EFT is Emotional Freedom Technique or Tapping, and it combines ancient Chinese acupressure with modern day psychology. Over five thousand years ago, the Chinese discovered a channel that carries energy throughout the body, these channels are known as meridians and they powerfully connect our emotional body and physical response. Acupuncture uses needles to tap into the meridian points of the body to invoke physical healing, while EFT does not use needles, by tapping on certain meridian points in the body we can create the space for profound emotional healing and release. These specific meridian points are found on your hand, face, chest, and head and by tapping on our meridian points we send a message to the amygdala (the part of our brain that initiates our primal fight/flight/freeze response) that we are safe and calm. Once the amygdala receives the message that we are not in danger, we create a safe space for our buried emotions to surface and heal.
We start every EFT session by rating our MPI, this is our Most Pressing Issue, some common issues include anxiety, depression,shame, guilt and the result of these unhealed emotions can lead to blocks in our relationships, finances and over all wellbeing. Once you have established your most pressing issue you will rate how strongly you feel that emotion on a scale of 1-10, 10 being unbearable and 1 being not so much. At the end of the tapping session you will touch base with your MPI and see if the healing and relief has brought your number from a 6-10 to a 5 or less.
A lot of times when we open the space to go into our deeper emotions, we become “triggered” and our conditioned response may be to back out of the uncomfortable feeling and reach for a pacifier whether that is food, alcohol, drugs, social media or a toxic person. The intention of emotional freedom technique is to identify the emotion you are feeling most strongly and then release the emotional disturbance that lies beneath it.
Gary Craig, who created EFT has said, “The cause of all negative emotions is a disruption in the body’s energy system” he emphasizes that what causes our negative emotions is not necessarily the traumatic event or memory itself by the disruption is has caused in the body’s energy system. In EFT sessions, it is very likely that you unearth some deeply rooted memories and feelings but that is not the sole purpose. Through the process of EFT you heal the disturbance and as a result heal your emotional state.
The more specific you are in addressing the emotional trauma, the deeper and more profound the healing will be. During our retreats we will use group therapy and journaling to unearth the negative emotions and triggers in order to build an EFT session that is most effective and healing for your personal circumstances. Now that you have a little bit of a background, let’s go over the steps:
- Identify your MPI (most pressing issue)
- Rate your MPI from 1-10
- Begin tapping on the “karate-chop” point to begin your opening statement (the video below will better explain steps 3-5)
- Repeat your opening statement three times
- Continue on to the other meridian points while repeating the “negative” round, followed by the “positive” round
Now that you have completed your round of tapping, rate your MPI again
If you would like to learn more about EFT, I highly recommend seeking out the mentors that I have used in my journey of learning EFT including but not limited to; Gabrielle Bernstein, Brad Yates and Nick Ortner. Please note, if your medical conditions are severe please consult a licensed therapist or medical practitioner.