Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is an alternative treatment for physical and emotional distress. It is also referred to as tapping, psychological acupressure or acupuncture without needles.
This technique was created in 1990 by Gary Craig which at that time was used as a type of energy psychology. EFT can be explained in a simple way of relating it to a circuit breaker in your kitchen. If the breaker gets overpowered, you cannot turn on the light or the refrigerator won’t cool until the breaker has been reset. EFT resets the circuits in a person's body and mind. As an individual tunes into their problem in a gentle, conversational manner they can balance the body’s energy meridians while tapping.
Our body has energy that flows through it and based on Chinese medicine this energy flows through what is called meridian points. (1) This pathway helps balance energy flow to maintain our health. To stimulate the meridian points with EFT, individuals gently tap using their fingertips while focusing on the issue at hand. Most people are aware of memories, events, smells, or images that can trigger emotional discomfort in their lives, but they have not recognized that those triggers are connected to the symptoms of disease in their bodies. Physical and emotional symptoms can subside when this is done properly.
There is a growing amount of research that is undeniable that proves that EFT produces real, lasting breakthroughs and improves or eliminates conditions that hospital treatments, medication and years of psychotherapy often fail to adequately deal with. (2) Research has been done at Harvard and other prestigious universities that show the brain’s stress and fear response could be lessened by stimulating the meridian points used in acupuncture, acupressure, and EFT tapping. (2)
Tapping is divided into 5 steps-
First- you need to identify the issue in order to make this technique effective,
Second- you identify the intensity of the problem that you are wanting to address from a 1-10 with 10 being the worst
Third- you need a set up phrase that explains what you are trying to address
Fourth- you start tapping in a specific sequence from the side of your hand below the pinky finger, then to the top of your head, then to your upper eyebrow, then to the side of your eye, then under your nose, then on your chin, then to your collarbone, then to under your arm, and then end on the top of your head
Fifth- you check the intensity again to see if it has gone down from your initial number. You can repeat this process as many times as you feel necessary or until you get to a 0 for intensity
War veterans and active military that have been diagnosed with PTSD have effectively been treated with EFT tapping. Dawson Churchill PhD and his team performed a randomized control trial using EFT tapping with 83 veterans that met the criteria for PTSD. The subjects were randomly divided into two groups, EFT group and the standard of care wait list group. The 30 subjects in the EFT group received 6 one-hour long EFT coaching sessions concurrent with standard care. These two groups were compared before treatment and 1 month after treatment. The EFT subjects had significantly reduced symptoms of psychological distress and PTSD symptom levels after the test. (3) At the end of the study the 29 individuals who were in the control group were then treated with EFT. After three sessions, 60% of them no longer met the criteria for PTSD. (3) This increased to 86% after three more treatments. (3) 49 participants that were remaining from both groups were tested at the six-month mark and 80% of the continued to remain below the criteria for PTSD.
Researchers wanted to see if they could replicate the study results, so they recruited 58 veterans who scored 50 or greater on the PTSD checklist. Participants were also randomized into two groups, 32 that received the 6- one-hour EFT sessions, and 26 that just did their treatment as usual. The results were similar to the first study where the EFT group demonstrated a significant reduction in symptoms while the control group showed no significant change. (4) The results from the first study were able to be replicated therefore the researchers concluded that EFT is an evidenced based practice that is highly effective at reducing symptom severity in veterans with PTSD.
The great thing is that tapping can help anyone, not just war veterans. People don't have to have witnessed war or devastation for tapping to work in your life. Tapping moves energy and everything is energy. Tapping is the way to move energy to give a voice to the things that you might be afraid to say or ashamed to say or even feel guilty for. It can give people the opportunity to use their voice to speak their unspoken thoughts and express those buried feelings. When this is done, the energy is moved in the process and those blocks are then freed and their symptoms are reduced or eliminated. In my practice, people are needing a safe space to try identify and verbalize their feeling. This is an important step in keeping our emotional energy flowing in order to feel healthy and happy.
Balance can be restored to disrupted energy through tapping and is an alternative acupressure therapy treatment used by thousands of people. Clients have demonstrated much success with their health and wellness goals using tapping as an alternative treatment in reducing symptoms associated with anxiety, depression, physical pain, insomnia and more. You deserve to feel that way to! If you feel you need help click here and book a complimentary call where we can discuss your health goals.
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