EFT for Meditation–Combining Meditation with Acupressure for Stress Release
MRI studies have found that meditation produces positive changes in many parts of the brain, including those responsible for stress reduction and memory. In the book EFT for Meditation, long-time meditation teachers Charles and Carol Crenshaw show how to combine meditation with EFT or Emotional Freedom Techniques. Described by Examiner.com as “one of the most successful psychology self-help techniques ever developed,” EFT combines advanced psychology techniques with acupressure.
The Crenshaws, a husband and wife team, describe the ability to remain calm in the face of distressing life experiences as one of the foundations of meditation. They show that EFT can quickly release stress, allowing meditators to deepen their practices. Over 100 scientific studies have shown that EFT is effective for many physical and psychological challenges, including anxiety, depression, and PTSD.
Those who attempt to establish a meditation practice discover that many obstacles to calming the mind and relaxing the body stand in the way. EFT can help clear those obstacles by releasing doubts, fears, and emotional disturbances, enabling the meditator to gain the full body-mind-spirit benefits of meditation. Likewise, meditation facilitates the EFT process by bringing the contents of the unconscious to the surface, exposing the limiting beliefs and disturbing memories that hinder people from living their full potential. Identifying such obstacles is integral to EFT, and meditation can speed the process.
The authors begin the book with an exercise designed to provide the reader with a “quick start” experience of how EFT and meditation can be combined. They review the research on meditation, and explain in detail how it changes the activity of the nervous system. This in turn affects the respiratory and circulatory systems, producing widespread regulation throughout the body. While emphasizing the science, the book shows how meditation has its roots in mystical experience.
EFT for Meditation acknowledges the difficulty most people have in establishing a consistent meditation practice. It shows how to use EFT to overcome resistance, and how to tailor a practice to one’s unique life circumstances. It outlines the most popular meditation methods and the role EFT plays in each one. There are thousands of studies showing the healing benefits of meditation and EFT when practiced alone. Combining them can produce a powerfully transformative effect.
References
Book: EFT for Meditation on Amazon
Meta-Analyses and Systematic Reviews of EFT Research: Research.EFTuniverse.com
Author Bios
Charles Crenshaw is cofounder of Inner Peace Yoga Center in Indianapolis and has served as faculty at the Himalayan Institute and the New Seminary. He is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Phoenix and certified in Reiki, EFT, biofeedback, neuro-linguistic programming, and hypnosis. He is the author of The Pathless Path: God, Grace, Guru and a contributor to Clinical EFT Handbook.
Carol Crenshaw, cofounder of Inner Peace Yoga Center, has been practicing and teaching meditation for 40 years and is certified in EFT, neuro-linguistic programming, and hypnosis. Formerly an adjunct faculty member at the University of Phoenix, she taught philosophy, psychology, and sociology. Her writing has appeared in Yoga International Magazine and Clinical EFT Handbook.
