We live in a time where people’s anxiety is at an all-time high. Being able to address that anxiety in a healthy way is the key to feeling grounded and secure.
Danielle Chaput is a Registered Nurse and Certified EFT Practitioner who found EFT when she searched for a way to calm her own anxiety. You can learn more about Danielle and her work here:
Tell me about your professional background.
I am a Registered Nurse (RN, BScN, CNCC (c) ) and have been for 14 years. I recently became a Certified EFT Practitioner (cEFT2, AEFTP) and I am currently in the process of completing my cEFT Master training.
What made you want to get into this field?
I started using EFT/tapping for personal use during the height of the Covid 19 pandemic when my own Generalized Anxiety was at its peak. It worked so well for me that I wanted to be able to share it with others. Tapping is a very underutilized treatment modality that can benefit us greatly. It has the power to help so many and is very easily accessible to the masses. I wanted to become a practitioner to be able to share this tool with others and help them to heal and live their best authentic lives.
What has been your favourite aspect of this work?
Bringing calm and peace to someone in an anxious moment has been so rewarding, but the thing that I love most about this kind of work is watching people reclaim their power. Helping people to find where they lost their power and recall it back into themselves is wonderful. We all have the ability to heal ourselves – when you undertake an EFT practice it is crucial to remember that YOU as the client are the healer, as the practitioner is merely a conduit for the healing to come through and guide you through the process. The work is all their own and that empowerment is so amazing to see.
Can you explain what EFT is and what a typical session is like from start to finish?
EFT/Tapping is a practice that utilizes the acupuncture/acupressure points through the body. We tap on these points to clear blockages in our energy system that are created by negative energy/emotions/traumas. Where positive energy can pass more freely through the body negative energy has a more difficult time passing through and this can create disruptions in our energy system. These disruptions manifest themselves into anxiety, depression, and pain. Emotion = energy – Balance the energy by addressing the emotion. All emotions want to be felt and need to be felt. So in tapping, we address the “negative” (truth of how we are feeling) before we move into the positive.
The basic recipe for a round of tapping has two components: a setup statement and reminder statements.
The setup statement lays the intention for the round of tapping (i.e. “Even though I am feeling all this anxiety in my body right now, I love and accept myself wholly and completely”)
The reminder statements are brief statements we make while tapping the points throughout the round (i.e. “all this anxiety”)
At the end of each round, you would gauge how you are feeling and continue with subsequent rounds as needed, tweaking the setup phrases and reminder phrases as you go to continue bringing down the intensity of the emotions you are feeling.
(I was recently featured on The School of Female podcast (link can be found here) – this episode answers some common questions and takes listeners through a round of tapping together – feel free to share this if you think it would be helpful)
What sort of health challenges can EFT be effective for and why?
Tapping can be used for so many things. It is known mainly for anxiety symptom management but it can be utilized for: anxiety, PTSD, managing cravings, overcoming limiting beliefs, self-confidence and self-love/body image work, manifestation and meditation, chronic pain, relaxation and sleep support.
How can EFT be supportive in overall healing and well-being?
When utilized as a consistent practice EFT not only helps within the moment relieve of anxiety etc but continuously addressing and acknowledging your emotions in this manner means that you are continuously clearing blockages and preventing them from manifesting into things like anxiety, depression, chronic pain. We need to feel all our emotions, both the positive and the negative to live a wholehearted and fully expressed life. EFT can help us to do that by providing us with a tool and the space to acknowledge those feelings safely.
Is there a technique in your practice that you have found to be the most beneficial to the people you work with?
There are so many different modalities that can be used, but for people just starting out or looking for in-the-moment relief, I find the “tap and breathe” method to be very effective. Just tapping the points and breathing to stay centered can lower our intensity of emotion – such as calming anxiety. I find this to be an effective way to start a session, particularly when a client is feeling overwhelmed or unsure where they want to start.
What is EFT like from the patient’s point of view?
From the patient’s point of view, I would describe tapping as calm and gentle. Its intent is to ease through the healing process so as not to re-traumatize. Tapping can be an empowering practice because you as the client are placed in the role of being the healer. I treat client sessions as a very collaborative experience. As a practitioner I am merely a conduit – so there is an amazing feeling of autonomy in your practice as you learn and grow and create what works for you with a practitioner.
What would you say to someone skeptical about EFT and its effectiveness? How do you approach that?
I would say – that I was too! I am a Critical Care trained nurse. That means that my background is largely in western medicine with a very evidence-based approach to treatments. To say I was skeptical would be an understatement. I stumbled across EFT on a podcast Don was listening to for sleep support. I was having a very anxious day and when they ran through a sample round I was in a spot where I thought, “Oh what the heck, what do I have to lose?” I did the 5 minutes session and was blown away by how much better I felt after doing the round. I was calmer and centered and my overwhelmed feelings were significantly decreased. From that day my eyes were open to how much possibility for healing I was losing by not being open to other methods. So I guess my question to them would be, “What do you have to lose?”
Besides EFT do you have any universal health and well-being tips that you’d like to share?
There are the ones you would expect – hydrate, get sleep, move your body. LISTEN TO YOUR BODY – it knows what you need. If your body says rest then rest, move then move. Give yourself time and honor the season that you are in. Don’t try to force. Your body will tell you in whispers what you need – and if you listen – then you won’t have to hear it shout later to get your attention.
If there was one piece of advice you could give to someone who is struggling, what would it be?
Don’t struggle alone. There are so many ways to get help out there. Don’t be afraid to speak up and share how you are feeling because I guarantee you aren’t alone with your thoughts and we are stronger together.
What resources would you recommend? (books, podcasts, websites that you’ve found helpful)
Feel free to follow me @tappingntowellness.eft on Instagram where I have links to sessions and content about EFT specifically. The book The Tapping Solution by Nick Ortner is a wonderful starting point for someone interested in learning more about tapping. The Tapping Solution also has a great app to follow short simple tapping sessions.
Ignoring your anxiety won’t make it go away. This can lead to unhealthy behaviors and more damage down the line. It’s important to take care of yourself from the inside out and EFT can be an effective modality to address these emotions.
Learn more about how Danielle uses EFT to help the people she works with here:
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