MENOPAUSE AWARENESS MONTH - PRIZE DRAW

EFT Tapping: An Introductory Guide to Emotional Freedom Techniques

If you're struggling with anxiety, unwanted cravings, chronic pain, or intrusive thoughts, there's a simple yet powerful technique that could help you find relief. Emotional Freedom Techniques, commonly known as EFT or tapping, is a self-help tool that combines elements of ancient Chinese acupressure with modern psychology to help calm your nervous system and reduce emotional distress.

As clinical hypnotherapists, we teach EFT to almost all of our clients because of its remarkable effectiveness and ease of use. In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore what EFT is, how it works, and the wide range of issues it can help address.

What is EFT Tapping?

EFT tapping is a therapeutic technique that involves gently tapping on specific acupressure points on your body while focusing on a particular emotional issue or physical sensation. These tapping points are located on the face, hands, and upper body, following meridian lines used in traditional Chinese medicine.

The technique was developed in the 1990s and has since gained recognition worldwide as an accessible self-help tool that can be learned quickly and used anywhere, without any special equipment. All you need are your fingertips and a few minutes of focused attention.

What Can EFT Help With?

The versatility of EFT is one of its greatest strengths. Research and clinical practice have shown that tapping can be effective for a remarkably wide range of issues:

Anxiety and Stress

EFT is particularly effective for managing anxiety. The tapping process quickly activates your parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the relaxation response. Many people report feeling noticeably calmer within just a few minutes of tapping. Whether you're dealing with general anxiety, social anxiety, or panic attacks, EFT provides a practical tool you can use in the moment when you need it most.

Phobias and Fears

From fear of flying to spider phobias, EFT can help gradually reduce the intensity of fear responses. By tapping while thinking about the feared object or situation in a safe, controlled way, you can desensitise yourself to the trigger. This makes EFT an excellent complement to other therapeutic approaches for phobias.

Chronic Pain

While EFT shouldn't replace medical treatment for pain, it can be a valuable tool for pain management. Research has shown that tapping can help reduce pain intensity by addressing the emotional components that often amplify physical discomfort. Many people with conditions like fibromyalgia, headaches, and back pain report improvements in their pain levels after using EFT regularly.

Cravings and Addictive Behaviours

One of the most immediate benefits of EFT is its ability to reduce cravings. Whether you're trying to quit smoking, reduce sugar consumption, or manage other unhealthy habits, tapping on the specific craving as it arises can reduce its intensity within minutes. This gives you a crucial window of control to make a healthier choice.

Intrusive Thoughts and Rumination

If you find yourself caught in loops of negative thinking or experiencing unwanted intrusive thoughts, EFT can help interrupt these patterns. The physical act of tapping combined with focused attention helps shift your mental state and provides relief from persistent, unhelpful thoughts.

Other Applications

EFT has also shown promise in helping with depression, insomnia, PTSD symptoms, low self-esteem, performance anxiety, and even improving athletic performance. The technique's flexibility means it can be adapted to address almost any emotional or psychological challenge.

How Does EFT Work?

While the exact mechanisms are still being researched, EFT appears to work by sending calming signals to the amygdala, the part of your brain responsible for your stress response. When you tap on these specific points while thinking about a stressful situation or uncomfortable feeling, you're essentially teaching your brain that you can think about the issue without triggering a full stress response.

This process helps to rewire the neural pathways associated with emotional distress, creating new, calmer responses to situations that previously caused anxiety, fear, or discomfort.

The Evidence for EFT

The research base for EFT has grown significantly in recent years. Studies have demonstrated measurable physiological changes during EFT sessions, including reductions in cortisol levels of up to 43 percent. A 2022 review of more than fifty research studies found that EFT is moderately to largely effective in managing anxiety, phobias, depression, PTSD, insomnia, and pain.

In the United States, the Veterans Administration has approved EFT as a generally safe therapy, allowing VA therapists to use it with clients suffering from PTSD, depression, anxiety, and pain. In the UK, NICE (the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) has recognised promising evidence for EFT's clinical benefits in improving PTSD symptoms and has recommended it as worthy of further research funding.

While EFT is not yet a mainstream treatment in conventional medicine, the evidence continues to build, and acceptance is growing within both mental health and medical communities.

Why We Teach EFT to Our Hypnotherapy Clients

As clinical hypnotherapists, we've seen firsthand how powerful EFT can be when integrated into a comprehensive treatment approach. We teach this technique to almost all of our clients for several important reasons.

First, EFT empowers you to take an active role in your own healing. Rather than being dependent on a therapist or medication, you have a tool you can use independently whenever you need it. This sense of control and self-efficacy is valuable in itself and contributes to long-term wellbeing.

Second, EFT works quickly. While deep therapeutic change often takes time, EFT can provide immediate relief from acute symptoms. This makes it an excellent coping strategy for managing difficult moments between therapy sessions.

Third, the technique is safe and has no negative side effects when used appropriately. Unlike some interventions, you can't harm yourself by tapping. The worst that might happen is that it doesn't work for a particular issue, but there's no risk of making things worse.

Finally, EFT complements hypnotherapy beautifully. Both approaches work with the subconscious mind and help create new neural pathways. Many clients find that using EFT between hypnotherapy sessions helps reinforce and accelerate their progress.

Getting Started with EFT

If you're interested in trying EFT for yourself, the basic technique is straightforward to learn. You identify the issue you want to work on, rate its intensity, and then tap through a sequence of points on your body while focusing on the problem. After each round of tapping, you reassess the intensity to track your progress.

However, for best results, especially when dealing with complex issues like trauma, phobias, or chronic conditions, it's advisable to work with a trained practitioner who can guide you through the process effectively and safely.

Learn More About EFT Tapping

If you'd like to explore how EFT tapping could help you, we offer detailed information and support for specific issues:

For anxiety and stress management, visit our dedicated page on EFT for anxiety.

If you're struggling with cravings or addictive behaviours, learn more about how tapping can help on our EFT for cravings page.

EFT is a remarkably accessible and effective tool that can make a real difference in your daily life. Whether you're dealing with anxiety, pain, cravings, or intrusive thoughts, this simple technique could be the key to finding greater emotional freedom and wellbeing.

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse