wake up and Live the Life You Love, Seizing Your Success). After undergoing alternative therapy, Erika’s symptoms disappeared. Thrilled with finding the golden pot of health at the end of her search, Erika decided she wanted to share the riches with others. Over the next ten years, she attended classes through the American Society of Alternative Therapists, exploring the delicate, but definite, connection between mind and body. During her studies, Erika learned how to perform a number of treatments which would help people heal themselves. “We have to take responsibility for our own health,” said Duffy. “Most people want to dump (that responsibility) into the doctor’s lap… people don’t realize they have their own power to change.” In the late 1990’s, Duffy set up an alternative counseling/therapy practice in her Goffstown home. To do so, Erika had to perform some of her own techniques on herself, as she faced old feelings of self-doubt and fear. However, in Duffy’s mind, the benefits far outweighed the risks, and she was soon open for business, eager to use her knowledge like golden keys, ready to unlock her clients’ potential. One of the treatments that Duffy learned to perform is Reiki, pronounced Ray-key. According to Duffy, Reiki is an ancient hands-on healing technique that releases pain. This treatment, which has its roots far back in Eastern thought, seeks to tap into the universal energy which is believed to be flowing all around us, like an omnipresent ocean. When performing Reiki, Duffy has her clients rest in a comfortable position, usually on a massage table. In order to create a soothing atmosphere for both the mind and the senses, she generally plays some soft music and lights scented candles. Then, placing her hands on or above key points on the client’s body, Duffy seeks to channel the life-force energy in a way that produces both emotional and physical healing. For Reiki to work, said Duffy, clients must be willing to receive and believe in the treatment. “If the person says, ‘Well, I don’t know, but I’ll try it,’ I’ll use (Reiki) on them,” said Duffy. However, if the client is very scared or skeptical of the technique, Duffy will not attempt Reiki healing. During a successful Reiki treatment, said Duffy, a person will often feel physical sensations: vibrations, tingles, or faint heat. Afterwards, patients usually feel lighter, de-stressed and peaceful. In addition, any physical pain they were feeling is often less, or even completely gone. Another treatment that Duffy will occasionally use on her patients is crystal therapy. According to Duffy, crystals often form a part of alternative therapy become of their unique frequencies. “We’ve been using silicon crystals in our radios and computers for years,” said Duffy. She also said that study of holistic medicine gives us the capability to utilize that energy for healing. An additional tool that Duffy uses to guide her clients is the Enneagram. An ancient, nine-sided symbol, the Enneagram combines parts of many belief systems within its complex lines and points: Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, and parts of Jewish mysticism called the cabala. In using the Enneagram, Duffy asks her clients a series of intense questions about themselves and their childhood experiences. This then helps reveal where the client’s personality falls in the puzzling diagram, which is shaped like a multi-pointed star within a circle. Not only does the Enneagram help people in discovering their own character “drives” or traits, but also in learning how to avoid negative behaviors related to that personality. Matt Croteau, a client of Duffy’s for the last two years, has found her varied approach to therapy very helpful. “I’ve experienced a 180-degree life change since I’ve seen her,” Croteau said. “I’m still working on a few things, but I’ve noticed a significant improvement in my relationships…. and I’ve learned that if I don’t like a situation, I have the power to change it.” Karen Girard, from Manchester, went to Erika Duffy several months ago for guidance in meeting some specific goals such as weight loss and further education. “(Erika) helped me break some patterns of sabotage,” said Girard, who works as a public relations agent for an ad agency. Although Girard felt successful in most areas of her life, she kept stumbling on a few key issues. Erika, said Girard, showed her how to delve into the past through meditation, and clear out some of the emotional boulders that were blocking her path. In the last few months, Girard has achieved a steady weight loss—even over the holiday season! “Once you know where this (the negative pattern of sabotage) is coming from, you can move forward,” said Girard. Emily Klein, who has worked with Duffy over the last year, was drawn to contact the therapist during a time of transition in her own life. In the middle of a stressful move, Klein found herself driving in a car at 8:30 on Sunday morning, listening to 100.7 FM, WZLX Boston. There she heard Dr. Duffy talking on her once-a-month radio show, “Wake Up and Live,” with Kimberly Jaegar. “What she said really resonated with my own belief system,” said Klein. Following her intuition, Klein got in touch with Duffy and began to work on some of her issues—“my CORE issues”—as Klein said. Now, said Klein, her therapy with Erika has re-energized her life in many different ways. “I look deeper for (behavior) patterns… (and) I have a lot more awareness of how to handle certain situations,” said Klein. Besides co-hosting a radio show on the fourth Sunday of every month, Dr. Duffy conducts seminars and workshops on Reiki healing, crystal therapy, and weight reduction. She also has had the chance to study under Dr. Michael Newton, best-selling author of Journey of Souls and Destiny of Souls, learning the therapy techniques described in his books directly from the master. In addition, Erika has been published many times, most recently in the book Wake Up and Live the Life You Really Want to Live, available through Barnes & Noble. In this book, Erika’s writing is featured alongside that of Deepak Chopra, Dr. Wayne Dyer, and Mark Victor Hansen, co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Looking into the future, Erika Duffy sees herself continuing to work with clients and teaching seminars, taking every opportunity to educate people about alternative health. “I don’t look at this as a business—I look at it as something I do daily that helps people,” said Duffy. “I want to help people wake up and see how magical this is—to say ‘ All you have to do is (change) your consciousness, and you can change your life.’ Dr. Erika Duffy can be contacted through her website at www.erikaduffy.com, or by phone at (603) 497-4693.