Tap on fear, or get out of there?!

As I trepidatiously ventured up the stairs towards the “Leap of Faith” water slide at The Atlantis in the Bahamas, my heart felt like it was going to pop out of my chest. It didn’t help that others that had changed their minds after seeing what it looks like from the top were shamefully creeping down the stairs as I climbed up them.

I had been sky-diving, bungee-jumping, and parasailing before. I tried to explain this to my jello legs, but they didn’t listen. It’s a 60 foot almost-vertical drop that plunges you though a clear tunnel submerged in a shark-filled lagoon.

I began EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) “tapping” on my collarbone so hard that it became sore to touch. This is when an important question unveiled itself to me, “When should you push yourself and tap through your fear, and when should you listen to that fear and get the heck out of there?”

Through my adventures and life experiences, I have learned to always trust my intuition. But it does get a bit confusing at times with EFT to know whether to tap through my fears, or just to simply listen to them.

After I actually went down this crazy water slide, my mom turned to me and said, “Case, if you have to tap that much to do something like that, maybe you shouldn’t do it.” I knew what she meant. But the answer was simple…It looked super fun, and I really wanted to do it!

So, I tap to get me through airplane rides, I tap before I have to give a presentation, I tap before important phone calls, I tap whenever my heart wants to do things that my body is afraid of. Going down this waterslide was just one more thing I knew I just had to do.

Below is an extremely helpful process that I picked up from my friend Cara and I utilize this strategy almost daily. It involves asking yourself two simple questions to help you determine whether something is just scary or uncomfortable, but would ultimately be beneficial for you... or if this is something that's not in your best interest and there's a part of you that's picking up on that!

1. Close your eyes and ask yourself this question while tuning into your decision (thinking of taking this job, meeting with this person, choosing this supplement/ medication, etc.)...

Do you feel yourself wanting to move towards it or away from it?

When I explain this feeling to my daughter, I tell her to pretend like I have a million dollars in my hand... does she want to move towards my hand, or away from it?

(You can almost physically feel yourself moving towards it).

Then, I tell her I have poop in my hand….does she want to move towards it, or away from it? (You probably feel yourself pull away from this). It’ s a bit dramatic, but you get the point.

2. You can also ask yourself THIS question...

Does this situation feel light or does this feel heavy to you?

I now do this with everything. I actually threw a brand new deodorant away last week because every time I put it on, I felt myself cringing a bit… the ingredients looked fine, but for whatever reason I felt myself wanting to “move away from it" and it felt "heavy" to me!

Another Bahamas example of this is when my friend walked around a shark tank. She asked if I wanted to do this with her and although it looked like fun, I immediately felt myself "pull away" from it. This was followed by a vision of me panicking when the helmet was placed on my head. No need to tap, just quickly moved away from that one!

Now, if you’ve determined this IS something you want to do, someone you want to date, something you want to put in your body, etc., but you feel like it’s fear that’s holding you back, THAT’S when you tap!

For example, I knew I wanted to go down that water slide. It felt exciting to me (another powerful indicator you’re on the right track), but it was fear that was getting in my way of doing it. What if I have a heart attack and die on this stupid water slide? What if the tunnel cracks because I ate too many girl scout cookies before the trip and I end up in the shark tank? This is the noise I needed to quiet so I could fully enjoy this adventure! Once I tapped through these fears and incorporated some positive self talk, I was able to feel that excitement again, instead of all the fear.

In 2009, Mika from the Amazing Race could’ve won $500,000 if she just would’ve went down the exact same water slide I did. However, she wasn’t able to conquer her fear of heights despite her partner’s coaxing, bribing, he even tried to physically push her down that slide!!

I wonder what would’ve happened if Mika had tapping in her tool box, maybe her life and her bank account would’ve been much richer!!!

For more info about EFT "tapping," please visit my website: www.caseyvanputten.com

You can also contact me directly at: info@caseyvanputten.com