Tapping for Release
Materials Needed:
To Support Feeling:
Defensive
How to Do It
To practice Tapping Release, sit comfortably and begin gently tapping with your fingertips along specific areas of your body. Start by tapping on your forehead, moving from the center to the sides. Then, tap along your temples and jawline to release tension. Move down to your chest, tapping lightly from your collarbones to the center of your chest. Next, tap along the inside and outside of your arms from your shoulders to your hands. As you tap, breathe deeply and visualize releasing stuck energy and defensive patterns, allowing a sense of ease and openness to enter your body.
Why It Works
Tapping stimulates the body’s energy pathways and the nervous system, helping to dislodge tension and release defensive patterns held in the body. Areas like the forehead, jaw, chest, and arms often store defensive energy tied to old beliefs, protective postures, or emotional armoring. Tapping these areas gently brings awareness to these patterns, releasing the emotional and physical grip they hold. This technique encourages a softening of the body’s defenses, creating a sense of lightness and allowing you to feel more open, relaxed, and less guarded.
Guided Practice
Start by lightly tapping on your forehead, using the tips of your fingers. Tap slowly across your forehead, from the center to the sides. This area often holds tension from mental defensiveness—those thoughts and beliefs that put up barriers. As you tap, imagine that each gentle touch is releasing stuck patterns, dislodging old beliefs that no longer serve you. With each tap, breathe deeply, inviting softness into your thoughts and allowing your mind to open.
Now, move to the sides of your face, tapping along your temples and down to your jawline. The jaw often tightens when we feel defensive, holding onto protective patterns. As you tap here, notice if your jaw begins to soften. With each tap, visualize releasing the grip of old defensiveness, letting go of the need to hold so tightly. Breathe in ease, and as you exhale, imagine your jaw and face becoming lighter, more relaxed.
Next, tap gently along your chest, moving from your collarbones down to the center of your chest. The chest area is where we often armor ourselves emotionally, protecting our heart from vulnerability. With each tap, feel the defenses around your heart beginning to melt away. Visualize each tap sending waves of softness through your chest, allowing yourself to release the need for protection. Perhaps you feel a lightness here, or maybe just a subtle shift.
Now, move to your arms. Tap along the inside and outside of your arms, from your shoulders down to your hands. We often cross our arms defensively, using them as a physical barrier. As you tap, imagine releasing the tension that builds up from holding this defensive posture. With each tap, allow your arms to feel more relaxed, as though they are no longer needing to protect you. Feel the weight of defensiveness lightening and dissolving with every breath.
Finally, take a few moments to sit still and observe any sensations in your body. Notice if there’s a sense of lightness or openness that wasn’t there before. Perhaps you feel less guarded, your breath more fluid, your body softer. Allow yourself to notice the changes, knowing that tapping has helped release the physical and emotional layers of defensiveness. When you’re ready, take one final deep breath in, and exhale any remaining tension, feeling grounded and at ease.