Tag: EFT

Tapping Exercise: I hate situps

I really like the idea of exercise.  I feel good about myself after I do exercise.  But I don’t like ALL exercise equally.  I really hate situps (or pretty much any other core exercise).

illustration for karate chop pointStart tapping on your karate chop point and use the setup statements below.

Setup: I really hate situps. I know that working on our core is crucial to having good health.  I just can’t seem to make myself do them. Even though I really hate situps and rarely do any core strengthening exercises, I choose to love and accept myself anyway. Even though I have definitely neglected my core, I deeply and completely love and accept that part of myself that is at least trying to do what my body needs.  Even though I really hate situps, I choose to be amazed by how easy they could seem in the future.

Eyebrow…I hate situps

Side of Eye…I really hate situps

Under the Eye…They are hard for me

Nose…I know that strengthening my core muscles would be a good thing

Chin…I know that doing situps or other exercises would help me lose even more weight

Collarbone…But I have been unable to make myself do them in the past

Under the Arm…What if there is a way to actually feel good about doing them?

Top of Head…What if they don’t have to be awful?

Eyebrow…I could focus on hos good those muscles feel to actually receive some attention

Side of Eye…I could focus on how my waist measurement is changing as I am faithful with my workouts

Under the Eye…I could use my situp time to acknowledge everything that I have to be grateful for

Nose…I could use my core workouts as a time to send positive energy to situations and people who are important to me

Chin…I am open to feeling more positive about working on my core muscles

Collarbone…I am hopeful that I can feel more confident in my ability to do situps and other core exercises

Under the Arm…It really wouldn’t add that much more time to my daily workouts

Top of Head…And I am excited to think that this workout could make me feel and look even better.

Who I Am is Constantly Changing

Black-eyed-susans with Embrace New Beginnings signSay this statement aloud, “Who I am is constantly changing.” How true does that feel to you?  Rate it on a scale of 0-10 (10=very true) and write down your number.

Begin tapping on the karate chop point and say the setup statements.

Setup: Sometimes I am confused about who I am. It seems that who I am is constantly changing. When I think I know something about myself it feels really good. When I’m uncertain about something I feel somewhat unbalanced. Accepting the changing nature of who I am is uncomfortable to me.  In spite of this discomfort, I choose to love, honor, and accept myself.

Eyebrow…Who I am is constantly changing

Side of Eye…And that is ok

Under the Eye…Who I am is constantly changing

Nose…I am open to learning to accept those changes more gracefully

Chin…Who I am is constantly changing

Collarbone…I am choosing to see that changing nature as more positive than negative

Under the Arm…Who I am is constantly changing

Top of Head…But sometimes it still makes me feel uncomfortable

Eyebrow…Who I am is constantly changing

Side of Eye…Sometimes that fills me with joy

Under the Eye…Who I am is constantly changing

Nose…Perhaps evolving would be a more comfortable word

Chin…Who I am is constantly changing

Collarbone…I choose to see the positive aspects of my changes

Under the Arm…Who I am is constantly changing

Top of Head…Expecting and accepting that change is part of the process of life

Eyebrow…Who I am is constantly changing

Side of Eye…My ideas and viewpoints change as I learn new things

Under the Eye…Who I am is constantly changing

Nose…My feelings and thoughts change as situations unfold

Chin…Who I am is constantly changing

Collarbone…I’d like to think that my wisdom is expanding

Under the Arm…Who I am is constantly changing

Top of Head…I deeply and completely love and accept myself and choose to embrace my evolution.

 

 

Need to learn more about tapping? Click here.

Or… check out Tap It Away.

Cover Image of Tap It Away: 10 Minutes to Freedom With EFT by Dr. Leanna Manuel

Tapping Video- Anxiety Part I: Sometimes your brain lies

Anxiety is a complex subject.  This video addresses the form of anxiety that is under the surface, but there isn’t necessarily a clear reason for it. The focus of the tapping is focused on reducing anxiety by small amounts without compromising the need for safety that anxiety actually seems to provide.

Tapping Exercise – I Just Ate 3 Brownies: I’m such a failure

Have you ever eaten something you had decided you weren’t yummy chocolate brownie with chocolate drizzlegoing to eat or eaten more of them than you had intended?  Sadly, it happens to me more frequently than I would like.  What usually happens next is the thought “I might as well eat whatever I want because I already blew it.”  The tapping exercise below is a good way to help minimize the damage. These words will work for you, even if what you ate or when you ate it is slightly different.  Or, you can substitute your own words.

Say this statement and rate the intensity or how true it feels to you on a 0-10 scale (10=very true).  “I’m such a failure.”  Now say this one and rate it “I already blew it.”  Write down your numbers.

Tap on your karate chop point and use the setup statements.  Even though I just ate 3 brownies, and they definitely weren’t on my food plan for this afternoon, I choose to love and accept myself anyway.  Even though I ate 3 brownies while waiting for my lunch to cook, I choose to love and accept myself anyway.  Even though I feel like a failure since I ate those brownies, I choose to love and accept myself anyway.

Eyebrow…I just ate 3 brownies

Side of Eye…I can’t believe it

Under the Eye…I had been doing so well

Nose…This seems like a huge setback

Chin…Its not like I was really hungry

Collarbone…I am actually cooking lunch right now

Under the Arm…I’m nervous that it won’t be good

Top of Head…I’ve made two dishes that I’ve never made before

Eyebrow…That always makes me anxious

Side of Eye…But I’m also excited to see what happens

Under the Eye…I know that I often eat when I am nervous

Nose…But I’ve already blown my food plan

Chin…So I might as well eat whatever I want

Collarbone…There’s no point in controlling my food now

Under the Arm…I’ve already pointed the finger of guilt my way

Top of Head…I’m already wallowing in blame

Eyebrow…So I might as well eat.

