Have you been struggling to reach your goals?  …Even though you have a clear picture of what you want? Subconscious fears and beliefs may be getting in your way!

If part of you thinks you would lose something valuable if you get what you want (like security, safety, comfort), your subconscious or primitive brain may be   blocking your progress. For example, if you believe as some level that   financial abundance requires working 80 hours a week and being exhausted all the time… you’ll stop yourself. If falling in love means having your heart shattered or losing the right to your own opinions, why in the world would you want to do that?!?

The sabotaging belief may make no sense to your conscious thinking brain.  You may have “learned” the limiting belief when you were very young. (A lot of times as children, we’ll make intuitive leaps or guesses, and these childhood decisions don’t necesarily serve us well as adults.) You may not even be aware that those beliefs are there!

These subconscious blocks can be hard to track down. With Energy Tapping (EFT) you can shift them pretty quickly once you find them. But how do you find them?

Pay attention to your body. If you’re tapping and you’re not paying attention to how your body feels, you’re missing key infomation. If you learned “I don’t deserve what I want”  at the age of one and a half, it didn’t come in words. And it may not even come in a memory you can put your finger on right away. But by paying attention to your body, you can identify the hidden beliefs.

One of the reasons people don’t succeed is because some part of them doesn’t believe they deserve to have success. It could be because you spilled grape juice on the carpet when you were 2,  or that you felt too needy when you were 3. Whatever it is, it may be holding you back now.

Try saying out loud, “I don’t deserve to get what I want.” Notice how it feels in your body when you say that.

Now say “I do deserve to get what I want.” Is there any tension or pain anywhere? Any resistance?  Heavy feeling?

Those could be places in your body that are holding onto this limiting belief for you. If you have a particular memory that comes up around this, great.  If not, no problem.  Just notice where you feel the resistance in your body, and give it a number from 0 (no intensity) to 10 (OUCH!).

Karate chop: Even though I don’t deserve what I want, I deeply and completely accept myself anyway.

Even though I must not deserve to get what I want, just like back then,  and it hasn’t shown up now,  so I must not deserve it.

Even though I feel this belief in my ______ (stomach, heart, head…), I deeply and completely acknowledge and respect all of my feelings.

Top of the Head: I don’t deserve what I want.
Eyebrow: I must not deserve what I want.
Side of the Eye: Or I would have gotten it.
Under the Eye: I never get what I want.
Under the Nose: I must not deserve it.
Chin: I’m convinced I don’t deserve it.
Collarbone: A part of me is convinced I don’t deserve it.
Under the Arm: What if I don’t deserve it?

Top of the Head: What if I do?
Eyebrow: I don’t deserve it.
Side of the Eye: Yes I do!
Under the Eye: No I don’t!
Under the Nose: They don’t think so…
Chin: Just ask them!
Collarbone: I don’t think so.
Under the Arm: Just ask me.

Top of the Head: Yes I do!
Eyebrow: No I don’t.
Side of the Eye: Oh yes I do!
Under the Eye: No I don’t.
Under the Nose: I don’t deserve it… do I?
Chin: I’ve got a long list of reasons.
Collarbone: A long boring list of reasons.
Under the Arm: I think I inherited some of these reasons.

Top of the Head: Some of these reasons are really old and dusty.
Eyebrow: If they were bananas they’d be gross.
Side of the Eye: They’re really old.
Under the Eye: I think I can throw these out.
Under the Nose: I don’t have to chew on these anymore.
Chin: I deserve fresh dreams.
Collarbone: And wonderful manifestations.
Under the Arm: I’m in the process of knowing I deserve what I want.
Top of the Head: And that feels like relief.

Take a deep breath, and shake your hands out.

Say out loud, “I deserve to get what I want,” and notice how true it is for you now on a scale of 0 to 10. You may want to jot down any thoughts, beliefs, or memories that came up during the tapping so you can do some more work on them later.  Also, tune into any feelings of relief you feel. Just be with them for a minute as your vibration shifts and improves.

Working through subconscious beliefs alone can be challenging. Getting guidance from a friend, recordings, or a coach can make the process much faster and smoother.

If you want help working through your blocks,  check out our new program on Self-Sabotage:  Removing Your Sub-Conscious Blocks.

And our group coaching program is a great way to receive support for these issues.

If you want to target the root cause of fears, beliefs, and blocks, Inner Tapping can help. And it is a potent way to unfreeze old traumas still stuck in your energy system.
 
What is Inner Tapping? It is a technique that guides you back to the original memories and events that created a given mindset. It then releases the “frozen” aspects in the primitive brain and the body-mind. It’s sort of “surrogate tapping for your younger self.” By tapping on the younger you who experienced the event and offering compassion and understanding, new resources become available, and we find ourselves empowered and more free.
 
If you’re tired of hearing your mother’s nagging voice in your head, or your father’s disapproval every time you start a project, this can be your magic eraser. If part of you is terrified of public speaking because you subconsiously fear the laughter of your kindergarten classmates, and you would like to find relief from that tension, this is the fastest and most thorough way we know of to achieve that.

