I was thinking of how many times I’ve used EFT in the past few weeks — not for big, deep issues, but for dealing with everyday life. And that’s what I want to share with you here.

Because maybe you’re not really getting all you can out of this remarkable tool. Why not make the most of it? I hope this list can give you some examples that can help you just enjoy yourself more. Ultimately, that’s what you really want, isn’t it? I don’t think I’m the only one….

Anyway, I moved to a new home when an unexpected grab-it-now-or-lose-it opportunity came up. So I was really busy. I mean REALLY busy. And true confession: I can be a quite a worrier sometimes, so I had some of that going on, too. I can also be really impatient, wanting to get everything done right now! Now that can come in handy, but it can also create some trouble. Thank heavens for EFT. I mean it!

Here’s a sample of tapping topics for me recently:

• There’s not enough time to get it all done (packing, moving, unpacking, working, living life).
• Maybe I’m making the wrong choice to move.
• What if I run out of energy?
• I am completely out of energy. I over-did it. I feel like garbage.
• I need to get this all done right now.
• I can’t decide what I want to put where (decorating crisis!).
• What should I get help with and what should I do myself?
• How should I prioritize all I want to do?
• Help! I can’t find my sense of humor! I’ve lost it somewhere…

Having moved several times in my life, I can say unequivocally that this was the easiest move by far! And that’s thanks to tapping. EFT made all the difference in the world.

Now maybe you don’t have these exact same issues bugging you. But I so encourage you to tap for whatever’s bothering you, because it totally shifts everything. The differences it can create for you will help you:

• feel better physically
• feel better emotionally
• think more clearly so you can make wiser decisions
• crank up your creativity level by moving blocks out of the way
• allow you to dial into your intuition more easily

We’d love to hear how everyday tapping helps YOU out. Leave a comment and let us know.

Since I’ve been writing about getting away from blaming yourself, I thought it might be good to offer ideas of what to do instead. What’s the flip side of self-blame?

According to the thesaurus, the opposite of blame is applaud, commend, praise, and thank. So how can you do that for yourself?

Well, here’s one practice I love to do. It just feels so good and puts me in a great frame of mind at the end of the day. It’s originally from Jack Canfield, with a little twist of my own added to it. It’s simply called Appreciating Yourself.

This is a short exercise to do before you go to bed. You acknowledge all the little (and big) things you’ve done during the day and appreciate yourself for them. Doesn’t sound like much, but the impact of this little practice can be surprising. It’s different for everyone, but here are some possible benefits:

• Personally, my stress level dropped. Do you ever focus only on the things left to do? Wonder where the day went? Or criticize yourself for not getting enough done? Well, that was my story. This practice totally changed my perspective when I saw how much I was accomplishing.
• For some people, this can be a real confidence-builder as they give themselves the recognition we all want. Now they’re not so driven to seek approval from others.
• It can also help with gracefully accepting praise and compliments, if that’s a struggle for you.
• You might cut down on your self-critical remarks. This helps set a new norm for self-talk.

So here’s how the practice goes.

This exercise is best to do just before bedtime, when your day is still fresh in your mind.

Stand in front of a mirror. First, look yourself straight in the eye for a few seconds. Then maintain eye contact throughout the exercise.

Then say, “(your name), I appreciate you for the following things,” and follow up with:

• any accomplishments – personal, emotional, business, financial, educational, household, spiritual, interpersonal, etc.
• any personal disciplines you followed through on – dietary, exercise, spiritual practice, study, etc.
• any temptations you refrained from – staying up too late, watching excess TV, that second brownie, bad-mouthing somebody, etc.

Finish by saying, “(your name), I love you,” and continue looking into your eyes for a few extra seconds.

So it could sound something like this: “Janet, I appreciate you for the following things today: You got up early and did your spiritual practices. You ignored your craving for a sausage croissant and ate a healthy breakfast, and went to the Y and had a good workout. You had a good talk with Jackie and were honest with her. It made you both feel better to clear the air. You got those packages in the mail. You contacted the Yoga House about workshop space. You gathered your notes to write the blog post and put great TLC into it. You checked on the size for Jim’s birthday gift, and will really be getting him something he wants. Good job – not easy to buy for a 16-year-old boy! You wrote some great copy for your website. You called Robin back to set that appointment. You answered all your emails. You called the new graphic designer and started a good relationship with her.”….., etc.

Now go to bed, filled with good feelings, and beneficial neurochemicals flowing through your bloodstream.

