NHS doctor using 'tapping' to help cope with pandemic stress

EDINBURGH, Scotland - June 11, 2020 - PRLog -- An NHS doctor working with psychiatric patients has been using an alternative health technique known as 'EFT tapping' to help her cope with extra stress caused by COVID-19.

Dr Kirstin Buchanan, based at Liberton Hospital in Edinburgh, says the pandemic has significantly increased the pressures of her job. She works with elderly psychiatric patients, many of whom are receiving end-of-life care and have complex and acute conditions.

"I work in a downstream healthcare setting, not on the classic front line, yet COVID-19 has still had a huge impact on us," says Dr Buchanan. "The virus has significantly changed the way we work, and caused many new stresses for us, our patients and their families. My team are needing a lot more support with mental health now."

Dr Buchanan is using tapping, or Emotional Freedom Techniques, to keep her feelings of anxiety under control and help her face the extra demands at work. EFT is a simple technique, using fingertip tapping on acupressure points, particularly on the face and upper body. This can help restore emotional and physical balance. It draws on the ancient practice of acupuncture and combines this with modern psychology, strengthening the mind and body connection.

Dr Buchanan has joined online tapping sessions with EFT Practitioner, Tricia Murray. "Tapping with Tricia has allowed me the space to identify my worries and fears about the virus and the changes in my work situation, and to learn to accept it. This has definitely reduced my overall levels of stress. At the start of the pandemic I was worried about the unknown. Now the 'unknown' is here, all around us, every day. Like many of my colleagues I have the additional stress of my children being at home while the schools have been closed. I worry about my husband trying to work from home while also doing childcare. Tapping has helped me feel calmer and enabled me to get on with it."

EFT Practitioner Tricia Murray is passionate about tapping and says it can help in times of stress. "EFT is such a powerful way to regulate the nervous system, eliciting a feeling of calm," she says.  "It provides insight into why we feel the way that we do and compassion by allowing ourselves the opportunity to validate the feelings we are experiencing. Integrating tapping into your day, even 5 or 10 minutes, can result in a profound improvement to your overall mental wellbeing and reduce stress and anxiety."

Anyone wanting to learn more about EFT can visit http://www.eftinternational.org

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