EFT Blocks

If you're experiencing EFT blocks and it appears that EFT is not working for you, try one or all of the following.

Drink Water

It is very important to drink water before you go through the EFT process or EFT tapping points. If you are dehydrated it can affect your results because you're working with your body's energy or electrical system and water is a conductor of electricity.

Lack of water is also the number 1 trigger of daytime fatigue, so make sure you have a glass of water before you begin any EFT tapping and another glass to sip on while you're working.

Be Specific

One of the biggest problems or EFT blocks with newcomers to EFT is not being specific enough in the set up. If you're working with a physical symptom, be specific in where it is located and what it feels like (e.g. sharp pain in right shoulder radiating down arm) in your EFT setup.

If you're working on something very general or global like low self esteem, putting that into an EFT set up such as "Even though I have low self esteem" will not have much success. Instead look for specific instances where you didn't feel good about yourself, particularly during childhood, and put that into an EFT setup statement such as "Even though my 5th grade teacher humiliated me in front of the class..."

I would also highly recommend using the Personal Peace Procedure. This involves writing down every specific event you can think of going right back to your childhood, even if it doesn't appear to be a problem to you now. If a person or event comes to mind it suggests there is work to be done, so put it on your EFT to-do-list.

Rate the intensity on the 0-10 scale of each specific event as you think about it now, not as it was and, starting with the biggest or most intense event, apply EFT to it until you're at a 0 or you just can't think about it any more.

Then take the next biggest event and go through the same process. Continue applying EFT to your list of specific events, aiming for one per day. I'll be very surprised if you aren't completely amazed and delighted with your results.

Rate Your Intensity Level Before Beginning EFT

Before you begin the EFT process rate your level of intensity or distress about the issue on the 0-10 scale where 0 is nothing and 10 is as bad as it can be. It is so important that you do this because it’s the only way you will know how you’re progressing.

Be Aware of Shifting Aspects

Probably the most common of all EFT blocks is not being aware of shifting aspects. It can be a big stumbling block if you're new to EFT. Why?

The results of EFT are generally very subtle and you may not realize there has been a shift so there is a tendency, especially for newcomers, to think that it hasn’t worked.

For example, you may start off really angry about a person or event and do a couple of rounds and still “feel” the same. What you won’t recognize when you’re new is that an issue has many pieces or what we call “aspects” to it.

Applying EFT to the anger will diffuse it but other emotions will be underneath the anger like hurt, frustration or disappointment for instance, so even though you’ve effectively taken care of the anger, you may still “feel” the same on the issue because you haven’t recognized you’ve shifted aspects or are on another related emotion. This is just another piece in the puzzle which needs to be cleared.

You may also have physical symptoms while working on an issue which is also a related aspect. Physical symptoms can move around the body and change properties as well, e.g. a sharp stabbing pain to a dull ache. This is what we call “chasing the pain” so be aware of these subtleties and persist with EFT until you have complete relief.

Psychological Reversal

If EFT blocks are persistent on an issue, psychological reversal is probably present. Psychological reversal keeps us doing what we don’t want to do, and not doing what we want to do and when it's present it’s like putting batteries in backwards – nothing happens.

If you're not getting the results you want with EFT, ask yourself these questions.

What’s the upside of achieving my goal or getting over this problem?
What’s the downside of achieving my goal or getting over this problem?

Most people answer that there isn’t a downside to this question but when you’re stuck and EFT is not working there will be some sort of payoff or benefit to keeping the problem. So start to look at where there may be a secondary benefit for staying stuck such as:

• I won’t have an excuse for my life not working any more;
• I won’t know who I am;
• I won’t get the attention or sympathy I get now;
• I won’t have time for myself or my family;
• I’ll have too much responsibility;
• They might reject me if I’m successful.

You may not be aware of this on a conscious level so a good place to start would be to apply EFT to “Even though EFT is not working and I don’t know why, I wonder what’s in the way…” to see what comes up.

Tap with Both Hands

Generally speaking, tapping with one hand will produce excellent results but there are times when EFT progress can stall. So if you're using one hand to tap, try tapping with both hands on the EFT Tapping Points.

I prefer to use both hands on the EFT tapping points because I have found the results to be much better and quicker, but it's what works best for you. There is no right or wrong way to do it.

Take a Break

It may appear you have EFT blocks but sometimes there is a settling in period, so take a break for a few hours and see if there has been a change.


Return from EFT Blocks to EFT Home Page