TRI-STATE (WFIE) -
Imagine being able to instantly zap away your stress and anxiety with a tap of your fingers.
Sound too good to be true?
Promoters of a new form of psychotherapy called tapping say it works. They say it relieves stress, phobias, food cravings, even post traumatic stress and almost immediately.
The popularity of this alternative therapy is sky rocketing. But, others say you might want to do a little research before you 'tap'.
Christine Cramer used to suffer from such severe anxiety she was unable to perform simple tasks like doing her taxes or driving over bridges.
"I became paralyzed with fear," Cramer said.
Brittany Watkins suffered from emotional food cravings that were ruining her life.
"Every time I was stressed or emotional or upset I would always look for sweets to make me feel better," Watkins said.
But now, both women say they're living free of their fears, thanks an alternative psychotherapy. It's a treatment called EFT, Emotional Freedom Technique, also known as tapping.
The practice involves stimulating certain acupressure points on the body while you focus on what's stressing you out. It can be done with the aid of a therapist or alone during a moment of anxiety.
"It tells your body that that stressful thought you're having isn't a real threat to your survival. And once you break the association in your mind between the stressful thought and the fight or flight response one time, it stays broken," said Dawson Church, PHD with the Foundation for EPI Genetic Medicine.
EFT was introduced in the 90s, but recently, it's popularity has surged. This year over a half million people signed up for the world tapping summit.
"I believe within a few years, we'll see it in many hospitals, many mental health clinics," Church said.
The question remains: does it work?
Church and fellow tapping practitioners have published many small scale studies showing positive results. A study found stress hormone levels dropped 24% after tapping. No drop was found in the control.
"So, their internal stress biochemistry changed as their emotional states changed as well," Church said.
But not all researchers are convinced. A study out of Canada found while tapping acupressure points did show a significant decrease in anxiety and fear, tapping other parts of the body, or even a doll, offered similar results. The American Psychological Association says many more large scale peer reviewed studies must be performed.
"Has this tapping therapy been proven effective? We don't think so at this point?" said Rhea Farberman with the American Psychological Association.
But Watkins and Cramer say they've found their answers, and are grateful that tapping has given them a new lease on life.
"Rather than popping a pill, we can tap a couple acupressure points and immediately neutralize any negative, negative symptoms we have. That's amazing!" said Watkins.
The APA, the American Psychological Association says stress and anxiety can be serious issues for some people, but are also highly treatable via proven psychotherapy techniques.
They suggest sufferers seek out a mental health professional with proper training, and well established techniques. They do not consider EFT one of those well established techniques.
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