1. When a person thinks about an emotional problem, various brain-imaging techniques register different levels and degrees of activation signals at the amygdala, hippocampus, orbital frontal cortex, and other cortical and subcortical CNS structures.
    

2. The neurological profiles associated with anxiety and PTSD include diminished signals in the prefrontal and temporal regions, and elevated signals in the limbic system, particularly the amygdala. Present tendencies in neurophysiology look more to neural circuits interaction and synchronization of signals than to specific anatomical localization and isolated measuring of brain waves.
    

3. Tapping an acupoint sends signals that may reach the same parts of the brain as those affected by anxiety and PTSD. An acupoint is a tiny area of the skin with significantly lower electrical resistance than other areas of the skin (12,000 to 14,000 Ohms vs. 300,000 to 400,000 Ohms). Acupoints have higher concentrations of free nerve endings and mechanoreceptors (receptors that are sensitive to mechanical stimulation on the surface of the skin).
    

4. The signals sent by stimulating acupoints, as shown via brain imaging, decrease elevated signal activation in the limbic system (a marker of anxiety), and increase signal activation in the prefrontal cortex (enhancing relaxed control), and synchronize the activation between the cortical and subcortical systems (reducing symptoms of PTSD).
    

5. When a person brings to mind an anxiety-provoking image or thought and at the same time taps an acupoint, this appears to reduce the subcortical activation response to that image or thought, at the same time enhancing the cortical (and evolutionary superior) control of emotions.
    

6. Once this elevated limbic response has been neutralized by tapping multiple points multiple times while simultaneously holding the image or thought, an anxiety-free state seems to rapidly become conditioned to the original anxiety-provoking stimulus.

1. Why do a range of methods (massaging rather than tapping the acupoints, using any of a variety of acupoints, holding neurovascular rather than acupuncture points, chakra clearings, bilateral eye movements, etc.) appear to achieve similar clinical outcomes?
    

2. How is it that a broad range of emotions and even physical symptoms, whose neurochemistry is far different from that of anxiety, appear to respond positively to essentially the same treatment interventions?
    

3. What other markers beside brain wave patterns need to be examined to fully understand the treatment effects (neurotransmitters, functional magnetic resonance, meridian flow, etc.)?
    

4. Is a linear formulation (from acupoint to brain wave) adequate, or is a more comprehensive concept such as neural circuitry synchronization, holographic patterning, or "thought field" effects necessary to explain all of the phenomena that can be observed?
    

5. Is the energy limited to electromagnetic impulses? Is an exchange or activation of more subtle energies between client and practitioner (e.g., a "healing presence") involved in the treatment effects?
    

6. What are the underlying dynamics of surrogate healing, where stimulating one person’s acupoints with the intention of helping another person who is not present and not necessarily aware of the procedure seems effective?