Abstract

Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) as a new therapeutic technique in energy psychology has positive effects on psychological and physiological symptoms, and quality of life. In this research we studied the effect of this treatment on immunological factors. This study tested whether 8-week group sessions of EFT (compared to a wait-list control group) with emphasis on patient's respiratory, psychological and immunological problems in chemically pulmonary injured veterans (N=28) can affect on immunological and psychological factors. Mixed effect linear models indicated that EFT improved mental health (F=79.24, p=0) and health-related quality of life (F=13.89, p=0.001), decreased somatic symptoms (F=5.81, p=0.02), anxiety/insomnia (F= 24.03, p<0.001), social dysfunction (F=21.59, p<0.001), frequency and severity of respiratory symptoms (F=20.38, p<0.001), and increased lymphocyte proliferation with nonspecific mitogens Concanavalin A (Con A) (F=14.32, p=0.001) and Phytohemagglutinin (PHA) (F=12.35, p=0.002), and peripheral blood IL-17 (F=9.11, p=0.006). This study provides an initial indication that EFT may be a new therapeutic approach for improving psychological and immunological factors.