
One of the biggest questions about the tapping is how we know if it really works or if the positive shifts it produces are just down to some sort of placebo effect.
Dr. Peta Stapleton finds herself in a unique situation. As a college professor charged with supervising a number of master's level students and their research projects, she has a disposition that is inclined towards the unconventional, and also lives in Australia, which is a little more laid back than the US and is open to new ideas than some other countries.
Because of this, Dr. Stapleton has been able to perform rigorous research into the effectiveness of tapping for a number of issues for over 10 years. In this conversation we talk about her work, how the research studies have been done and their findings. This information is particularly great to have when you are sharing tapping with skeptics.
![]() Dr. Peta Stapleton |
Guest: Dr. Peta Stapleton
Contact: web @ PetaStapleton.com/; twitter @PetaStapleton; instagram @petastapleton
About: Dr. Peta Stapleton has 22 years experience as a registered Clinical & Health Psychologist in the State of Queensland, Australia and has completed a Bachelor of Arts, Postgraduate Diploma of Professional Psychology and Doctor of Philosophy. Peta held academic positions at Griffith University for 14 years, teaching and coordinating psychological research trials into new therapies in the area of obesity and weight management and is now Associate Professor in Psychology at Bond University.
Peta regularly contributes to the academic field with publications in the areas of nursing, morale, communication, psychological interventions and eating disorders. She regularly reviews for academic journals and offers supervision for new and existing Psychologists as well as students.
Here is a list of published research papers which Peta has authored or coauthored about EFT:
- Emotional freedom techniques in the treatment of unhealthy eating behaviors and related psychological constructs in adolescents: A randomized controlled pilot trial
- Food for Thought: A randomised controlled trial of emotional freedom techniques and cognitive behavioural therapy in the treatment of food cravings
- The effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Emotional Freedom Techniques in reducing depression and anxiety among adults: A pilot study
- Depression Symptoms Improve after Successful Weight Loss with Emotional Freedom Techniques
- Quitting Smoking: How to Use Emotional Freedom Techniques
- Practical application of Emotional Freedom Techniques for food cravings
All interviews with Dr. Peta Stapelton:

Releasing weight is about much more than simply knowing you should eat better and exercise more. First, there are usually a number of emotional blocks to making healthy choices and, second, even when we make the right choices, our system may still cling to the extra pounds.
In 1993 Tapas Fleming developed an acupressure technique that was later named TAT (Tapas Acupressure Technique). In many ways it is a sister protocol to EFT.





The very first episode of the 




For me, knowing what to do and not doing it is more frustrating than not knowing what to do.
Our bodies are far from perfect.
Last week I shared with you a simple process for
Good morning,
As the year draws to a close it is good for us to reflect on the last twelve months. This week I have for you a process that will lead you through a simple reflection of your year.
My friend Catherine Poole uses the term “weight release” instead of “weight loss”. I prefer “weight release” because I think it speaks to a more holistic approach to improving health than just diet and exercise.