It used to be believed that it was not possible to change the brain, but in the past ten years scientists have proved that we absolutely do have the power to change our brain, even when it has been damaged, and thus change the way we perceive the world. This ability of the brain to change is referred to as neuroplasticity.
David Feinstein, PhD, a clinical psychologist who has served on the faculty of The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and Dr. Dawson Church, a leader in the field of epigenetics (which explores how our DNA is modified by outside stimuli), offer research to show that EFT Tapping is a valuable bridge between cutting edge Western medicine and ancient healing practices. Tapping on meridian points can enable an individual to make profound changes in the brain quickly and relatively easily without the need for medical intervention.
In a recorded interview (found on the website shown below), Dr. Feinstein explains that, in a study at Harvard Medical School, an MRI revealed that stimulation of the body’s meridian points by means of acupuncture significantly reduced activity in a part of the brain known as the amygdala. When you experience trauma or fear, the amygdala is triggered and your body is flooded with the stress hormone cortisol, causing disruption to your health and emotions. In a further study to test the reduction of cortisol by tapping conducted by Dr. Dawson Church, 83 subjects were divided into groups to either: tap on the meridian points, receive talk therapy, or undergo no treatment at all. Those who undertook the tapping solution exhibited a reduction in cortisol of 24 – 50%, while the other two groups showed no reduction at all in their cortisol levels.
Dr. Feinstein points out that with EFT, you deliberately recreate mentally the event or situation that caused trauma, therefore putting the amygdala in response mode to an extent in some way similar to the original situation. You then tap on the meridian points, and this has the effect of reducing the activity of the amygdala. This creates an opposing situation in the brain and eventually, if you continue to tap – sometimes for just a short time – the opposing situation will dominate and the ‘new normal’ becomes a state where the subject can recall the trauma but no longer feel any physiological reaction to it.
EFT, therefore, offers an easy tool to change the neural pathways quickly and effectively, allowing the subject to think himself or herself out of a situation. Once the charge has been removed from the thought, it is not necessary to revisit it and healing will then be reflected in the individual’s life, whether the trauma related to an illness, injury, finances or a relationship. Dr Feinstein feels that EFT can be even more effective than acupuncture because it is more flexible. One can do it oneself and adjust the reminder phrase as the healing takes place for even faster results.
In terms of the future of EFT, Dr. Feinstein feels that the medical fraternity will soon be more and more open to the role that meridian stimulation plays in healing. This will be reflected in society by schools and other organisations being open to teaching EFT to children, something that in time will benefit the whole of society.
For more information, go to: http://www.thetappingsolution.com/science-and-research/
