How to Do EFT Tapping: A 5-Minute Beginner Tutorial

This is the complete beginner's walkthrough of the clinical EFT Basic Recipe — the same five-step protocol used in the peer-reviewed research. You can do a round in under five minutes. The first time will feel awkward; by the second or third round your body and voice find the rhythm.

What you'll need

• About 5–10 minutes of quiet, uninterrupted time.
• One specific issueyou want to work on. The more specific the better — "the dread I feel about Monday morning," not "my anxiety."
• Something to write your SUDS number on— a note in your phone is fine. You'll use it twice: at the start and the end.

The 9 points you'll tap on

Full descriptions of each point are on the EFT tapping points page. For now, knowing the rough location of each is enough.

Step 1 — Identify the issue

Pick one specific thing. Specific targets work better than general ones. Compare:

• Too general: "I'm anxious."
• Better: "I'm anxious about tomorrow's presentation."
• Best: "The knot in my stomach when I picture standing up to present tomorrow."

The more specific the target, the more cleanly it tends to shift. If you have a more general issue, start with the most concrete piece of it.

Step 2 — Rate the intensity (SUDS, 0–10)

SUDS stands for Subjective Units of Distress. It's a 0–10 self-report scale used in the EFT clinical research (Wolpe, 1969).

• 0 — no distress at all.
• 3 — noticeable but manageable.
• 5 — quite uncomfortable; it has your attention.
• 7— strong; it's hard to think about anything else.
• 10 — the worst you can imagine right now.

Picture your issue clearly enough to feel it in your body, then write down your starting number. You'll re-rate at the end.

Step 3 — The setup statement

Find your Karate Chop point — the fleshy outer edge of either hand. Tap it continuously with two or three fingers from your other hand while saying this statement out loud, three times:

"Even though I have [your specific issue], I deeply and completely accept myself."

Example with our presentation anxiety:

"Even though I have this knot in my stomach when I picture standing up to present tomorrow, I deeply and completely accept myself."

The first half names the issue (this is the "exposure" piece — putting words on what's bothering you). The second half is a self-acceptance anchor. Both halves matter; saying only the issue can amplify the distress without the acceptance phrase to balance it.

You can swap "I deeply and completely accept myself" for "I'm OK," "I love and accept myself," or another phrase that feels honest. The acceptance anchor is what matters; the exact words are less important.

Step 4 — Tap through the 8 sequence points

Now tap each of the remaining points about 5–7 times while saying a short reminder phrase — a 3–5 word version of your issue. For our example, the reminder phrase could be "this presentation knot".

1. Top of Head— "this presentation knot"
2. Eyebrow— "this presentation knot"
3. Side of Eye— "this presentation knot"
4. Under Eye— "this presentation knot"
5. Under Nose— "this presentation knot"
6. Chin— "this presentation knot"
7. Collarbone— "this presentation knot"
8. Under Arm— "this presentation knot"

Keep your attention on the issue while you tap. Drift is normal — when you notice you've gone elsewhere, gently come back to the reminder phrase.

Step 5 — Take a breath, re-rate, and repeat

Pause. Take one slow breath. Now picture your issue again the way you did at the start, and re-rate your SUDS.

• Dropped to 0–2: you're done with this round. The issue is at a tolerable level.
• Dropped some but not enough: run another round. You can keep the same setup statement, or refine it. ("Even though I stillhave this knot…" is a common variant.)
• Hasn't changed: try a more specific target. The issue you started with may have layers; the layer that's most ready to shift may be a different specific piece.

Common beginner mistakes

• Targets that are too general."My anxiety" doesn't move. "The flutter in my chest when I think about my email inbox" does. Always go specific.
• Mental tapping vs. felt tapping. The protocol works best when you actually feel some of the emotion while tapping. Tapping while checked-out reduces the effect.
• Skipping the SUDS rating. Without a number before and after, you have no way to know whether anything shifted. The rating is the measurement.
• Forgetting the self-acceptance anchor. Saying only the issue can amplify the distress. Always include the second half of the setup statement.
• Quitting after one round.Most issues take 2–4 rounds to fully drop. If you're at SUDS 5 after one round, run another.

When to stop and get support instead

EFT is a self-help tool. For these situations, please work with a mental-health professional rather than (or in addition to) self-applying EFT:

• Severe or treatment-resistant anxiety or depression.
• Panic disorder.
• Complex trauma history. Self-tapping on traumatic memories can sometimes destabilise people with CPTSD.
• Any thoughts of harming yourself.

Crisis resources: US — call or text 988. UK — call 116 123. International — findahelpline.com.

Frequently asked questions

About this article: Coacalm is a wellness app. EFT tapping is a complementary practice. Information on this page is educational and is not medical advice. Last reviewed: June 2026.