Tapping – what is it you wonder? You’re about to find out!
When I look back to my school days, it amuses me to think I used to pray for a decent pair of boobs. Virtually flat chested when I left school, within six months my prayers had been answered – and then some – to the point where I would gaze up to the heavens and plead ‘That’s enough, thanks.’
Frankly, I was so slim but with my large boobs it was a wonder I didn’t topple over more regularly. Okay, I wasn’t quite Dolly Parton, but I was on my way.
Over the years, apart from being a hindrance if I needed to run for a bus, I never experienced any breast problems. Until in 2007, prompted by some adverts on television to check myself, I discovered what felt like a mass of hard tissue.
Warning bells
At first, my rational mind tried to quell the growing unease by urging ‘It’s probably just your imagination,’ with the occasional ‘Stop being so silly it’s nothing,’ thrown in for good measure. However, much as I tried to ignore my anxiety, the faint chimes of warning bells grew into Big Ben at full blast. My brain sounded the alarm and an appointment was made at my local hospital’s Breast Clinic.
There’s nothing quite so stark as sitting in a waiting room full of other frightened women, all hoping that they’ll be lucky, while smiling encouragingly at each other.
Meeting the Consultant
Having had my boobs squished into something that could pass for a MacDonald’s burger by the mammogram machine, I was called into the consultant’s office. Indicating for me to sit in the chair opposite, she told me ‘There’s a lump and it’s quite a big one.’ My spinning head, shaking legs and desire to vomit gave way to a rush of total, but almost numb, relief as she uttered the words ‘But I don't think it's cancerous.’ I’ve never heard a more wanted sentence in my life.
Thankfully, I was one of the lucky ones. But because the consultant thought there was a chance that the growth could turn cancerous in the future, she asked me to think about having it removed immediately. But, due to the size of the lump, it would mean that a full breast reduction on both sides would be needed.
Is it a Time Bomb?
She thought I might like to take time to consider this option as I was, as she delicately put it, ‘slightly out of proportion.’ Just a few seconds was all I needed – having a lump that ‘might’ turn cancerous felt like a time bomb inside of me. I couldn’t wait to have it removed.
One week later, I was standing next to my hospital bed, as another surgeon, who was going to perform the operation, passed a tape measure around my neck and began drawing on me with a felt tip pen, explaining how the surgery would be carried out. Blushing like an embarrassed tailor’s dummy, I quietly reminded myself ‘Relax, he probably does this every day of the week.’ Everything went smoothly with the operation and a day later I was discharged home.
Appreciating the Healing Process
The body’s capacity to heal itself is such an amazing thing, yet something that for the most part I took for granted. Even though I was aware of pain, the sensation of the nerves searching for reconnection was awesome. I could literally feel the innate intelligence in every cell and nerve in my body, as it sought to regain homeostasis. It felt like my body was receiving mild electric shocks, sharply tingling, giving way to the feeling of intense heat and then what felt like the pain of stinging nettles, all welding together, as it began to mend itself.
Asking the Universe for Help
Having been told the nerve pain would most likely subside within a three month time frame, I waited for the pain to pass. At the same time, part of me felt blessed to have an opportunity to witness the incredible knowledge that was contained within the cells of my body, as it automatically healed itself without outside interference. It felt like the magic was unfolding right inside of me. Ten months later the pain had not eased. In fact, it became worse as time went on. My doctor offered me painkillers and anti-depressants, but not wishing to overload my body, I declined. Self-hypnosis helped a great deal but my intuition told me to search for something else. I made a request to the Universe, ‘Please guide me.’ On that very same day it did.
Reversing my car out of a tight parking space, I spun my neck around to see behind me. As I did so, I felt the ‘twang’ of my neck and shoulder muscles screaming out against the sudden movement. An old neck injury, which had previously seen me in a surgical collar for quite some time, had decided to reintroduce itself.
My neck and shoulders hurt like fury and my breast pain seemed to pale into insignificance beside this new injury. Stunned by the pain, I knew my best choice was to get to Phillip, my osteopath, as quickly as possible. Luckily, he was available later that afternoon.
The Acupuncture Treatment
‘Wow, that looks painful!’ Phillip’s practiced eye took in my injury. As usual, he asked if there were any other problems I had received treatment for. I mentioned the breast surgery and the ongoing nerve pain and he asked me whether I had considered acupuncture to ease the symptoms.
I didn't know that as well as being an osteopath, Phillip had also qualified as an acupuncturist. He thought combining the osteopathy with acupuncture would also promote faster recovery from my neck injury. Frankly, the way I was feeling, I would’ve considered performing hopscotch on hot coals backwards.
Having stretched and clicked my body into something nearer to normal alignment, Phillip began to carefully place needles in various acupuncture points. Fascinated with the needle placement, I barely paid attention to the soft chills travelling through my body, and spent the time chatting about his acupuncture training. At the end of the session, relieved that my neck felt a bit better, I went home to rest, relax and recuperate.
The Magic of Acupuncture
That evening, whilst listening to music and reading, I had the feeling that I had forgotten something . My brain searched frantically trying to recall the information I wanted to find. I gasped as I suddenly realized the ‘something’ I had ‘forgotten’ was the nerve pain. As if by magic it had completely disappeared. It seemed as if all record of it had been wiped out of my body’s cellular memory. Laughing with disbelief, I began to poke and prod myself, trying to get my body to recall the pain but it stuck to its guns. The pain had definitely gone. To this day it has never come back. Not even once.
