Is the Emotion Code physically safe?
For most people, yes. A session involves talking, a practitioner applying light pressure to an outstretched arm or another muscle to read what the method calls yes or no answers, and a magnet, or in some descriptions a hand, passed along the midline of the back or over the head. Nothing is swallowed, injected or manipulated. In remote sessions there is no touch at all. The method's underlying mechanism is not established by scientific evidence, but its physical steps carry very little risk in themselves.
Two small cautions apply to the magnets used. The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) notes that some magnets may interfere with medical devices such as pacemakers and insulin pumps, and that small magnets should be kept away from children, who can swallow or inhale them. If you have an implanted device, mention it before a session.
Discover Healing, which teaches the method, tells practitioners to warn clients about what it calls processing: in the days after a session some people feel tired, emotional or tearful, or even sick, which Discover Healing says is usually mild and passes within a day or two. Treat that as a description of what people report, not a medical explanation. If you feel physically unwell after a session, do not assume it is processing; if symptoms are significant or persist, see a doctor.
Where are the real risks?
Discover Healing's own disclaimers say the method is experimental, that its risks and benefits are not fully known, and that no one should disregard professional health care advice or delay seeking it. That is the right starting point. The risks below come from how the method is used, not from the magnet.
Delaying care that works
The most serious risk is using a session in place of a medical assessment or evidence-based mental health care. NCCIH advises against using any practice that has not been shown to be effective to postpone seeing a health care provider, noting that stopping or not starting conventional treatment can have serious consequences. That applies to physical symptoms, to depression and anxiety, and to trauma.
Beliefs about what caused an illness
The method's premise is that trapped emotions can contribute to physical and emotional problems. Hearing that a pain or illness has an emotional cause can lead some people to overlook a medical one, or to feel that being unwell is somehow their fault. Neither follows. Discover Healing itself tells its practitioners not to claim that specific conditions are caused by trapped emotions.
Cost without an end point
Because what a session finds is decided by muscle testing, there is no outside measure of when the work is finished. One Discover Healing article says releasing trapped emotions really never ends. Sessions can add up; our page on what sessions cost has typical prices.
Painful material without clinical support
A session may name an emotion from a particular age and briefly acknowledge an event. For someone with a trauma history, that can stir up difficult memories. An energy practitioner, however kind, is not trained or equipped to help with flashbacks, dissociation or a crisis in the way a licensed therapist is.
Consent and privacy in proxy work
The method includes sessions done by proxy for someone who is not present. Work on another adult without their informed agreement raises real ethical questions, which our page on remote and proxy sessions covers.
Who should see a doctor or therapist instead?
The Emotion Code is not medical or psychiatric treatment and is not crisis care. See a doctor or a licensed mental health professional, rather than an energy practitioner, if any of these apply:
- you are having thoughts of suicide or self-harm, or someone close to you is;
- you have new, severe, worsening or unexplained physical symptoms;
- you have a diagnosed condition and are on medication or in treatment (do not stop or change treatment without talking to the clinician who prescribed it);
- low mood, anxiety, panic, grief or trauma symptoms are affecting your sleep, work or relationships;
- you are struggling with alcohol or drug use, or an eating disorder;
- you are seeing or hearing things others do not, or feel you are losing touch with reality;
- you are pregnant and have persistent vomiting, pain or bleeding;
- you are not safe at home. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is at thehotline.org or 1-800-799-7233.
If you are in crisis
If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911. If you are thinking about suicide or are in emotional crisis, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, available at any hour. Neither an Emotion Code session nor a website is the right place to get through that moment.
Questions to ask a practitioner about safety
A careful practitioner will welcome these questions. Our guide to choosing a practitioner has more.
- What do you do if a client seems to be in crisis or describes a medical symptom?
- Will you ever suggest I change or stop medical or mental health treatment? (The answer should be no.)
- Do you make claims about specific illnesses or diagnoses? (The answer should be no.)
- How many sessions do you expect, what do they cost, and can I stop at any time without losing money?
- How do you handle consent for proxy sessions, and what notes do you keep?
How Laura keeps these lines clear
Laura Bass is a psychotherapist and a certified Emotion Code practitioner, and she keeps the two as separate pathways: psychotherapy is clinical care, and the Emotion Code is a complementary option that clients may choose, or not. If you are unsure which is right for what you are going through, or whether the Emotion Code is appropriate for you at all, ask Laura. You can read more about Emotion Code sessions with Laura, or start from the Emotion Code guide and what the evidence shows.
Common questions
Can an Emotion Code session hurt me physically?
It is very unlikely. A session involves conversation, light pressure on a muscle and a magnet or hand passed along the back or head, often over clothing, and remote sessions involve no touch at all. The small cautions are about magnets themselves: NCCIH notes that some magnets can interfere with pacemakers and insulin pumps, and small magnets are a swallowing hazard for children.
Is it normal to feel worse after a session?
Discover Healing tells practitioners to warn clients that some people feel tired, emotional, tearful or even sick for a day or two afterward, which it calls processing. That is the method's own description, not a medical one. If you feel physically unwell, or emotionally worse in a way that frightens you or lasts, contact a doctor or therapist, and in an emergency call 911 or 988.
Can I use the Emotion Code alongside my medication or therapy?
Many people who use complementary practices do so alongside conventional care. What matters is that it does not replace that care. Keep taking prescribed medication, keep your appointments, and tell your doctor and therapist what else you are using, as NCCIH recommends. Never stop or change medication because of something a muscle test suggested.
Is the Emotion Code safe for someone with trauma?
Physically, yes, but emotionally it deserves care. A session may bring up memories from particular ages without the structure, pacing and training a trauma therapist provides. Evidence-based trauma therapy exists and helps many people. If trauma symptoms such as flashbacks, nightmares or panic are affecting your life, start with a licensed therapist, and treat any complementary practice as optional and secondary.
Does Laura offer the Emotion Code to people in crisis?
No. The Emotion Code is not crisis care, and someone in crisis needs immediate clinical help: call 911 in an emergency, or call or text 988. Laura's psychotherapy practice is a separate pathway from her Emotion Code work, and if you are unsure which fits your situation, contact her and she can talk it through with you.