emotional freedom technique (EFT)
eft tapping
Calm your Nervous System with “Emotional Acupressure”
EFT is a powerful stress relief technique often described as "modern psychology meets eastern traditional medicine." It is an evidence-based healing modality designed to calm the central nervous system and specifically the amygdala, which is responsible for our Fight/Flight/Freeze system.
It involves tapping on acupressure points—near the end points of “energy meridians” located around the body. It is the most popular Energy Psychology technique available today.
Stanford Engineer Gary Craig founded EFT in the 1990’s. He was a student of Psychologist Dr. Roger Callahan’s TFT (Thought Field Therapy) tapping therapy of the 1980’s. Gary was able to simplify the process—eliminating some of the tapping points and making it less complex and easier to learn.
Some common issues addressed successfully with EFT are:
Worry, Stress, Anxiety & Panic Attacks
Depression
PTSD, Trauma
Disruptive emotions such as anger, fear, sadness and self-doubt
Emotions contributing to physical pain, illness and addiction
Phobias or fear of public speaking, flying, heights, driving, etc.
Emotional problems tied to low self-esteem
Insomnia
Food cravings and emotional eating
Physical pain
EFT is most effective when working with an experienced practitioner who can help you get to the root cause of your issue. We all have blind spots and are our own worst Coaches & Therapists. Please click the button below for a Free Clarity Call to discuss your issue and see if I can be of service.
HOW TAPPING WORKS & Why EFT is the “4th Wave” in Therapy
The 1st video below explains how tapping works by calming down the amygdala, the region in the brain that drives the “Fight or Flight” response when it senses danger.
In the 2nd video Dr. Peta Stapleton, clinical and health psychologist and world researcher in EFT, discusses why EFT is one of the “4th Wave” of therapies—the somatic or body-based approaches.
RESEARCH
EFT has been used to treat PTSD in veterans from Vietnam, WWII, and the Korean War. According to Dawson Church, PhD, the veterans’ PTSD symptoms fell significantly after tapping. They no longer experienced flashbacks, nightmares, or hyper-reactivity to ordinary events.
Here are just a few examples of what science is telling us about the power of EFT:
Researchers in Turkey discovered that EFT helped reduce test anxiety for nursing school students.
A recent study found that EFT helped reduce anxiety in women undergoing surgery.
A recent Australian study showed that EFT can reduce food cravings and assist in weight management.
For more information about this growing body of scientific research, be sure to check out these sources:
Exciting studies about EFT and its beneficial effects on depression and stress
Research papers on the science and research happening in the EFT world
The EFT science and research page from EFT International, where you can search for specific studies