All About TAPPING for Mental Health, Peace, and Empowerment

Sometimes when people hear about tapping, they’re not quite sure what it is or why it works. Maybe you’ve heard it called EFT, or Emotional Freedom Technique. There are very structured ways to do it, with specific points and sequences.

I take a much simpler approach.

For me, tapping is just a beautiful way to help the body move emotion and energy that feels stuck.

Our emotional life isn’t just happening in our minds — it lives in our bodies too. When we feel anxious, overwhelmed, sick, or emotionally flooded, our nervous system can get a little stuck in that state. Tapping is one way to gently help the body shake things loose.

During my years teaching yoga, I started noticing something interesting. After two decades of guiding people through movement and breath, I became very attuned to the subtle signals the body gives when emotions are stuck — tight shoulders, collapsed posture, shallow breathing, restless energy in the room. Sometimes I could almost feel where energy wasn’t flowing well in the class, and I would adjust the sequence in the moment to help people open those areas and process blocked emotion. I wasn’t analyzing it intellectually. It was more like listening with a different kind of awareness — the same way a good musician can feel when a note is out of tune. When the body moves paired with the breath, the breath deepens, the thinking mind quiets, and attention softens, those stuck places often begin to release. That experience is part of why practices like tapping resonate with me — they’re another simple way to help the body move energy that’s been blocked or held too tightly.

Emotions are energy in the body. We compartmentalize them too much in today's culture and try to solve or fix them with our thinking mind. Sometimes this works. But it's only one strategy and we've become over-reliant on the thinking mind. We need to use more tools to process our emotions in healthy ways. Tapping is powerful for this reason. 

In traditional EFT, you tap on specific meridian points — places connected to the body’s energy pathways that have been recognized for thousands of years in Chinese medicine. Practices like acupuncture, acupressure, and foot zoning also work with this system.

But the truth is, you don’t have to be an expert for tapping to help.

Sometimes I just tap on my forehead.
Sometimes my collarbone.
Sometimes my shoulders or knees.

Wherever my hands land.
And the whole point is movement.

When we tap, we’re doing two things at once. We’re stimulating the nervous system physically — which can help move lymph and release tension — and we’re also sending the body a message that it’s safe to process what we’re feeling. It’s a small, simple act that can create a surprising shift.

Not long ago, I worked with a client who had received some feedback from a supervisor at work. Intellectually, he knew it was probably normal workplace feedback, but his body reacted very strongly. Within minutes he found himself spiraling into thoughts like, “They’re probably looking for a reason to fire me.” His mood dropped quickly and he could feel the stress building in his body.

I invited him to pause and simply notice where the emotion was showing up physically. After a moment he said he felt it strongly in his neck and head — a kind of hot, pressurized feeling, like something boiling under the surface. Instead of trying to argue with the thoughts or make the feeling go away, we slowed down. I had him tap gently while breathing and acknowledging what was happening in his body.

As he tapped, we used simple phrases like, “Even though this feedback feels threatening to my system, I’m safe right now,” and “Even though part of me feels betrayed or on guard, I can allow this feeling to move through.”

I also invited him to imagine a sense of steady support —  like a calm, healing presence that could sit with the feeling without trying to push it away. The goal wasn’t to fix the emotion, but to give his nervous system the message that the experience could be seen and processed safely.

Within a few minutes, the intensity began to shift. The pressure in his neck softened, his breathing slowed, and the catastrophic thoughts lost some of their grip. The situation at work hadn’t changed, but his body was no longer stuck in that surge of threat and reaction.

And that’s often what tapping does. It helps the nervous system settle enough that we can respond to life with a little more clarity and a little less overwhelm.

He later reported how he journaled after our session and knew exactly how to follow up with his supervisor moving forward, and how the situation resolved without incident. 

(I run a FREE Women's Support Group called The Quiet Strength. Click here to register. Join us to practice these skills in a supportive way. You'll create powerful shifts in your mental and emotional well-being.)

So when might you use tapping?

Honestly, anytime something feels stuck.

Maybe you’re anxious.
Maybe you feel sick to your stomach.
Maybe you’re frustrated or overwhelmed.
Maybe your mind keeps spinning on something or is stuck in rumination.

Tapping gives the body a way to acknowledge what’s happening while also softening it and creating movement toward healing.

A simple script might sound like this:

Even though I’m feeling ________, I deeply and completely love and accept myself.

Or:

Even though I don’t know how to stop ________, I’m open to finding some relief.

The words don’t have to be perfect. You can make them up as you go. The important part is simply naming what’s true while offering yourself compassion at the same time.

That combination — honesty and self-acceptance — is incredibly powerful.

I’ve seen it work in small everyday ways too.

Not long ago, I was putting off having a difficult conversation with a loved one for far too long. Every time I thought about it, my brain found a reason to avoid it.

So I started tapping.

“I don’t know how I’m going to have this conversation… but I’m going to have it today.”

Tap tap tap.

“I don’t know how I’m going to have this conversation… but I’m going to have it today.”

I kept tapping as I moved through the day — doing laundry, taking care of things around the house — just tapping and repeating the thought.

And later that afternoon, I sat down with my loved one, and had the thought....Danielle, you can do this now and you know exactly what to say in a loving way.

The whole conversation unfolded naturally and it was a connecting conversation that built more trust and understanding moving forward with clear boundaries and mutual respect.

Something inside me had shifted. The fear I held about having the conversation lost its grip. Tapping didn’t magically make my fear of having the conversation go away — but it helped me move through the resistance and self-sabotage that had been sitting in the way.

And that’s often what tapping does.
It helps us move the emotional energy that keeps us stuck.

So if you ever find yourself spinning in overwhelm, procrastination, anxiety, or discomfort — incorporate tapping.

Just start somewhere.

Tap on your collarbones (my favorite).
Tap on your shoulders.
Tap on your head.

And gently name what’s true. Name the emotion, and pair it with some self-compassion.

You might be surprised how quickly your body begins to soften, how new ideas show up in your problem-solving ability… and how resistance starts to dissolve, making it much easier to move forward.

So get tapping! I’m excited to hear how it goes for you!

Tapping Templates to create your own Scripts:

• Even though I have/ I am ____________, I deeply and completely love and accept myself.

• Even though I don’t know how to stop ____________, I love myself, I accept myself.