For immediate access to the video presentation Inner Tapping and announcements on the topic of Trauma Relief and a Thriving Life, complete the form below and click GO. (Or just click GO without filling out the form… we’re flexible…)

Would you ask a 3-year-old what house to buy? Do you ask a 5-year-old who to date? If you have unresolved traumas from when you were 3- or 5-years-old, these frozen memories may have more impact on these adult decisions than you might think. You can find out what might be blocking you by watching this video…

Most people think of “trauma” as nasty car accidents, muggings, child abuse, and war. But to a 3-year-old, Mommy suddenly “disappearing” because of a new job can be traumatic if the child feels rejected or abandoned.

Being ridiculed at Show-and-Tell can affect how we hold ourselves in public, sometimes for the rest of our lives… if we don’t release the frozen pain of that experience.

“Small” traumas can affect our self-worth, our sense of safety, how much love we allow in, and how abundant we feel.

Traumas change our vibration… often below the level of consciousness (and thus, by the Law of Attraction, they affect what we draw into our life.)

Why is that? What is going on and how do we change this?

We have put together a video (on thrivingnow.com) sharing how big and little traumas are held in the body and mind, and how we can release them.

For immediate access to the video presentation Trauma and the Primitive Brain and announcements on the topic of Trauma Relief and a Thriving Life, complete the form below and click GO. (Or just click GO without filling out the form… we’re flexible…)

by Cathy Vartuli, The Joy Connection, LLC

Bonus Recordings: Right-click under Windows (Apple Mac:  hold the Option key and click) and choose “Save Target As…” (Firefox: “Save Link As…”) to save the files into a folder on your computer where you can open them anytime in the future. After saving the files you can also use your iTunes or other MP3 software to copy the audios to your portable player.

Bonus from the coaching audio: Body YES and Body NO 
– Tuning into our Body Guidance 
– Knowing what we want 
 MP3 Download   PDF Transcript 
 
How many of you have been lost, confused, and not sure what to do next?  Are you pushed around by advertisers, coworkers, family, and friends because you’re not sure what is right for YOU?

Many of us have heard about inner guidance, and would like to feel that calm,  confident direction. We’re just not sure how! 
 
One of the fundamental skills to having that confidence is tuning into our bodies. Many of us have been trained to think everything through. And most of us know how that can turn us in circles and tangle us in knots. When we are disconnected from our bodies, we miss out on much of the beauty and wonder in life… and a great deal of wisdom.

Learning the skill of inner guidance starts with practical examples and a few key concepts. And, we suggest that you use Energy Tapping to clear any blocks that keep you from trusting that your body has excellent guidance to offer.  Listening to the bonus audio will give you a sample of how this feels. 
 
In our Free Yourself Program we teach these skills and guide you through more practical examples. We also tap on common blocks that come up each step of the way as you tap away inner confusion and fear and develop emotional clarity. For more information:

http://www.thrivingnow.com/free-yourself/  
 
If you’d like additional support in connecting with your inner guidance, raising your vibration, healing old wounds, and setting healthy boundaries… consider the Thriving Now Group Coaching Program. Our coaching calls are perfect for that… and we have a total of over 10 teleclasses, study groups, and open calls per month!

http://www.thrivingnow.com/team

by Rick Wilkes, Thriving Now, LLC

See also: Energy Tapping – Quick Start Guide

An emotion is a body sensation with a label attached to it.

The problem is that most of the time we focus on the emotional label and the conversation going on in our heads. Very little attention is given to the body sensation (the actual feeling). Change your approach to emotional relief, and you may find that you are a lot less emotionally distressed than you think you are.

Let’s say you have the thought, “I am worried.” As soon as you have that thought, your brain asks itself, “Why am I worried?” And believe me, your brain will always come up with a reason! As you think about this reason, you will likely feel even more worried. As more intense feelings of worry arise, you will naturally think of more and more reasons why you are worried (and should be!).

Do you see the trap? Do you feel it?

Hearing the question, “Why am I worried?” is enough to send most of us into the mental trap of thinking about all the personal and global reasons we “should” be worried. The more numerous or intense the reasons (real or imagined) and the greater the mental energy we apply to our worries, the bigger the burden on our physiology… after all, in order to have an emotion, we have to feel it in the body.

Do you believe that emotions have to be felt to be real? Test it! Put a big, silly grin on your face and sing out, “I am so depressed!” Didn’t work, did it? We can’t really feel the emotion of depression with a big silly grin on our face and a smile in our voice. To make the emotion of depression real, I would have to slump my shoulders, lower my voice, and think of all the reasons I have to be depressed. That would work, wouldn’t it? I’m feeling down already…

You see, the emotional thought has no power except as it is reflected in our body. Unless the nervous system, body posture, hormones, and organs get on board and start behaving depressed, or worried, or angry, we won’t experience the emotion. We won’t feel it. There are many ways this can be used to our benefit as we apply Energy Tapping.

First, we change our mental approach. When we have the thought “I am worried,” we stop asking “Why?” Instead, we ask: Where do I feel this in my body?

Is it in my wrinkled brow?
Do I feel a tightness in my throat?
Is my stomach churning?
Do my shoulders feel tight and constricted?
Is my breathing fast and shallow?
Is my heart galloping?