Some people find it uncomfortable, especially looking into their own eyes, because it’s new. Some people feel embarrassed and some people even cry! That’s okay. Any discomfort soon goes away as you practice.

Here’s a PDF copy of the exercise for you to print out to help you get started.

(I keep a copy between the bed pillows so I don’t forget to do it.)

For extra punch

You can tap around the tapping points while you’re doing this exercise for even more powerful benefit. It’s another way of using affirmations with EFT– always a great way to work with your positive side.

So let us know how it works for you. Come back and leave a comment below.

Tapping is amazing for eliminating intense problems and chronic issues. It’s just remarkable, isn’t it? OK – that’s the big stuff. Are you remembering to use it for the little stuff, too? I’d hate for you to miss out on the smooth flow EFT can create in your everyday life.

No Drama Required

It doesn’t have to be a big deal to qualify for EFT. Any time your day is headed in a direction you don’t like, just start tapping. That’s how simple it is. For example, these scenarios are perfect for quick release with EFT:

• You feel a headache starting up.
• A work situation is frustrating you.
• You’re feeling pressured by a deadline.
• An issue at home is distracting you.
• You’re feeling a little overwhelmed.

Why Bother?

Maybe you’re figuring it’s too much trouble to tap, or you don’t have the time. But check your thinking here. Are you basing your decision on time it takes to clear a big issue. Think again… We’re talking about a matter of maybe five minutes max! That’s a pretty small investment for immediate peace of mind, isn’t it?

I Just Won’t Let It Get To Me

Or maybe this is your objection: I shouldn’t HAVE to tap on this. I should just buck up and get over it. Aren’t I more spiritually developed than to let this get to me? I’ll just blow it off.

I have news for you: bucking up usually involves pushing down. So the matter hasn’t gone away. It’s just gone underground to interfere in a more hidden way, and possibly mushroom into a larger issue.

Nobody’s looking…just use some EFT to get rid of it!

I’ll Do It Later

If you’re thinking you’ll deal with the problem later, that’s fine. Just be aware that a couple of things will probably happen. First, the concern will sap your energy in the meantime as you’re pushing it aside (and holding it there). AND the problem will likely take more time to clear because you’ll have to bring it back into consciousness again.

On The Plus Side

Beyond the obvious benefit of feeling better, here’s why doing EFT on the little stuff is a great option:

• It only takes a minute or two, with no need for doing the setup. You’re completely tuned in to the problem right now.
• You have no time to build up resistance to letting it go. So the release will go quickly.
• Your focus and overall energy will improve by releasing it.
• With the emotional charge gone, you can find a solution to the actual problem much more easily.

—————————————————–

EFT is all about balance. It’s a method to bring your system back to the naturally healthy and peaceful emotional state that is true balance. Essentially, EFT clears the excesses, bringing you back to the center.

Keep Your Own Tapping In Balance

Tapping is a terrific way to clear unwanted, negative feelings, events and physical problems. And that’s great. It’s so fast and so effective; what more could you ask for?

But if you use EFT a lot, it’s possible to get your point of view a little lopsided – focused mainly on problems. Even if you’re steadily eliminating those problems, you may be missing out.

You need to have some focus on the good stuff, too. Not just the absence of the negative. If this seems like splitting hairs, think about it a little more.

Musical Variety

What if that unwanted issue were a kind of music that you really dislike? It’s too loud or too sad or too annoying. So the EFT clears out that crummy tune and brings you to silence. Silence is a wonderful thing, and sure beats listening to that music you can’t stand.

Now here’s another issue you’re going to tap on (more crummy music). Then the blessed relief of silence (clearing with tapping). And again. And once more. And another time. Back to silence.

So what’s wrong with this picture? Silence is not the only option other than lousy music. What about some good music? Let’s get a little balance in here!

It’s possible to use EFT to make your own good “music” – some really positive focus. Here are some ways to create that balance.

On Your Own

Before you start tapping on a problem, take a minute to back off from the issue. Imagine what will be different when it’s no longer bothering you. Get a clear picture of the best possible outcome. Imagine how you’ll feel when you’re there. Yum!

Then come back to your issue and tap it away. You may find you’ll release it more quickly this way as your body-mind has a clear target for where it’s headed. This can lower your resistance to releasing the problem.

For the final few rounds of your tapping, tap in the positive. Use Pat Carrington’s Choices methods, or just make up your own positive statements. Include words of gratitude for being done with the problem. Add a round about how much you’re looking forward to new possibilities, going into detail about what those possibilities are.

