The Life-Changing Benefits of EFT (aka Tapping)
Research shows that it works and can even help with PTSD
I first learned about the Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT over a dozen years ago, at a class being offered at a metaphysical library in Seattle. Though I had experienced personal benefits from acupressure, acupuncture and reflexology, I didn’t really appreciate this new approach to working with energy and the meridians of the body.
Fast forward to October 2018. My mom died after a long, horrendous mental decline due to Alzheimer’s disease. Shortly after that, my business began to show signs that I needed to make some drastic changes to keep it viable. Then, to top it off, I learned my good friend, who had happily invited me to live in a house she owned, informed me that she was selling said house, and I had to move.
Death. Business pivot. Move. All in a matter of a few months.
Needless to say, my stress response was off the charts. My anxiety at an all-time high. Many of my tried-and-true tools and techniques just weren’t cutting it.
In the midst of this personal turbulence, I began to notice that classes and conferences on EFT kept showing up in my email, Facebook newsfeed and conversations with friends. I took this as a sign and decided to finally give it a try. I certainly had nothing to lose.
For those of you are unfamiliar with EFT (aka as energy psychology or tapping), it is a healing modality that involves systematic tapping of specific end points of the energy meridian system (some of the same ones used by acupuncturists and acupressure practitioners), to diffuse the intensity of stressful emotions and create a state of overall well-being.
EFT was founded by Gary Craig who learned Thought Field Therapy from Dr. Richard Callahan, a clinical psychologist in 1991. Four years later, Craig release his first EFT training and guide. There were other students of Dr. Callahan that have also made contributions to this innovative healing approach.
Since then, numerous studies have shown that EFT works!
In research conducted at Harvard Medical School over a period of ten years, found that tapping on meridian points decreases arousal in the amygdala (the part of your brain that triggers a “fight or flight” stress response in the body). EFT doesn’t suppress the feelings that are triggered. Instead, it brings them into your awareness and then through tapping, sends a signal to the brain which reduces the stress response.
Dawson Church, PhD, Executive Director of the National Institute for Integrative Healthcare in Fulton, CA and fellow researchers surveyed 448 EFT practitioners about their experience using EFT to treat PTSD. A total of “63% reported that even complex PTSD can be remediated in 10 or fewer EFT sessions.”*
Initially, I thought EFT would be complicated to learn. To my relief, I learned that there was an app (of course!) called The Tapping Solution, making it super easy to jump in and receive the benefits right away. The app has tapping exercises for all kinds of issues. Some are free and some are part of their premium service.
According to The Tapping Solution website, “The basic technique requires you to focus on the negative emotion at hand: a fear or anxiety, a bad memory, an unresolved problem, or anything that’s bothering you. While maintaining your mental focus on this issue, use your fingertips to tap 5-7 times each on 12 of the body’s meridian points. Tapping on these meridian points – while concentrating on accepting and resolving the negative emotion – will access your body’s energy, restoring it to a balanced state.”
I’m happy to report that after using the app, I felt immediate relief! I plan on continuing to make EFT a regular part of my self-care routine.
There are lots of great sources of information and classes to learn more about EFT. Here are few to help you get started (none are affiliates).
The Science Behind Tapping: A Proven Stress Management Technique for the Mind and Body by Peta Stapleton Ph.D https://www.amazon.com/Science-behind-Tapping-Management-Technique/dp/1401955738
Dr. Mercola has a video of an EFT demonstration as well as an EFT Video Library https://eft.mercola.com/
The Gary Craig Official EFT™ Training Centers
https://www.emofree.com/
5 Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT Tapping Benefits for Stress, Pain & More https://draxe.com/emotional-freedom-technique-eft-tapping-therapy/
The Tapping Solution
https://www.thetappingsolution.com/
Tapping.com
http://www.tapping.com/
Happy Tapping!
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Thanks for sharing, tapping makes sense as it "taps"into our energy sources like homeopathy, acupuncture etc. So much healing potential that crys out not to be suppressed unnecessarily by many knee jerk allopathic medicines. All my best!
I first used EFT during my stressful separation from my husband. I felt overwhelmed with grief and fear of the unknown. The training materials were free, that was 2008. I think naming the emotion and realizing that it can pass through is a helpful step in being with it and allowing it. I felt relief from the sense of being controlled by the emotion. And after a session felt neutral and calm. Like an emotional shower. Afterwords I had the power to decide how I would think about the event. I found myself moving fairly quickly to forgiveness and a sense of fondness for my ex-husband. I too use it often to help me move through difficult situations. Thank you, Victoria for writing about it.