The Latest Science of Clinical EFT Tapping
Summary
TLDRIn this informative webinar, Associate Professor Peter Stapleton from Bond University discusses the scientific advancements in Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), a psychophysiological approach integrating exposure therapy with stress reduction. With over 320 studies supporting its efficacy, Stapleton highlights brain scan research demonstrating EFT's impact on food cravings and chronic pain, as well as its comparable effectiveness to cognitive therapy and EMDR. He also delves into the discovery of the primovascular system, providing a physical basis for the traditional acupuncture points used in EFT, and explains how this system facilitates the technique's rapid physiological effects on stress and pain.
Takeaways
- 📚 EFT, or Emotional Freedom Techniques, is a psychophysiological technique that combines elements of cognitive therapy with exposure therapy and body-based stress reduction.
- 🔍 There are over 320 publications on EFT, with more than 29 meta-analyses or systematic reviews, and over 65 randomized clinical trials, indicating a robust body of research supporting its efficacy.
- 🌐 Research on EFT is global, with studies emerging from countries like Malaysia, Iran, Iraq, and South Korea, showing cultural adaptability of the technique.
- 📈 Of the 320 studies in energy psychology, 99 demonstrate scientific evidence supporting EFT, placing it in the top 10 percent of published psychotherapy modalities.
- 🧬 Biological studies on EFT include DNA testing and functional MRIs, showing a profound physiological impact beyond subjective outcomes.
- 🧠 Brain scan studies have shown that EFT can significantly reduce signals associated with food cravings and chronic pain in the brain, suggesting a neurological basis for its effects.
- 💉 Historically, EFT was thought to work through an energy or meridian system similar to acupuncture, but modern research points to a more physical mechanism.
- 🔬 Recent studies have identified a physical connection between acupuncture points and the body's connective tissues, suggesting a primovascular system that may transmit signals when stimulated.
- 📊 Research has shown that EFT is comparable to gold standard therapies like cognitive-behavioral therapy and EMDR, often achieving similar outcomes in less time.
- 🌟 The understanding of EFT has evolved from energy flow disruption to a scientifically-backed method with a clear physiological impact on the brain and body.
- 🔄 The mechanism of EFT is now believed to involve the conversion of mechanical signals from tapping into electrical signals through a process known as mechanosensory transduction.
Q & A
Who is Peter Stapleton and what is his area of expertise?
-Peter Stapleton is an associate professor from Bond University in Australia. His area of expertise is in the field of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), also known as tapping, and the psychophysiological effects of this technique.
What is the significance of the number 320 in the context of EFT research?
-The number 320 refers to the total number of publications related to EFT, indicating a substantial body of research supporting the technique.
What is the 'gold standard approach' in research mentioned by Professor Stapleton?
-The 'gold standard approach' in research typically refers to methods like meta-analysis, systematic review, and randomized clinical trials, which are considered the most rigorous and reliable forms of scientific investigation.
How does EFT integrate with other therapeutic approaches?
-EFT integrates with other therapeutic approaches by borrowing elements from cognitive therapy and adding exposure therapy and body-based stress reduction techniques.
What is the role of the primovascular system in the context of EFT?
-The primovascular system is a recently identified physical system that is believed to be involved in the mechanism of action for acupuncture and EFT. It is suggested to transmit signals when acupuncture points are stimulated, affecting areas of the brain like the amygdala.
How does EFT compare to other forms of psychotherapy in terms of research support?
-EFT is in the top 10 percent of published research for psychotherapy modalities, indicating a strong scientific backing for its effectiveness.
What are the implications of the studies showing that EFT has a physiological impact?
-The physiological impact of EFT, as shown by studies such as DNA testing and functional MRIs, suggests that the technique can lead to tangible changes in the body's stress response and symptomology.
What does the acronym 'EEG' stand for and what role does it play in EFT research?
-EEG stands for Electroencephalogram, a tool used to measure electrical activity in the brain. In EFT research, it helps to demonstrate the technique's impact on brain function.
How does the research on the Meridian system contribute to our understanding of EFT?
-The Meridian system, which is the basis for acupuncture, provides a historical and theoretical framework for understanding the pathways through which EFT may influence the body's energy flow and stress response.
What were the findings of the 2017 Acupuncture Project regarding the effectiveness of acupuncture points?
-The 2017 Acupuncture Project found that out of 122 medical and psychiatric conditions studied, only five did not show any effect from acupuncture, indicating that acupuncture points are effective for a wide range of conditions.
