Learn the EFT Tapping Points

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Invitation

EFT stands for Emotional Freedom Techniques. In this lesson, we are simply learning the comfort points used for EFT Tapping and finding ways of touching them that work for your body.

There is no test. Tapping is flexible and forgiving. You can use one hand or both, tap quickly or slowly, touch softly, hold a point, skip a point, or imagine tapping when physical tapping is not available to you.

How Firmly and How Long?

Use two to four fingertips and make enough contact that you can feel it without hurting yourself. Some people notice an echo or response elsewhere in the body. Others mainly notice the rhythm and sensation under the fingers.

You might tap a point three to seven times as you move through a round, or stay with one point longer when that feels comforting. Let the pressure and rhythm fit your body rather than forcing your body to fit an exact recipe.

The EFT Tapping Points

1. Side of the Hand

Tap along the fleshy outer edge of either hand, between the base of the pinky and the wrist. Four fingers can cover the area easily, although two are enough. This is also historically called the karate-chop point.

2. Top of the Head

Tap softly around the crown of the head. It is an area rather than a pinpoint. You can use one or both hands, tap in a small circle, or lightly pat the area.

Some people begin with the eyebrow instead. The order is not crucial. One common sequence begins at the top of the head and returns there at the end.

3. Eyebrow

Tap at the beginning of either eyebrow, nearest the center of the face. You can use one side or both. Feel for the bone and choose a spot and pressure that are comfortable.

4. Side of the Eye

Tap on the bony ridge beside the outside corner of either eye. Stay close enough to feel bone, not so close that the tapping makes you blink and not so far back that you are on the soft temple.

5. Under the Eye

Tap gently on the bony ridge below either eye, roughly in line with the pupil. This area can be sensitive, so softer contact may feel better.

6. Under the Nose

Tap midway between the base of the nose and the upper lip. Two fingertips work well. Curling the upper lip down may make the spot easier to reach, but it is not necessary.

7. Chin

Tap in the crease between the lower lip and the tip of the chin—not on the tip of the chin itself.

8. Collarbone

Find where the collarbone begins near the base of the throat, then move about an inch down and a little outward into the softer area. You can tap one side, both sides, or pat the whole upper-chest area.

These are points many people naturally cover with a hand after a shock or surprise. They can be especially comforting when anxiety is present.

9. Under the Arm

Tap about four inches below the armpit, around mid-bra-line level. You can lift the arm and use the same-side hand, or reach across the body with the opposite hand. Four fingertips make this area easier to contact.

Try One Simple Pass

Without trying to change an emotion yet, move through the points and notice the physical experience:

1. Side of the hand
2. Top of the head
3. Eyebrow
4. Side of the eye
5. Under the eye
6. Under the nose
7. Chin
8. Collarbone
9. Under the arm
10. Return to the top of the head if that helps the sequence feel complete

Pause for a breath anywhere you want. Notice whether your body prefers a different pressure, pace, side, or kind of contact.

Adapt the Practice to Your Body and Situation

If a point is painful, inaccessible, or simply not right for you, skip it. If shoulder movement makes the under-arm point difficult, imagine tapping there or stay with a point you can comfortably reach. The whole practice can also be explored through mindful attention to the points when physical tapping is not available.

Imagined or subtle tapping can also be useful around other people when you do not want to call attention to what you are doing. Choosing visible tapping is fine, too. The useful question is not whether you look correct. It is whether the method gives you an accessible way to bring attention and comfort to what you are experiencing.

Bringing It Into Your Life

Practice the physical sequence once or twice without demanding a result. Let your hands learn it. Let your body show you the pressure and rhythm it prefers.

You do not have to tap perfectly for tapping to be available to you.