44 EFT Meditations for Self-Help and Well-being
RESOURCE YOURSELF: EFT meditations can assist us with navigating a wide range of life stressors and strains. EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) Tapping is a collection of stress management techniques. Tapping EFT has been around for more than 40 years and researched now for more than 20 years. The 300+ published journal articles show it positively affects a range of biochemistry in the body (e.g. positive changes in brain activity, cortisol, and DNA expression). You will find a reference list at the end of this article if you’re interesting in learning about the research papers I reference here.
EFT is practiced daily for self-care by kids and adults all over the world. Schools and universities worldwide are also currently integrating EFT into their student and staff well-being initiatives to help support teaching and learning at all levels.
Disclaimer: Tapping meditations are a great starting point, but they constitute a replacement therapeutic EFT with a qualified EFT Practitioner.
EFT MEDITATIONS FOR SELF-CARE
You don’t need to add words when you are first learning how to Tap; you can just focus on (meditate on) the physical process of Tapping! All you need is an open mind and a willingness to start learning the basics – the Clinical EFT Tapping points (see below) for grounding.
1. EFT MEDITATIONS WITHOUT WORDS
We know from the EFT research trials that the most important ingredient for EFT to work isn’t the words, it’s the actual tapping itself (see references at the end for more). So next time you experience something shocking or unexpected, you can just go through this basic Clinical EFT Tapping points sequence and keep tapping until you feel better.
Now, if you find it helpful to focus your attention on something specific as you tap through the points, you can add an extra step of trying to just focus your attention on your inhale and exhale. No need to take deep breaths, as that can be triggering and counter productive if you are experiencing stress that is above a certain threshold. Just normal breaths. No need to force anything.
In EFT, we call this the Tap and Breathe technique. It’s where you notice your breath going in and out of your nose as you tap through the 8 key Clinical EFT points. But don’t worry if focusing on your breath doesn’t feel helpful. Just remember the most important part of this exercise isn’t the mindful breath awareness part. It’s the tapping part. So if you feel more comfortable just tapping, then just do that.
Click on the image below if you would like to learn more.
Tapping Activities for kids under 10
Next, you will find some videos to help you teach children under the age of 10 how to do EFT meditations without words (silent tapping).
EFT Without words for Trouble falling asleep
One beautiful adapatation of EFT for sleep is touching, rather than tapping, on the clinical EFT accupressure points to stimulate them. This is called Touch and Breathe in EFT Tapping. It’s a great for getting ready for a good night’s sleep because it avoids getting overstimulated, which tapping can sometimes do – particularly if you are a highly sensitive person.
Another popular one with my clients is my 3 Step EFT meditation for trouble falling asleep that I recommend integrating into your winding down routine to help you get a good night’s sleep.
STEP 1: Tap and Breathe technique
STEP 2: Touch and Breathe technique
STEP 3: Imaginal Breathing technique
You can click on the image below to get a sense of what that’s like.
2. EFT MEDITATIONS WITH WORDS
meditation for rest & relaxation
Find having something to think about reassuring while you tap? If you want to add words as you tap through the 8-point tapping sequence, you can repeat at each point this reminder phrase “Right here right now, I am safe.” Or just “I am safe”, if that feels more comfortable for you, for example. This approach can help you ground by taking the edge of the intensity of an emotion when you are experiencing a big emotion.
Another way to add words is by starting your EFT meditation not by going through the 8 points, but by tapping on the side of your hand. This approach is great for when you are not experiencing a big emotion, but want to ‘tune in’ to how your body feels so that you can consciously carve out some time to work on something you want to overcome.
Click on the images below that interest you to learn more.
3. EFT meditations in GREEK
4. Discrete EFT for public spaces
Sometimes we experience something unexpected that is shocking or brings up big emotions when we are in public, and it isn’t possible to do the full clinical EFT Tapping sequence. Here are three ways that you can practice EFT discretely in these kinds of situations.
You can watch me demonstrating one way that you can implement discrete EFT when giving a presentation 10 seconds into this video. Notice how subtle it is. You can’t even tell I’m doing EFT, can you?
5. STEP-BY-STEP EFT MEDITATION
If you are a newcomer to EFT Tapping, click on the image below to learn the EFT basics, meaning: 1. where the Clinical EFT Tapping points are located, and 2. how you can add words to your Tapping meditation.
WHERE TO FROM HERE?
Thanks for visiting my website.
If you liked this list of resources, you may want to Bookmark it on your web browser so that you can come back to it whenever you want to dip back in for more.
I’ll continue to add to this list of resources as I create more free video training and educational articles on possible applications of EFT Tapping. So if this is something that interests you, keep an eye out on this page for future updates.
To receive new videos and my offers, subscribe to my newsletter and get my free EFT for self-care guide (PDF) delivered to your inbox.
SOME KEY EFT RESEARCH STUDIES
Dawson, et al (2018), “Is Tapping on acupuncture points an active ingredient in Emotional Freedom Techniques? A systematic review and meta-analysis of comparative studies”, The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, Vol 206.
Anastasia, et al (2013) “Effect of the Emotional Freedom Technique on perceived stress, quality of life, and cortisol salivary levels in tension-type headache sufferers: A randomized control trial”, Explore, Vol 9.
Bach, et al (2019), “Clinical EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) improves multiple physiological markers of health”, Journal of Evidence-Based Integrative Medicine, Vol 24
Church, et al (2012) “The Effect of Emotional Freedom Techniques on
Stress Biochemistry: A Randomized Controlled Trial”, The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, Vol 200
Stapleton, et al (2020) “Reexamining the Effect of Emotional Freedom
Techniques on Stress Biochemistry: A Randomized Controlled Trial”, Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy
Stapleton, et al (2018) “An Initial Investigation of Neural Changes in Overweight Adults with Food Cravings after Emotional Freedom Techniques”, OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine Journal, Vol 3.
Stapleton, et al (2022) “Neural changes after Emotional Freedom Techniques treatment for chronic pain sufferers”, Journal of Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, Vol 49
Wittfoth, et al (2022) “Bifocal emotion regulation through acupoint tapping in fear of flying”, Journal of NeuroImage: Clinical, Vol 34
Wittfoth, et al (2020) “Emotion regulation through bifocal processing of fear inducing and disgust inducing stimuli”, BMC Neuroscience Journal, Vol 21.
Maharaj, M. (2016) “Differential gene expression after Emotional
Freedom Techniques (EFT) treatment: A novel pilot
protocol for salivary mRNA assessment”, Energy Psychology, Vol 8.
Church, et al (2018) “Epigenetic effects of PTSD remediation
in veterans using Clinical Emotional Freedom Techniques: A randomized
controlled pilot study”, American Journal of Health Promotion, Vol 32.
About the author
Eleni Vardaki works with individuals and schools, offering services and package deals that support parent, teacher, and student well-being. Her business mission is to help bridge the gap between mainstream education systems and the well-being skills we need to thrive. She believes that if we care about student well-being, it makes sense to also care about the well-being of those who care for them.
To book an obligation-free introductory meeting to see if it’s a match: eleni@elenivardaki.com
QUALIFIED EFT PRACTITIONER IN ACTION
- Working with a final year of university student – academic and EFT coaching: “Final Exam Stress, Tapping into Confidence”
- Working with a final year of university student – academic and EFT coaching: “Study Procrastination (Dissertation)”
- Working with an adult student preparing for a professional exam – academic and EFT coaching: “Tapping Away Exam Stress and Study Procrastination”