Next, describe the body sensations specifically:

Is the sensation big, small, hard, soft, smooth, sharp, burning, stinging, stabbing?
Is it churning, rising, sinking, or stuck?
Is it a red hot poker, cold as blue ice, or black and empty?

Notice the body sensations. And then pay attention to them using Energy Tapping. Use the colorful description along with the emotional label as your Energy Tapping setup, and start tapping. Here are some example setup phrases to get you started. (You would tap on the Karate Chop point while saying the phrase 3 times, then repeat the reminder phrase as you tap through the points. We bolded a sample reminder phrase in each example).

“Even though I have this twisted knot of worry in my forehead, I deeply and completely relax myself.”

“Even though I have this strangling fear in my throat, I choose to feel safe and at ease.”

“Even though I feel this foul, churning, green anxiety in my stomach, I am okay.”

“Even though I have this huge mountain of responsibility crushing my shoulders, and it’s no wonder I feel tired and overwhelmed, I’ve decided to set the mountain down and climb it one step at a time.”

“Even though I have this angry corset crushing the breath out of me, I choose to relax and take deep breaths anyway.”

“Even though I have this red hot knife of betrayal stabbing me in the heart, I deeply and completely accept myself.”

We live in a “heady” culture. We think that we can think our way out of our negative thinking! If that were true, we’d all be emotionally free! The reality seems to be that that which we continually think about just gets bigger, and Bigger, and BIGGER. It’s the law… the Law of Attraction.

What I recommend is that we all learn how to quickly move from a negative emotional thought into an accurate description of the body sensation. Then, immediately use Energy Tapping on the actual feelings, as they appear in the body. If the body sensations move or change, follow them. Chase the pain! And notice, as I do, that you lose much of the desire to “figure it all out.” You’ll be out of your head, and feeling peace, calm, and confident in your heart. And that is where we belong.

If this kind of tapping interests you, we teach more advanced body guidance and body connection skills in our Free Yourself Program. You can check it out here:

http://www.thrivingnow.com/free-yourself/

by Rick Wilkes, Thriving Now LLC

Bonus Recordings: Right-click under Windows (Apple Mac: hold the Option key and click) and choose “Save Target As…” (Firefox: “Save Link As…”) to save the files into a folder on your computer where you can open them anytime in the future. After saving the files you can also use your iTunes or other MP3 software to copy the audios to your portable player.

Bonus 1: MP3 Recording   PDF Transcript
- What Clutters Our Vibration
- Tapping on What Others Think
- Tapping on External Approval

Bonus 2: MP3 Recording   PDF Transcript
- Scarcity

I didn’t really think I had a clutter problem.

Of course, there was THAT pile… that felt strangely overwhelming.

Yeah, and the closet… that made my whole home feel less comfortable every time I went into it.

If we define “clutter” as anything that feels out of place, that drains our energy, or that is painful to hold onto yet even more painful to let go of…  then yes, I had clutter. Do you?

I’m going to recommend that you stop looking at clutter as just “stuff.”  Instead, observe its effect on you emotionally. What does it do to your vibration?

Then, dig deeper. Look at individual items. What do you feel you’d lose if you let go? What is keeping you holding on?

Use tapping on those emotional blocks to clearing the clutter from your life, your work, your computer, and your relationships.

The other side of clutter feels so… freeing.  My closet is organized now, and after I did the energy tapping I found it happening naturally rather than having to force myself.  Piles are fewer and far between, and when they appear, I no longer feel the distress I used to… I just take care of them when the time is right. My inbox is remarkably under control; after the tapping I found it easier to follow the sorting techniques I knew would work but for “some unknown reason” never before applied so consistently.

It also still fascinates me was how emotional overwhelm over one item can stop a person from doing anything at all with the whole pile. And also how a little bit of “rebelliousness”  creates a huge block to doing anything.

Each of these sub-issues can be tapped on. If you subscribe to our free newsletter, you will have access to some bonus recordings and transcripts that show you examples of tapping rounds you can do for your emotions around clutter.

If you want to have support to clear your clutter, the Clearing Clutter with EFT program is worth checking out. Carol Look and I have created a 5 hour audio coaching program with transcript,  including extensive tapping rounds, where we take you step-by-step through a deeper understanding of why you’ve held onto the clutter, and we help you clear the blocks to clarity so you can know… in your head, heart, and gut… what to do with what you have. For more information:

http://www.energytapping.info/clutter

If you’d like additional support in clearing clutter and raising the vibration of your home, office, and relationships, consider the Thriving Now Group Coaching Program. Our coaching calls are perfect for that… and we have a total of over 10 teleclasses, study groups, and open calls per month!

by Rick Wilkes, Thriving Now LLC, and Cathy Vartuli,  The Joy Connection, LLC

If you touch the body with sensitive fingers, and pay close attention to the sensations, you will notice that there are points on the body that naturally attract your attention. These points feel different. And if you rub them or tap on them or poke them, they stimulate a healing response. Pain is relieved. We feel better.

We now know that humans have explored the healing potential of such points for well over 5000 years.  Treatment of these points is part of the ancient medical history of many cultures, particularly Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) which uses needles to stimulate these “acupoints.”

