Effect of Emotional Freedom Technique and Diaphragmatic Breathing on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Soul Medicine Institute

Status and phase

Completed

Phase 1

Conditions

Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic

Treatments

Behavioral: Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT)

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT00514956

PTSD-ACEP-SMI-MU-1

Details and patient eligibility

About

A great many soldiers are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Clinical experience with many people has shown the effectiveness of the techniques of Energy Psychology for rapidly alleviating PTSD symptoms. The study proposes to determine whether a very brief course of treatment (3 sessions) with a common form of Energy Psychology called Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) has an effect on the stress biochemistry of subjects, by measuring their levels of stress hormones (cortisol, DHEA) before and after treatment.

Full description

The Purpose of the Research: The purpose of this study is to test the effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) versus Diaphragmatic Breathing in Reducing Post Traumatic Stress Disorders.

The Scientific or Scholarly Rationale: Clinical experience and anecdotal reports have demonstrated EFT to be effective for a wide range of behavioral disorders, including PTSD. However with the exception of several studies demonstrating the efficacy of EFT for the treatment of simple phobias, there have been no formal research studies in this area. It is the intention of this study to extend the phobia studies to the area of PTSD, and to determine what other conditions EFT might be effective in treating. Another intention of this study is to see whether, and to what degree, changes in psychological functioning (as measure by the PAI and TSI) are reflected in physiological markers such as HRV (Heart Rate Variability) and levels of cortisol and DHEA.

The Procedures to be Performed: Approximately 8 to 10 subjects would be randomly designated to either the experimental or Diaphragmatic Breathing control groups. There will be 4-5 subjects in the EFT experimental group and 4-5 subjects in the control Diaphragmatic Breathing group.

Enrollment

12 estimated patients

Sex

All

Ages

18 to 70 years old

Volunteers

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria