Does Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) Help Relationships?

At New Growth Counseling, we use Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT). Since the 1980s, EFT has been rigorously researched and validated as one of the most successful methods to date. EFT demonstrates a high degree of long-term change with people years after therapy has concluded.

Research on couples receiving EFT therapy shows that 70-75% of people experience complete improvement in their relationship; for those who do not experience such a complete turn-around, 90% of all clients report significant improvement in their relationship. The research on EFT with individuals and families has shown similar improvements in the treatment of depression, anxiety, anger issues, parent-child problems, adolescent issues, ADHD, parenting, traumatic experiences & PTSD, substance abuse, and other self-destructive behaviors.

At New Growth, our therapists continually receive training in EFT and advance their skills as a part of our commitment to you.

Get EFT Therapy in Carlsbad

HOW EFT WORKS

Couples and family distress usually comes from negative communication patterns that can escalate quickly and cause people to feel misunderstood and upset. For individuals not attending couples or family counseling, the distress can come from a relationship or from some triggering event which leads to a negative mood and can feel paralyzing or overwhelming, eventually leading to bad choices.

In the first stage of treatment, we will help you slow down and identify the sources of any negative patterns or triggers so you can gain some mastery over them. We help couples and families to really hear each other so everyone feels understood, and problem solving becomes easier. We help those attending individually to get relief from their negative moods and begin to explore new solutions to their problems.

During the second stage of EFT, we’ll help you uncover and address your unmet needs. We help couples and families express their needs to each other in ways that actually leads to fulfillment. We help individuals recognize and find healthy ways to assert their needs. Any past hurts and injuries will be addressed – couples and families will repair and reconcile, while individuals will heal internally and move towards acceptance and peace.

In the final stage, we will help you create new patterns of thinking, communicating, and acting in order to strengthen your gains. We will also help you to recognize the early warning signs that you might be headed backwards, and devise a plan to prevent that from ever happening.

Important EFT resources

Hold Me Tight – this book is for lay-people wanting to understand how the process of EFT relationship therapy works. It is geared towards couples. The author, Sue Johnson, is the co-founder of EFT.

International Center for Excellence in EFT – this organization maintains standards for certification in EFT, conducts research on EFT, and provides many resources in EFT. Our therapists receive training sanctioned by this organization

Let’s Talk About What Healing Could Look Like

Explore our Couples Therapy approach

Disclaimer

This article is for educational purposes and does not constitute mental health counseling. If you are experiencing distress or relationship challenges, please reach out to a licensed therapist at New Growth Counseling for personalized support.