Emotional Freedom Technique - A Tool of Transformation

Emotional Freedom Technique – A Tool of Transformation

Everyone experiences stress sometimes, especially this time of year with loved ones getting sick, plans changing or starting toget ready for the holidays. Sometimes that stress turns into anxiety or feelings of overwhelm and then we find ourselves reaching for some sort of unhealthy coping skill that is sabotaging our personal goals. So what’s the solution?

Emotional Freedom Technique or E.F.T. is a tool of transformation, based in Chinese medicine, which can transformour energy, our mind and our emotions. E.F.T. is a psychological form of acupuncture or acupressure that can facilitate the process of rewiring your emotional response to a thought about the past, present or future. This is typically a two-step process in E.F.T. therapy where we first unhook the emotional response (such as fear, anxiety, sadness or anger) to the thought and then re-hook a new, more helpful emotional response instead.

E.F.T. has been shown to reduce activity in a part of the brain called the amygdala which is typically activated in situations of fear or threat. This allows E.F.T. to produce a sense of calm, safety and being at peace. Furthermore, E.F.T. can reducefeelings of anxiety and calm the nervous system. With its calming effect, E.F.T has also been used for managing symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as well as processing traumatic memories.

The research being done on E.F.T. also indicates that it can reduce cortisol levels in the body. In a randomized controlled trial of E.F.T., the results showed that cortisol levels in the EFT group declined 24% with an hour of E.F.T. tapping while the other group, who received rest, declined by an average of 14%(Church, Yount, & Brooks, 2012). Other research indicates that using E.F.T. can significantly decrease pain, anxiety, depression, and PTSD symptoms. Furthermore, the use of E.F.T. showed an increase in happiness levels and immune system function (Bachet al.,2019).

If you would like to know more about E.F.T. and how to use this tool of transformation effectively for yourself or others please join the E.F.T. Weekend Workshop on Jan. 7th and 8th, 2023, from 9am-5pm at Dalhousie Health & Wellness. More information about the workshop can be found here.


References:
Church, D., Yount, G., & Brooks, A. J. (2012). The effect of emotional freedom techniques on stress biochemistry: a randomized controlled trial. The Journal of nervous and mental disease, 200(10), 891–896. https://doi.org/10.1097/NMD.0b013e31826b9fc1

Bach, D., Groesbeck, G., Stapleton, P., Sims, R., Blickheuser, K., & Church, D. (2019). Clinical EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) Improves Multiple Physiological Markers of Health. Journal of evidence-based integrative medicine, 24, 2515690X18823691. https://doi.org/10.1177/2515690X18823691