I have hesitancy (read as fear) when making phone calls. How can I use EFT on this issue? photo by Jason Nicholls When we are using Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) for any issue of fear there are two basic approaches I use with my clients. [Note: As always it is best to have a pen and paper on hand to take notes as you do any of these techniques.] Movie Technique The movie technique is one of the most common approaches for dealing with something that has an emotional ...
Emotional Triggers (Part 1 of 3)
Is there anything I can do with EFT to help with my emotional triggers? I can remember from my childhood a “conversation” between my mother and sister, the way only mothers and daughters can have a “conversation”). Mother: You are doing that on purpose just to push my buttons! Sister: How can I not? Your buttons are this big! (Holding her hands about three feet apart.) We all have emotional triggers; those people, places, memories and situations that just set us off. One moment ...
What words and phrases do I use? AKA: I don’t know what to say! (part 3)
When I was working with the person who taught me EFT, it worked great. Now that I’m working on my own, I don’t know what phrases to use. Do you have any suggestions? Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is different from most protocols in its flexibility. There is not just one way to do it. What works on one problem might be less effective on the next. What works for one person is not going to work as well on the next. This is particularly true with the words and phrases we say. It’s very easy to ...
It’s all better! Should I keep using EFT on it?
Should you keep tapping on the same issue day after day? If you’re doing okay without tapping, should you continue tapping on the same issue? For how long? photo by TeeJe That depends; all things with Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) seem to be situational. Here are a few things to consider: Is it an issue that needs regular maintenance? For example, even when our teeth are healthy, we brush them every day because we are always adding things to our mouths that could create ...
I don’t believe the words I say while doing EFT!
I don’t believe some of the things I say when I tap. Does that matter? For us to do work on any thought/emotion we need to bring it into our thought field (meaning we are feeling or thinking it) at the moment we are tapping. That might be a little bit of a confusing statement, so let’s think of it in terms of the analogy of washing dishes. The only place we can wash our dirty dishes effectively is in the kitchen sink. We have dirty dishes all over the house. They can be by the TV from watching ...
Doing It All Wrong
I’m having trouble getting started with EFT. It’s almost like I have a fear that I will do it wrong. Any suggestions? This questions was written in response to the article Fear of fear, where I talked about clients who have a hard time starting because they are afraid of the emotions they may stir up by thinking about them in detail. Along with fear of stirring up too many emotions, a very common worry about doing Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) is the fear of doing wrong. I hear this ...
Moron!
My boss is a moron. He makes my life miserable. I’ve tapped on the issue, but it’s not getting any better. What can I do? photo by redteam Before we decide how to deal with this problem, I need to explain how to use truth phrases. I’m a big fan of using truth phrases when working with emotional issues. With truth phrases we rate how true we think a phrase is. These phrases differ from the standard rating of intensity. For example, with the phrase, “How angry do you ...
Cleaning House
I’m having a hard time cleaning my office. Can I use EFT to help from being distracted and just get the job done? photo by Jaymie Recently one of my clients, “Julie,” was about to start packing up her office. She had quit her job as she was moving on to do work that she really loved. I offered the following suggestion. “Before you clean your office, sit in the middle of the mess and tune in to it. See if it has anything to say about how you feel about the transition you are going ...
I Can’t Focus
There just aren’t enough hours in the day. I know setting time aside to tap is important, but I have trouble focusing on my tapping. When I sit down to tap I have a million thoughts running through my head. What can I do to focus on the task at hand? photo by Eni Turkeshi This is a common problem. We know we need to take care of ourselves, and we think we have the time to do it. But somehow our responsibilities expand to absorb our whole day. Despite busy days, we HAVE to ...
I’m doing it all WRONG!
It’s hard for me to get motivated to do EFT because I’m afraid I’m going to do it wrong. What can I do? Trying new things is always hard. We get used to being able to do things well. Most of us, as adults, don’t have to learn many new skills. Because of this, when we are faced with learning a new skill we’re uncomfortable. Learning a new skill means we have to admit we don’t know something. It means we can expect to fail on some level because we are not going to get it right the first ...
Yawn!
