Image via Mind Love
I was first introduced to EFT, or Emotional Freedom Techniques on my first date with my partner Michael. He had just returned from an advanced EFT training with Sonya Sophia in Italy. I had just taught my first yoga class the night before, and as exciting as it was, I was terrified to do it again because of a deep-rooted fear I carried about public speaking.
He showed me the tapping points and over the next hour we tapped as I shared about my fear and my earliest memories related to when it began.
That moment set the foundation for my career as a yoga teacher, and my ability to lead workshops, webinars and events.
Later on, I worked with a mentor, Rob Nelson of Tapping the Matrix Academy to become certified to use tapping with my clients. It is now one of the #1 tools I use to help clients with emotional distress, healing fears, past trauma, phobias, and also for clearing limiting beliefs.
So What is EFT? and How Does it Work?
EFT is a fast and gentle way to discharge emotional distress, traumatic memories, and negative thoughts.
The History
Roger Callahan was a therapist who was very interested in the meridian system, he developed “Thought Field Therapy” and experimented with tapping on different meridian points. When working with one client he had her tap while talking about her extreme phobia of water, and by the end of the session it had completely disappeared! It is said she actually ran to an outdoor pool afterwards she was so excited. A man named Gary Craig later did a training with Callahan and eventually simplified Thought Field Therpay into what we know as EFT today.
How Does it Work?
EFT uses tapping on meridian points while talking about a specific problem. It works with the Amygdala part of the brain, which controls our stress response - fight, flight or freeze. The amygdala was developed before the spoken language, so words alone do not register with the amygdala, however, tapping has a direct and immediate effect of down regulating the amygdala’s reaction to real or imagined threat.
Stress is our natural response to a threat.
But for humans living in a modern world, threats may be simply worries and fears. In cave man days there were very real threats such as a mountain lion that could attack, and the stress response was very important to amp up adrenaline and get away from a very real threat. Have you ever notice how animals like the gazelle shakes after an experience where it was almost caught? This is the body’s natural way to release trauma and stress, however in our current day and age we’ve lost such instincts. However, tapping has the same effect.
Our stress response was designed as a short term survival strategy, however most of us are marinating in cortisol from imagined threats (fear and worry) all the time!
EFT helps turn off the amygdala’s intense reaction to specific problems.
Tapping communicates directly with the amygdala, the part of the brain that doesn’t understand language or rational thought. It helps us to get out of the stress response (fight or flight) and to think more logically again.
Energy & Emotions
EFT also works with disruptions in our energy system that were caused by unresolved emotional traumas and unexpressed emotions. All emotions have an important function and are here to be expressed and felt.
Emotion means energy in motion. Emotions are meant to flow through and be released. Emotions get stuck when we don’t let ourself feel them, for example, when it doesn’t feel safe to express them.
I can’t tell you how many people I’ve worked with who have childhood memories of being yelled at for crying. Many people learn to shut down their emotions because of these difficult memories where they did not feel safe. And with all that stuck emotion in the system, all kinds of problems, especially health-related challenges can surface.
Tapping tells the amygdala it’s safe to let emotions go.
In tapping, When an emotion starts to move, you might experience:
Yawning
Crying
Laughing
Burping
Even farting (!)
This is just a way the body discharges energy being released. It’s a good sign and means energy is started to move. Tapping tells the brain is safe to feel this now.
So What are the Tapping Points?
Here’s an image from my teacher Rob Nelson about the EFT Tapping Points.
The Purpose of this work is to really feel the stuff that been unwilling to feel, and once we have felt it, we “add in” new possibilities for ourselves
The Basic Recipe: How to Use Tapping
State the problem (Be specific, why is this a problem for you?)
Measure your level of discomfort about this issue from 0 - 10. Ten being the worst and zero being no problem at all.
Use the Set-up Statement: Say out loud, “Even though “this problem” I still deeply love and completely accept myself” while tapping on the edge of the hand (the karate chop point).
Tap through the points while speaking about the problem. Let yourself get all the inner voices out. What is the worst thing about this problem? What are all the feelings associated with it. Get it all out while you tap through the points.
Re-measure the level 0-10 and assess what has shifted. Sometimes it goes up and sometimes it goes down. Often new information is revealed.
Tap again, and try introducing some new possibilities.
Measure the level 0-10 again and see where you’re at!
As a coach and guide I work with clients 1:1 to heal past trauma and release limiting beliefs with EFT. If you’ve been looking for someone to work with, sign up for a free introductory call to learn more about working together.
I hope this is helpful for you! In the comments I’d love to hear about your experience with EFT Tapping.
