by Gene Monterastelli
I have found meridian tapping (of which EFT is an important form) to be a very powerful tool. I have used it to clean up a number of deep emotional issues, but have noticed a number of unusual sensations after doing a session.
Sometimes I am really tired after a tapping session, while other times I feel actually more distressed than when I started but after that wake up the next day feeling like a new person. Are these common experiences? Is there anything I can do after a session to make sure I’m taking care of myself? Is there anything I can do to make sure the results of the session stick?
Tapping is a very powerful tool, but as stated in the question there can be effects of tapping that go beyond just the issues we are working on. When we are tapping (regardless of the magnitude of the issue) we need to pay very close attention to the information our bodies and emotions are giving us.
Here are 4 basic things to keep in mind.
(1) Knowing when enough is enough
Doing any sort of change work can stir up memories and beliefs that we are not ready to deal with. Tapping is wonderful because it allows us to creep slowly up on problems, but there are times where we uncover more than we can handle on our own.
Also, there can be a point at which we have done as much healing as is healthy just then, having resolved only part of the problem. We might feel driven to soldier on because we’re not done with an issue, but we need to accept whatever stopping point is best for us.
Just because running 3 miles a day is healthy doesn’t mean running 100 miles a day is better. The body can only do so much before it needs rest. It’s the same with tapping. Just because there is more work to do doesn’t mean the body can deal with that work right now.
I had a client who was physically exhausted after just three rounds of tapping. He headed right to bed after less than 5 minutes of work!
Listen to your body…It will know when you are done for the session.
2) How to care for yourself after a session
There are lots of different ways the body can respond to a tapping session. Even when we work on the same issues, no two sessions produce the same effects in us. These feeling can range from light and euphoric to totally wiped out. Regardless of how we feel after a session there are two basic things we can do to take care of ourselves.
First, make sure you drink plenty of water. This is good advice even if you don’t do a tapping session, but it is especially important after complete one because we generally use and release a lot of energy in the process. It takes time for our bodies to recharge. Water will help this process. You don’t need to drink so much that you float away, but it is a good idea to keep sipping as the day unfolds.
Second, make sure you get enough rest. If you expend or release a lot of energy during a tapping session it’s a good idea to take it easy. You shouldn’t do anything that requires a great deal of energy, and you should make sure you get a good night’s sleep or even take a nap. As you will see in the next item, sleep can be important in the healing.
3) The next day
When clients have a particularly emotional session I like to touch base the next day to see this person is doing. There have been times when we’ve done all we can do in a session, but my client is still emotionally agitated, yet often when I touch base with this person the next day he/she is doing great. Many have described themselves as feeling like “a new person”.
When we are doing profound work it’s going to affect many parts of our life, not just the issue we are working through. The best analogy I’ve come up with is that it’s like doing a software update on our computers. Sometimes the changes are so fundamental to the way the computer works that the computer needs to be restarted for the changes to take effect.
I see a similar thing happening when we do major energy work. It takes a “reboot” for the changes to work through our system. This often happens for us when we sleep. Scientists are still not completely sure why we sleep or dream. Many of the theories assume this is the time for our minds to sort out all the new data we’ve received throughout the day and integrate it fully into the body/mind/spirit.
The next time you undertake a major tapping session, either with a practitioner or on your own, pay attention to how you feel the next day. Even if you have a fitful night’s sleep, you will often notice great changes beyond what you felt at the end of a session.
4) Getting it to stick
Sometimes we can find it very hard to sit down to tap, even when we know it can do us much good. We realize we will benefit from it, but something keeps us from doing it. The reason may be because in some fashion our issues benefit us. The same thing can happen after we complete a session. There may be something in us that resists the change working its way totally through the system because something in us still sees benefits from keeping the problem.
I have found a very simple way around this problem. Tapping on it!
At the end of a session it is really easy to add some tapping phases like this:
I am so glad that I had the chance to spend some time tapping for this……
I am thankful that my physical and emotional body was able to reveal the areas that needed healing……I am thankful to have found the time to do this work……I know that over the next few days these changes are going to slowly creep into every part of my life……the life energy that was opened up in this session is not going to just stay in this session……it is going to continue to fill my life…. I give my body permission to keep giving me information about the areas that need healing……I give myself permission to know this healing work is not yet over……I will have opportunities to do more work……Over the next few hours these changes and healings will fill my life……tonight I will sleep restfully……As I sleep these changes and healings will become more and more part of my life……My dreams will help me to sort out these changes and make them permanent……As good as I feel now……I am going to wake up tomorrow and every day feeling better and even better……As good as this feels……and it feels great……even better things are to come……I am thankful for the chance to learn more and heal more.
Pat Carrington’s Comments on This:
Some people may not want to use direct suggestion while tapping (as in the above). Here is another way to approach the problem of resistance to change, this time using the Choices Method:
While tapping repeat the following phrases:
Karate Chop Spot: Even though I may have some resistance to this change and it feels a bit strange, I choose to allow it o take place at a gentle, safe pace that feels comfortable.
Inner Eyebrow: This is a big change…
Outer Eye: I don’t know what it will be like.
Under Eye: I’m not sure I’ll know who I am if I don’t have that problem anymore.
Under Nose: I’ve had it for so long…
(Take a deep easy breath – then continue)
Under Mouth: I choose to make the change easy for me.
Collar Bone: I choose to have it be comfortable.
Under Arm: I choose to be still me, but I’ll be a happier (healthier, more successful etc.) me.
Top of Head: I choose to go step by step.
Inner Eyebrow: Change can be good when you have plenty of time to get used to it.
Outer Eye: This change is under my control.
Under Eye: I choose to make the change in a way that is in my very best interest.
Under Nose: I choose to let go of those things I don’t want in my life.’’
Under Mouth: …and keep those things that I do want.
Collar Bone: I choose to let it all be easy…
Under Arm: …and comfortable.
Top of Head: I choose to feel the relief of this change.
Inner Eyebrow: The tapping made it possible and I will continue it.
Outer Eye: …at my own pace.
Under Eye: …in my own time.
Under Nose: I choose to let it all be easy…
These are just some suggestions. You may want to create your own tapping sequence to make you feel comfortable with the changes that occur from tapping.
The best advice we can give you is to respect your own comfort level. Follow the pace of change that suits you. Relax into the new feelings and understandings, but gradually. Let this happen in a way that suits you. If you will do this you will find that the aftermath of tapping will be much more comfortable and the results even more effective.
________________________________________________________________
Gene Monterastelli is an EFT practitioner in Baltimore, MD, and author of numerous articles on EFT that appear in this newsletter and regularly on his website http://tappingqanda.com He can be e-mailed directly at eftqanda@gmail.com.