Recent innovations use a selection of these same points to put quick and long-lasting RELIEF at your fingertips… relief from stress, anxiety, fear,  overwhelm, pain and suffering, distressing thoughts, disturbing memories, and limiting beliefs. You’ll hear these cutting-edge techniques referred to by a variety of names including the generic terms Energy Tapping and Meridian Tapping Techniques (MTT) as well as by Thought Field Therapy® (TFT) and Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT).

These tapping techniques use your fingertips to tap the points. But because the tapping looks so unusual—unlike anything we’ve seen in western medical culture—most of us want to know its origins. Where did this come from!?!? So to understand how these tapping innovations evolved, we’ll start at The Beginning.

Early Human Healing

As we begin this brief history, it is useful to imagine early tribal humans living in caves. Accidents, injuries, and disease were a part of their world,  too, but they had to make due with literally what they had available at hand.

When we humans hurt, our instincts lead us to hold, rub, and comfort the part that is in pain. Caring members of our tribe reach out as well,  offering the comfort of their touch in times of distress.

Over thousands of years, certain individuals with a keen interest in bringing relief and healing to others studied what worked. They laid their hands on the body. They explored. They felt the life energy beneath their fingers… pulses,  rhythms, and flows. They observed what restored balance and well-being… and what did not. These early healers were open to ways to support and accelerate the healing process, and they passed down their discoveries from generation to generation. No doubt, tribes with deeper knowledge of healing practices had a survival advantage over others.

Clues from a 5,000-Year-Old Mummy & An Egyptian Papyrus

In 1991 a well-preserved mummy, now named Otzi, was discovered frozen in a glacier near the Italian border with Austria. He is estimated to have lived over 5,000 years ago. Evaluation by scientists has shown that Otzi appears to have suffered from back pain and arthritis, and he had been “treated” using non-ornamental tattoos on and near points that today would be used for acupuncture treatment of Otzi’s medical conditions.

Moving forward in time to around 3,500 years ago, the Ebers Papyrus from Egypt (1550 BC) describes channels in the body that closely approximate known meridians, the lines of energy flow upon which the acupoints are located.

Animals, too, have acupoints and meridians.  One possible reason that the Indian (Sri Lankan) elephant was successfully tamed (while the African elephant was not) is that acupoints were worked out that calmed the beasts and enabled them to be communicated with and trained. These are shown quite clearly in the illustration below, which was drawn some 3,000 years ago.

Chinese Develop Formalized Treatment

The earliest known complete text on acupuncture is the Huang Di Nei Jing or Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine (Warring States Period 476-221 BC). This appears to be a compilation of all acupuncture knowledge to that time and is still the basis for modern acupuncture. The meridian channels, 365 acupuncture points, types of needles, and indications and contraindications were all documented in detail. Yet, even earlier signs of acupuncture development in China exist, including archaeological evidence of stone needles dating back to 1700 BC.

Acupuncture affects the flow of energy in the body, and it is the “disrupted”  flow of energy in the body that leads to dis-ease and distress. Clearly,  stimulating the acupoints for health purposes has a long history dating back to the stone age or even earlier. In the thousands of years since, the Chinese in particular have continued to use acupuncture as an integral part of their traditional medicine. The medical practice of acupuncture, however, requires extensive training.  Acupuncture is NOT for self-treatment.

From East to West… Acupuncture to Tapping

Felix Mann helped spread acupuncture from Asia to the west. He was the author of the first comprehensive English language acupuncture textbook, Acupuncture: The Ancient Chinese Art of Healing, first published in 1962.

It’s appropriate to stop here and recognize that an entirely unique paradigm of medical treatment going back thousands of years was condensed and no-doubt imperfectly translated from Chinese to English through this book. No book alone is adequate training in such an ancient, hands-on healing art. However, what such incomplete disclosures can evoke in a true scientist is a sense of curiosity. Is there a way to take this information and apply it in new and useful ways?

Such a scientist was George Goodheart, Jr., a chiropractor. A life long student, he was curious about all forms of healing. He learned about acupuncture in the early 1960s, reportedly from studying Mann’s research on acupuncture meridians. As he palpated the body with his fingers to find the causes of pain,  it was a natural step to try tapping on the meridian points with his fingers.

Goodheart explored the connection between the meridians associated with certain body parts and illness in the body. He became aware that the emotional state of the patient affected the response and strength of the muscles. In 1964 he advanced earlier research and developed a method of muscle testing that is now called Applied Kinesiology. Then in 1966 he wrote a manual on strengthening muscles that were shown to be weak while holding certain meridian points. (Phil Mollon, Psychoanalytic Energy Psychotherapy, p.32)

John Diamond, a psychiatrist, became one of Goodheart’s students in 1973. He began using muscle testing as part of his practice and found he could identify core psychological issues more quickly. He would use affirmations while stimulating certain meridians to help his patients get emotional relief. He delineated through testing with clients which particular emotional state was associated with each acupuncture meridian. By 1979, Diamond’s model had expanded to integrate aspects of psychiatry, psychosomatic medicine, kinesiology, preventive medicine… music, art, and humanities… alongside stimulating meridian acupoints… truly a holistic approach.