Tap In Affirmations

Regularly tapping in affirmations is a great way to keep your balance. Click here to read a separate post about that.

How do YOU keep your balance with EFT? Let us hear how it goes for you and leave a comment below.

Getting stuff done in a timely way can be a challenge for a lot of reasons. Maybe you’ve got a really full schedule. Or a seemingly endless to-do list. You might have a lot of people depending on you for a lot of things. But there might be another reason.

Are You Procrastinating?

Sometimes the problem is just that you’re putting it off. You’re not alone. Everybody does it at one time or another. You know how it goes …. “Oh, I’d better do this first and THEN I’ll get to it.” Or maybe some version of “If I just wait, maybe it will get better/go away/get done by somebody else.”

What’s The Big Deal?

Maybe your delay doesn’t cause a big impact that you can see. But procrastinating uses up a lot of energy, when you stop to think about it. There’s energy spent each time you think about when you should do the thing. There’s energy spent on blaming yourself (or somebody else) for not doing it yet.

It takes energy to tell yourself all the reasons that you haven’t done it. So you see? Putting things off consumes a lot of mental energy.

And it’s really stressful to delay doing things. It can cause worry, aggravation, guilt and other unpleasant feelings. Then your body responds with tense shoulders, tight jaws, headaches, fatigue — you know how that goes. Stress can sure wear you out.

EFT As A Solution

Tapping can be a quick fix to get you moving. You don’t need to beat yourself up. You don’t need to analyze it. Just focus on your resistance to moving ahead. Then use EFT to clear that resistance. It doesn’t have to take much time, and can really get you rolling again.

To read more, click here.

So you’ve tried EFT and it works really well for you. But you’re not using it. You intend to. You want to. But somehow you’re not getting around to it. Sound familiar?

Use EFT to Use EFT More Often

You can tap on your resistance to using EFT. You don’t have to analyze it to make use of it. You don’t have to know why. If you do, that’s great — you can tap on that issue, too. But you can just get started in a really easy way.

Keep It Simple

Just follow the usual steps for EFT, focusing on that resistance as your issue.

When Tapping Doesn’t Occur To You

Sometimes you don’t even think of EFT as a solution to feeling crummy. You just get caught up in the worry, the anger, the sadness — whatever negative emotion. Tapping hasn’t become a habit yet. It’s only in hindsight that you think, “I could have tapped on that!”

There Is A Solution
There are two ways you can help yourself to have EFT pop up as an option to feeling bad:

1. Tap in a daily affirmation at a regular time each day.
2. End every EFT session you do with positive statements about using EFT.

To get the whole scoop on how to do this, read more …

Do you ever feel a little out of it after doing EFT? You’re down to a solid zero in emotional intensity, so you know you’re done with the issue, but you’re not quite back to present time reality?

It’s Different for Everyone

We each finish a session in our own way.  Some people feel perfectly normal. But you might be a little sleepy. Some clients say they feel “checked out.” And others feel kind of “floaty.”

That’s no problem if you have endless free time and no responsibilities. But what if you have kids who need you? What if you’ve got an appointment to get to, or work to get back to?

There Is A Solution

You’ve got options to ground yourself back in reality. Here are some to consider:

• Wait it out. You will return to normal — it’s just a matter of time. So if you’re in no hurry, this is a good choice. The tricky part of this option is that your waiting time might vary depending on how intense your session was. For some people, if they’ve cleared a really big issue they take longer to get back down to earth. I think of it in terms of the juicier the issue, the more energy you shift, and the more after-effects you may feel. But I confess — I don’t know how this works, really. I’ll leave that to the researchers.
• Do breathing exercises. First, set an intention to come back to right now. Then breathe deeply and slowly. Breathe in THIS time on THIS date, in THIS chair at THIS address in THIS city – fill in those actual details. As you breathe out, feel yourself settling in and claiming your spot right here, right now. Try doing that 7 times and then check to see how you feel. (If you’re more lightheaded, you’re breathing too fast.) If you’re not quite where you want to be, continue with 7 more breaths.
• Walk mindfully. That just means to walk with full concentration on the walking. Feel your feet hit the ground with each step. Feel your body moving as you walk. Focus on the physical sensations of the walking itself. Imagine that you’re making a deep footprint with each step. If visualizing helps you, picture your impact reaching down hundreds of feet into the earth.
• Use other practices. If you have other kinds of resources that help you, use those. I won’t go into the how-to’s, but here are some ideas: You can focus on balancing your root chakra. Ask for spiritual assistance in getting grounded. Do appropriate qi gong or yoga movements.

