Yesterday morning I posted this on the Tapping Q & A facebook page:
The first comment I received in response to the post was:
Isn’t it really anger elimination when you tap? It does far more than manage, don’t you agree?
That is a great question. EFT stands for Emotional Freedom Techniques and so that would lead us to believe we are trying to be free of our emotions. But in fact, that is not our goal.
Here is my response:
No, it is not anger elimination because anger is helpful emotion. Anger shows up when we feel like we are being attacked. The guys I worked with in jail sometimes need the energy of anger to stay alive when they are in physical danger.
The problem is not anger. The problem is when the anger is disproportionately strong or shows up at a time when anger isn’t the appropriate response.
It is OK to be angry when someone cuts us off while driving. The anger helps us to focus and avoid an accident. If we then pull over and cry for 45 minutes or follow the person who cut us off home so we can confront them, then the anger is too much.
No emotion is bad or should be eliminated. We want the emotions to show up at the right time and in the right proportion.
When we tap the goal is never the elimination of emotions. It is to help the emotions to show-up in proportionate and informed ways.
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