Energy
psychology represents a new paradigm. Not surprisingly, it is controversial,
particularly since many of its procedures seem quite strange and the field's early claims
of extraordinary clinical outcomes far exceeded research substantiation. Beyond this,
experienced therapists are incredulous on hearing reports of almost instantaneous and
lasting cures for longstanding psychiatric conditions such as phobias and generalized
anxiety disorder. Therapy is not that rapid. Time is needed for building rapport,
examining the antecedents of the problem, exploring the meaning of the symptoms in the
person's life, assessing which therapeutic modalities are most appropriate for this unique
situation, and applying them. Attempts to explain the purported dramatic treatment
outcomes of energy psychology in terms of insight, cognitive restructuring, reward and
punishment, or the curative properties of the therapeutic relationship make no sense.
But if the electrochemical shifts in brain chemistry that are brought about by
stimulating acupuncture points are examined (see brain
scan images), a coherent hypothesis begins to emerge:
If research supports anecdotal reports
that these methods may be more rapid and as or more effective than standard treatments for
certain psychological problems, energy methods should become a standard of care for those
conditions. This, however, raises the question of whether psychotherapists are qualified
to practice these procedures. Do they fall within the appropriate "scope of
practice" for psychotherapists?
This issue is being addressed within the profession of psychology in
particular. It has not been resolved. But even as the question is being debated, the tide
of clinical practice is clearly moving toward the acceptance of energy interventions. The
600-member professional organization that has grown around energy psychology since its
establishment in 1999 (The Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology) has developed
formal Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice statements. Its membership is
composed primarily of licensed health and mental health professionals and includes
individuals who hold positions on the faculties of psychology departments at distinguished
universities, who hold ABPP Diplomate status, who work in highly regarded clinical
settings, and who represent a broad range of clinical backgrounds and orientations. The
organization, as well as its individual members, has developed training programs that
provide mental health professionals the knowledge and skills to incorporate the methods of
energy psychology into clinical practice.
The experience within the energy
psychology community is that its methods can be taught to licensed clinicians at a level
where they can responsibly introduce them into their practices within less than 100 hours
of training. The number varies widely depending upon the practitioner or organization
conducting the training. There is no established standard on this issue, and one of the
reasons that Energy Psychology Interactive was created was to offer standards
regarding the specific knowledge and skill areas that should be mastered before clinicians
introduce the methods into their practices, based on a consensus of the field's
leadership.
The Energy Psychology Interactive Advisory Board, under whose
auspices the program was developed, consists of 24 of the field's pioneers and recognized
leaders, including 10 psychologists, 5 physicians, and 9 other licensed health or mental
health professionals. On the opening page of the Energy Psychology Interactive CD,
the program represents itself as a 40-hour course. Whether requiring 40 hours or 100
hours, however, the experience of the energy psychology community is that the methods can
be taught to psychotherapists within a reasonable training period and without mastering a
separate discipline such as acupuncture, yoga, or qi gong.
In fact, the essential techniques used in energy psychology are
unregulated. Anyone, as long as they are not diagnosing or treating illness, can teach
another person to self-stimulate energy points for positive effects. Energy psychology
does not utilize invasive procedures. It does not involve surgery, medication, physical
first aid, or even the superficial insertion of tiny needles. The methods are perhaps most
akin to those taught in Touch for Health. Tens of thousands of laypeople have been
certified in Touch for Health over the past three decades, and no more training than that
is required for a psychologist to effectively apply energy interventions to help people
with anxiety and other psychological issues.
The closest established clinical precedent to the methods of energy
psychology actually exists within rather than outside the field of psychology, and
that is systematic desensitization. As with systematic desensitization, a stimulus that
causes an unwanted or dysfunctional emotional response is brought to mind and a physical
intervention is used to replace a disturbed response with a neutral response. In
systematic desensitization, muscle tension is replaced with muscle relaxation by teaching
the client the willful induction of muscular tension and release. In energy psychology, an
unwanted or dysfunctional emotional response is replaced with a neutral response by
teaching the client to stimulate electrically reactive areas of the skin. Systematic
desensitization is of course not the only clinical procedure to utilize overtly physical
interventions, and many physical interventions used by psychotherapists, particularly in
aversion therapies, are not only physical but also invasive. The physical interventions used within energy psychology
are non-invasive, painless, and generally self-applied by the client.
Still, clinicians considering the use of energy interventions are wise
to investigate the positions of both their licensing board and their malpractice insurance
carrier. Assuming they are not specifically prohibited, one of the most responsible and
self-protective steps you can take during this period while the professions are coming to
terms with the energy paradigm is to be certain that you have obtained clear informed
consent from your clients before you utilize energy interventions. The Energy
Psychology Interactive CD includes sample wording that can be copied into your word
processor, revised for the particulars of your practice, and integrated into your informed
consent statement.
In deciding how to regard energy interventions, the clinical
professions will best serve themselves and their clients by being very careful not to
define their scope of practice so it omits safe, unregulated procedures that are,
according to evidence that is rapidly accumulating, also highly effective for treating
certain psychological issues. The profession of psychology, for instance, which is
fighting to gain drug prescription privileges, would be taking a significant step backward
if it defines these non-invasive methods as being outside the scope of practice of
psychologists who have taken training in stimulating the body's energy centers for
psychological benefit. The clinical professions should, in fact, be leading the way in
setting standards for the responsible application of energy interventions as their use by
laypeople is proliferating, sometimes in troubling ways. Energy Psychology Interactive
offers clinicians a readily accessible and authoritative resource for educating themselves
about the responsible uses of energy interventions with psychological issues.
