Psychosensory Therapy

Psychosensory therapy is a psychotherapeutic modality that uses sensory stimuli, meaning touch, sight, sound, taste and smell, to affect psychological health, as well as a broader group of techniques applying sensory input to treat dysfunctional behavior, mood disturbance, troubling thought patterns and pain conditions. It traces its roots to traditional Chinese medicine and so-called energy psychology, with contributions from figures including chiropractor George Goodheart, psychiatrist John Diamond, clinical psychologist Roger Callahan and Ronald Ruden. Common techniques classed under psychosensory therapy include havening, emotional freedom techniques, Callahan's own thought field therapy, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing; according to both the American Psychiatric Association and researchers Stapleton and colleagues, these techniques are effective in treating generalized anxiety disorder, clinical depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.