Introducing our guest expert-blogger, Angela Agranoff of https://myrefreshedsoul.com and https://theunclutterangel.com.
Angela is sharing from her wealth of knowledge and passion for this part of our healthy living…using TAPPING & EFT for anxiety relief!
Angela is a wife, mother of three, writer and EFT practitioner. She blogs about health and home organization on her blogs, My Refreshed Soul and The Unclutter Angel. She presents EFT on both blogs to help support the emotional side of the two topics. You can also find her books and journals on Amazon. Angela loves connecting with others through her blogs, books, social media and speaking to groups.
Here’s what she shares with us today:
Have you ever felt paralyzed by doubt or fear?
Is your anxiety triggered by situations that feel overwhelming or stressful?
Fear may tell us that we are feeling uncertainty, worry about not having control, or loss of control. Fear isn’t necessarily a negative feeling; it can have many useful purposes. But it can also cause us to get stuck or feel anxious.
ANXIETY (ang-zahy-i-tee), noun
1. Distress or uneasiness of mind caused by fear of danger or misfortune
2. Earnest but tense desire; eagerness
3. Psychiatry. a state of apprehension and psychic tension occurring in some forms of mental disorder.
(Dictionary.com)
Some circumstances in our lives can bring on feelings of uncertainty. How we choose to handle these circumstances can make a big difference in how we operate in our everyday lives.
This year, for the first time, I experienced what felt like a panic attack. I was in Denver International Airport, a super busy airport with an insane TSA operation. The feeling of so many people, the noise, long lines, waiting to catch a plane. . . I was eventually in tears and felt like I was emotionally shutting down.
Strangest feeling ever!
I took deep breaths to get through the situation, and recovered by the time we got through security. The rest of our trip was fine.
That was an eye opening experience.
I felt my environment was out of control and filled lots of uncertainty. The good news is, I am self aware of this, and working with tools that can help me with these situations. We know that these situations can arise at any time and anywhere.
Do you have situations that cause feelings of anxiety in you?
When one has feelings of anxiety, there are a variety of ways people cope with them:
· Soothe through drinking or drugs
· Head to the kitchen to find relief in food
· Go shopping to feel better by making a purchase
· Turn to medication
This list is not judgment. I understand it because I have done some of these to dull the pain. But when we have newer and better option, we can use them.
FAITH AND ANXIETY
I wish my first thought when I feel anxious was always to pray.
Jesus can comfort instantly if we listen and allow Him to.
There are amazing tools that can assist us when working through anxiety. Finding comfort in our faith, and allowing God to carry the burden of our fear and anxiety, can be the greatest of comfort.
God cannot only change our thoughts in an instant; He can change the overwhelming and defeating patterns forever IF we allow it.
Being consistent and surrendering every time we get these feelings of anxiety can give us a break through.
God can also reveal to us why we are feeling loss of control, why we feel helpless, why we feel fear. Just ask Him for clarity. These feelings can tell us something, and God can guide the way.
What can God teach us and show us about ourselves through our anxiety?
Prayer is a powerful tool to help with anxiety! It can be used anytime, anywhere, just like the next tool we will discuss, EFT.
WHAT IS EFT?
This non-evasive tool is a calming way to help with anxiety. It can be used with prayer, scripts, ongoing thoughts or mantras.
EFT, the emotional freedom technique, is like psychological acupressure. It can help with a number of emotional and physical issues we have.
Eastern medicine describes how emotions and traumas get stuck in our body’s system. Using tapping can help to release those memories and emotions that are “stuck” in our thoughts and nervous system.
EFT doesn’t “cure” things, but it can help to relieve the stress of anxiety in your body.
Even though tapping uses practices adopted from Eastern medicine, it works well adding our faith and dependence on God. He made our bodies so extraordinary and complex and tapping is another amazing tool we can use to tap into what our heavenly Father has gifted us.
Please do not substitute tapping for any medical treatment or counseling that you are receiving. Talk with your doctor or counselor to discuss if it can be used in conjunction with your treatment.
For a visual on how to end anxiety and find relief using EFT and Tapping, watch this helpful video!
USING EFT AND TAPPING FOR ANXIETY
Tapping for anxiety can implemented during an anxious feeling or stressful situation, you can also use EFT as a preventive measure.
I will include two scripts below that will help you with both situations.
I like to tap about situations that stress me out, especially if I am thinking about what is coming up in the near future that may make me feel anxious. Then as I face the situation, I already have the calming words in my mind and my body is already prepared.
I have also done tapping when I am in the middle of a situation, benefiting from the calming tap and verbiage I use to walk myself through the situation and change my negative thoughts.
When we are feeling anxiety we can choose to put our focus on what we do have control over, and not what we don’t have control over. Tapping can help us to gain this clarity and feel peace again.
Getting Started with Tapping
Learn the different tapping points and their location as well as how to rate the level of your emotions before you start tapping.
Before you start tapping, create a “set-up statement” by:
· Thinking about a situation that causes you anxiety or stress
· Remembering your first memory that comes to mind when you think about this feeling
· Feeling that memory and the emotions as you prepare to being tapping
· Using the emotion you feel and the memories brought up, you can create a set-up statement
Set-up Statement Example: Even though I am feeling anxious and upset right now I deeply and completely love and accept myself.