Roger Callahan,  a psychologist, studied Applied Kinesiology with Goodheart’s group, including John Diamond. He was a pioneer in cognitive and behavior therapies and had been doing psychotherapy for 30 years prior to his “ah-ha!” moment in 1979 with his client Mary:

Callahan had been working for a year and a half with Mary, a patient of his who had such an overwhelming fear of water that she could not even get into a bathtub without it precipitating an anxiety attack. Although he had tried every anxiety reduction technique at his disposal with her (including suggestion,  placebo, clinical hypnosis, behavioral therapy, rational-emotive, systematic desensitization, distraction techniques, progressive relaxation,  client-centered therapy, and exposure), the progress had been slow and discouraging. Mary couldn’t even approach the swimming pool on the grounds of his office, or allow water to contact her body, without suffering.

One day while they were working on this fear in his home office, Mary complained about a feeling in the pit of her stomach whenever she thought about water. As it happens, there is an acupuncture point located directly beneath the eye which, according to traditional acupuncture, is linked to the stomach meridian.

Dr. Callahan asked her to tap on that point. He did this on the assumption that this might balance a possible disturbance in her “meridian energy system” and thereby lessen her stomach symptoms. He had no idea that it would have profound implications for the future of his practice and for psychology.

Mary agreed to tap under her eyes and when she did so a totally unexpected thing happened. Instead of merely experiencing relief from her stomach symptoms, she called out in surprise that her fear of water was suddenly gone! Callahan didn’t take this too seriously at first because it seemed so unlikely, but then he watched her get up and run toward the swimming pool!

At this point he actually became somewhat alarmed because he knew Mary couldn’t swim, so he ran after her to make sure she didn’t fall into the pool. Mary let him know that she did remember that she could not swim (healthy and normal caution), yet she felt surprisingly free of the panic. When she walked near the edge at the deep end of the pool, an area she had never been able to approach before, she began splashing water on her face. It turned out, as strange as it seemed, the process of tapping under her eyes while she was talking about her fear of water, had eliminated her fear on a permanent basis. (Read more…)

Callahan decided to explore the possibility of using strategic tapping on certain meridian points to treat other phobias as well. While not all the phobias responded to the tapping procedure as rapidly as Mary’s had (although some did!), this experience marked an important turning point for a new era of energy psychology.

Callahan Techniques eventually became known as Thought Field Therapy® (TFT) and are still in wide use today. With TFT the client thinks of the problem while tapping the specific points and monitors the emotional intensity using Subjective Units of Distress (SUDS). During his exploration, Callahan found that some patients had what he called Psychological Reversal (basically a resistance or fear to getting over the problem… whether conscious or not). He found that affirmations or tapping on the small intestine meridian on the side of the hand (our Karate Chop point)  while thinking about the issue would normally resolve this. He also developed the collarbone breathing technique and 9 Gamut procedure for unusual cases. (Mollon p.52) Callahan found that there were certain patterns of tapping points that worked well for specific problems. He published these tapping algorithms so muscle testing or other advanced forms of diagnosis were no longer required in all cases.

Several of Callahan’s students investigated simplified versions of his procedures, exploring whether muscle testing and his version of “diagnosis” were necessary. Patricia Carrington is one of these early tapping pioneers. By 1987, Carrington had developed and was using for her patients and in workshops a “single algorithm” tapping method which she called Acutap. This method intentionally did not use any diagnostic procedure such as muscle testing. She simply asked people to tap on all of the acupuncture end-points each time they did a round of tapping. Using this method,  Carrington was able to help her clients in ways that had never been possible before.  During the years since, she has continued to be a leader in the field of meridian tapping,  and her Choices Method played a key role in bringing client-centered positive choices into the tapping process. (She is also the publisher of Meridian Tapping Times.)

Gary Craig, who developed Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), was also a student of Callahan. In 1995 he released his own tapping techniques which involved tapping all the meridians in sequence… without concern for the order. He added the reminder phrase, spoken at each tapping point. He also emphasized that there can be many aspects to an issue, and he introduced reframes, questioning, and other story-processing approaches that would be familiar to anyone who has studied Neural Linguistic Programming (NLP). He also encouraged people to allow the words to flow “though them” as they tapped rather than getting stuck on doing it the one “right” way.

Craig makes the point that he was a Stanford-trained engineer, not a mental health or medical professional. Against the strongly held opinion of many traditionalists,  Craig felt that tapping could become a “universal healing aid” and wanted to share this information with everyone… so people can try it and see for themselves whether tapping relieves their emotional and physical pains. By making the tapping process simpler, providing a free manual to all who want it, publishing a free email newsletter with case studies, and offering for sale a comprehensive library of EFT instructional videos, Craig was a leader in spreading the word about tapping to the general public. (Gary Craig retired in 2010).

Techniques Galore!

Other meridian techniques that have grown from the earlier discoveries include: John Diepold’s Touch and Breathe (TAB) method, Be Set Free Fast (BSFF) by Larry Nims, Tapas Acupressure Technique (TAT) from Tapas Fleming, ReMap by Steve Reed, and Simplified Energy Therapy (SET) and Provocative Energy Therapy (PET) by Steve Wells and David Lake. There are many others. And you will also hear the term Meridian Tapping Techniques (MTT)  used by practitioners as well.