What is the significance of the research on collagen's role in the primovascular system?
-The research on collagen suggests that it may act as a transmitter along the primovascular system, providing a physical mechanism for how signals from acupuncture points can affect the body and brain.
How does EFT compare to other therapies like cognitive behavioral therapy and EMDR in terms of effectiveness and time required?
-EFT is comparable to therapies like cognitive behavioral therapy and EMDR in terms of effectiveness but is often reported to achieve similar outcomes in half the time, possibly due to its direct physiological impact on the brain.
Outlines
🧠 Advancements in EFT Research and Its Impact on Brain
Professor Peter Stapleton introduces the latest research on Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), highlighting its psychophysiological nature that combines cognitive therapy with exposure therapy and body-based stress reduction. With over 320 publications, including meta-analyses, systematic reviews, and randomized clinical trials, EFT has shown significant effectiveness in stress reduction and symptom improvement. The professor also discusses the cultural adaptation of EFT in non-English speaking countries and the biological evidence from DNA testing and brain imaging studies that demonstrate EFT's profound physiological effects. The webinar aims to explain the mechanism behind EFT's effectiveness, including its historical roots in the Meridian system and modern brain scan studies that show changes in the brain after EFT treatments.
🔍 The Meridian System and the Scientific Validation of Acupuncture Points
This paragraph delves into the historical and modern understanding of the Meridian system, foundational to acupuncture and acupressure. It discusses the controversy over the existence of the Meridian system and the research validating the effectiveness of acupuncture points over sham points. The paragraph also covers studies that show the physiological impact of EFT on chronic pain and fear reduction, as well as the revival of research into a possible vascular system associated with acupuncture points. The research suggests an 80% correspondence between acupuncture points and the body's connective tissues, indicating a physical basis for the effects of EFT and acupuncture.
🌟 The Primovascular System: Unveiling the Mechanism Behind Acupuncture and EFT
The final paragraph presents the discovery of the primovascular system, which provides a physical explanation for the effects of acupuncture and EFT. It explains how the primovascular system, identified through tracer dye studies, aligns closely with traditional acupuncture points and the Meridian charts. The paragraph discusses how stimulating these points sends a deactivating signal to the brain's stress center, the amygdala, and how this process is now understood to involve an electrical signal transmitted through the body's connective tissue. It also touches on the implications of this discovery for practitioners and the importance of updating knowledge and understanding of EFT's mechanisms.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques)
💡Tapping
💡Meta-analysis
💡Randomized Clinical Trials
💡Energy Psychology
💡Meridian System
💡Functional MRI
💡Primovascular System
💡Mechanosensory Transduction
💡Amygdala
💡Memory Reconsolidation
Highlights
EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) is a psychophysiological technique that combines elements of cognitive therapy with exposure therapy and body-based stress reduction.
There are over 320 publications on EFT, with 29 being meta-analyses or systematic reviews, and 65 randomized clinical trials.
EFT is recognized in the top 10 percent of published research for psychotherapy modalities out of over 600 types.
99 out of 320 studies in energy psychology show scientific evidence supporting the effectiveness of EFT.
Research on EFT is emerging from non-English journals, indicating a global interest and application of the technique.
EFT has been shown to have both subjective outcomes through self-report questionnaires and biological impacts as evidenced by DNA testing and EEG functional MRIs.
Brain scan studies have shown that EFT can significantly reduce food cravings and alter the brain's response to chronic pain.
EFT is based on the concept of a Meridian system, similar to that used in acupuncture, which is believed to be an energy system within the body.
Recent research has suggested a physical basis for the Meridian system, with studies identifying a vascular system associated with acupuncture points.
The primovascular system, as it is now called, has been shown to transmit signals when acupuncture points are stimulated, affecting the brain's stress response.
EFT has been found to be comparable to gold standard therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy and EMDR, often achieving outcomes in half the time.
The mechanism of EFT is thought to involve the conversion of mechanical signals from tapping into electrical signals via mecho sensory transduction.
Collagen is suggested to be the transmitter of signals along the primovascular system, linking physical tapping to physiological effects.
The amygdala, the brain's stress center, has been shown to respond to signals sent by acupuncture points, potentially explaining the stress-reducing effects of EFT.
EFT is not just about shifting energy in the body; it has a physical basis and measurable physiological impacts.
For practitioners and those interested in EFT, it is recommended to update knowledge on the primovascular system and its implications for therapy.
