Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT tapping)

Christine McDevitt, MS, OTR/L is a Certified Advanced EFT Practitioner with EFT International and is trained in Clinical EFT (the form of tapping validated by research studies).

Do you feel stuck in your healing process or wellness journey?

You may have made progress with medical care, mental health support, and/or lifestyle changes, but things haven’t shifted as much as you’d hoped.

• Symptoms still interfere with parts of your daily life even though you’re doing all the right things.
• Certain circumstances continue to trigger unwanted reactions.
• Specific patterns recur despite repeated attempts to change, keeping you from engaging in meaningful activities the way you’d like.

These situations often are not caused by a single issue. Physical sensations, emotional reactions, and the way your nervous system has learned to respond over time can all play a role in how you feel and function.

If you recognize yourself in any of the above scenarios, EFT tapping offers an effective way to work with what’s been keeping things stuck. You’re welcome to schedule a brief phone call or video chat to discuss your situation.

What is EFT tapping?

Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), also known as EFT tapping or “tapping,” is a mind-body approach that reduces the emotional intensity connected to distressing sensations, memories, or thoughts.

EFT tapping involves focusing on particular aspects of an issue while lightly tapping on specific points on the face and body. This process helps regulate the nervous system so the information you’re focused on can be processed differently in your brain.

As the emotional charge decreases, your brain’s conditioned response to the issue can change. This results in a different experience of that issue in your body and can lead to positive changes in your day-to-day life.

EFT is sometimes referred to as “tapping therapy” in the general public, but it’s not traditional talk therapy and is not a replacement for those services.

How Clinical EFT tapping is Different from Tapping Scripts

If you’ve come across tapping online, you’ve likely seen tap-along scripted videos, apps, and meditations.

While these can be helpful for surface-level issues, they aren’t the same as Clinical EFT and aren’t appropriate when dealing with traumatic events.

How Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT Tapping) Can Help You

EFT tapping works with the way your experiences have been stored in your nervous system. As these patterns in the system change, many people notice improvements not only in how they feel but also in how they show up their daily lives.

You don’t need to analyze or relive difficult experiences for EFT to be effective.

Working with a certified EFT tapping practitioner helps keep emotional intensity during sessions in a tolerable range so you can make steady progress without feeling overwhelmed.

Working with a certified EFT practitioner can help you:

After receiving EFT tapping services, many people find that situations that once felt triggering or intrusive become more neutral and that related areas of daily life feel lighter and easier to manage.

Research shows EFT can support a wide range of issues.

Clinical Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT tapping) has been studied with a variety of issues including trauma, cravings, anxiety, and emotional factors that can contribute to physical symptoms.

Outcomes from these studies indicate that Clinical EFT can have both emotional and physiological benefis which include:

• Reduced pain levels
• Reduced feelings of anxiety and depression
• Reduced symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Lower levels of cortisol (a primary stress hormone)
• Increased levels of salivary immunoglobulin A (a biomarker of immune function)
• Improved cognitive function in people with cancer-related brain fog
• Decreased food cravings
• Increased feelings of happiness and satisfaction

These changes reflect shifts in both emotional and physical responses which can support improvements in how you feel and function in your daily life.

While EFT tapping can be an excellent addition to conventional medical treatments or mental health care (especially if you’re feeling stalled in your progress), EFT is not a replacement for medical, psychiatric, or emergency services.

What to expect during typical EFT tapping sessions

EFT tapping sessions at Farfalla Integrative Health are client-centered, interactive, and always mindful of your safety.

• You choose an issue you’d like to work on, and we identify a specific place to begin.
• Using gentle fingertip tapping on specific acupressure points, we work to reduce the emotional charge associated with what you’re noticing. Your practitioner will guide you through and tap along with you.
• Typically, you’ll be repeating various phrases while you tap. The phrases we use will be specific to the issue at hand and will use your own words. We continually adjust the phrases throughout the session based on what occurs.
• We always make sure the focus is on how the experience is registering in your body in the present moment. This keeps the emotional intensity at a manageable level and prevents overwhelm – no matter what might show up for you.
• At the end of the session, we discuss appropriate ways for you to safely tap on your own should you choose to do so.

Initial sessions are typically 90 minutes. Follow-up sessions are either 60 or 90 minutes. Sessions can be booked online. See the pricing page for pricing details.

For more information, see answers to frequently asked questions about EFT tapping sessions.

Meet Your EFT Tapping Practitioner

Her approach integrates an understanding of how physical symptoms, nervous system responses, and environmental factors influence daily function.

How EFT Fits Within Farfalla Integrative Health’s Services

At Farfalla Integrative Health, EFT tapping is offered as a standalone service.

For clients receiving occupational therapy services, EFT may be included (as appropriate and desired) inside an occupational therapy plan of care while making sure that we respect licensure law and scope of practice issues. Services are never automatically combined.

Sessions are available:

• In-person in Lafayette Hill, PA (near northwest Philadelphia)
• Virtually worldwide via secure video conferencing

Unlike occupational therapy, virtual EFT tapping services are not subject to licensure laws and can be provided across state lines and international borders.

How To Get Started with EFT

If you’re interested in EFT services at Farfalla Integrative Health, you’re welcome to take the next step that feels right for you.

You can:

• Explore the website to learn more about EFT tapping.
• Reach out by email (christine@farfallaintegrativehealth.com) if you have a specific question.
• Schedule a brief phone call or video chat to discuss your situation and any questions or concerns you may have. This call is simply to see if we might be a good fit. There is no pressure or obligation to schedule services.
• Start the scheduling process online if you’re ready to move forward with an initial EFT session.

EFT services start with an initial 90-minute session. This will give you a clear sense of how Christine works and make sure it feels like a good fit. From there, you can choose if or how you’d like to continue working together.

This initial session includes a comprehensive assessment of your situation, guided work on your issue using EFT tapping, instruction on basic technique, and recommendations for follow-up work (on your own or with a practitioner).

It is possible to feel like you again, and you don’t have to do it alone.