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 issues have many aspects to them. At this moment we might only be aware of one or two of these aspects. This is where we can do work right away. At a later date we might find other aspects of the same issue to address.

This does not mean that tapping didn’t work. It just means there is still more work to do.

Also, it is important to remember that if it has taken a lifetime to develop a problem, it is unlikely to go away with a round or two of tapping.

Tapping is a great tool for providing temporary relief. Every time we create relief in the moment, we are making progress on the issue as a whole and how it will affect us in the future.

An analogy I use a lot is of weeding the yard. We can cut off the heads of dandelions and the yard will look good for a while, but they will grow back. If we also remove the leaves, they will still grow back, but it will take much longer. But, if we get the roots they will never grow back.

Sometimes when we work on an issue we remove the heads, sometimes the leaves, and sometimes the roots. This determines how long our progress lasts.

Just remember, any progress we make, no matter how small, is progress towards a healthier self. Using EFT we are doing this in a way that does not require any surgery or drugs.

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There are no known side effects of using tapping. With that being said, you should keep four things in mind.

1) Before you begin any physical or emotional treatment you should ALWAYS seek the advice of your primary care physician. This is true for a new diet, a new exercise program, or tapping. The understanding of the human body is constantly growing and changing. Make sure you find the most current information before making any decisions about the type of care you choose.

2) If you encounter any negative side effects or adverse reaction, STOP. Seek the advice of a trained medical professional. Note that it is common for the tapping points to be a little sensitive. The article It Hurts! discusses what you can do when tapping points feel tender.

3) Just because tapping is a useful tool for a problem, doesn’t mean you are the right person to use that tool. For example, tapping works wonderfully on Dissociative Identity Disorder (formerly known as multi-personality disorder), but there is no way that I am qualified to do that sort of work. DID is very complicated and I could do more harm than good.

So being proficient with tapping doesn’t mean you should use it with someone else to deal with an issue for which you aren’t qualified. Tapping is a tool to use in an appropriate context. If you are not trained to work in a certain context without tapping, then you shouldn’t use tapping in that context. You should seek the help of a trained professional.

4) Scratches and pimples are two physical reactions I have encountered using tapping. When my fingernails are too long I scratch myself when tapping. I also sometimes forget to wash my face after an hour of tapping. It’s easy to find the tapping points on my face the next day, just look for the pimples!

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Yes and no.

In my experience, tapping is mechanical. This means that if it is done right, it works. Much like you don’t have to believe an aspirin will work for it to help your headache, if tapping is done correctly it will be effective whether or not the subject believes it will work. But there are a few important things to keep in mind.

1) You must do it correctly. For tapping to work, the person who is doing the tapping has to be tuned into issue being addressed. Just because you are saying the words out loud doesn’t mean you are tuned in to the problem.

I can be saying “This pain in my foot. This pain in my foot. This pain in my foot…” but be thinking about what is on TV tonight. If this is the case I am not tuned into the problem or following the tapping protocol correctly so it will not work.

If a person is skeptical they are less likely to commit fully to the process and there is a higher probability that tapping won’t work because they are not doing it correctly.

2) Understand what you mean by success. We call an aspirin a success if it stops a headache for a few hours, but we don’t expect to never have a headache again. Hold tapping to the same standard. It is very easy for a skeptic to dismiss tapping because the change isn’t permanent.

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No two issues are the same.

Similar issues don’t always have the same root. You can have a headache because you are dehydrated, because you received a blow to the head, or because of a sinus infection. The symptom is the same, but the causes are very different.

Each of these causes might require a different approach and a different amount of time to achieve relief with tapping or any other approach.

Using the tapping basics you will have success with a number of issues. You will be able to be successful with most non-chronic physical pain and many simple emotional issues.

Remember, each time you don’t have success with tapping you have the opportunity to challenge yourself to be more creative with the protocol and to seek out more information.

Every time I have encountered an issue where I have not had immediate success, I’ve learned something new, which makes each successive attempt more efficient.

