Have you ever tried tapping? Believe it or not, it's actually as simple as it sounds – and it's trending across social media after eagle-eyed views spotted Boy George appearing to practice the technique on I'm A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!
An accredited emotional freedom technique (EFT) practitioner shared a TikTok of Boy George tapping his face while in the jungle, noting that “Once you've learned the skill [of tapping], you can use it in any situation.”
Anxiety plagues millions of people every single day. While there's a plethora of medications on the market and a host of meditation apps designed to help, sometimes the most simple of solutions are the most effective. So err, what actually is tapping?
How does tapping work?
Holly Matthews, author of The Happy Me Project and an accredited EFT practitioner, tells GLAMOUR, “The idea with tapping is that you tap on certain points of the body to ‘balance energy’. These point are called Meridian points and it comes from a concept in a Chinese medicine.”
“The difference with tapping to other modalities is that when you are tapping it is not about reframing it in the moment, it is more around acceptance and lowering the intensity of the experience.”
Tapping on the energy meridian points, sends signals to the amygdala (fight or flight part of the brain) to calm down and relax. As soon as this happens, anxiety is immediately reduced which allows you to move forward in a calmer way. This also helps restore the body’s energy to a balanced state.
Can tapping ease anxiety and depression?
Matthews states that, “Like any modality we can’t see that something can cure depression or anxiety but I find it extremely useful tool as do my clients.
“I also think it is beneficial regardless of what you believe about meridian points and energy centres to notice that it is a great way to check in with yourself, acknowledge the feelings you might be having and connect your physical self with your mental self. These things themselves can be beneficial.”
Here's how you can identify it.
What are the meridian points?
According to Matthews, “Meridians are a circulatory system of energy, much like the circulatory system of blood. Instead of blood, meridians allow the flow of a Qi (pronounced ‘chee’).”
These will be these same points those that do Acupuncture or acupressure would use.
These points are:
- karate chop (KC) located on the outside fleshy part of the hand
- top of head (TH)
- eyebrow (EB)
- side of the eye (SE)
- under the eye (UE)
- under the nose (UN)
- chin (Ch)
- beginning of the collarbone (CB)
- under the arm (UA)
Tapping example
Here are some examples of how you can try tapping for your ailments...
a) Start by tapping on the karate chop point. Tap on each point approx seven times. As you tap repeat the following phrase three times:
“Even though i’m feeling overwhelmed and fearful, I accept who I am, and how I feel.”
b) Continue tapping on the other points and say each of these out loud as you do:
Eyebrow: “I’m feeling really overwhelmed.”
Side of the eye: “All this stuff happening.”
Under eye: “I’m really stressed out.”
Under nose: “What if I miss something?”
Chin: “What if it all gets too much?”
Collarbone: “I’m so overwhelmed right now.”
Under arm: “And I don’t know how to move through it.”
Top of the head: “So much happening right now.”
Eyebrow: “And I can’t cope with it all.”
Side of the eye: “What if I miss something?”
Under eye: “And then I’ll mess up.”
Under nose: “And I feel anxious just thinking about it.”
Chin: “I’m stressed out.”
Collarbone: “I’m feeling overwhelmed.”
Under arm: “With all I have on.”
Top of head: “I can’t think straight!”
Take a deep breath in and exhale. Then continue to tap and repeat the sequences until you feel calmer and more relieved. When you feel relief, tap through a ‘positive round’ and say each phrase below out loud:
Eyebrow: “I know I can move through this.”
Side of the eye: “I know I have the strength inside.”
Under eye: “I choose to believe I’ll get through this.”
Under nose: "I know I can find my power inside."
Chin: “I believe this is my journey now.”
Collarbone: “I know I can move through this.”
Under arm: “And feel good about myself again.”
Top of head: "I choose to believe in my inner strength."
They're your mind's way of trying to tell you something.