Please remember that when we use the term Energy Tapping, it is meant as a generic term encompassing many different techniques, methods, and approaches. For example, we consider TFT and EFT to be “energy tapping,”  although clearly there are differences (and even disagreements) between Craig and Callahan about the strengths and benefits of their approaches. This is common as any field matures. We see the same thing in “massage therapy” and “bodywork” (generic terms) where over 200 styles are known by different names.  Some of these names are protected and controlled by their trademark holders (such as Feldenkrais Method® and Trager®) while others are not.

Does it matter which technique you use? Yes, and no. The best way we can describe it, especially if you are not familiar with any of the tapping techniques yet, is that it is like answering the question, “Do you like rock ‘n roll?” For most people there are some rock groups they like and others less so (or not at all). Elvis is quite different from AC/DC, Kiss, or the Grateful Dead. Madonna is similar to but certainly not exactly like Cher. Get the idea?  As Billy Joel sings, “It’s still rock ‘n roll to me!”

For example, what we’ve done in our Energy Tapping (EFT) Quick Start Guide is show the tapping points most commonly used worldwide by EFT and MTT experts in a single tapping algorithm that leaves out the 9 gamut procedure found in TFT and the long form of EFT…  blended with our own interpretations about how to best explain and introduce our free-flowing version of energy tapping to others. Still rock n’ roll? We think so!

Group Tapping

Energy tapping is also highly effective in groups, whether at an in person workshop, over the phone, or through the internet. Gary Craig called this Borrowing Benefits. It is well documented that people in the audience who tap along while the practitioner works with another person usually notice that their issues go down in intensity, too… even if their issue is “unrelated” to the tapping that is being done! This has meant that thousands of people have benefitted at unprecedented levels from cost-effective group coaching using energy tapping that never would have been able to afford traditional private sessions.

Applications of Energy Tapping

The greatest impact on human potential may come from specific applications of energy tapping. Let’s look at why… using the example of computer technology.

Most people know that computers require programs (also called applications)  in order to do anything useful. People who used early computers were essentially all “programmers.” They had no choice! If you wanted to use the computer, you had to learn all the ins and outs. Today, of course, there are hundreds of thousands of skilled programmers and computer application developers worldwide… and billions of people who benefit from those applications.  Those billions do not need to learn all the ins and outs of computer hardware and software in order to reap the rewards!

Just as you do not need to study computer programming to send an email, we feel that you can immediately benefit from Energy Tapping using pre-packaged applications that address your specific needs.

One of the leaders in developing specific tapping applications is Carol Look. In 2001 Carol published a manual for applying energy therapy to the “application”  of weight loss. She followed with a manual to help people quit smoking. These manuals guided practitioners and motivated individuals in both the key questions to ask and the specific tapping rounds that can shift the fears and limiting beliefs that block someone from being successful.

Tapping applications help build awareness as people tap. For example, in Carol’s Attracting Abundance program, she has tapping for dozens of issues that block us… including procrastination, fear of success,  guilt about having more than others, and the limiting belief that money is “bad.” Some of these energetic issues are obvious, and others are only recognized when we “try them on” and feel whether there is an intensity that shifts when we tap. Carol also introduced purely positive rounds of tapping into her programs. Tapping while saying these positive phrases helps to uplift our energy while exchanging limiting beliefs for empowering ones.

If you’d like to learn more about specific applications of energy tapping,  refer to our Tapping For…? section.

Vibrational Technology

Energy Tapping today is at the forefront of new Vibrational Technologies that take conscious advantage of the Law of Attraction. We are recognizing that we humans and everything around us are made of energy. This living energy has patterns… colors, sounds, and textures… that vibrate as a dynamically evolving creation of our consciousness.

Even a non-musician can tell when a note sounds “wrong.” In the same way, each of us can hear, see, and sense the disharmony inside our own bodies, in our family and friends, and in the world around us. But what shall we do with that awareness? Can we shift these vibrationally disharmonious energies in ways that are ever more pleasing to us? YES, we can!

It starts with our most intimate relationship—with our own body-mind. As we build awareness of our reactions to ourselves, to others, and to the world, we can use Energy Tapping to take the “stress and strain” out. We can train our body and our mind to feel surprisingly calm and confident, no matter what. In such a state we have access to choices we simply do not have when we’re stressed. We can choose to set and maintain healthy boundaries with others. We can choose what is a YES for us rather than “should” on ourselves. We can choose love rather than fear.

Can Energy Tapping really do all that? Try it. Try it on something that stresses your body. Try it on some small fear that keeps you from doing what your heart calls you to do. Feel into your emotions and notice your thoughts. Do you feel any relief? If so, explore with us. Share with us. Join with us in developing this living art… the Art of Emotional Freedom.

I am a student of the intelligent energy that animates all Life. To me, emotions are energy in motion, and this work gives me an opportunity to explore with you the leading edge of new vibrational technologies. Energy Tapping literally taps into Source Energy. It taps into our natural ability to know ourselves and to align with the restorative, self-healing power of that which created us and keeps us living, laughing, and loving. I thank you for letting me share with you what we’ve discovered (so far) that can bring quick and long lasting relief, and for joining us as we take these practical approaches to the next level of understanding and effectiveness.

