Church, D., Brooks, A. J. · Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing · 2014
Among 218 male veterans and their spouses attending week-long retreats that combined EFT with other energy-psychology and CAM methods, mean veteran PCL scores fell from 61.1 to 41.8 (p<0.001), with the share meeting clinical PTSD criteria dropping from 83% to 28%; spouses fell from 42.6 to 28.7 (p<0.001), from 29% to 4% clinical. Gains were maintained or improved at follow-up (n=63).
This is one of the largest real-world snapshots in the tapping literature, 218 people, and it tracked not just veterans but the spouses who carry secondary trauma. The catch worth stating plainly: the retreats combined tapping with several other methods, so the numbers reflect the whole program, not tapping in isolation.
Programs that reach veterans and their spouses together, in a retreat or group format, where the goal is broad symptom relief rather than isolating a single technique.
A controlled trial that isolates the tapping component from the other retreat elements, to see how much of the change tapping specifically drives.
| Design | Outcome study |
|---|---|
| Participants | 218 people |
| Population | male veterans and their spouses attending week-long retreats |
| Outcome measures | PTSD Checklist (PCL) |
| Journal | Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing |
| Year | 2014 |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Method | EFT / tapping |
| Publication type | Study / trial |
| Verification | ✓ Confirmed against the primary source |
Church, D., & Brooks, A. J. (2014). CAM and energy psychology techniques remediate PTSD symptoms in veterans and spouses. Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2013.10.006
This record is part of the Tapping Evidence Base — an openly-sourced, fully-referenced directory of the research on EFT/tapping. Explore more studies on PTSD & Trauma
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