AN OVERVIEW OF ENERGY PSYCHOLOGY AND ITS EFFICACY IN THE TREATMENT OF

PTSD

An Overview of Energy Psychology and its Efficacy in the Treatment of PTSD

Jennifer Gravestock
Metropolitan State University of Denver
Integrative Healthcare, B.S. Student

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AN OVERVIEW OF ENERGY PSYCHOLOGY AND ITS EFFICACY IN THE TREATMENT OF

PTSD

An Overview of Energy Psychology and its

Efficacy in Treatment of PTSD
This paper aims to explain what Energy

SOME TECHNIQUES USED IN EP

Psychology (EP) is, give a brief overview of its

Dynamic Energy healing

Attracter Field Techniques
Tapas Acupressure Technique (TAT)
history and most popular therapies, and give
Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EM
Conscious Healing & Repatterning Therapy
examples of EPs efficacy for treatment of PostEmotional Freedom Technique (EFT)
Korean Hand Therapy
traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). While research
Pranic Healing
SEEMORG Matrix Work
on EP has been done in multiple areas, the author
Wavemaker Technology
Qigong
chose to focus on PTSD because of the extensive
Bodymind Healing Psychotherapy
amount of research done on the use of EP for PTSD. Thought Field Therapy
Thought Energy Synchronization Therapy
Frequency Resonance Coherence (FRC)
It should be noted that EP has been shown to be
Energy Touch
efficacious in treatment of multiple areas, including Healing from the Body Level Up (HBLU)

but not limited to: PTSD, specific phobias, public

speaking anxiety, test-taking anxiety, depression,
General Anxiety Disorder, other psychological
disorders, physical pain, and physical illness
(Feinstein, 2012).
What is Energy Psychology and How Does it
Work?
The Association for Comprehensive Energy
Psychology (ACEP) defines EP as a group of
integrative approaches to psychotherapy, coaching,
and healthcare treatment, which includes mind-body treatment methodologies that date as far
back as 5,000 years. These mind-body treatment methods combine the bio-energetic wisdom of
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AN OVERVIEW OF ENERGY PSYCHOLOGY AND ITS EFFICACY IN THE TREATMENT OF

PTSD

ancient philosophies with the most up-to date and significant information that current-day
psychological practice has to offer. EP has been practiced and fine-tuned over the past 35 years
to the result that millions of clients all over the world have been monumentally assisted (ACEP,
2014).
EP ranges in methodology and modality. The common theme with EP is that each client
receives the benefit of the quick and easy releasing of traumatic events that have been to date
stuck in their mind-body system, or energy field. These traumatic events many times negatively
affect how an individual experiences their entire world. Clients may experience traumatic
symptoms ranging from physical to emotional in manifestation (ACEP, 2014).

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AN OVERVIEW OF ENERGY PSYCHOLOGY AND ITS EFFICACY IN THE TREATMENT OF

PTSD

By

some Techniques used in EP, Cont.

utilizing the
information

Reed Eye Movement Acupressure

that
Guided Self-Healing
Pressure Point Technique
Space/Time Energy Transfer Techniques (SET2)
Be Set Free Fast (BSFF)
Provocative Energy Techniques (PET)
Emotion Code
Body Code
Applied Kinesiology
Advanced Integrative Therapy (AIT)
Neuro-Emotional Technique
Heart Assisted Therapy
Many more
This list was taken from Ochman, Dean , Trauma Energetics and extrapolated upon.

psychologists currently know about the human psyche and the information that our ancestors
have compiled and used for the past 5,000 years about the human body, EP proves to be a
successful model to follow for treatment and subsequent release of psychological problems and
disorders. Often times psychological and physical symptoms are experienced together, however.
With EP, physical symptoms may be released in addition to and often at the same time as

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AN OVERVIEW OF ENERGY PSYCHOLOGY AND ITS EFFICACY IN THE TREATMENT OF

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psychological symptoms because, as EP theory asserts, each portion of the body is integrally
related to any other part. If one portion of the body is affected, so is all else in the body. EP
theory delves further by asserting that psychological problems actually occur because of a
disturbance in the mind-body system. Therefore, EP aims to address said bio-energetic system
directly by combining cognitive interventions simultaneously with the stimulation of various
different aspects of the human bio-energy system (ACEP, 2014).
EP acknowledges that the bio-energetic systems of the human body play an integral role
in the health and wellbeing, and therefore illness and pathology, of both an individual and those
around them. EPs combination of traditional psychologys cognitive intervention methods (such
as focused awareness, mindfulness, and imaginal exposure therapy) with the stimulation of one
or more of the human bio-energy systems (such as meridians, chakras, and biofields) results in
expeditious and positive transformation with optimal psychotherapeutic outcomes (ACEP, 2014).
A Brief History of Energy Psychology
As mentioned previously, some the roots of EP date as far back as 5,000 years; this is
referring to the ancient medical systems of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurvedic
Medicine. It is from the ancient Chinese philosophy of acupuncture that the use of acupuncture
points, or acupoints, in EP was derived. Ayurvedic Medicine is well known for utilizing
pranayama, which can be best translated to the drawing out of breath, and is used in many
yogic practices. Ayurvedic Medicine is also well known for its incorporation of chakras, which
are thought to be master energy vortices that control various different aspects of the human
energy field and the human body. It is these ancient philosophies combined with the work of
modern day pioneers such as George Goodheart (chiropractor and founder of Applied
Kinesiology), Australian psychiatrist John Diamond, and Roger Callahan (psychologist and
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founder of Though Field Therapy) that have brought the field now known as EP to the place it is
today (Freedom, 2011).
Over the past 35 years, multiple lines of experimentation with already existing EP
methodologies, ranging from acupoint tapping to the laying of hands on a body, have led to an
ever growing number of EP modalities. With this extensive experimentation has come growing
notoriety and with that controversiality from the perspective of the traditional Western medical
community. The idea Ki or Qi, which can be used interchangeably and most closely translates to
universal life force energy, is a foreign concept to the Western medical model. Qi is central to
the practice of EP, and therefore many Western medical doctors and researchers have discounted
the practice of EP, saying that any of the successes EP has had are actually due to more
mainstream psychological therapies which simultaneously occur within the practice of EP.
Because of the overt reliance upon Western technologies and thought processes in todays
accepted research, the means to effectively test the presence and efficacy of Qi in psychological
treatment is not readily available or even thought of as necessary. Qi does not follow the
biological rules that the Western medical model is accustomed to and takes to be valid,
therefore many Western researchers have discounted the idea that Qi actually exists or is
consequential to health in any way. Never the less, EP continues to be used and people
continually have astounding outcomes as a result of using EP. The astounding results that EP
produces suggests that it is in fact a valid branch of psychological study and therefore, increasing
inquiry is being made into its mechanics and methodologies (Feinstein, 2012).
A Quick Overview of the Two Most Popular Forms of Energy Psychology

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Thought Field Therapy, or TFT, was founded in 1979 by Dr. Roger Calahan, a California
psychologist. TFT was the original tapping therapy, meaning that other therapies which utilize
tapping, such as the Emotional Freedom Technique, or EFT, have developed as a result of the
pioneering TFT. Tapping refers to literally tapping on a given acupoint. TFT stimulates
specific acupoints on the body in a specific order (called an algorithm) depending upon the
emotional condition needing to be released. This is done while focusing on a particular emotion
or emotional problem that one would like to release. Acupoint stimulation in combination with
focusing on a particular emotion is said to balance the bodys energy system allowing one to
eliminate most negative emotions in minutes. TFT asserts that if the correct algorithm is not
used a given therapy will not be as effective (Calahan Techniques, 2011). Many people who are
proponents of the EFT would say that this is false.
The EFT was founded by Gary Craig in the early-to-mid 1990s and has since been the
most popular form of EP. Gary Craig originally studied under Dr. Calahan, learning TFT, and
later unveiled what he felt was a simplified, yet just as effective, version of acupoint stimulation.
EFT works on the same principles as TFT, in that acupoint stimulation balances the bodys
energy system allowing one to eliminate most negative emotions immediately. EFT uses a
different tapping sequence than TFT, however the acupoints used are mostly the same. The
tapping sequence used in EFT does not vary like that of TFT and proponents of EFT say that the
order of tapping does not matter, jut that the tapping is done. Proponents of EFT would also note
that it is much easier to use than TFT, there are no tricky algorithms to remember, and therefore
more people are bound to use it (Graham, 2011).
Proof of the Efficacy of Energy Psychology

