Using energy psychology is becoming more and more popular, with EFT & TFT practitioners popping up all over the place. However, we sometimes get lost in these abbreviations, and are given a tale from a friend about their experience with one practitioner, which only gives us a glimpse into the technique, because just like every profession, each holistic therapist using energy psychology may be a little different.
Difference between TFT & EFT
Thought Field Therapy (TFT) is tapping on certain acupressure points, to help alleviate a person’s suffering, and it pin points, no pun intended as there are no needles in this therapy, the desired healing of a specific problem.
EFT is an abbreviation of Emotional Freedom Technique. The belief is that we have stored emotional traumas, they may be small, or they could be major.
EFT has a pattern which uses tapping your middle finger on each of the acupressure points discussed in TFT, the main meridian points. This means that we get to work on many difficulties at once, and we are not having to be specific, and we always ‘hit the spot’.
Tapping on the acupressure points, the main meridian points and directing a conversation flow whilst using affirmations can release very powerful effects. From removing headaches in the moment to deep rooted phobias carried for years, EFT can be a very helpful holistic tool.
Benefits of Energy Psychology
There is some great research identifying just how well energy psychology works alongside physical ailments, but the effect it has upon stress is huge.
Effects on Diabetes sufferers
Five minutes of tapping can reduce blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes dramatically, why? Because when we are stressed, we release glucose, and when we tap, we are recharging our central nervous system with a blast of synaptic energy, in other words, we are removing what is literally ‘getting on our nerves’. The result is less stress. Living in a world where 85% of us are regularly overwhelmed by stress, learning small steps we can use effortlessly daily can be life changing. On the eftuniverse website one lady, who is a part of the community, is a type 1 diabetic in the United States and has shared that her blood sugar levels go from 300 down to 115 after tapping.
A journal study on type 2 diabetes ‘Investigation on Emotional-Freedom Technique Effectiveness in Diabetic Patients’ Blood Sugar Control’ can be found here: www.mcser.org/journal/index.php/mjss/article/view/520
Other Ailments
Research has shown EFT is effective for massively reducing feelings of depression resolving post-traumatic stress, anxiety, cravings and addictions, and can even increase athletic performance.
These studies have been carried out in clinical settings as well as gathering data from people using the technique alone. The main bulk of this research has been performed with people suffering mental health difficulties, and the evidence to support using such a simple technique for anxiety and depression is huge.
The evidence shown to increase mental health and wellbeing can be found here: www.eftuniverse.com/research-studies/eft-research#depression
Learn the tapping sequence
You can learn how to use the tapping sequence alone just by practising the rhythmic dance in which the tapping is carried out, or if you feel you have something to work on then you can find many practitioners today who will happily help you either in person or online.
My favourite way to use tapping, is to create great healing meditations in which we can create a story to fit, either building confidence or removing anxiety with suggestive language techniques. To the client this is just a relaxed fairy tale in which they were asked to close their eyes, drift into another world and come back feeling refreshed and fabulous. When we use EFT tapping alongside meditation and some nifty positive suggestion it can absolutely blow our minds.