Memory reconsolidation theory may explain the long-lasting effects of EFT, providing a scientific basis for its efficacy over time.
Transcripts
I'm associate professor Peter Stapleton
from Bond University in Australia and
I'd like to share with you the latest
EFT emotional Freedom techniques or
tapping research and really what's
coming out of the research world
now tapping or EFT as a
psychophysiological technique so one
that we use that certainly borrows from
other gold standard approaches such as
cognitive therapy but with the addition
of exposure therapy and a body-based
stress reduction technique now has a
growing database so more than 320
Publications and certainly many of them
over 29 in that gold standard approach
which could be meta-analysis or
systematic review another 65 plus of
randomized clinical trials which
certainly is a gold standard in the
research world and of course many case
studies as well as pre and post cohort
studies have been emerging in addition
to these 320 studies there's over
another 100 papers that are actually
published in peer-reviewed journals but
in non-english journals so they're
coming out of countries such as Malaysia
Iran Iraq uh South Korea and using
variations of EFT that are appropriate
to the cultural Community where they're
running their research now of the 320
studies that have been published in the
field of energy psychology of which EFT
is the most studied 99 of those studies
indeed show the scientific evidence of
the technique so we have been collecting
and developing the research in this area
at a worldwide level and of course here
in Australia I lead some of that
research not only do we have that
building Bank of research that shows EFT
actually can get subjective outcomes so
when our participants in the trials
actually fill out their self-report
questionnaires they will describe a
reduction in a stress sensation or an
improvement in certain symptomology but
we actually have biological studies in
the area of DNA testing EEG functional
MRIS that actually show we profoundly
have a physiological impact and this
particular webinar is outlining why we
know this works today and where we're at
with that so energy psychology is both
in the top 10 percent of published
research for Psychotherapy modalities
you might actually know there's over 600
types of psychotherapy and energy
psychology is in the top 10 percent
there
but it's always been the question how
does this tapping technique work if
we're tapping on what's known as an
acupuncture point in the body what's the
mechanism of change and it's been
exciting to watch this field in the last
five to ten years grow now historically
we've actually had this information
available to us and if you're unfamiliar
with EFT you might not know it's
actually been around for about 50 years
so it's certainly been in the research
field for the last 20 years but 50 years
ago this was actually being taught at
workshop level around the world and how
it was actually explained was that
there's a Meridian system so if you've
ever been off to the acupuncturer's
office and you've seen those charts of
the body that show the lines running
through them there was some belief
system around that that Meridian system
which has all the acupuncture points on
it was an energy system and so EFT
explained itself as being if we take app
on an acupuncture Point instead of using
a fine needle then we're doing something
to disrupt or interrupt the energy flow
in the body and often a TV set with
static was often used as the analogy
there but we have come a long way we
certainly now have brain scan studies
there are four brain scan studies two of
which I've LED here in Australia that
looked at Food craving exposure in that
functional MRI and then after a
four-week EFT program the signal there
looking at those food craving images was
completely non-existent the other study
that I led here in Australia was in The
Chronic pain research that we do know
that pain impact in the brain is quite
noticeable we know areas such as
catastrophizing and magnifying pain can
spread when a chronic pain patient has
had that pain for a very long time and
after a six week week program of EFT
those same patients had an appropriate
area of the brain that looks like a
non-critic pain patient so of course we
need pain to be present in the brain if
indeed we hurt ourselves so if I kick my
toe I'm going to perceive pain but
whether or not it actually becomes
chronic pain is my ability to actually
shift gears there in the brain and be
able to not have it be my present front
of mind for the next six weeks of my
life that pain in my toe so our chronic
pain patients six weeks later actually
looked like that so it was a fabulous
outcome other Studies have been done in
terms of fear of flying and certainly
looking at images that create very
strong Sensations and using tapping to
reduce those so
five thousand years ago of course you
know our Eastern philosophies and the
Chinese did have that Meridian system
and that was the Forefront of where we
are today it is the basis for modern
acupressure and acupuncture but an
obstacle even to the acupuncture field
has always been but does this Meridian
system actually exist there have been
over 65 studies published in the
acupuncture versus sham acupuncture or
non-identified Accu points studies that
have published that truly show it's the
acupuncture points that get the outcomes
whether that's for a health benefit or
stress reduction or whatever the
condition was and we've had that done in
the EFT world too so six dismantling
studies that used other substitutes
instead of tapping on the points that
could have been deep breathing it could
have been tapping on sham acupuncture
points still showed that the traditional
recipe of clinical EFT tapping on known