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There have been several studies tracking and comparing the success of treatment for
patients that have undergone EP treatment to standard psychological and/or drug therapies.
Accupoint Stimulation in Treating Psychological Disorders: Evidence of Efficacy, a 2012 metaanalysis (Feinstein) reviewed 51 peer-reviewed papers, in which patients psychological issues
were treated by a combination of stimulation of acupoints and traditional psychological
methodology. In this study, it was found that the criteria proposed by Division 12 of the
American Psychological Association (APA) for evidence-based treatments of many conditions,
including depression and PTSD, was met by all studies reviewed. This again points to the
validity high efficacy of EP. Feinstein also evaluated any possible neurological mechanisms at
work in each study reviewed.
Feinstein notes that PTSD, which has a history of being difficult to treat, receives more
efficacious results when treated with Thought Field Therapy (TFT) or EFT and overall a lower
number of treatments were necessary when using TFT or EFT. This is significant, given that
3.6% of the U.S. population is said to have PTSD at any given time (Kessler et al as cited in
Feinstein, 2012).
One noteworthy study mentioned in Feinsteins meta-analysis (2012) was that of
psychologist Caroline Sakai. Sakai studied 188 adolescents who had survived the Rwandan
genocide in 1994 and been orphaned as a result. The adolescents caregivers rated them on an
APA approved PTSD inventory designed to test the presence of said disorder. 50 of the
adolescents exceeded the threshold of the PTSD inventory when rated by their caretakers. These
adolescents were each given one session of TFT.
All of the children had the classic PTSD symptoms, including withdrawal, bed-wetting,
aggressiveness, difficulty concentrating, nightmares, and intrusive flashbacks ever since the
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Rwandan genocide in 1994. Remarkably, after only one TFT session of 20 to 60 minutes and a
short relaxation training, only 6% of the adolescents were still scored within the PTSD range by
their caretakers and the studys staff reported a dramatic decrease in PTSD symptoms. Even
more remarkably, after one year only 8% of the Rwandan adolescents were scored within PTSD
range by their caretakers. A companion inventory was administered directly to the adolescents.
72% scored themselves within the PTSD range prior to treatment, 18% scored themselves within
PTSD range immediately after treatment, and 16% of the adolescents scored themselves within
PTSD range at a one-year follow-up (Feinstein, 2012).
A 2011 study by Connely and Sakai subsequently evaluated 145 adults who survived the
Rwandan genocide. Each individual was either assigned to a group which was administered one
TFT session or to a wait-listed control group. Just as with the Rwandan adolescents previously
studied, all of the adults had PTSD scores that were beyond the inventorys threshold and
dramatically improved after just one TFT treatment. These improvements held at a two-year
follow-up (Feinstein, 2012).
A subsequent study, Single-session reduction of the intensity of abused adolescents after
EFT: A randomized controlled pilot study (Church, Pina, Reategui, & Brooks, 2012) investigated
16 Peruvian adolescent males who were abused. Similar to the Rwandan PTSD studies, these
participants all completed a standardized self-inventory and scored well above the inventorythreshold for PTSD. Each participant was assigned to either an EFT treatment group or a waitlist control group. Of the eight participants in the EFT group, none met the criteria for PTSD 30
days after the treatment session, while none in the wait-list control group showed significant
improvement (Church, Pina, Reategui, & Brooks, 2012).

