Stress less with this simple tapping technique

Try this quick easy, accessible practice for when you start to feel overwhelmed, stressed or anxious.

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It’s a practice that works on many levels such as the lymphatic system. We’re going to be tapping the face, the neck, the shoulder area. It works on improving circulation, so bringing freshly oxygenated blood to the face and to the areas where we’re going to tap.

For the purposes of today it also works on the autonomic nervous system. It’s very soothing and can bring us from a state of stress into the rest and digest state simply by tapping.

So if you want to use this, bookmark this video and call upon it whenever you start to feel overwhelmed, stressed, anxious. And when you know the routine yourself you will know how to do it and you can use this anytime.

So we start by tapping above the collarbones. It’s known as the terminus area where the lymph returns back into the heart. Tapping gently, rhythmically, mindfully, in a comfortable position, seated, standing, cross legged on the floor.

This is an embodiment practice enabling us to drop back into our bodies when our minds are whirring, full of thoughts often difficult thoughts, when we can’t switch off, when we can’t switch off that monkey mind.

So returning to presence with this practice, dropping into the body, becoming embodied. This is where our point of power is, in the present tense, with nowhere to go, nothing to do, no one to be, simply your beautiful self, in these few moments when we practise this.

So I’m tapping up and down the neck now, behind the ears, at the front of the neck, being of the windpipe not to press too hard, tapping under the chin, from the centre of the chin out behind the ears, and then on top of the chin along the jaw. Up the side of the cheeks on the masseter muscles and around the ears.

This is a beautiful mindful practice. It engages the hands and the brain. It’s not too taxing on for the brain, with the brain idling but not completely disconnected, not zoning out as if we were watching a film and zoning out. So this means there is a mind body connection.

Tapping around the eyes, a bit gentler around the eyes with delicate skin there, around the mouth, on the cheeks, temples, along the brow, up and down the forehead, back to the temples.

You can apply a bit heavier pressure on the head if that feels good, make soft fists, alternate or together; the back of the head and again we can apply more pressure, if it feels good, whatever feels good. Then down at the back of the neck and onto the shoulders, along the shoulders and tapping again back to the front of the neck, to the terminus area just above the collarbones.

And that’s it. Notice how you feel now; did you notice how you might drop into your body, begun to breathe deeper into the belly, more expansively; you might have noticed sighing and relaxation, dropping of the shoulders even though we were using the shoulders.

Notice how you feel after that short, brief exercise which switches us from the stress state into the rest and digest state. Notice how you feel now - do you feel more calm, soothed, relaxed, grounded. Is your head clearer, so less overwhelm, less stress, less anxiety.

So practise this whenever you feel that sense of overwhelm coming on, that sense of stress, and enjoy!