Have you ever committed to doing something but then when the time comes you kinda wish you could get out of it?

That’s what happened to me recently.  I’d signed myself up to participate in a parent run program for my daughters school so that I could volunteer in her classroom.  She’s in 4th grade this year and I know my time is running out to be helping in the classroom.

Yet, I was dreading it.  Turns out this was not how I thought I wanted to spend my evening… and to be honest it probably had to with the fact that I am participating in a program that I have never done before, since she is at a new school this year I don’t know many people yet and I was feeling a little, ok maybe a lot, insecure.  I really wanted to stay home. 

I spent a couple of days feeling the dread, overwhelm, and insecurity of it all.  I did tap about it a bit, but mostly tried to push it aside.  I hated that I was feeling this way.

The night came, I forced myself to go, dreading it the whole way… but much to my surprise, I loved it!  As soon as I walked in I met another mom who has just moved here from the same place in the SF area we used to live.  Then when it came time to learn about what we will be doing in the classroom it was so educational and fun, the time flew by. 

As I was driving home I realized that I went into this closed off and filled with dread… what a disservice to myself.  I wasted time and energy dreading it, wasn’t fully present in the time leading up to it because I was immersed in the feeling of not wanting to go.

If only I had gone into this with a mindset of curiosity. 

Curiosity about it all, openness and wonder.  Can you imagine how much better I would’ve felt in the time leading up to it?

Living life from the viewpoint of curiosity keeps us interested, engaged and it is really hard to feel negatively when you are curious.  Not only is life more enjoyable but it’s so much easier to be fully present.  When I do live my life from the viewpoint of curiosity and openness there’s so much more positivity in my life.   I’m more willing to participate in new situations and I’ll likely learn something new about myself and the world around me. 

I clearly needed this reminder, and I’m so glad I was able to receive it.  Sometimes we get off track and don’t even realize it.  And that’s okay!  Be kind to yourself when you realize you are off track and gently put yourself back to where you would like to be.   It’s through these times that we make the most progress in shifting our lives to how we’d like them to be. 

Have you ever felt this way?  Do you notice a difference when you approach life with curiosity and openness?

Want to learn how to tap right now?

It only takes a few minutes!

One of the things I love about EFT is that you can do it on your own!  You don’t always need a practitioner guiding you through your journey to freedom.  

This post is focusing on the feeling of stress.  So go ahead a take a deep breath and evaluate how stressed you are right now and if you are feeling it anywhere in your body.  Then scale the intensity 0-10.  0 being not stressed at all and 10 the most stressed you have ever been.  Got your number? 

Check out the picture above, it shows you all the tapping points.  Begin repeatedly tapping on the side of the hand and saying “Even though I am feeling so stressed, I still love and accept myself.  Even though my body is filled with so much stress, and all this stress is making me feel overwhelmed.  I still love and accept myself.  Even though I am so stressed out, I still love and accept myself.” 

Then move your tapping to the eyebrow point and with each phrase continue through the tapping points.  *Tap each point repeatedly while saying each phrase.

 “I am so stressed” (eyebrow)

"My body is filled with stress" (side of eye)

“All this stress” (under eye)

“So much stress” (under nose)

“I’m overwhelmed from all this stress” (chin)

“So much stress” (collar bone)

“This stress is overwhelming” (under arm)

“All this stress” (top of head)

“So much stress” (eyebrow)

“This overwhelming stress” (side of eye)

“I am feeling so stressed” (under eye)

“My body is filled with stress” (under nose)

“I am so stressed” (chin)

“Maybe I can release this stress and overwhelm” (collar bone)

“Maybe it’s time to let this stress and overwhelm go” (under arm)

“Maybe I can let this stress go” (top of head)

Take a deep breath, in through your nose and out through your mouth.

Time for a survey.  How you are feeling?  How stressed are you feeling now?  Has your number gone down?  Has your number gone up?

Did your number go up?  If so, don’t worry that means that tapping about your stress is really needed and keep repeating the above tapping round.  Feel free to replace some of the words describing how you are feeling to match exactly what you are feeling right now.  Keep tapping until you experience a great shift and lowering in stress. 

Did your number stay the same?  That means you need to keep tapping.  During your second time around really focus on how you are feeling and what is going on in your body.  Replace my description of stress to be your words.  Check in, what's your number now?

Did your number go down?  Great!  Is it low enough?  If not, keep tapping! 

 

Now that you know how to tap on your own you can start to use this amazingly powerful yet simple tool on your own! 

 

Common questions:

Why are we focusing on the negative?  I'd rather focus on how I want to feel.

When you tap it’s super important to focus on the negative feeling you are having, because then you will truly release it!  If you only focus on how you want to feel it won't have a true and lasting effect.  It’s like putting a band aid on a dirty cut without cleaning it first… chances are it will get infected and you will have a bigger problem. 

What if I do it wrong?

Good news my friends, you can’t mess this up!  You might have more impact or less impact, but you can’t do it wrong.  Even just tapping through the points without words will provide a calming effect.

What is the difference of tapping on my own versus working with a certified practitioner?

When tapping on your own it is very realistic that you will find relief and feel calmer after tapping.  However to really clear issues that are holding you back you should work with a certified practitioner.  Not sure what is really holding you back but you feel limited?  A certified practitioner can help guide you to your answers and help you clear it.  Curious if working with a certified practitioner is the right fit for you?  Let's chat and find out!

I would love to hear about your results from this tapping exercise! 

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Much love to you!

Welcome to TrinaLee.com!  I’m so glad you came to visit!  Here you will find solid information about Emotional Freedom Technique, EFT (often referred to as Tapping), which is self-applied acupressure that allows you to heal your past and start to live your life from a place of freedom, love and authenticity! 

I am passionate about the power of EFT!  It has given me the ability to heal the limiting beliefs I had about myself, and heal my fear-based thinking.  I am now building a life that is better than I have ever imagined!  Not only has it completely changed my life for the better, but I LOVE that I can help people discover and use EFT in order to make huge changes, shifts, releases, and positive changes in their lives too!