The set-up statement will be repeated three times and can be the same or worded different each time. You will say this three times while you are tapping on your karate chop point.
You don’t need to:
· Tap hard, just a gentle tap
· Worry about hitting each point perfectly, it will still work
· Worry if you miss a point or if you are doing it wrong
· Have the perfect script or set-up statement
Rest easy that this relaxing and effective tool can be done anywhere at anytime. They key is to be consistent and patient with yourself.
You are working on layers of memories and events. Like an onion, this may take time to peel away the layers to get to the core of what is causing your anxiety. It may not get resolved after one round of tapping, and that’s perfectly normal.
TAPPING SCRIPTS
Tapping for Anxiety Relief
Tapping In The Moment
It may not be the first thing you think of when you are in a stressful situation, but the more you tap with intent, the more natural it will come as a solution.
Karate Chop Point:
- Even though I am feeling anxious and upset right now, I deeply and completely love and accept myself right now.
- Even though I am frustrated that I feel this way, I deeply and completely love and accept who I am right now.
- Even though I am mad at myself for getting like this, I deeply and completely love and accept who I am right now.
Eyebrow:
I don’t understand why I am feeling this way.
Side of Eye:
I want to have a feeling of peace so I function right now
Under Eye:
I don’t like this feeling of not being in control of the situation
Under Nose:
Not knowing what is going to happen or what to expect
Chin:
This feeling is so frustrating for me
Collarbone:
I’m feeling out of control and upset
Under Arm:
I don’t have to feel this way and I can ease my mind
Top of Head:
I am being triggered by something and I want to honor that I feel upset
Eyebrow:
Even if I am not certain why I am feeling anxious right now
Side of Eye:
I can give myself peace to get through this moment
Under Eye:
I can figure out the ‘why’ later, right now I can feel at peace
Under Nose:
I don’t have to be in control of everything
Chin:
God is in control of it all
Collarbone:
I am passing this difficult situation to Him and He will comfort me
Under Arm:
I’m tired of trying to control it all because it is exhausting
Top of Head:
I’m so grateful I am not doing this alone, it hasn’t worked up until now, so I will surrender
Take a deep breath
Tapping for Future Anxiety
This script is great for using after you have gone through an anxious situation, or if you know something will be coming up for you that could trigger feelings of anxiety.
As you tap you may have memories or thoughts pop up that will give you a window into what may be causing your anxiety.
These memories or ideas can be written in a notebook to keep track of your progress over time. You can also use these to peel away at deeper issues that have caused you stress and anxiety, learning how you can better cope with these situations using EFT and tapping.
Before the next tapping round, think of a situation that gives you anxiety. Get a clear picture in your mind, feeling the situation as if you are there.
Ready?
Karate Chop Point:
- Even though I have anxiety in certain situations, I deeply and completely love and accept myself
- Even though I feel I should be able to control my emotions in situations, I deeply and completely love and accept myself
- Even though I know there are past memories that challenge me with anxiety and feeling loss of control, I chose to accept who I am right now
Eyebrow:
I want to understand why I get anxiety and have a hard time letting go of difficult situations
Side of Eye:
Why do I feel I need to hold onto past experiences that aren’t serving me?
Under Eye:
What is causing this feeling of fear and losing control?
Under Nose:
I pray I can understand it and it can be resolved
Chin:
What am I afraid of?
Collarbone
Who would I be without trying to control everything?
Under Arm:
I may be open to more opportunities in my life if my anxiety wasn’t pushing things away.
Top of Head:
I could be more confident and decisive
Eyebrow:
I could let go and allow whatever was to happen, happen
Side of Eye:
I could let go and stop trying to control everything
Under Eye:
If I am not trying to control my situation, there isn’t anything to be anxious about
Under Nose:
I can turn it all over to God because He is the One ultimately in control
Chin:
I release the tension in my body
Collarbone:
I release my worries about any possible outcomes that feel scary to me
Under Arm:
I release the expectations I have that hold me back from all God has in store for me
Top of Head:
I feel lighter, I feel freer, and I feel open to all that God has in store for me
Take a deep breath.
Focus again about the situation you were picturing for this last tapping round. Use the emotional scale after each round of tapping.
On the scale of 1-10, where is your anxiety now? 1 being, “I feel no reaction to the situation” and 10 being “I am completely overwhelmed and can’t think about it!”
If you are feeling more at peace with your thoughts, awesome! If you feel you could lower your anxious feelings more, do another tapping round.
You can change the words in the script to fit your situation and make it more personal. Keep tapping to help you to lower number your on the scale.
Consistently tapping for future stressful situations, or during anxious times, you will see progress and be amazed at how your mind can make tiny shift and see things in a new light.
Using EFT, along with trusting what God’s plans are for you, you can work to end your anxiety and create a routine to deal with stress, and finally finding the relief you are seeking!
With Love,
Coach Angela!
We want to know:
…did this article help you as you explore FRESH new ways to aide your healing from anxiety? We are so excited to partner with some amazing new experts on this blog - to bring you only the best in healthy-living inspiration and resources! Let us know what you thought of this and Coach Angela in the comments below!