In a 2006 through 2007 study (Sakai, Connolly, & Oas (2010)) published in the International Journal of Emergency Mental Health, (Winter, 2010). TFT was applied with 50 orphaned adolescents who had been suffering with symptoms of PTSD since the Rwandan Genocide twelve years earlier. Following a single administration of TFT, scores on the PTSD checklists saw improvements of <.0001 on both measures. Improvements had been maintained one year after on both measures of the PTSD checklist.

Thought Field Therapy has been used in clinical settings to successfully treat a wide variety of psychological problems, including PTSD, trauma, anxiety, and anger. While there has been scant research to date, reports coming from therapists and clients have been impressive. One formal investigation, conducted in early 1995, by Charles R. Figley, Ph.D. and Joyce Carbonell, Ph.D. of the Psychological Stress Research Program and Clinical Laboratory at Florida State University yielded impressive results in the treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. For this study, four new treatment approaches were selected on the basis of previous merit. These methods were: Traumatic Incident Reduction (TRI) Visual Kinesthetic Dissociation (NLP) Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Thought Field Therapy (TFT). Figley reported that: "TFT stood out from all other approaches of which I am aware because of five reasons:

1. It is extraordinarily powerful, in that clients receive nearly immediate relief from their suffering and treatment appears to be permanent.
2. It can be taught to nearly anyone so that clients can not only treat themselves, but treat others affected.
3. It appears to do no harm.
4. It does not require the client to talk about their troubles, something that often causes more emotional pain and discourages many from seeking treatment.
5. It is extremely efficient (fast and long lasting)."
   

In 1996, Dr. Joyce Carbonell of Florida State University did a double blind study using TFT and a placebo treatment to treat fear of heights. Subjects were screened using the Cohen Acrophobia Inventory and randomly assigned to two groups. Both the TFT group and the placebo group received part of the TFT treatment, however, the placebo group tapped on non - TFT body points and the TFT group tapped on TFT points. Neither the subjects nor the therapists knew which was the TFT treatment and which was the placebo treatment. There was a significant difference in improvement in SUD scores and in scores on the Cohen Acrophobia Inventory between the two treatment groups. Those subjects who were treated with TFT had the greater average improvement. (J. Carbonell, An Experimental Study of TFT and Acrophobia. The Thought Field, Volume 2.)

In October 2001 The Journal of Clinical Psychology (Volume 57. No. 10) published a special issue Thought Field Therapy: Initial Research.

This special issue contains 5 initial pilot, non-peer-reviewed studies using Thought Field Therapy to treat a variety of psychological problems. It also contains reviews of the research methods and a "Response to Critics" by Dr. Roger Callahan. Probably the most important research article published in this issue of The Journal of Clinical Psychology is an article written by Dr. Carl Johnson, et. al. "Soothing the Bad Moments of Kosovo." The author reports that of 249 traumas treated in Kosovo, 247 were treated successfully in a short period of time. After several visits to Kosovo, Dr. Skkelzen Syla, The equivalent to the surgeon general of Kosovo wrote DR. Carl Johnson a letter saying that he had declared TFT the official trauma therapy of Kosovo.

In my own private traditional therapy practice, TFT has been a valuable tool providing a complimentary alternative treatment to my basic more traditional approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. In my workshops, I encourage therapist participants to integrate Thought Field Therapy into their own practice in their own unique way. It can be an important tool to be used as a compliment to any of the more traditional therapies.

Because most clients are, understandably skeptical that tapping on acupuncture spots or energy spots on their own body will be of any help, neither the placebo effect or positive thinking seem to play a part in the results achieved in Thought Field Therapy. In this regard, Dr. Callahan has commented that Thought Field Therapy "probably doesn't get its fair share of placebo effects" because people ordinarily don't have faith that the procedure will help. The most common questions asked by clients after successful Thought Field Therapy sessions are: "How long will it last?" and "How does it work?" The answer to the first question is that the results appear to be permanent in many cases. In a personal phone conversation with Dr. Figley, he reported that the successful results attained in his study were reported by subjects to have continued in a six months follow up. Dr. Callahan's first patient treated with what he later termed Thought Field Therapy was a patient he refers to as "Mary." "Mary" was treated with Thought Field Therapy over thirty years ago for a water phobia and remains, by her own self- report "cured."

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