Take Good Care of Yourself

Just be conscious of what your own pattern is. Then do what you need to do for yourself.  You really do need to be grounded to drive. Or even to fix dinner. When you’re not fully present, it’s easy to accidentally hurt yourself by tripping, bumping into something, burning yourself, cutting yourself, or whatever.

There’s no need to suffer any of those things as a part of your EFT experience.  Tapping is for healing — right?  So make the whole thing positive by taking responsibility for yourself afterward, too.

Can you recommend another way to ground yourself?  We’d sure like to hear about it.

Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions for other topics.  Love to hear from you any time.  Whatever you do, keep tapping!

Tapping is a great way to deal with physical problems — whether it’s pain, illness or injury.  Maybe you’ve tried this and it hasn’t worked really well for you.  Or maybe it worked, but only as a temporary solution.  If you’re not satisfied with your results, here are a few things to consider.

Only a Symptom

Is your physical challenge chronic (you’ve had it for awhile) or connected to a bigger problem?  If so, you can probably get some relief with EFT.  Just tap on the pain, tension, fatigue or whatever you’re feeling right now.  Be specific about the location in your body — for instance, the back of your right shoulder.

But that relief may not last.  You might be free of the problem for a few hours, or a day, or maybe even a week.  But it may return.  That’s when you want to look further.

What’s the Core Issue?

You’ll likely get lasting relief by using EFT on the issue that physical problem is connected to.  You have a choice here.  You can contact a practitioner to help you with this — or you can work on it yourself. 

Sometimes there’s an emotional event that caused the physical problem.  Tapping on what happened may clear the problem showing up in your body.  For instance, you realize your headaches started the year you left for college.  Go back and tap on the feelings from that time and the other events surrounding your big transition.  You may be through with headaches!

And sometimes there are emotions that flared up at the time the problem started.  Those feelings caused blocks in your energy system that are hooked to the physical problem.  And they’re keeping that problem hanging around.

Say you’ve had knee pain ever since that car accident.  Go back and tap away the aspects of the wreck — the fear, the anger at the other guy, the inconvenience of doctor visits — the whole shebang.  It’s possible that you can clear the blocks that have kept your knee from healing itself.  You might never have knee pain again.

I’m Not Sure How To Do It

For some more detailed instructions, check out my article on the topic: EFT for Physical Issues.

What’s your success with physical problems and EFT? Let’s hear about it!
Do you have tapping questions I can answer or topics you’d like to know about?
Are you finding these EFT tips helpful?

I’d love to hear from you. Just leave a comment below, or shoot me an email any time. Whatever you do, keep tapping!

It’s December and the holidays have begun.  Yesterday, Muslims around the world celebrated Eid al-Adha — and celebrate the Islam New Year on the 29th.  We’ve got Hanukkah coming up on the 21st.  And folks who honor the winter solstice will celebrate that same day.  Then Christmas comes on the 25th, followed by Kwanzaa on the 26th.  And New Year’s Eve rounds out the month on the 31st.

What a party!  The whole world celebrates during December.  Little kids look forward to this month all year long.  Do you?  How’s it going for you this month?  Was Thanksgiving a nice appetizer for your winter holidays?  Or maybe it stirred up some worries, frustrations or sadness about approaching holidays.

Be Emotionally Prepared

Even fun things can be an emotional strain sometimes.  The planning, the anticipation, the hopes — all that can build tension.  And let’s face it — celebrating takes time and energy.  If you’re short on either, your feelings can end up out of balance.

If you’re NOT looking forward to some aspect of the holidays, that can be a real drain, too.  You can even find yourself resenting others’ happiness.  Or maybe just getting cynical so you don’t have to feel pain or sadness.

Nip It In The Bud

Tapping is such a simple remedy.  You don’t have to wait until you snap at someone, or find yourself on the verge of tears.  Just use EFT when you see the first sign that something’s bothering you.  Trust yourself.  You can do it! 

The Full Monty

Take some time out in a quiet place and do EFT on any big thing that’s bothering you.  Take your intensity level all the way down to zero.  That time you take to completely clear your issue will pay off for you throughout the season.  And its effects will flow out to other people around you, because you’ll act differently.  So don’t shortchange yourself. 

If it’s financial concerns, tap on that.  If it’s missing somebody for the holidays, do a session on that.  If you think you’ll never get it all done, use EFT for that. 

