Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) as an effective adjunctive treatment in the neurotherapeutic treatment of seizure disorders

Biology / mechanismPreliminary✓ Source-checked📍 Canada

In plain English. This paper looked at brain-wave patterns in people being treated for seizure disorders and found that adding tapping sessions boosted a specific brainwave pattern (called SMR) that's already known to help calm an overactive nervous system in epilepsy-related treatment. It's presented as a potential add-on to existing brain-training treatment rather than a replacement for medical seizure care. We could not confirm the number of patients involved or find this study indexed on PubMed, so it should be treated as an early, unreplicated signal.

What they found

QEEG assessment found that adding EFT increased sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) amplitude, a brainwave pattern relevant to seizure disorder treatment and normally targeted by neurofeedback, suggesting EFT may work as a helpful adjunct to standard neurotherapy for seizure disorders.

How the study worked

Who took partpatients with seizure disorders undergoing neurotherapeutic (QEEG-guided) treatment

What they didThis study measured biological or physiological signals before and after tapping to probe how it may work.

Measured withquantitative EEG (QEEG) brainwave measures, specifically sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) amplitude

⭐ Why this study matters

Sensorimotor rhythm amplitude is a specific brainwave signature that neurofeedback clinicians already target directly to help calm an overactive nervous system in epilepsy care, measured on a QEEG machine, not reported by the patient. Finding that adding tapping increased SMR amplitude means it moved a brainwave marker this field already considers clinically meaningful, in the same direction that standard neurotherapy tries to achieve.

💡 Where this could help

If this replicates, it suggests tapping could serve as a low-cost, self-administered complement patients use between neurofeedback sessions, potentially extending the benefit of expensive, clinic-based treatment with something the patient can practice for free at home in the days between appointments.

🔬 What to study next

A well-powered study should track SMR amplitude across a full course of combined tapping-plus-neurofeedback treatment versus neurofeedback alone, with seizure frequency and severity logged in parallel, to see whether the brainwave change actually predicts fewer or milder seizures. It would also be worth testing whether tapping alone, without formal neurofeedback, can move SMR amplitude at all, since that would determine whether it could stand as an independent, take-home tool rather than only a clinic-based adjunct.

The full record

Design	Biology / mechanism
Population	patients with seizure disorders undergoing neurotherapeutic (QEEG-guided) treatment
Outcome measures	quantitative EEG (QEEG) brainwave measures, specifically sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) amplitude
Journal	Energy Psychology: Theory, Research, and Treatment
Year	2010
Country	Canada
Language	English
Method	EFT / tapping
Publication type	Study / trial
Verification	✓ Confirmed against the primary source

Read the original study →

Cite this study

APA

Swingle, P.G. (2010). Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) as an effective adjunctive treatment in the neurotherapeutic treatment of seizure disorders. Energy Psychology: Theory, Research, and Treatment.

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 How It Works (Biology)