Sometimes when I’m tapping I yawn a lot. Why do I yawn during tapping, and is it a good or bad thing? photo by Daniel James Fear not! Yawning is good news. There are a number of common physical reactions to tapping, such as feeling: Light and free Very relaxed Sleepy Energized or releasing: Long signs Yawning When we are doing tapping, especially around an emotional issue, I have found yawning means a great deal of energy is being moved. So when I see lots ...
It Hurts!
When I tap, some of the spots are very sensitive, even to the point of hurting a little. It doesn’t happen all the time, and it’s not always the same spot. Should I be worried? It’s a common experience for some (or all) of the tapping points to be a little sensitive. Remember we are tapping on the ends of energy channels, so they are going to be a little tender by nature. Chiropractors and reflexologist report that tenderness and pain can be a sign that you have found a place that is ...
Fear of Fear
I have a really big emotional issue I need to deal with, but I’m afraid. In the past when I tried to work on the issue it was too painful, and I’m afraid to even think about the issue now. Is there some way I can get over my fear of the emotions that might come up? "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." -Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933) I’ve noticed an interesting trend in my practice. Recently, a number of clients have come in for a session and have spent the first twenty minutes ...
I don’t know what to say! (part 1)
When I was working with the person who taught me EFT, it worked great. Now that I’m working on my own, I don’t know what phrases to use. Do you have any suggestions? This is a very common question. Remember, the words are simply intended to help us pull whatever we are working on into the thought field. Often clients get worked up because they feel like they are going to use the wrong words. Remember there is no penalty for getting it “wrong”. The worst outcome with Emotional Freedom ...
Making Tapping and EFT Routine
I love EFT, but find it hard to remember to use it. Do you have any suggestions to help me remember to use EFT regularly? I find it very funny. When friends, family and clients are sharing with me something that has happened in the past week, when I ask, “Did you tap on it?,” inevitably they respond, “I always forget.” Initially, in my practice, I found that very few clients were doing the homework we had agreed upon. As I started to investigate this, generally the response was as simple as, ...
What is TFT, EFT, and Tapping? and What is the difference?
[None: This short history lesson is offered because many people ask about it. You do not need to understand the history of tapping in order to utilize it in your life. If you aren't interested in the history lesson, no worries. Skip to the next section and don't give it a second thought.] The brief history of tapping goes something like this... First there was Thought Field Therapy. Thought Field Therapy was developed in the early eighties by Dr. Rodger Callahan. Over the years the ...
Does Tapping Work For [insert issue]?
The question I am most often asked is, “Does tapping work on [insert physical or emotional ailment]?” The answer is yes and no. In my own practice I have seen success with tapping for joint aches, headaches, warts, nasal congestion, upset stomachs, and swollen kidneys. Some of my clients have experienced success with anger, inability to forgive, sadness, and loss. It has worked on writer’s block and difficulty in concentrating. I have clients who have seen progress with learning ...
Are Results From Tapping Due To Either Placebo Effects Or Distraction?
That depends... Our bodies are very powerful healing machines. Healing machines that we still don’t fully understand. There have been a number of studies in the last 100 years showing that the body will heal if it thinks it is receiving some sort of healing treatment or medication, even when it is not. In one recent study people were told that they were going to receive antidepressants without the active ingredients (meaning it didn’t contain the medicine) yet some still showed an ...
Is Tapping The Only Thing You Use For Your Health? Should Tapping Replace Traditional Medicine And Healthcare?
I am not one of those fanatics who reject Western medicine. There is a time and place for using diet, exercise, yoga, tapping, massage, drugs, and surgery. There are no one-size-fits- all solutions. There is still a great deal we don’t know about the body and how it works. No doubt people living one hundred years from now will think our approach at the beginning of the 21st century is quaint, outdated, and maybe even foolish, in the same way that we regard the medical practices of the ...
How Long Do The Results Last?
That depends. I have seen tapping provide relief for 5 minutes, 5 hours, 5 days, 5 months, and forever. No two problems are alike. A cut finger and a torn muscle will heal in different ways and at different rates, just like your partner saying horrible things about you will not have the same impact as a total stranger saying the same words. The amount of healing that is provided by tapping is in direct proportion to how much of the problem we can tune into at any given time. Some ...