Sometimes holidays shine a light on issues that are there all year ’round.  Like money concerns, grief, envy — those big ones.  You can still just zero in on the holiday part of that issue.  Just stay focused there, and trust yourself to clear those blocks. 

Then commit to yourself to come back to that larger concern — either on your own or with a practitioner.  The point is this:  Just because you’ve got a big core issue you haven’t healed yet, it doesn’t have to spoil your holidays.  You can tap on the holidays part of it and clear that right now.

Day-to-Day  December

Stay on top of those little things that crop up.  Out in crazy traffic, tap at the stoplights.  Standing in a long line?  Tap away your impatience.  Are you trapped by Uncle Ernie again, whose had 3 too many?  Or is Great Aunt Lorena going on and on about her last operation?  Use EFT to get through it. 

Put Your Hands To Work

You can tap in your lap.  Just use one hand to tap against the side of the other hand — your karate chop point. You’re tuned into the issue, so don’t worry about a set-up. Just start tapping. Silently say your reminder phrases to yourself. Then affirm some good stuff, tuning into the joy and love of the season.

Or finger-tap with one hand.  There are tapping points on each of your fingertips.  On the side of your fingers that’s closest to your thumb, right at the side of the nailbed.  Use the thumb of that hand to tap on the inside of your other fingers on that hand, one by one.  Standing?  Put your hands behind your back and finger-tap.  Sitting?  Put your hand down on the seat beside you on the side away from the person you’re sitting with.  Then finger-tap away!

All Kinds of Options

You don’t have to resign yourself to a season of tension.  It’s totally possible to enjoy your holidays this year.  Try the methods above, and cruise through December.  You CAN enjoy yourself.

If you want some extra help, check out Holiday Stress Relief: The EFT Guide To Your Best Holidays Yet!  You don’t have to figure out what to say or how to tap — the eBook and audios are complete EFT sessions for you to tap along with.

Whatever you do, take good care of yourself.  And EXPECT to enjoy this season.  As always, I would love to hear from you.

Do you have any questions?  Comments?  EFT topics you want to learn about?  Just leave me a comment or email me any time.  And keep tapping!

I hear a common fear from clients and students — that they’re afraid to try tapping on their own. Maybe you’ve got some of this same hesitation. It might be for different reasons.

Let me address a few of these. Hopefully, after reading this you’ll feel more sure of yourself and be willing to give it a try.

I’m Afraid I Might Do It Wrong

You can’t really do EFT “wrong.” There are ways to tap that get better results than others. That’s true. But you can’t really do it wrong. Follow EFT scripts you’ve printed out to get the idea. Or listen to your Stress Relief audio you downloaded for free when you signed up for my newsletter. Another option: click on EFT-The Basics and print out the instructions for yourself.

I Might Hurt Myself Somehow

EFT only works with the energy that’s in your system. So you can’t put in something that’s not there. True…you might bring something to the surface. But you can’t install something that doesn’t belong. So you can tap along with anybody’s tapping script. If their words don’t fit your life exactly, no big deal! It’s impossible for you to create a new problem by tapping about it.

I Don’t Even Know Where to Start

Start anywhere! What’s bugging you? What’s distracting you from what you want to do? You can tap on that. You could even start with your fear of tapping on your own. Try this:
Setup

• Even though I’m nervous about doing EFT myself, I love myself anyway.
• Even though I don’t have a clue about what I’m doing, I accept myself and I want to give this a try.
• Even though I’m afraid to trust myself because I’m new at this, I respect who I am and I want to move forward.

Tapping first round

• This tapping concern/fear/worry

Next rounds

• I don’t know what I’m doing.
• I’m afraid I’ll goof this up.
• I’m not a practitioner.
• I can’t do this myself.
• What if I cause myself problems?
• I want to let go of these fears.
• I’m ready to take a chance.
• I’ve got this tool right here and I want to use it.
• I’m choosing confidence.
• I’m feeling calm about this.
• I choose to make it easy.
• I’m willing to trust myself.
• I give myself permission to take a risk.
• I’m choosing to move forward now.
• I’m ready to go!

Finish Off with Positives

Thank yourself for your courage. Tap in some affirmations that you DO know what you’re doing. And you want to do this again. Affirm that you get better at EFT every time you do it.

Good for you! Let me know how it goes. I’d love to hear from you. Do you have other doubts or questions? Just ask…

Until next time, keep tapping!