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Feinstein notes that in informal interview with the investigators in both the Rwandan and
Peruvian studies they informed him that they were not intending to prove that the single-session
protocol was sufficient, but rather that in just one session a positive affect could be produced.
The authors of both studies were pleasantly surprised by the results of their respective studies,
but also acknowledged that more treatments may be of benefit for some of the participants in
said studies (Feinstein, 2012).
Psychological symptom improvement in veterans using emotional freedom techniques: A
randomized controlled trial (Church, Hawk, et al, 2013) studied 54 veterans with symptoms of
PTSD. The veterans were administered a military version of the standard PTSD checklist (which
was used in the previous studies discussed). Before treatment, the mean score for the PTSD test
was 61.4 for the treatment group and 66.6 for the control group; the cutoff for PTSD was 50 in
this PTSD checklist. 29 veterans were in a group which received EFT treatment and 25 were in
the wait-listed control group. The treatment group received six hour-long EFT coaching
sessions. The mean score after treatment had decreased to 34.6 for the treatment group, which
was well below the PTSD cutoff. The mean score for the control group was 65.3; practically
unchanged. 49 total participants ultimately received six hour-long EFT sessions with the result
that eighty-six percent no longer scored within the PTSD range after treatment.
Feinstein notes that there is a woeful lack in comparative literature between acupoint
stimulation and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), which is considered the treatment of
choice for PTSD in many clinical environments to date. It is because of this that it is not known
whether acupoint stimulation therapies such as TFT and EFT are equal to or superior to
traditional modalities. There was, however, one 201l study which compared CBT with electronic
acupoint stimulation (Zhang, Bin, Xie, Xu, & Chen, 2011). This comparison study administered
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either CBT alone or CBT and acupoint stimulation together to 91 Chinese subjects after an
earthquake in China. These subjects were given a Chinese-version of the PTSD self-inventory
both before and after the study. While the group that received only CBT did improve after
treatment, the group which received both CBT and acupoint stimulation improved more
significantly. This indicates that EP modalities such acupoint stimulation are beneficial when
used with traditional psychotherapeutic interventions such as CBT and that more comparative
studies should be done on the use of EP with traditional psychotherapeutic modalities.

Conclusion
Parts of EP have been used for over 5,000 years. In the past 35 years, EP has been rediscovered and consequentially new branches of EP are being developed on a relatively regular
basis. Millions of people have benefited from the use of EP and are living freer and healthier
lifestyles because of it. There are truly mind-blowing accounts of individuals suffering from
severe PTSD going from being as disabled as possible from said disorder to not suffering from it
at all within the course of one to three days after EP treatment.
More and more research is being performed to bring academic light to the mechanisms of
EP. These studies have proven the efficacy of EP for treatment of multiple psychological and
physical symptoms. It is because of this that more research is necessary. Despite what some
opponents of EP say, many EP modalities meet all of the APA requirements for evidenced-based
treatments and specific EP schools are approved by the APA, the Association of Social Work
Boards, the National Board of Certified Counselors, and the National Association of Alcohol and
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Drug Abuse Counselors for continuing education credits for licensed practitioners (ACEP, 2014).
This does not indicate a useless and invalid therapy, but one that has the potential to
revolutionize both psychology and the medical field as we know it today.

References
ACEP: Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology (accessed 2014, December 10).
What is energy psychology? Retrieved from ACEP: Association for Comprehensive
Energy Psychology website: http://www.energypsych.org/?AboutEPv2
American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders
(4th ed., Rev.). Washington, DC: Author.
Calahan Techniques. (2011). Frequently asked questions about thought field therapy (tft).
Retrieved from Calahan Techniques, thought field therapy: "the power of therapy for the
21st century" website: http://www.rogercallahan.com/faq.php
Church, D., & Hawk, C. et al. (2013). Psychological symptom improvement in veterans using
emotional freedom techniques: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Nervous and
Mental Disease, 201, 153-160. doi:10.1097/NMD.0b013e31827f6351

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PTSD

Church, D., Pina, O., Reategui, C., & Brooks, A. (2012). Single-session reduction of the intensity
of abused adolescents after EFT: A randomized controlled pilot
study. Traumatology, 18(3), 73-79. doi:10.1177/1534765611426788
Feinstein, D. (2012). Acupoint stimulation in treating psychological disorders: Evidence of
efficacy. Review of General Psychology, 16, 364-380. doi:10.1037/a0028602
Freedom, J. (2011, August 13). Energy psychology: The future of therapy? Retrieved from
IONS: Institute of Noetic Science website: http://www.noetic.org/noetic/issue-thirteenaugust/energy-psychology/
Graham, P. (2011, December 22). A comparison of EFT and TFT. Retrieved from Tap4Peace:
Tapping for emotional clearing and inner peace website:
http://www.tap4peace.com.au/eft/info/eft_and_tft.html
Zhang, Y., Bin, F., Xie, J., Xu, F., & Chen, J. (2011). Clinical study on treatment of the
earthquake-caused post-traumatic stress disorder by cognitive-behavior and acupoint
stimulation. Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 31(1), 60-63. Retrieved from
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