Current Research at Soul Medicine Institute

 

The Foundation for Epigenetic Medicine is the research arm of Soul Medicine Institute. It is currently involved in several research projects. To make a donation, click the button below:

To get more information about our research projects, click on the links below:

Study: The Effects of Psychotherapy and EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) on Stress Hormones (Cortisol)

Study: When the Emotions Heal, the Body Heals: EFT, Pain, and Joint Rotation

Clearinghouse: The Veterans Stress Project: Studying the Effects of EFT on Veterans with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

Replications: The Wells Phobia Study and the Rowe Psychological Health Study

Study: EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) and Depression

Study: DNA and EFT: The Effect of EFT on Stress Gene Expression

Study: Mitigating Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

Study: Athletic Performance Before and after EFT

Prize: The Epigenetic Medicine Prize

Prize: The Energy Psychology Prize

  1. The effect of Psychotherapy and EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) on Stress Hormones, Anxiety, and Depression. This ground-breaking, triple-blind study examined the levels of salivary cortisol of 83 subjects before and after either talk therapy, EFT, or rest, to determine whether key stress hormone levels were affected. This study was completed in 2011 and published in 2012.
  2. When Emotions Heal, the Body Heals: The Range of Motion Study. This study examines the effect of the healing of emotional trauma on physical function. The physical measure is the range of motion of shoulder joints. The number of degrees of motion (eg 117 degrees) is measured before treatment. Each subject then recieves a 30 minute treatment with either EFT or a control therapy, after which they are re-measured. To dowload NIH PDF abstract, click here.
  3. The Veterans Stress Project. The Veterans Stress project connects veterans suffering from PTSD with therapists and life coaches who offer EFT. It has also conduced several studies measuring the effect of EFT on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which affects tens of thousands of veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq. Results of this research are shared at the web site of the Veterans Stress Project, where vets can also connect with practitioners.
  4. Replicating Existing Research. Soul Medicine Institute is in the process of publishing replications of several important research papers. To prove that a therapy is "efficacious," the APA (American Psychological Association) requires two controlled trials, published in peer-reviewed journals, performed by different research teams. SMI identified and funded the replication of a phobia study (Wells et al, 2003), a PTSD study (Geronilla et al. 2012), and a psychological health study (Rowe, 2005).
  5. Effects of EFT on Depression. Soul Medicine Institute completed a randomized controlled trial of the effects of EFT on depression in adolescent college students using a standard questionnaire (the Beck Depression Inventory or BDI), which was published in the peer-reviewed journal Depression Research & Treatment in 2012. In addition, SMI conducted a single subject trial using the BDI and also plant growth, as a measure. To see photographs and results, click here.
  6. DNA and EFT: The Effects of EFT on Stress Gene Expression. New gene chip technology makes it possible to determine which genes are turned on and off by a therapy. Soul Medicine Institute is conducting an ambitious and ground-breaking study to measure how stress genes are affected by EFT treatment. This research will demonstrate, beyond reasonable doubt, that EFT affects the basic biological building blocks of human beings at the molecular level.
  7. The MACE study: Mitigating Adverse Childhood Experiences. This study is designed as a follow-up study to the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) study at Kaiser Permanente. This ten-year study of over 17,000 adults found a strong correlation between childhood emotional trauma and adult disease, including diabetes, depression, hypertension, heart disease and cancer. The follow-up study proposed by Soul Medicine Institute is called the MACE study: Mitigating Adverse Childhood Experiences. It tracks the correlation between the relief of adult stress (and associated childhood trauma) using Energy Psychology techniques, and disease symptoms in adults.
  8. Athletic Performance Study. Soul Medicine Institute conducted a study of athletic performance at Oregon State University. The men's and women's basketball teams participated in the study. Their performance at free throws and jump height was recorded before and after a 15 minute treatment with Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) or a control condition. The EFT group performed 38% better at free throws than the control group. The lessons learned from this study are now available as a training for sports teams through EFT Power Training. A follow-up study, this time of confidence levels in women athletes, has been conducted.
  9. The Energy Psychology Prize. Soul Medicine Institute is inaugurating a new annual monetary prize for the individual or institution that has done the most to further the field of Energy Psychology in the previous year, especially those not directly involved in the field, such as researchers highlighting the genetic changes that occur during effective psychotherapy.
  10. The Epigenetic Medicine Prize. Soul Medicine Institute encourages the development of therapies that affect individuals epigenetically by awarding an annual monetary award to recognize practical applications of epigenetics. Such applications can be psychological (e.g. Energy Psychology interventions), social (e.g. childhood nurturing, which enhances the expression of the genes in the hippocampus that dampen stress), or biomedical. The inaugural recipient was Randy Jirtle, PhD, of Duke University Medical Center, for his pioneering work discovering the epigenetic effects of Agouti gene supression. We need $15,000 for the coming year's prize.



  1. APA Petition. The American Psychological Association (APA) is the largest association of therapists in North America. Soul Medicine Institute supports a drive to establish Energy Psychology as a "division" or interest area within APA. If you are a licensed clinician, please sign and return a petition to make Energy Psychology a division of APA. Click here for more information, including a form to sign and mail in.
  2. Tracking Other Studies in Epigenetic Healing and Energy Psychology. There are over a dozen studies currently underway. Soul Medicine Institute maintains correspondence with these researchers, providing technical assistance, expertise, and sometimes funding, and tracking the studies from design through publication. For a list of research information sites, click here.

 

Soul Medicine Methods in the News