acupuncture points was indeed the active
uh the active ingredient there so there
was a study done in 2017 called the
Acupuncture Project that looked at 13
000 studies and 122 medical and
psychiatric conditions for acupuncture
and it actually did show that out of all
of those studies 122 only five didn't
show any effect and indeed for the other
117 acupuncture had the effect that was
intended so certainly that research has
been growing still brings us back to but
how does this work
so in the 1960s Professor Kim in Korea
at a university appeared to identify
some sort of vascular system in the
animals that he was working with he was
able to stain that vascular system with
a tracer die and was able to show there
appears to be something physical
now other researchers at the time tried
to replicate This research but couldn't
and so it actually got shelved if you
like in the research world and forgotten
about a little bit
fast forward to
2020-21 and researchers decided again in
Korea to revive that research and have a
look at it again and indeed used human
subjects in their research and actually
were able to find through ultrasound and
80 correspondence between Accu points
and the body's connective tissues so
there appeared to be something physical
there and it was correct about 80
according to those charts that you might
see if you go off to the acupuncturer's
office it suggested there was actually
some relationship here between the
body's connective tissues acupuncture
points and that perhaps there was some
mechanism there that was able to carry a
signal when that acupuncture point was
actually either tapped or a needle was
actually placed into it so in 2021
Tracer dies were able to be used to
inject into that system that vascular
system that they had identified died and
found that the alignment of the
acupuncture points according to the
Meridian charts was incredibly close and
it didn't support that this Meridian
system was indeed a physical vascular
system or a concrete duct system now I
do have in this webinar some slides
coming up from surgery where they're
able to stain these vascular systems and
show you so if whatever reason you're a
little bit squirmish I'll let you know
when to open your eyes so you can
actually see through a range of these
different slides that are published in
the peer-reviewed journals that they
indeed show that it's quite a minute
system and when you inject it with dye
you can actually see the coagulation
around a known vascular point an Accu
point an acupuncture point so you can
actually see that it's often a little
bit bigger along that meridian line so
we have actually now got an underlying
mechanism for why Harvard University
some years ago intent in a 10-year study
showed that tapping putting a needle
into an acupuncture Point sends a
deactivating signal to the amygdala that
known Stress Center in the brain so they
showed that through a multitude of
different brain scanning studies and
said there is indeed something happening
here but we now know there's a reason so
all of that primovascular system as it's
now termed is running through the body
and indeed up into the brain so by
stimulating a known acupuncture point
you indeed are actually having a
physiological effect on the body so the
mechanism of actually putting a needle
in or indeed tapping is actually being
converted into an electrical signal
mecho sensory transduction is the phrase
that's actually used there when we focus
focus our mind on what we're saying that
we're trying to reduce in tapping so
when we're being truthful to ourselves
and saying I feel stressed while I do my
tapping then that tapping signal is
converted into that physical electrical
signal that's able to then be
transmitted and collagen is suggested to
be the transmitter along that
primovascular system so we actually now
have a much greater understanding well
and truly beyond what when 20 years ago
I became involved in the research in
this field that really is telling us
what's actually happening here when we
do tapping or indeed have acupuncture
and why we're actually getting some sort
of outcome not only in self-report
psychological symptoms but indeed
physical symptoms at that biochemistry
level so we know that the amygdala is
able to respond certainly things like
the hippocampus the memory Center in the
brain is able to respond as well we know
through comparison studies to Gold
Standard therapy such as cognitive
behavioral therapy and indeed things
like EMDR the eye movement
desensitization reprocessing therapy
that their EFT is comparable it is often
able to achieve the same outcomes but in
half the time and some of that is now
attributed to the fact that we are
physically and very quickly sending a
signal back to the brain
what does this mean for you certainly I
would learn more about this I would walk
away knowing that it's not about
shifting energy in the body that is a
very outdated understanding of EFT if
you're a practitioner and certainly
using EFT you're curious about it and
you share information about how it works
I would update that knowledge to include
this type of thing the primovascular
system and the research that goes with
it and certainly if anything is
reflected on your website I would
absolutely update that as well so I hope
this has given you a greater
understanding of what's actually
happening now in EFT we certainly have
other understanding of why it lasts so
long over time and memory
reconsolidation as a theory has actually
explained some of that for us so I hope
that this has added something perhaps
been of interest and that maybe you'll
want to learn a little bit more a about
EFT and the primovascular system and
just the positive impacts it may be able
to do for you or your clients
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