What is EFT Tapping & How it Can Calm You
Have you heard of EFT? (My Dad will say it stands for Electronic Funds Transfer. That’s true in the banking world, but the EFT I’m talking about is for personal empowerment.) EFT also known as Emotional Freedom Technique or Tapping is by far the most effective tool I’ve found to lower stress and rewire empowering beliefs pretty quickly. I’ve been into personal development for 10+ years and have tried A LOT of healing modalities. Things you’re probably familiar with:
Journaling
Meditation
Visualization
Vision boards (I used to teach a class every year.)
Positive affirmations
Raw food diet
Juice cleanses
Yoga
Reiki
Breath Work
Coaching
Therapy
Massage
Mastermind Groups
Mirror Work
Past Life Regression
Charka Crystal Bowl Sound Healing
Acupuncture
Cupping
Essential Oils
Law of Attraction
Countless workshops and retreats
Even walked on fire (Hello, UPW fam!)
While they’re all GREAT and I practice a lot of them today, NOTHING has shifted my state more effectively than EFT. I think I got stuck in the learning phase of personal development for awhile. I gobble up books and trainings, but there’s a difference between KNOWING how EFT works and actually EMBODYING it with all your senses. I blend breath work and essential oils with tapping, so you can exhale stored stress and open up to the unlimited possibilities before you. You have to tap to understand what I mean.
How does EFT Work?
Using your fingertips, gently tap on acupressure points on your body while talking through an issue. These points activate meridians or energy centers in the body. You’ll see where the tapping points are located in the illustration on the left. When you tap on these points, you melt stress (caused by negative emotions) and are able to recharge your body with positive, flowing energy.
EFT is a combination of positive psychology, neuroscience, and energy healing.
The purpose of tapping is to give yourself empathy, acceptance, forgiveness, and compassion for what’s bothering you. As you do, you’re literally rewiring neural pathways in your brain and circuits in your body to not react negatively to that specific situation. It’s amazing how it works! I’ll be honest, tapping looks funny, but if you’re open to it, it lowers blood pressure, cortisol, and strengthens the immune system.
I Thought Tapping Was Weird at First
My first experience with EFT was seeing my friends Mom, an EFT Practitioner about my qualms with romantic relationships. Since I didn’t know the points, she actually tapped on me. Even though I was open to it, I didn’t really grasp the concept. I didn’t walk out with any major AH HA’s!, so I forgot about it.
Years later, a friend needed folks to practice EFT with for his certification. I enjoyed the sessions, but again I don’t think I fully understood the power of tapping or even knew how it worked. It was nice to talk to a positive mentor.
I’m a big fan of Hay House publishing, so naturally Nick and Jessica Ortner YouTube videos on EFT kept popping up. Sometimes I’d tap with Brade Yate’s EFT videos. From time to time, I’d tap with them, but again, no major shifts. Then I did an EFT Program with the Ortners and enjoyed it so much, I wanted to work with someone one one one. Thanks to Facebook Groups, I found people to tap with and WOW, things really started to shift for me. I do best with 1:1 attention.
I’m a highly sensitive person and EFT has helped me with so many things. From not taking things personally to changing my beliefs about numbers, something that doesn’t come easily to me. I’ve let go of a lot of stress and tap almost every morning. The best part of EFT is once you learn the points, you can tap on yourself or with a practitioner. It’s up to you!
EFT is about 55% more effective than talk therapy, because it impacts the brain AND body! You’re literally changing your physiology. That’s why the long list of things I’ve tried only got me so far in my personal development. They accessed mostly the brain, while EFT shifts mind and body. I encourage you to try EFT if you haven’t already.
Learn how EFT works in this Wellness Wednesday interview I did with Robyn of Downtown Hair Design. You can tap along and try it. I hope it helps you feel better and more at peace in your body. If the words don’t suit your story, just change them. Much love, Michele