Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is not a new concept, but its popularity is becoming so widespread, it’s now considered by many to be a mainstream holistic and psychotherapeutic treatment.

EFT is also known as ‘meridian-based psychotherapy’ as well as ‘energy psychology’. It works on the same principles as acupuncture and involves the manipulation of pressure points on the body. Unlike acupuncture however, EFT does not require the use of needles or any invasive procedures; nor does it require administration by a practitioner.

It is achieved simply by ‘tapping’ various points on the upper-body. The foremost principle is that emotional energy – which runs through the body – becomes ‘jammed’ at some sites, thereby causing or exacerbating emotional problems. The purpose of EFT is to release that blockage allowing emotional energies to flow freely through the body.

Although, as mentioned, EFT has its origins in many forms of alternative therapies, it was most directly influenced by the ‘Thought Field Therapy’ technique which was developed by Dr Roger Callahan, and then further devolved and defined by Gary Craig in America during the ‘90’s. He sought to make EFT more user-friendly and easy to practice by any individual. All that is required is learning the technique and there are a number of instructional videos available on the internet. The ‘tapping points’ are called Chinese Meridian Points.

The main feature is to literally tap on these points in the upper-body while vocalizing – or thinking – a positive statement. It can be used to assist in dealing with a specific issue that troubles a person. Say, for example, a person was especially angry with someone else, EFT can help that person release that anger and emotionally move past it. This is achieved by a combination of cognitive methodologies – such as visualizing the person who has angered you and then replacing that anger with a positive emotion – in conjunction with tapping on the Chinese Meridian Points. This allows the negative energy to pass through and be replaced by a positive energy, thereby rebalancing the emotional energies.

EFT is a therapy that can be successfully applied to almost any emotional difficulty and it has been shown – though anecdotally, not through clinical research – to be remarkably effective, even in serious psychological conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD).

Advocates of the technique claim that once the body’s energies are balanced using EFT, it is unlikely that the user will become upset in the same way again. It could be argued of course that those who claim to have been helped in this way are in fact not assisted by the technique itself, rather the acceptance that there is a problem that needs addressing and that the process of tapping on the pressure points while vocalizing a problem merely offers a ‘placebo effect’.

No clinical trials have ever been conducted to assess the effectiveness of EFT, but nonetheless, proponents of the technique – both practitioners and those who have used it on themselves to good effect – would doubtless suggest that regardless of the clinical validity of the technique, if it works, then that’s good enough.

Back to Alternative Medicine / Therapies