Rick Wilkes
Emotional Freedom Coach
www.Thrivingnow.com

I have always been curious about healing. It seems like an incredibly intriguing puzzle—trying to figure out why some people are happy and some are stuck in misery. After years of exploring various therapies and healing techniques, I found Energy Tapping and a light went on. I experienced for myself, and later with clients, the power and speed of the relief brought by tapping. The wisdom and peace left behind, the connection with ourselves, is beyond price.

I will be forever grateful that Carol Look directed me to Rick Wilkes when I needed help working through some issues. He helped me understand body guidance and Law of Attraction. We combine those skills with tapping and inner child work to release old traumas and empower parts of us that are stuck and frozen… so we can be emotionally free.

I believe that these techniques can help even extremely traumatized people heal deeply and completely and live the way they always dreamed.

Cathy Vartuli
Emotional Freedom Coach
www.joy-connection.com

 Specific application of energy tapping are the best way to get started, as well as being the most efficient of your time and money. Here are some applications offered by tapping experts, and some hints to get you started…

Anxiety
Tuning into your body and taking some deep breaths can help you feel more calm and confident in minutes. Here is a free recording that will help you with that:
http://www.thrivingnow.com/for/Health/anxiety-constricted-breathing/ 

Financial Abundance
When you’re tapping for financial abundance, there are several places you can start… present feelings, past experiences, and limiting beliefs. If you can never seem to pay of debt, for example, tapping on how stressed it makes you feel and how angry you are at yourself will bring you relief and start shifting your vibration (with the Law of Attraction responds to). You can also think back to childhood and how your parents or other role models handled money, and tap on any memories tensions you feel around money and debt. For further help, these two sites offer products that take you through common issues around financial abundance…
http://www.attractingabundance.com/book.html?aid=5 
http://www.thrivingnow.com/for/Health/category/abundance-money-thriving-business/ 

Pain Relief
Pain reduces our enjoyment of life, and most of the time we FIGHT the feelings that arise. We just want RELIEF. Of course, “what we resist, persists” and that is true with pain and suffering. When our body hurts, it is trying to communicate with us, sending an alarm to get our attention. If you tune in and tap on the issues behind the pain, relief can be profound. These links lead to products and services that support the journey through the pain, to wellbeing.
http://www.painreliefwitheft.com/public/10.cfm?affID=thriving 
http://www.thrivingnow.com/for/Health/category/pain-relief-products/ 

Clearing Clutter
Many of us have issues with disorganization and clutter. We may have been taught to blame ourselves (“How could you be such a slob?!”, “I’m so messy!”, “I just can’t seem to get it together!”), but using willpower to clean up the mess is a temporary fix. When we clear out the fears and beliefs behind the stuff, organization comes much more naturally. A wonderful resource for this process is found here:
http://www.energytapping.info/clearing-clutter/

Body Vitality & Safety
We all want to feel secure and to enjoy life. But over time life’s stresses, large and small traumas, worry, and anxiety build up in our body. As we feel less and less safe, we turn to coping mechanisms that get us by, but “coping” reduces our pleasure and love of life. Do you feel afraid? Insecure? Where did you learn that you weren’t safe? If you tap on the memory, you can release the fear and open up to life again. For most of us, this is a process… a gradual clearing out of old blocks. For products that support this journey, check out this link:
http://www.thrivingnow.com/for/Health/category/body-vitality-safety-self-image/ 

Sex, Love, and Relationships
Is your love life everything you’d like it to be? Or do you find yourself attracting the “wrong” person repeatedly? Do you act out the same scenarios of heartache and rejection? Whatever your pattern may be, ask yourself, “Where did I learn that this was the way to be?” Whatever memory comes to the surface, even if it seems unrelated, try some tapping and see what shifts. To see how other people have been helped, check out the products and write ups here:
http://www.thrivingnow.com/for/Health/category/sex-love-relationships/ 

Eyesight Improvement
What emotions do you feel in your eyes, or behind your eyes? What have you seen that you wished you’d never seen? Do you look out at the world with distrust, anger, or fear? For guidance on how to shift the blocks to better eyesight, check out Carol Look’s guide book on the subject:
http://www.attractingabundance.com/eyesight.html?aid=5 

Weight Loss
Have you been struggling with your weight for years
? Trying to use willpower to restrict your diet and force yourself to exercise? The weight is just a symptom of an underlying problem. For many of us, lack of security and good boundaries causes us to store excess weight and hold onto it. A good way to identify reasons behind your struggle is to ask yourself how the weight helps you. Does it give you an excuse to avoid dating? Starting your own business? Really living? Tap on the limiting beliefs around those excuses and end the struggle. For more details, these products are very helpful:
http://www.attractingabundance.com/store.html?aid=5#loseweight 
http://www.thrivingnow.com/for/Health/category/weight-loss/ 

Fear of Public Speaking
If you are afraid of speaking in public, you’re not alone! Yet, big, generic fears are hard to combat (or tap on). Instead, break your fear down to smaller, specific thoughts and beliefs before you tap on them. What do you think “they” will think about you? Will they judge you? Does that remind you of a time when that happened in the past? Tap on the memory and find relief! To be guided through the process, this product is very helpful:
http://www.attractingabundance.com/speaking.html?aid=5

