Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), often called “tapping,” is a simple and powerful method for helping people feel better emotionally and physically. It’s sometimes described as a mix between acupressure and talk therapy — and the good news is, it’s easy to learn and use anywhere.
At its core, EFT is about tapping with your fingertips on specific points on your face and upper body while you focus on a problem — like a fear, a bad memory, or a physical discomfort — and talk about how you feel. It sounds simple (and even a little strange at first), but research and experience show it can be very effective.
How does it work?
The tapping points used in EFT are based on the body’s energy meridians — the same energy pathways used in traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture. These meridians are thought to carry the body’s energy, and when that energy is disrupted (because of stress, trauma, or emotional pain), it can lead to emotional or physical issues.
By gently tapping on these points while focusing on a problem, EFT helps calm the nervous system, reduce emotional intensity, and restore balance to the body’s energy.
What does a typical EFT session look like?
- First, you identify the issue you want to work on. It could be something like “I feel anxious about my job interview” or “I still feel hurt about what happened years ago.”
- You rate how strong the feeling is on a scale from 0 to 10.
- Then, you create a simple setup phrase like: “Even though I feel anxious about the interview, I deeply and completely accept myself.“
- As you repeat parts of this phrase out loud, you tap with your fingertips on specific points — like the side of your hand, the top of your head, your eyebrows, side of the eyes, under the eyes, under the nose, chin, collarbone, and under the arms.
- After a few rounds of tapping and talking, you stop and rate your feelings again. Many people notice that their emotional intensity drops significantly.
Why does it help?
Tapping seems to send calming signals to the brain’s alarm system — the amygdala — which helps turn off the “fight or flight” response. When the body feels calmer, the mind can process emotions more clearly and let go of old pain more easily.
What can EFT help with?
People use EFT for many emotional struggles, such as:
- Anxiety
- Stress
- Fears and phobias
- Trauma and PTSD
- Sadness and grief
- Anger
- Low self-esteem It can also be used for physical symptoms like headaches, chronic pain, and fatigue, especially when stress is playing a role.
Bottom Line:
EFT is a simple, hands-on tool that helps people feel better emotionally and physically by calming the body’s stress response. It’s easy to learn, gentle to use, and can be done almost anywhere — making it a powerful resource for healing and emotional freedom.