Learning new things is hard. We don’t like being unsuccessful. Someone who is very good at tapping makes it look effortless. This is because they have made lots of mistakes along the way and have chosen to continue to learn.

You didn’t learn to walk in the first time. Tapping is no different.

The more you try, the better you will become.

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As we talked about in the history section on tapping, there are many approaches and points of view in how we tap. My approach is very straightforward, I use the following formula:

Tapping + Tuning into issue = Relief

The tapping part is simple. We will use 9 points on the body.

SoH (Side of Hand): This point is on the side of the hand, the part that you would use if you were going to break a board in a martial arts move. Use the fingertips of all four fingers of one hand to tap on the fleshy part of the side of the other hand.

TH (Top of the Head): This is located on the very tippy top of your head. The place to tap is the space where the piece of metal hits the top of your head when the doctor is measuring your height. Please note that this point can be very tender because you are tapping right on top of your brain. If it hurts to tap here just tap a few inches above the head without making contact.

EB (Eyebrow): When you tap on the eyebrow tap as far to the inside of the eyebrow without falling down onto the nose, using two fingers.

SE (Side of the Eye): This tapping point is located on the edge of your eye socket. Make sure you are on the ridge outside the eye, without touching your eyeball or eyelid. Use two fingers on this tapping point.

UE (Under the Eye): This point is on your cheek, directly below the iris of your eye. Use two fingers to tap on this point. There is a sinus cavity directly under this point so if you find it too tender to tap you can lightly touch the point and rub in small circles.

UN (Under the Nose): Use two fingers on this point which is located directly below the nose and above the upper lip.

C (Chin): The tapping point is located halfway between the point of your chin and your lower lip. Use two fingers on this tapping point.

CB (Collar Bone): This tapping point is located just under the collar bone near the center of the chest. To tap on this point use your whole hand. You can use either hand. I am going to use the right hand for the explanation, but you can use either. Open your right hand so you are looking at the palm of a flat hand. As you lay your hand flat on your chest place your right thumb along the right collar bone and lay your right index finger on the left collar bone. Use the whole hand and pat your chest like you were burping a baby.

UA (Under the Arm): Use all four fingertips to tap on the point located under your arm, located in the middle, as you move from front to back on your side. The point is about bra strap height. The place you tap will feel a bit like a bruise. You can tap on this point by reaching across your body or you can tap under the arm you are using to tap. If you don’t feel confident that you are tapping on the right spot, just tap the entire area.

Notes on tapping:
When you are tapping you will simply move from tapping point to tapping point as you tune into your issue. Here are some of the basics.

As we move through the process this is going to make more sense, but for now here are the basics.

How many times do I tap?
Tap on each spot six to eight times. Often you will be tapping while you are reading a script. If you are doing this you will tap on each point while you read one sentence. When you reach the end of sentence, move on to the next tapping point.

Which hand should I tap with?
It doesn’t matter which hand you use to tap. You will also notice that many of the tapping points can be found on both sides of the body. You can tap on either point with either hand. For example, you can use your right hand and tap on the right or left eyebrow and receive the same benefit. Some people like to use both hands when tapping, for example tapping with the right hand on the right eyebrow and the left hand of the left eyebrow.

Should I tap in a specific order?
The order you tap in is not important. The points above were explained in the order that the points line up neatly on the body. You can tap on the points in any order you want. It is most common to tap through them in the order above, but do what is most comfortable.

What if I am not sure if I am getting the right spot?
The nice thing about tapping is that it is a very forgiving tool. You just need it to be close. If you don’t feel you are getting the point exactly right just tap in a small circle covering as much of the area as possible. Nothing bad can happen if you tap on the wrong spot (assuming you are not poking your eyes out).

What happens if it hurts when I tap somewhere?
STOP! Tapping should not be painful. You need to take total responsibility for yourself when tapping. If it hurts beyond mild tenderness, don’t do it. If one of the tapping points hurts then just rub it. If it hurts to rub it, just touch the point and take deep breaths.

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