Smoking Cessation
Wonder why you can’t quit smoking? Fighting the cigarettes doesn’t work… not long term. Understanding what benefits the cigarettes are providing, and tapping to reduce anxiety and cravings can make quitting smoking a much less agonizing experience. Instead of beating yourself up when you smoke that next cigarette, be present and mindful, and pay attention to the feelings you have when you smoke. Do you allow yourself to relax more when you light one? Feel special? Like you belong? Why can’t you allow that without the prop? For more help with the process:
http://www.attractingabundance.com/store.html?aid=5#quitsmoking  

Addictions
We’ve already touched on smoking and weight loss issues. If you want to understand more of the fundamentals behind addition, this product can provide insight and inspiration:
http://www.attractingabundance.com/addiction.html?aid=5 

Self-Limiting Beliefs
How often do you hold yourself back? Feel afraid to try? Many of us learned self-limiting beliefs as children (I’m not good enough, I don’t deserve good things, I’m not smart or strong). They become so ingrained in our self-image, we don’t even notice them anymore. But they do prevent us from being all we want to be. They can be tapped away and replaced with more empowering and useful beliefs. You can try tapping yourself, with a tapping buddy or a coach, or along with one of the recordings found here:
http://www.thrivingnow.com/for/Health/category/limiting-beliefs/

Want help? Consider our group coaching program…
Multiple studies show that groups help people to heal. Friendship, community, and witnessing all contribute to a deeper sense of healing. If you would like more support with any of these issues, or physical or emotional pains, our group coaching program is worth checking out. We offer 10+ calls a month where you can ask for tapping help or borrow benefits, a large library of recorded calls, and a forum where you can ask questions and share successes… all combined to make this an exceptional value. If you don’t want to go it alone, find us here:
http://www.thrivingnow.com/team/  

Tip# 7 Look in the Mirror:
by Carol Look, Attracting Abundance

See also: Energy Tapping – Quick Start Guide

Watch yourself in a mirror when you tap. This will help you in several areas.

a) This extra boost will encourage you to internalize the positive affirmation of the setup statement more fully (I deeply and completely love and accept myself).

b) It will help you when you need to use visualization instead of regular tapping. This is useful if you are in a public place and can’t physically tap. You will now have a picture and corresponding memory of what you look like when you tap. You can use that mental image to connect more fully as you imagine tapping on yourself.

c) This technique will allow you to see the subtle changes that occur in muscle tone, color, and energy in your face and body as you tap. You can make use of these clues to dig deeper.

It may feel strange to do this at first. Some of us have avoided looking at ourselves in the mirror because of self-judgments. Try tapping on this as you watch yourself in the mirror and see what comes up. Tap on the Karate Chop point and say “Even though this feels uncomfortable, and what if I don’t like what I see, I am open to connecting to myself and healing”. Then tap through:

Eyebrow: “I don’t really like looking in the mirror.”
Side of the Eye: “It doesn’t feel comfortable.”
Under the Eye: “I do want to heal.”
Under the Nose: “What if this helps me?”
Chin: “I’d like to feel closer to myself.”
Collarbone: “Everybody likes being seen sometimes.”
Under the Arm: “I am open to the information and connection I’ll gain.”
Top of the Head: “I am open to being comfortable seeing myself.” 

Tip #6: Good Morning, God (Universe, Source, Divine)
by Cathy Vartuli, The Joy Connection, LLC

See also: Energy Tapping – Quick Start Guide

Whether you study the Law of Attraction or just want to feel better about the life you have, setting intentions and being grateful for the good in your life is a powerful start. And tapping while you do that can intensify the good feelings.

You don’t have to be religious for this to work. You can change the word “God” to “Universe”, “Source”, “Divine”, or use no word at all.

My friend Karen and I did this every morning for a long time. If you have a tapping buddy or if you do it alone, it’s a wonderful way to start or end the day. Feel free to change the words to fit your situation!

(For positive tapping, you can skip the setup statement, though you are welcome to use one if you like).

Tap through the points, and see if you can connect to the feelings in your body:

Top of the Head: “Good Morning, God.” 
Eyebrow: “Thank you for loving me all through the night.” 
Side of the Eye: “Thank you for waking me this morning and letting me feel your presence.” 
Under the Eye: “Would you show me in little ways, all through the day, how much you love me?” 
Under the Nose: “Please help me to be open to joy and gratitude today.” 
Chin: “Thank you for this body, God.” 
Collarbone: “I am so grateful for its health and strength.” 
Under the Arm: “My right leg <or whatever body part> is trying to tell me something.”

Top of the Head: “But I’m having trouble understanding.” 
Eyebrow: “Could you give me insights into what would be most helpful for it?” 
Side of the Eye: “I know you gave my body great intelligence.” 
Under the Eye: “Please help me trust that and be open to it.” 
Under the Nose: “Please help me to see the wonder in today.” 
Chin: “I’d like to feel safe and playful today.”
Collarbone: “Thank you, God, for this wonderful world.” 
Under the Arm: “Thank you, God, for this wonderful life.” 
Top of the Head: “Good morning, God.”