How Emotional Freedom Technique Can Help You Fight Cancer

You may know that stress reduction is vital to maintaining health and fighting cancer, but just

where do you begin to create true emotional health? Luckily, you might not have to spend hours in a therapist’s chair in order to heal the emotional wounds that could be standing between you and cancer healing and prevention.

Emotional Freedom Technique (also known as EFT or Tapping) is a fast, easy, and effective way to reduce anxiety, clear emotional blocks, and become more peaceful and focused in all areas of your life.

The Psychological Side of Cancer

Did you know that studies from over twenty years ago indicate that acute or chronic psychological stress can lead to DNA damage?

“I searched for cancer in the cell and I have found it in the brain,” said renowned German cancer surgeon Dr. R.G. Hamer after examining over 20,000 patients with cancer.

Hamer and others, such as Dr. Douglas Brodie, creator of the “Cancer Personality Profile” and a pioneer in the field of psycho-oncology, believe that cancer is most often created shortly after a traumatic event, such as the death of a loved one, a natural disaster, or witnessing an act of violence. Such an event could “short circuit” specific areas in the brain which can then effect a particular organ.

In the same vein, the field of energy medicine and energy psychology, of which Emotional Freedom Technique is a part, is based on the foundation that good health relies on the proper energy flow throughout the body. Any major stressor can interrupt this flow, creating an energy “block” that can lead to disease. This concept, which Chinese and other ancient healing modalities have relied on for thousands of years, is now being verified by modern science.

“In the past few years, energy psychology has amassed a respectable research base,” says Dawson Church, energy psychology researcher and author of Genie in Your Genes.

What Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Does

Another name for Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is Meridian Tapping. This is because EFT, originally created by Stanford-trained engineer and self-improvement coach Gary Craig, utilizes the same energy-meridian system that traditional Chinese acupuncture uses − minus the needles.

EFT is done by lightly tapping on specific points on your body (usually eight or nine) between your chest and the top of your head. While tapping, you vocalize first the negative issue at hand (and your feelings about it) and then vocalize a more positive perception of the issue (even if it is just to accept it).

This combination works on an energetic, emotional, and physiological level to clear emotional blocks and bring the mind and body back into balance. On an anatomic level, regularly practicing Tapping and utilizing it in times of stress helps stabilize hormones levels. It will also calm the amygdalae, the part of our limbic system that responds to emotional stimuli and is responsible for the “fight or flight” response.

EFT Tapping has been shown to significantly decrease (and in some cases eliminate) conditions such as:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• PTSD /Trauma
• Food Cravings
• Addictions
• Phobias
• Test and Public Speaking Anxiety
• Physical Pain

According to physicist Bruce Lipton, author of The Biology of Belief, EFT is also a way to “supercharge” deep emotional healing. This is because it reprograms negative belief patterns to more life-affirming ones. Most of the time we are not aware of the negative beliefs we hold as adults, many of which were formed in childhood. Yet these beliefs can and do contribute to the development of diseases like cancer as we age.

Lipton metaphorically equates the subconscious mind to a tape player: “Tape players are not good nor bad. The programs (that they play) can be good and can be bad … You have to learn how to push the record button to change the program in the subconscious mind.”

According to Lipton, practicing EFT Tapping allows us to “push the record button” on our subconscious mind and replace negative belief systems and patterns with healthy ones.

What the Studies Say about EFT Tapping

While many may still view the field of energy psychology with suspicion, Meridian Tapping is gaining ground as a legitimate practice for stress reduction.

In journal articles published by the American Psychological Association, there are clear indications that Emotional Freedom Technique may soon meets the criteria for “evidence-based treatment” for various conditions, including Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD).

In addition, many studies over the last decade have validated the effectiveness of EFT Tapping. According to the World Health Organization, major forms of depression are soon expected to be the second “leading disease burden” worldwide. In a study published in 2011 in the journal Traumatology, 30 moderately to severely-depressed college students were given four 90-minute Tapping sessions while a control group were not. The students who received EFT training showed a marked reduction in their depression symptoms three weeks after receiving EFT training.

Another area where studies show EFT to have a profound effect is with individuals diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD is an extreme anxiety disorder that can develop after any traumatic event, including a cancer diagnosis. In fact, according to the American Society of Clinical Oncology, a recent study found that close to 1 in 4 newly-diagnosed breast cancer patients experienced some form of PTSD. PTSD can develop at any stage of the cancer journey, including first diagnosis or in response to on-going surgery and tests.

One of the most impressive studies to validate the effectiveness of Tapping on PTSD was published in 2013 in theJournal of Nervous & Mental Disease. Researchers used Emotional Freedom Technique on veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder who were already receiving mental health services.

Researchers exposed the veterans to a 6-hour long EFT training session. In examinations one month to six weeks after the training, the veterans displayed “significantly reduced psychological stress.” Ninety percent of those trained no longer met the criteria for someone who has PTSD. This percentage remained fairly consistent at three months (86%) and at six months (80%), demonstrating EFT’s effectiveness as a modality for long-term stress reduction.

Finally, new evidence is coming out that proves EFT’s effectiveness on physical symptoms and pain. One of the latest studies was published in April, 2015. It took a look at Emotional Freedom Technique’s effectiveness in relieving the fatigue and mood disturbances in women with breast cancer that were using chemotherapy drugs such as Tamoxifen.

Measurements were taken after six weeks and twelve weeks of working with EFT. Marked reductions in anxiety, depression, fatigue, and hot flashes were noted. According to the study researchers, “these preliminary findings suggest that EFT may be an effective self-help tool for women with breast cancer experiencing side effects from hormonal therapies.”

Conclusions About Emotional Freedom Technique

As the connection between emotions, energy flow, and physical health becomes clearly verified by scientific research, many new thought and alternative health leaders, including Louis Hay, Wayne Dyer, and Dr. Joe Mercola, have come out strongly in support of Emotional Freedom Technique. Through the process of significantly reducing stress and helping to change belief patterns to ones that can lead to real healing, EFT Tapping can be a strong ally on your road to vibrant and cancer-free living.

https://thetruthaboutcancer.com/emotional-freedom-technique-cancer/