EFT ("Tapping") combines elements of millennia-old Chinese medicine, modern psychology, brain science and more to liberate the body's sometimes startling ability to release or resolve mental and physical distress. EFT stands for Emotional Freedom Techniques. However, because EFT acts on underlying systems of the body/mind, it is applied to a very wide array of physical and mental/emotional issues, as well to clear blocks to positive change and enhanced performance. EFT generally involves tapping on acupuncture points on one's own face and body while focused on a specific issue. It's often referred to simply as Tapping (or Meridian Tapping,) although EFT includes additional and alternative techniques. Sigh of Relief practices "clinical EFT," the same methods used in clinical studies of EFT. Generally, we use the terms EFT, Tapping, and EFT Tapping interchangeably. To learn more, see more FAQ's, book a free chat with Sophie, or explore on your own at TheTappingSolution.com or EFTUniverse.com.

A method like EFT Tapping draws on many traditions, and develops over time among a variety of pioneers. Reflecting it's body/mind approach, Tapping's development has always involved both physical and mental health practitioners. In 1962, American chiropractor Dr. George Goodheart began learning about acupuncture, a part of traditional Chinese medicine. He found tapping on certain acupuncture points to relieve distress and help his clients, and began to teach this "emotional stress release procedure" (ESR) to others. Mental health professionals such as Dr. Patricia Carrington, Dr. John Diamond, Dr. Roger Callahan developed these techniques, and Stanford engineer Gary Craig streamlined the method, shaping and spreading what is now the most commonly practiced form of Meridian Tapping, EFT.

EFT helps liberate the body/mind's capacity for resolving stress, for healing, for change, and for optimizing performance. Like with many scientific advances, (penicillin, for example, or the use of PEMFs--Pulsed Electromagnetic Fields--for bone healing,) people saw that Tapping worked before understanding how it worked. How can such a simple-seeming process lead to such diverse, often rapid and permanent improvements? Today, we are still learning, but newer instruments and studies show that: The points on the body that we tap, press or hold--aka acupuncture/meridian end points--have a lower electrical resistance than other skin, meaning they conduct electricity more easily. (Also sound.) Many human tissues are piezoelectric: tapping or pressing them releases tiny amounts of electricity in the body. Tapping these points sends signals directly to the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for "fight, flight or freeze," or stress response. EFT reliably causes stress hormones like cortisol to drop--more than relaxation exercises or 'talk therapy' alone. We're learning more about the connection between stress, chronic inflammation and disease; the role of early trauma in long-term health outcomes; and other deep relatedness between body and mind. Tapping while our body/mind is focused on a challenging issue appears to send a contrasting signal that the fight-flight-or-freeze response is not necessary. In turn, this begins to drain the emotional charge and rewire the brain, at times revealing subtle associations we did not even know we had. This disassociation of events, symptoms, memories, and even beliefs from a stress response often clears the way for rapid relief of physical and emotional distress, surprising new insights, permanent shifts, and even unexpected healing. Scientific research as well as other ways of knowing continue to reveal more about the way meridians (energy expressways in the body), more subtle energies, memory, cells, organs, conductive tissue like the fascia, quantum phenomena and more work in the body and make healing possible.

PLEASE NOTE that Tapping does not replace appropriate medical care. Be sure to always seek proper medical diagnosis and treatment as needed. Because EFT Tapping affects underlying systems of the body, it has been applied to, and in many cases clinically shown to clear or improve a surprisingly wide range of physical and emotional distress, as well as enhance positive performance, such as: Phobias, fears and anxiety Fear of snakes, water, etc. Fear of public speaking Test anxiety or other triggers Pain Headaches and body pains Post surgery recovery Fibromyalgia, arthritis and more Acute emotional distress Anxiety attacks Painful break up Post-traumatic stress Shifting stuck patterns Intrusive thoughts Distorted, limiting beliefs Unwanted patterns or habits First aid Burns, scrapes and stings Sprains and breaks (pain/swelling and bruising) Nausea Performance enhancement Sports performance Speaking or artistic performance Preparing for a stressful event or situation

EFT has been shown to affect the autonomic nervous system, stress hormones, and brain activity. In short, tapping seems to disassociate events or symptoms from a stress response, rewiring the brain and enabling spontaneous relief, insight, and permanent shifts. (For more, see links below.) Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) are the gold standard of scientific studies on whether a treatment works. Scientists at Harvard, UCBerkeley, Walter Reed Military Medical Center, and other research facilities around the world have conducted studies and meta-analyses on Tapping (clinical EFT) that have been published in at least 20 different peer-reviewed professional journals. Studies on relieving phobias, anxiety, depression and PTSD show Tapping (clinical EFT) to be an 'empirically-validated' and 'efficacious' technique according to well-defined standards of The American Psychological Association. Studies have shown EFT to effectively reduce or eliminate text anxiety, fear of public speaking, and a variety of pain conditions, from tension headaches to frozen shoulder syndrome to pain of childbirth, and even psoriasis, often in a single session. With 4 to 10 sessions (individual or group,) EFT has been shown to reduce pain, anxiety and other symptoms in veterans with PTSD and with chemical-pulmonary-injuries, fibromyalgia patients. It's even been shown to help control blood glucose levels. Six "dismantling studies" have shown the tapping component to be an 'active ingredient' in the efficacy of EFT.