The Tapping Evidence Base
PTSD & Trauma · Other Physical Conditions

TBI symptoms improve after PTSD remediation with Emotional Freedom Techniques

Church, D., Palmer-Hoffman, J. · Traumatology · 2014

Randomized trial👥 59 participants⚖️ vs. randomized controlled trialModerate rigor✓ Source-checked📍 United States
In plain English. Among veterans treated with EFT for PTSD, those who also had traumatic brain injury symptoms saw those symptoms improve too, not just their PTSD. This raises interesting questions about overlap between PTSD and TBI symptoms, though the veterans studied overlap with several other Church et al. papers on the same treatment program.

What they found

59
people took part

Significant reductions in TBI symptoms were found after 3 sessions of EFT, with further reduction after 6 months (-41%, p<.0021); gains were maintained at 3- and 6-month follow-up (p<.0006).

How the study worked

Who took part59 veterans with clinical levels of PTSD symptoms, subset with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and somatoform symptoms (n=59)
What they didIn a randomized controlled trial, participants were randomly assigned to receive tapping or a comparison condition, then measured and compared.
Compared withrandomized controlled trial
Measured withTBI symptom measures

💡 Where this could help

Think of a veteran managing both PTSD and the lingering effects of a brain injury, often treated as two separate problems by two separate specialists. If this overlap holds up in future work, it suggests one course of treatment — self-taught skills the veteran can keep using afterward without needing either specialist's ongoing involvement — might ease symptoms across both diagnoses at once, simplifying care for a population juggling multiple providers.

🔬 What to study next

Since treating PTSD appeared to reduce TBI symptoms too, a compelling next step is neuroimaging or EEG before and after EFT in veterans with comorbid TBI and PTSD, to see whether the overlap reflects a shared underlying neural circuit being recalibrated rather than two conditions coincidentally both easing. Tracking cortisol and sleep via actigraphy over the 6-month follow-up would also clarify whether the TBI symptom gains ride on the same stress-hormone pathway as the PTSD relief.

The full record

DesignRandomized trial
Participants59 people
Population59 veterans with clinical levels of PTSD symptoms, subset with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and somatoform symptoms
Comparison grouprandomized controlled trial
Outcome measuresTBI symptom measures
JournalTraumatology
Year2014
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
MethodEFT / tapping
Publication typeStudy / trial
Verification✓ Confirmed against the primary source

Read the original study →

Cite this study

APA

Church, D., & Palmer-Hoffman, J. (2014). TBI symptoms improve after PTSD remediation with Emotional Freedom Techniques. Traumatology. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0099831

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 · Other Physical Conditions

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THE TAPPING EVIDENCE BASE PTSD & Trauma 59 participants WHAT THEY FOUND Significant reductions in TBI symptoms werefound after 3 sessions of EFT, with furtherreduction after 6 months… Randomized trial · 59 participants Church · 2014 · evidence.thetappingsolution.com