Be free from whatever is keeping you awake at night
Has there been a time in your life when there has been an important event coming up and that’s all you could think about? No matter what you tried, it was like a movie constantly playing in your mind. Friends and family said; “Don’t worry about it, you’ll be fine.” Why is it that this doesn’t seem to help?
Common physical symptoms triggered by the fear of an up and coming event are: finding it difficult to sleep, constant worry, headaches, feelings of being overwhelmed and of course permanently tired. Not of course an ideal preparation for one of the most important days of your life.
Three strikes and you’re out
In January of last year I teamed up with a National driving magazine to help learner drivers and trainee driving instructors around the country who were struggling with nerves when taking their tests.
Lynne Ryan was trainee driving instructor who failed her first test (only three tests are allowed) because of stress. I had a telephone consultation with Lynne a week before her second attempt. This is her account of the week:
“Going through the ADInews I came across an article about EFT, ‘Turning On The Tap.’ It gripped me from the start as I was about to take my ADI part 3, the reason I was so interested was having failed the first time through sheer nerves.
I arranged a session with Sean. He asked me to imagine how I felt about taking my next test. On a scale of 1-10, the number was way up, easily a 9, I felt sick and was shaking. After tapping a few rounds Sean asked me again how I felt about the day. I can honestly say that I came down to 5/6, we did some more tapping, I felt like the whole world had been lifted from my shoulders and was actually smiling. I felt so happy. After the session I was so relaxed I had the best nights sleep in weeks. I spoke with Sean through the week and we worked more on the positive.
Test day came, I felt so much more relaxed about what was going to happen, no feeling sick or shaking and being able to sleep-bonus. I passed!! How it works I am not entirely sure, but it does and a big thanks to Sean for giving me a new lease of life.”
When I first spoke to Lynne the idea of taking her next driving test was overwhelming, her body’s ‘fight or flight’ system was permanently switched on, she was unable to think straight and consumed by fear.
The pressure of a great opportunity
As Lynne was typing her email to me, just thinking about taking her test, she was physically shaking and feeling sick. In a weeks time she was going to take a second attempt at a test that would change her life.
The key point is that Lynne is good at teaching people to drive, she knows that she can do a great job. However, like a number of people under the pressure of a great opportunity, she struggled to showcase her talent.
Scientists/researchers around the world are aware of the negative impact stress has on our body and are constantly searching for a tool, method to nutralize its effects. For some of us, the search has ended . . .
How to Turn off the switch
I am going to show you a simple two minute sequence that may change your life – sounds like an early Christmas present!
This is a short tapping script, I mention tapping the acupressure points on your fingers, the points are shown on the diagram.
Negative Vibration
If there is something bothering you and it’s making you feel stressed, scale the level of negative emotion 0-10. 0 is you feeling not bothered, 10 it’s keeping you awake at night. What is the strongest emotion you feel? For example you may feel nervous and fearful.
Using the middle finger and index finger of your right hand and gently tap the side of each finger of your left hand (tap about five times on each finger, by the side of the nail). Whilst tapping focus on the negative thought, emotion. Say the words as you tap: “I feel nervous and fearful.”
Do two rounds and take a deep breath and scale yourself again, has the number changed?Tap another couple of rounds saying, “I still feel nervous and fearful.”
Take a deep breath, scale how you feel again, you should feel lighter, calmer.
Now we will introduce some positive how you would like to feel.Tap two rounds, this time saying, “I choose to be calm, relaxed and focused.”
Take a deep breath and scale again how you feel. You should feel less worried and more relaxed. Subtly tapping your finger tips is an ideal way of keeping relaxed just before an exam, driving test, talk or performance.
This of course is just a taste of how EFT can be used as a tool to deal with that negative spiral of thoughts and emotions. It allows us to relax, reduce stress and centre our thoughts.
Have you felt similar anxiety before an important event, how did you deal with it? Were you able to get relief from that level of stress, or did you try to cope with it and hope to do your best on the day? Let me know about your experiences, it would be great to have your feedback. Also, if you’d like a free 20min initial consultation contact me now on 07818851643 or message me at sean@confidenceontap.com