If you are new to tapping or are curious about the proof of its efficacy then this is the episode for you!
In today's episode, I am honoured to talk to Dr Peta Stapleton. Based in Australia, Dr Peta has become the world's leading expert in the science behind tapping and proving its efficacy for supporting and resolving key issues that impact our general health. She has compared EFT against Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) for food cravings; EFT versus CBT for Depression in Adults; EFT for academic fear and resilience in 15-year-old students; and EFT for sufferers of chronic pain. She has also led the world's first trial examining neural changes after EFT for food issues (fMRI study).
It was such a brilliant conversation and really interesting to hear where she thinks EFT/Tapping is going in the coming years from a standard and recommended perspective.
Key takeaways:
- How EFT/Tapping made its way to Dr Peta in Australia
- EFT was first researched in a large food cravings trial against gold standard CBT the two papers are here and here and the first fMRI research is here
- Dr Peta's approach to managing potential negative outcomes of her research, or anyone's opinion or judgement of Tapping. Something that can be used for any future outcome - tap on your worry and you stop attracting it
- Big News: Dr Peta + her team are working on a paper for the American Psychological Association to get EFT listed as evidence-based on their website - with a huge impact for EFT as a result
- Great advice to keep a tapping journal to reflect back on your tapping journey
- Definition of Tapping - it's a stress-reduction technique by stimulating acupuncture points on the face on the top half of the body while thinking about the stressful situation you are experiencing
- EFT is a Somatic Therapy - it's a physical therapy with a cognitive element to it, its the 4th wave of psychology - watch her Ted Talk (link below)
- Philosophy separated the mind and body - Doctors should treat the body and Priests/Philosophers should treat the mind - we are trying to move the field to a more integrated approach
- Tapping is used in hospitals, GP surgeries, national disability scheme (Government funded), midwives in Australia - it is very accepted and normalised in culture
- More research coming out of USA, Australia, UK and more recently Iraq, Iran, Korea, Indonesia are pumping out EFT trials, as the more, it is researched or published the more credibility it will have, and it will then attract government funding.
- EFT International has recently put in a grant for NICE funding to support EFT for depression
- It takes a new therapy 17 years to be accepted into the mainstream, with EFT we're year 16/17!
- The American Psychological Association published Dr Peta's Cortisol reduction (43%) research paper (mainstream journal) giving EFT a huge acknowledgement and was a big win for the therapy - that paper is here
- CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) has over 800 randomised trials and allows the person to become aware of the emotion and then helps them work out the belief/thought behind them - they then rehearse that out to swap into a more functional thought process. It takes CBT groups about 6 months to show an outcome where the EFT works within 6 weeks, and CBT takes more effort and practice, and may not get to the root cause of the issue.
- EFT helps identify the root cause of a person's issue. Once the heat of the emotion has settled down, then the memory is able to come up to present the root problem and then different techniques can be used to release the energy from that event.
- Tapping gives the mind and body a sense of safety and we're changing DNA expression, cortisol reduction, EUG brain scans, heart rate variability, and blood pressure - the body's physical system is changing through tapping - paper summarises all changes here
- 3 studies published on EFT on gene expression - found that tapping changes gene expression (whether they are turned on and off). This links to ancestral trauma. Research is here and here
- Dr Peta discusses an EFT trial for patients undergoing their cancer treatment - read about that here and there is also a new book here
- New landmark study (Iran) for a trial for Nurses working with Covid patients and taught them EFT targeting burnout. The outcomes were statistically significant, and their burnout, anxiety, and depression were reduced - read about that here and another new nurses's study here
- New Australian study using EFT for Sub-Acute Pain during Covid funded by the Australian Government (to intervene before the pain becomes Chronic), the pre-released data shows a significant improvement (not published yet).
- Dr Peta's latest research on Chronic Pain during the pandemic will be released with significant outcomes.
- A recent study in Iran is about to be published where an EFT trial in a hospital setting for women who had had a spontaneous miscarriage, 12 individual sessions - full paper here
- UK researchers are looking to research the use of EFT for PTSD after birth trauma.
- US study is looking at the use of EFT in the area of autism and the mothers of autistic children to manage their anxieties etc - paper here
About Dr Peta:
Dr Peta Stapleton has 25 years of experience as a registered Clinical and Health Psychologist and is currently an Associate Professor in Psychology at Bond University (Australia). In 2019 she was named Psychologist of the Year by the Australian Allied Health Awards.
She is a world-leading researcher in EFT and has established herself as one of Australia’s leading Health Professionals. Her research focuses on the 4th wave of psychological therapies that focus on the mind and body.
One of the most significant contributions in her life has been to lead world-first randomized clinical trials investigating the effectiveness of EFT. She even has her own Ted Talk which I have linked below.
Check out her book 'The Science Behind Tapping' and follow her work: www.petastapleton.com and www.instagram.com/petastapleton and new book 'Tapping for Memory Improvement' will be out in 2023.
Ted Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Vu0Tibt1bQ
Book: The Body Keeps The Score, Vessel van der Bolk
Training area: www.evidencebasedeft.com
About Sarah:
Sarah is an Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) or Tapping Practitioner and Trainer based in the UK but originally from Dublin, Ireland. After the loss of her daughter Alice, in November 2014, suffering from severe PTSD and anxiety, she became pregnant again. This led her to seek help from a local EFT Practitioner. This technique completely transformed her life and she is now dedicated to supporting as many people as possible to let go of their trauma, grief, limiting beliefs and negative emotions, so they can live a heart-based, joy-filled life.
Sarah has a thriving Tapping into You Membership + Community with members all over the world. She runs retreats, works with clients 1:1 and is also a Trainer, teaching people to become EFT Practitioners.
Find out more at her at www.tappingformums.com or follow her at www.instagram.com/sarah_tobin
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