Side of Eye…I already blew it

Under the Eye…I already ate something that is on my forbidden list

Nose…I ate way too much of it too

Chin…I might as well go ahead and eat whatever I want

Collarbone…That’s what quitters to

Under the Arm…I’m a guilty and shameful quitter

Top of Head…Ouch! That hurts!

Eyebrow…Sometimes I do give up

Side of Eye…Sometimes I don’t

Under the Eye…I don’t have to give up just because I made a mistake

Nose…I have options

Chin…I have choices

Collarbone…I already blew it might not be totally accurate

Under the Arm…I wouldn’t tell anyone else to give up just because of a simple error

Top of Head…I’m not going to tell myself that right now either

Eyebrow…I can start back on my food plan whenever I choose

Side of Eye…Including now

Under the Eye…This is just a setback

Nose…I can get back on track right now

Chin…In fact,, I am back on track right now

Collarbone…And I can stay back on track if I choose to

Under the Arm…I’ve been back on track for several minutes now

Top of Head…I am feeling better already.

 

Take a deep breath and let it out gently.  Say your original statements again and rate them.  Notice any shift you may have made.  If the intensity is still higher than a 3 or 4, keep tapping with the above examples or better yet, use your own words.  For many people there will be a shift to a slightly different thought, feeling or belief.  Feel free to continue tapping on the new thought or write it down for later work.

Happy Tapping!

Tapping Exercise – Nothing calms me down better than food

Start tapping on your karate chop point.  Say these words aloud: Nothing calms me down better than food. Even though nothing calms me down better than food, I don’t like what it does to my body. I am open to learning new ways of calming down.  I’m also open to learning more about the things that upset me so that I don’t even need to use food to calm myself.

Eyebrow…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Side of Eye…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Under the Eye…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Nose…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Chin…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Collarbone…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Under the Arm…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Top of Head…When I get upset, nothing calms me down better than food

Eyebrow…Food calms me down

Side of Eye…But it also is making me fat

Under the Eye…Food calms me down

Nose…And I often need to calm down

Chin…I get upset pretty often

Collarbone…And I use food to calm me down

Under the Arm…It is quick, easy, and painless

Top of Head…Well, maybe not painless

Eyebrow…Being overweight is definitely painful

Side of Eye…It is painful physically and emotionally

Under the Eye…I probably need to learn new ways to deal with my emotions

Nose…Food is quick, but the side effects are long

Chin…I can learn to manage my stress another way

Collarbone…I can learn to calm myself another way

Under the Arm…Even though I have used food to calm myself in the past

Top of Head…I am excited about the possibility of learning a new way

Take a deep breath and let it out slowly.  What do you notice in your body?  Did anything shift or change?  What do you notice in your emotions?  If new thoughts and ideas popped up, keep tapping.

EFT and the Fear of Heights

My first introduction to tapping (aka The Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT) used acrophobia as the target.  It was a great option given the high prevalence of height phobias.  According to Wikipedia, acrophobia is an extreme or irrational fear of heights.  Because we were in southern Florida, an amazingly flat area, it wasn’t possible to truck us of to some mountainous area and we only had five minutes to spend on the technique.  Instead, the leader had us all stand up on some very rickety folding chairs.  I’m not particularly acrophobic, but I am afraid of public embarrassment and falling down would surely trigger embarrassment.  Many people in the audience did report a dramatic change in their height phobia within only a few minutes of tapping.

In my psychology training I have learned about many techniques for addressing phobias including exposure, desensitization, flooding, and medications.  It is usually very difficult, if not impossible to talk someone out of their phobias.  Exposure, desensitization, and flooding really do work.  What most people don’t like about these techniques is that they take a fair amount of time and agony in order to see the results. One extremely positive feature of tapping is that the relief is often rapid and relatively painless in comparison to the more commonly used therapy techniques.

When using tapping to address acrophobia you can focus on the thoughts, feelings, or behaviors and make a huge impact.  Many people report heart pounding, breathing difficulty, and sweating in reaction to their phobia.  Tapping on the meridians while focused on any of these sensations will help to decrease the discomfort.  It can be effective to tap while in the terrifying situation, imagining the situation from the safety of your own living room, or looking at a picture that triggers thoughts of the situation.

You can also tap on the automatic thoughts that happen while experiencing or visualizing the situation.  These may be thoughts such as “I’m going to die”, “I’m going to fall”, or even “This fear is irrational.”  No thought is too trivial or too ridiculous to tap on.  Remember, phobias are irrational by definition.

Some people develop a fear of heights in response to a situation in which something bad happened to them or in response to something that happened to someone else that they learned about.  This could be a childhood prank in which someone acted like they were going to push you off of a bridge or a news report of someone falling off of a roof.  If these events remain stored in your energy system for any length of time a phobia can develop.

One of my favorite tapping techniques is continuous tapping while having a conversation with yourself, or someone else, about the things that have happened in the past.  You can include a description of the event, the sounds, the smells, and the thoughts in your head in the conversation while you are tapping.

Does the thought of skiing on a tall mountain make you shudder?  Does looking over the side of a tall staircase take your breath away?  There is no need to suffer.  Claim your emotional freedom and learn to tap.  Click HERE for a video to get you started.

Yes, but…

Yes, but…Those words can derail us in so many ways.  This applies whether the words are said to us or whether they are part of the little voice in our own head. These words can hold us back from going for our goals.  Tapping can make a difference and neutralize the yes, buts….from the past, present, and future.