Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT may on the surface seem miraculous, but there are thousands of stories to support its claims. EFT is used by hundreds of practitioners worldwide addressing pain management, addiction, panic, anxiety, abuse, eating disorders, stress, phobias, sports performance, fear of flying, Agoraphobia, ADD-ADHD, Dyslexia, as well as other DIS-eases, and they are getting unusual results. It has been used in Los Angeles at the Veterans Administration to give relief to Veterans suffering for over 20 years from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. According to its founder Gary Craig, EFT “applies to just about every emotional, health and performance issue you can name and it often works where nothing else will.”

The actual technique is simple, and, once learned, takes approximately 2-5 minutes to complete. EFT works with approximately 20 energy points on the body. The person experiencing trauma devises an affirmation that addresses the fear or anxiety they are experiencing and then utilizes a tapping technique—tapping seven times on each of the energy points—while stating their affirmation. In most cases, this process eliminates the anxiety within minutes and delivers the person to a place of calm and balance. Craig describes the technique as an “emotional version of acupuncture except needles aren’t necessary.” And he says “the cause of all negative emotions is a disruption in the body’s energy system.” EFT works to restore the energy system to full operational balance. Traditional psychotherapy approaches therapy through your story. With EFT, it is not necessary to go into your story. You can start tapping with a simple affirmation such as, Even though I am feeling anxious, I deeply and completely accept myself. The affirmation can then be more specific as you address your anxiety with additional rounds of tapping: Even though I am experiencing anxiety because someone yelled at me, I deeply and completely accept myself.

Before the tapping starts, Craig asks that you take a reading on the level of anxiety you are experiencing and rate it on a scale of 0 to 10, 10 being the highest level of anxiety. After completing a round of tapping, you then take another reading to see if your level of anxiety has diminished. You continue to do rounds and refine your affirmation until the anxiety level is zero.

I was so impressed with the results of the EFT technique, I started teaching it to others. I taught it to a friend who was struggling with an ice cream addiction. She emailed me several days later to say she had used it in a health crisis, waking in the middle of the night to find her body struggling for survival. She used the tapping technique and 3 hours later she was sleeping. She also lost her craving for ice cream.

The beauty of EFT is that you can use it everyday in the moment of crisis. When you are experiencing debilitating thoughts or feel frozen in your ability to move forward with your dreams, you can start tapping on, Even though I am experiencing reluctance, I deeply and completely accept myself. In each round, the basic affirmation is the same, Even though I am feeling (or experiencing) ____________, I deeply and completely accept myself. The blank can be filled in simply with fear or more specifically fear of success or fear I will be like my father (the businessman), whatever is appropriate to your belief and situation. With ADD, you can start to tap on, Even though I am experiencing anxiety… and progress to, Even though I am experiencing an inability to focus….

It is helpful to see this process in action. Gary Craig’s manual is free and downloadable via the internet at www.emofree.com showing the energy points on the body and detailing the affirmation process. Demonstration DVD’s are available for a fee. Dr. Joseph Mercola, who is a practitioner of EFT, also offers on his web site www.mercola.com/forms/eftcourse3.htm photos showing the energy points and information about working with EFT.

Craig’s work is written in lay-language and is meant for the general public and counselors alike. He offers training to those interested in becoming a certified practitioner and master practitioner. Gary Craig, himself, was a Personal Performance Coach, a Stanford engineering graduate, and an NLP master.

If EFT claims are difficult to believe, note that it has been endorsed by many leaders in the holistic health field including Deepak Chopra, Candace Pert, Bruce Lipton, Donna Eden, Norm Shealy MD, as well as many physicians and psychotherapists. Once you have mastered this easily-learned technique, it can be performed in a matter of minutes anywhere. This makes it portable for those moments when you are restoring balance during a health crisis or an emotional crisis. The method is always the same: check your levels, tap and affirm, check your levels.

EFT is not meant to replace your doctor’s diagnosis. But it can be that helpful technique that decompresses the moment of crisis, both in the body and in the mind, and restores balance. It is, in my opinion, the essential edition to every home’s First Aid kit.