...because doesn't it SEEM strange? Or kinda "woo woo"? What if therapy has never worked for you and you DEFINITELY don't want to "talk about your feelings". Maybe you're searching for new self-help tools and things like acupuncture and natural healing modalities make perfect sense to you, or maybe you're a little skeptical and want to know what the science behind it all look like. Tired of western medicine and looking for ways to ween yourself off and gain balance in your body? I'm hoping I can be here for you wherever you're at because how to explain something so incredibly simple yet complex to a curious and hurting world is quite a task and I'm here to help.
Feel free to skip the rest and just enjoy the quick video I put together for you. Otherwise, keep reading for more of why I do what I do, and how EFT works.
EFT Tapping helped tear down so many anxious & fearful walls in my life that I knew without a doubt my new responsibility was to become certified so that everyone with access to me, has access to EFT. What if you're not hurting anymore but you want tools to usher you forward with new hopes, dreams and goals? Yup, it's going to be your new favorite go-to gig.
As a social girl my whole life, I loved connecting with people and their hearts. I eventually felt totally helpless as it seemed like no amount of encouragement, books, therapy or even prayer could help TRULY pull a girlfriend out of her trenches, let alone myself, and I wondered why life had to be so hard-would anything ever actually work? There has to be some truth to this "peace" and "freedom" so many talk about, but where is it? And how do I get my portion? What I didn't know my whole life was the incredible power of the subconscious mind to keep us alive, but not emotionally stable. After hurts and traumas weather large or small, the part of our brain that stores bad memories collects a long list of things to protect us from. Eventually, no amount of positive thinking, encouraging words or re-telling of our story are able to promote actual breakdown of old habits and a re-wiring of our brain's structure to find and feel calm. This part of your brain (the amygdala) is essentially non-verbal which is why cliche comments such as, "It could be worse", "don't worry, that's normal for everyone, "don't you think it's time to get over that?" and "there's always tomorrow, just try again!" don't often help us to FEEL better. In fact, you may have discovered that they can actually make things feel worse and that's because they can actually re-enforce how unsafe you are to feel what you're feeling.
(Lindsay, just get to the point, what are the perks?)
-You don't need to actually talk much at all
-It's scientifically proven
-Gentle, and rapid
-It helps differentiate and find agreement with what you KNOW to be true, vs what you FEEL to be true
-You can do it at home on your own (and should!)
-Has been around for almost 30 years
-It allows people to come off medication
-It takes an old memory and files it properly in the past where it belongs.
-It helps with everything. YES, EVERYTHING. (ok almost everything)
EFT stands for "Emotional Freedom Techniques" because there are over 45 different techniques used, and it's often referred to as "tapping" because gentle fingertip tapping is used while focusing on a problem-clearing the issue often quite rapidly and often times permanently. This simple concept was discovered on accident by psychologist Dr. Roger Callahan in the 1980s, who specialized in anxiety disorders. His client Mary had such a deep rooted fear of water for 18 years that she couldn't get into a bathtub without having an anxiety attack. After studying the ancient Chinese meridian system Callahan wondered what would happen if he had her apply pressure to one of her meridian points while thinking of her fear. When she did, her fear left her body and she immediately, and excitedly jumped into a nearby swimming pool, splashing her hands in the water with a disbelief and excitement. He was onto something... he continued to try this technique with his clients and the same results were found in each one of them. His new discovery had unexpected results which lead to the precise development of clinical EFT.
Just like Mary had an event in childhood that affected her as an adult, the same goes for the rest of us. Anytime you felt "unsafe" as a child, your brain took note of that and has been scanning your surrounding for anything similar ever since, in order to protect you from that thing ever causing you pain again. This means that weather you actually have reason to feel anxious, or your brain has decided for itself that you SHOULD feel anxious, you feel overwhelmed because without your permission your system is flooded with cortisol (your primary stress hormone), 70% of the blood from your brain and stomach and has been sent to your appendages so that you will run from the threat and the new problem is that there likely isn't anything you actually need to run from in that moment. It's ironic that the very mechanism in place to keep you safe, doesn't always.
You are valuable, there is no one in this world like you, and if you're still here, then you have tremendous purpose. Anything holding you back from finally meeting the TRUE & WHOLE version of yourself, EFT can help you break through for the best years of your life. Weather you explore self-care at home with all the unlimited free resources out there, or utilize an experienced practitioner like myself, telling the story and "talking about your feelings" doesn't have to be in the recipe.
Tapping on meridian end points while thinking of your issue is they key.
You've heard the phrase, "Time heals all wounds". Maybe this is true sometimes, but when it's not, an event ten years ago can FEEl like it was just yesterday. EFT helps to file that event in it's proper time and place so that you are able to see and feel it from a safe distance. With the event no longer in your forefront today, today is being felt today & that's called "being present" (WHAT??!? I KNOW!!!)
Rather than just thinking of or talking about something painful your now simultaneously and gently tapping on meridian end points with your fingertips which sends an electromagnetic signal to your brain's fight or flight response. This allows a new calming response to form around the issue and once the event is processed properly with the use of EFT, you are desensitized to the memory and able to think and talk about it without your body responding negatively.
I believe it is the great Nick Ortner at "TheTappingSolution.com" who compared the results of EFT to that of a computer program running in the background of our mind. A LOT of energy is being used and we often become drained without even realizing it's happening. Tapping allows us to pull up an old program just long enough to hit the delete button.
While EFT is a highly effective self-help method, I'd like you to consider giving yourself the gift of a private session, weather it's with myself or someone else. I have plenty of practitioners who I use or highly recommend. Allowing someone else to help navigate your process, while you simply rest with your thoughts is such a rare gift, and no longer needs to be.