Emotional Freedom Technique

”Tapping”, an alternative approach to managing anxiety,
stress, mood & more.
Jason Markel
Associate Marriage & Family Therapist
Authentic Counseling Associates

What is the Emotional Freedom Technique (Tapping)?

EFT or Tapping is an alternative treatment for emotional
and/or physical distress.

Tapping is a brief intervention combining elements of
exposure therapy, cognitive therapy, and somatic
stimulation of acupressure points on the head, face and
body.

Tapping purports to access Meridian lines (energy lines)
to soothe and regulate physical and emotional distress.

How does Tapping work?

Tapping is done in a circuit. It is generally repeated
at least three times and when guided, scaling of
symptoms are monitored.

The subject will “tap” on various points along the
head, face, and upper body while combining
acknowledgment of emotion and a positive
affirmation with deep breathing.

Tapping Technique from Authentic Counseling — Diagram of points on the body to tap

Brief History of EFT

1962 – Dr. George Goodheart, DC began studying Acupuncture
and developed a technique he called “Applied Kinesiology”.

1970’s – Dr. John Diamond, an Australian Psychiatrist built upon this by developing “Behavioral Kinesiology” adding affirmations to treat emotional problems.

1980’s – Dr. Roger Callahan, an American Psychologist studied the
The meridian system of Acupuncture furthered this approach
calling it Thought Field Therapy.

1990’s – Gary Craig, an enthusiastic student of Dr. Callahan began
marketing his own version, calling it EFT, to the general public

EFT Uses & Controversy

EFT is used by medical, psychological, and alternative health
practitioners to treat a variety of issues such as Anxiety, Phobias,
Depression and PTSD.

Proponents of EFT claim that EFT is widely studied and evidence-based.

Opponents of EFT claim it is pseudoscience and essentially
“quackery”.

During the course of preparing this presentation, it appeared that
some of the research that is often presented as evidence in favor of
EFT had repeating authors’ names and potential conflicts of interest.

My (Limited) Clinical Experience

I have seen EFT used with clients who have severe PTSD from the
2018 Camp Fire in Paradise, CA with successful outcomes.

Every time I have used EFT with a client it has produced results with
at least mild improvement.

As someone who practices “energy work”, I can’t claim to be
completely impartial, but whatever the reasoning for positive
outcomes – I find EFT to be a beneficial tool.