Earth Warrior-ing is an emotional minefield.

I mean, have you saved the planet yet? No? How frustrating.
Multiple global crises getting you down? Yeah, there’s a bit of that going around.
Overwhelmed by it all and bingeing on chocolate? Uh huh… me too.

Let me introduce you to a marvelous emotional self-healing tool called tapping.

Why you should know about tapping

‘Tapping’ is the nickname for the Emotional Freedom Technique, or EFT. The aim of tapping is just what it says – emotional freedom. Everything I just mentioned above has an emotional component, ie frustration, sadness, overwhelm, and emotional eating. Things like anger, anxiety and a sense of hopelessness or numbness would be pretty common too when it comes to how we feel about the state of the world, not to mention the emotions of just being a human doing life. Tapping helps you move through any of these emotions if they are keeping you stuck and unhappy, instead of what we normally do of ignoring them until they explode into a tension headache, a sleepless night, an argument with our partner, staying stuck in the same job for too many years, or some such other undesirable thing.  Moving through them restores balance in our mind and body, allows us to perform at our peak, and gives us a better chance of experiencing the emotions we prefer, like happiness, wonder and excitement. In my experience, by moving the brain into a state of relaxation it also helps with coming up with out-of-the-box innovative solutions.

So, what actually is tapping?

Simply put, to practice EFT you tap on specific points of the body with your fingers while focusing on the issue you are trying to move through, usually by speaking it. The points you tap on correspond to where the energy meridians of Chinese medicine are close to the surface of the body. It is the same principle as acupuncture, but you use your fingers instead of a needle. There are variations in how many points are tapped on and in what order, and what words are used, depending on practitioner, but the overall principle remains the same.

I use the method taught by Gary Craig, the man widely recognised as the founder of modern EFT. Developed in the mid-1990s, it is now practiced by millions worldwide, from elite sports stars to PTSD affected war veterans and refugees, to people afflicted with chronic pain and health issues. Despite a growing body of peer-reviewed science and a ton of anecdotal evidence, it is still considered an experimental technique, so always bear that in mind when you use it. There is no definitive list of issues that it will or won’t work on, but I find that exciting. Let’s try it and see!

Tell me more, tell me more, was it love at first sight?

I first heard about tapping in 2014 when my gut issues were peaking. I asked a nutritionist friend for advice and she said to look it up. Naturally, I put it off for a year. It stuck like glue in my mind though and the funny thing was that references to it started popping up everywhere (I’d say average once a week). It felt like the Universe was saying ‘seriously, that was good advice’ nudge nudge. Eventually I looked it up online and gave it a go. I loved it. I was intrigued at the possibilities of this simple technique which felt so profound! I still didn’t get into it though in a big way until I did Gabby Bernstein’s Spirit Junkie Masterclass, which includes a two hour tapping class. More to the point though, through the course work I realised that I had a limiting belief that if I got rid of fear then I would go and do stupid shit and put myself in harms way. Once I cleared that, with tapping, it was like I opened the floodgates and I started using it for anything and everything. In 2017 I undertook training to become a certified EFT practitioner, which took my personal practice to a whole deeper level, and now I get to help others through this great technique too!

What sort of things can you use tapping for?

As mentioned above, tapping is an experimental technique, and I’ve found that even for a given issue its efficacy will vary from person to person and from day to day. I have found though that the more I learn and practice, and the more tuned in I am to my inner wisdom, the more consistent the results. These are some of the things I’ve used it for, and there are many, many more on the web:

  • Anxiety
  • Emotional eating
  • Moving through anger about environmental issues
  • Clearing physical pain
  • Procrastination
  • Finding peace in situations I’m uncomfortable with
  • Finding forgiveness for people
  • Getting over old relationships
  • Finding love
  • Clearing limiting beliefs around what I’m capable of

How to tap

The picture above shows the tapping points. You start by identifying the issue you want to work on, then give it a rating out of 10 for how intensely you’re feeling it, 10 being feeling it full on 100%. Then you tap on the karate chop point on the side of your hand (top left). As you tap here you frame the issue you want to work on by saying a set up statement. The more specific you can get it to the truth of how you’re feeling the better. The structure of the statement maps a bridge for your mind between where you are and where you want to go, and generally uses the format ‘even though [describe your issue] I deeply and completely accept myself.’ After this we move in to tapping around the points while saying a reminder phrase. These points are the ones shown above. Tapping each point about 7 times is one round. At the end of each round take a deep breath and reassess the intensity of your issue. Keep tapping the rounds until the intensity is down to 0. Pay attention to what comes up for you as you tap – the issue you’re working on may have a few different aspects to be tapped on until it is resolved.

Ready to put it all together? Tap along to this 8 minute video where we go through the basic tapping sequence:

Next step

Tapping is a great tool because you can practice it on yourself any time! The Tapping Solution is the site I started with, or you can see Gary Craig’s website for excellent resources. My teacher is EFT founding master Maggie Adkins.

Sometimes it can help to do it with a practitioner though, as we can cut through your self sabotage, get you deeper faster, help you feel safe and supported while working through foundation issues, and see some of your blind spots. If you are just getting started it can be a good way to learn the techniques too.

I offer one hour sessions via phone, skype, or in person.

Click here to book your tapping session.

Testimonials

“Kirsty has a beautifully gentle approach which easily uncovers the essence of what needs to be healed. She is caring and encouraging and truly a pleasure to tap with. I feel lighter in mind and body and excited to get back into my day after my session.” – Sara

“I had my first tapping session with Kirsty and it blew me away.  The hour session brought up some surprising feelings and emotions that I initially didn’t realise I needed to focus on, but with Kirsty’s help and guidance I released some long standing emotions, which made me feel lighter and happier.  I really felt as if an old underlying issue had been resolved and I can now more forward from the past.  I would highly recommend Kirsty to undertake and teach tapping and I am definitely going to give this a go when I feel stuck in the future.  Thank you so much for a wonderful experience.” – Pippa

“The tapping last week was really really good and very deep. On the day I felt a huge sense of relief and felt really light. I did some myself later too. It was an eye opener…I have to work on it more. But you certainly have opened my eyes to the real emotional issue that I have to work towards. Thank you so much. You are lovely and I know your work is going to help so many people.” – Sharda

 

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Money back guarantee: if you do not experience any benefit in your first session I will give you a full refund.