Have you ever heard that expression? I have heard it and used it, but only understood it through context, never knowing a dictionary definition. Merriam-Webster defines it as “to encompass an entire range of something.” Synonyms include range, spectrum, span, scope, breadth, scale, or extent. Gamut is also a term that can apply in meridian tapping. While in tapping it is the name of a tapping spot, to me it also relates to increasing the breadth and scope of your tapping, or “getting the whole thing”.
There is a spot on the back of the hand between the knuckles at the base of the ring finger and little finger. It is the third point on the Triple Warmer acupuncture meridian which is responsible for turning on and off the fight/flight/freeze response. It is also associated with the spleen meridian. Carol Prentice, in her article at www.thetappingsolution, describes the use of the 9-Gamut Procedure. She indicates that disturbances in spleen energy may be involved in both physical and emotional problems.
The 9-Gamut Procedure was taught as an important component of the Emotional Freedom Technique decades ago when I was first learning it. For some reason, I don’t completely understand, many practitioners stopped teaching it regularly. Actually, so did I. It was the part of the tapping procedure that looked the strangest and I feared that it prevented people from actually wanting to do the technique. Recently, I have revisited that decision and have decided to include it again in my own tapping.
Other Energy Psychologists, such as Fred Gallo and Harry Vincenzi, in their book Energy Tapping, use a form of this procedure and call it Brain Balancer. This is a very accurate label for what the 9-Gamut Procedure does.
The 9-Gamut Procedure includes these steps:
Tap the Gamut spot on the back of the hand continuously
- Close your eyes tightly
- Open your eyes wide
- Without moving your head, look hard down to the right, as if trying to see your right hip
- Without moving your head, look hard down to the left, as if trying to see your left hip
Without moving your head, circle your eyes clockwise- Without moving your head, circle your eyes counter-clockwise
- Hum a few seconds of a tune such as Happy Birthday or Row Your Boat
- Count to 5 slowly
Hum a few seconds of a tune such as Happy Birthday or Row Your Boat
At this point most people seem to need some explanation of why you are being encouraged to do this. Eye movements are tied to brain function. So when you look right you are using the left side of your brain and when you look left you are using the right side of your brain. Similarly, humming stimulates the right side of the brain and counting stimulates the left side of the brain. When you put this all together you stimulate the whole brain, while also changing the emotional response by tapping on the gamut spot.
Mair Llewellyn posted an interesting article on www.emofree.com that describes the pros and cons of using the 9-Gamut procedure. The cons are pretty much what I had expected: takes longer, looks weird, and can be intimidating to new tappers. The advantages include a method for tying tapping to other healing practices that people may have heard of such as neurolinguistic programming (NLP), EMDR, and other brain balancing techniques that are increasingly more popular in the media. Another advantage is that blocks to change/healing seem to happen more quickly when it is used. Previously unconscious memories can be unlocked. The third advantage that she identifies in the silent period during the 9-Gamut which provides a break from the words often used while tapping the other points. In this silence self-awareness and insight have a chance to bloom. Lastly, the gamut point itself is quite useful whenever there is pain or emotional trauma. As I stated before, it is associated with that fight/flight/freeze response that is a part of the trauma/pain experience.
Still not convinced? Dawson Church, an amazing practitioner, and researcher published an article on EFT Universe that shared research on the eye movements from University of South Florida in a sample of people with PTSD and depression. Researchers found that the emotional distress held in memories of traumatic events was rapidly reduced while using Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART). ART also uses eye movements similar to the 9-Gamut Procedure. While the exact mechanism for change is still under study, research indicates that many different techniques that use eye movements have been clinically useful in reducing emotional distress.
Ready to give it a try?
- Do setup statement while tapping on karate chop point as usual
- Do a round of tapping using your reminder statement
- Before doing your second round of tapping, locate your gamut spot (either hand) between the knuckles of your ring finger and little finger and about a half-inch onto the back of your hand and start tapping
- Do the eye movements, humming, and counting
- Then continue your tapping as usual
- Repeat as desired