EFT Therapy for Couples, Individuals and Families
EFT creates change in relationships. It assists us to recognise where we are stuck, to change our patterns of relating, and to begin to learn to rebuild loving connection.
EFT helps address the core questions we tend to ask ourselves in our most important relationships: Do I matter deeply to my partner? Will he/she/they be there for me when I really need them? Can I count on them to have my back? Do I feel secure enough in my relationship to relax and be my real authentic self?
These questions tend to be at the heart of how we relate to each other. If we get a 'no' or a 'maybe' to any of them, we can be left feeling very isolated and alone, and reacting in some very predictable, but unhelpful ways.
EFT is all about making sense of those predictable but unhelpful ways of relating, and building better, more satisfying patterns that leave us feeling more open, trusting and understood.
De-escalation of Patterns of Disconnection
Significant improvements are often experienced by a couple as they begin to firstly recognise their pattern of fighting and withdrawing, and then to learn ways of de-escalation so the negative pattern doesn’t take over.
Within just a few sessions, couples begin to identify and understand more deeply what is going on when they get caught in their negative cycle of interaction, and begin to reduce the frequency, intensity and duration of these negative patterns. It is often a huge relief as this starts to happen.
Deepening Bonds of Safety and Asking for Needs To Be Met
Couples can then continue to do deeper work together so that with the greater safety and trust in the relationship, they are able to work together so that each partner’s needs can be expressed and met in ways that did not seem possible ever before in the relationship.
Sometimes to get to this point it is necessary to go back and revisit old deep hurts and injuries in the relationship.
— Dr Sue Johnson
Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT)
EFIT works with individuals (on issues such as anxiety, depression, past trauma or low self-esteem) to develop healthy emotional processing and expression, and better mental health. Clients are supported to learn to trust their own experience, to accept their own feelings and to communicate clearly with their important others in ways that build more effective relationships.
Emotionally Focused Family Therapy (EFFT)
EFFT aims to identify and change the patterns of distance or enduring conflict that typically block security and closeness in family relationships. Family members are supported to identify and express their deeper emotions and needs, thereby promoting healthy emotional connection amongst members. Parents are supported to respond to the emotional needs and developmental tasks of their children across the life span, assisting them to build resilience.
“The most functional way to regulate difficult emotions in love relationships is to share them.” - Dr Sue Johnson
Individual Reading and Research
If you would like more information, you can do your own reading and research here – please see our EFT Video and EFT Articles pages. This will help you to determine whether EFT is a good fit for your needs.