Although I had previously trained as an holistic therapist, which included reflexology, I began to study acupuncture points and meridians in more depth, using acupressure techniques to experiment on myself, but other than that I didn’t utilize my newfound knowledge further. Instead, I concentrated on hypnosis and NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), which I had trained in some years previously.
As part of my ongoing interest in furthering my abilities, I decided to attend a three-day training workshop. Paul McKenna and Richard Bandler were the well-known hypnosis and NLP experts that would be putting the group through its paces. It proved to be one of the best investments I've ever made. There were some amazing techniques taught in a really informative yet fun way. I had such a great time and met some wonderful people. It’s always great to share time with people who have similar interests but can, at the same time, introduce you to new ideas and concepts.
Discovering ‘Tapping’
But the real ‘breakthrough’ moment was when Paul McKenna demonstrated TFT (Thought Field Therapy), a tapping technique I had never heard of. It involved using acupuncture/meridian points, combined with ‘brain balancing’ techniques, to relieve all sorts of phobias and emotional/mental problems. But instead of using needles or pressing on the acupuncture points (as in acupuncture or acupressure), ‘tapping’ using one or two fingers was used.
It was a total ‘light bulb’ moment for me and made perfect sense. I was utterly fascinated. As soon as I arrived home I enrolled in tapping training. I already knew the power of acupuncture and now I had been shown a way to combine it with mind-changing techniques. It felt like I had come home.
Learning More
Once I had trained in TFT, I took a deep dive into another tapping therapy EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique). Both techniques use meridian points but the sequences and ways of using it differ. These meridian ‘tapping’ techniques have developed into several formats, all of them have their value and work with the body’s energy systems from different angles.
I’ve enjoyed learning and training in various ways using the tapping techniques. Both TFT and Energy EFT have been useful tools alongside the hypnosis, together with other modalities and my understanding of the Law of Attraction, which I employ to help people overcome certain issues. However, there's always more to learn and I enjoy every minute of increasing my knowledge.
Everything Happens for a Reason
They say that things happen for a reason and, when I look back on my life, all the good and all the seemingly bad, I can honestly say that I think it’s true. All through the twists and turns, the joys and the heartbreaks, I’ve always listened to my intuition when it has ‘prompted’ me to follow my interests. Although my studies and interests are seemingly diverse – everything from studying psychology, holistic healing, reflexology and aromatherapy, hypnosis and energy tapping techniques – to being a health and beauty writer and then helping other people write, edit and publish their work, as well as reading the tarot cards, all of this has somehow meshed together to form the basis of the work that I’m now doing.
The apparently ‘worst moments’ of my life have always led to my biggest breakthroughs. After all, who would have thought that discovering a breast lump or pulling a neck muscle, both of which on the face of it would appear ‘bad’, could lead to an interest that would guide me to tapping and on to my perfect work.
I continue to follow my intuition and, when I’m unsure where to find my answers, I simply ask the Universe to guide me. If something happens that appears unfortunate, I use meridian tapping on it and smile to myself as I remember the words of Louise Hay –
‘Everything is working out for my highest good.‘
- Louise Hay
Did you like this blog? You know, sharing is caring, right? So please share it with your friends!
And there’s more…
After watching Paul McKenna demonstrate TFT (Thought Field Therapy), I rushed out to buy a copy of Roger Callahan’s book. The book explains how TFT was discovered and formed into the tapping technique used today. And explains how to use TFT in an easy-to-follow way. Buy this book! Click on the link below: Tapping The Healer Within: Use Thought Field Therapy to conquer your fears, anxieties and emotional distress – Roger Callahan:
Nick Ortner has a way of explaining EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) in an easy to understand, accessible style. In The Tapping Solution, he details the history and science of tapping, and also outlines the practical applications. He shows easy-to-use practices, together with diagrams and worksheets, which will teach readers, step-by-step, how to tap on a variety of issues. Buy this book! Click on the link below: The Tapping Solution: A Revolutionary System for Stress-Free Living – Nick Ortner:
Learn how trauma is stored in the body and what you need to do to release it. Here one of the world’s experts on traumatic stress offers a bold new paradigm for treatment, moving away from standard talking and drug therapies and towards an alternative approach that heals mind, brain and body. An utterly fascinating read about how trauma can impact you and what to do about it. Buy this book! Click on the link below: The Body Keeps the Score: Mind, Brain and Body in the Transformation of Trauma – Bessel van der Kolk:
A quick demo of TFT on my YouTube channel. Please give it a like, share and subscribe to be kept up-to-date with my vlogs and videos! Click on the link: https://www.youtube.com/wa
Want some inspiration on the go? Take a look at Audible and take inspiration and motivation with you wherever you are!
Take a peek here - please click on the link: Audible - Audio Books, Podcasts and more!
If you enjoyed this blog, take a peek at my blog page for more. And why not sign up for my newsletter to be kept up-to-date with blog posts!
Did you like this blog? Please share it with your friends!
To be updated with my latest blogs, books and courses – please fill in the contact form - Click on the Menu and then click Contact - I’ll be thrilled to hear from you!
Do you have a secret desire to write a book? Then everything you need to know about writing a book is right here - click on the link: 40 Days To A Finished Book!
Want to create big change in your life and have yourself some freedom from the daily 9 to 5 grind? Click on the link: Learn how to step into your best life by gaining the skills that you need!
© Ruthy Baker 2020