Emotional Freedom Technique; The History

Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is a tool that has been defined by many critics as pseudoscientific. The origin of EFT however is as old as the origin of human beings and its technique has been perfected over the years. The Chinese medicine of acupuncture also has substantial influence on it, but it does not use the needles for the cure. The energy spots or pathways in the body have since been identified and it has been perfected over the centuries. But the Chinese medicine was restricted to the physical curing. The psychological aspect is where EFT concentrates more.

EFT had its modern beginning in the twentieth century in the hands of Dr. George Goodheart who was a chiropractor. He started by using specific points of the body, in a method known as �muscle testing� or Applied Kinesiology. Though EFT is much different from this form of treatment, yet its influence can never be ruled out. But, later on he learnt acupuncture and made a connection between the two healing methods and discovered that amazing results can also be derived without using the needles. Hence, this method was more accessible to the common people.

The method introduced by Dr. George Goodheart was followed by many, but it was Dr. Roger Callahan, a psychologist from America, who refined the process of the finger tapping method in the 1980s. He advocated that if any person concentrates on the fear or ailment and uses the various finger taping techniques the problems can be cured permanently. During the introduction phase of EFT, Dr. Callahan came across astounding results and was convinced that this healing practice can be clinically used. The results he came across were sometimes derived after a few sessions or at times just after a minute. This prompted Gary Craig, a student under Dr. Callahan; name this phenomenon as the �one minute wonder�. In this duration, the procedure was known as TFT (Thought Field Therapy).

In theory and in practice EFT believes that the beginning of all negative emotions in the body is due to the disturbances in the body. This imbalance can only be cured if the energy field of the body is restored and the balance is normalized. The technique of EFT focuses on this aspect only and uses specific meridian points of the body to cure the ailments and problems. Critics have doubted its efficacy and results and have commented on its procedure. Yet, EFT has received widespread popularity and has proved the critics wrong by working successfully on numerous clinical trials. EFT uses a gentle and natural procedure to cleanse and heal the mind and body.

The method used by Gary Craig, is very lucid and simple. It can be learnt easily and even self administered to get excellent results. But, EFT is still in the developing phase and there is more to learn from its practice and usage. Though numerous experiments have been done and its results documented, yet there is no specific research paper that deals with the study and practice of EFT. Hence, it still remains unrecognized in the scientific world.