Benefits of Facial Tapping
How It can Improve Your Food relationship
We all deal with stress, anxiety, and emotional triggers! I’m no different, especially when it comes to food. But, what if there was a simple technique that could help you manage these emotions, reconnect with your body, and even improve your eating habits? Enter one of my favorite coping techniques, facial tapping.
What The Heck
Facial tapping, often called Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), is a practice where you gently tap on specific points on your face and body while focusing on a particular thought, emotion, or feeling. These points are based on acupressure principles and are believed to help regulate your body’s energy flow, similar to acupuncture but without the needles.
Why It Matters
When you’re overwhelmed, stressed, or feeling emotionally out of sync, it’s easy to turn to food as a quick fix. Whether it’s emotional eating, stress snacking, or eating out of boredom, these behaviors can create a disconnect between what your body truly needs and what you’re giving it. Facial tapping helps bridge that gap by calming your nervous system and grounding you in the present moment, making it easier to make mindful choices.
Ways It Can Benefit You
Reduces Stress and Anxiety: Tapping has been shown to lower cortisol levels, the hormone responsible for our stress response. By calming your nervous system, tapping can make you feel more at ease, reducing the likelihood of reaching for food as a coping mechanism.
Improves Emotional Regulation: By focusing on specific emotions while tapping, you can release pent-up feelings that might otherwise lead to overeating or other unhelpful habits. It’s like giving yourself an emotional reset button.
Enhances Mindfulness: Tapping brings you back into your body, increasing your awareness of how you’re truly feeling. This heightened awareness helps you tune into real hunger cues and make more intentional eating decisions.
How It Works
Facial tapping is based on energy psychology. It involves tapping on specific meridian points on your face and upper body while focusing on the emotion or issue you want to address. These points are thought to be areas where energy flows through the body, and tapping on them can help restore balance in both your mind and body. Here’s a breakdown of how the process works and the key tapping points:
Eyebrow (Inner edge, near the nose)
This point is linked to emotional release and helps reduce anxiety and frustration. Tapping here can help calm your mind when you're feeling overwhelmed by thoughts or stress.
Side of the Eye (On the bone at the outer corner)
Tapping here can help relieve anger and fear, two emotions that are often linked to emotional eating. It’s especially helpful when you’re feeling defensive or upset.
Under the Eye (On the bone, directly below the pupil)
This point connects to worry and anxiety. Tapping on it can reduce emotional tension, helping you better manage cravings that stem from stress or worry.
Under the Nose (Between the nose and upper lip)
Tapping here can help release feelings of shame or embarrassment, which are often tied to food guilt. This is a great spot to focus on if you’re experiencing emotions like guilt after a meal or binge.
Chin (Midway between the chin and the lower lip)
This point is associated with feelings of self-doubt. Tapping here can boost self-confidence and help you feel more in control of your eating decisions.
Collarbone (Just below the bone, on either side of the sternum)
One of the most effective points for reducing stress and panic. Tapping on the collarbone point helps clear out feelings of overwhelm and anxiety, allowing you to pause and make thoughtful decisions instead of reacting impulsively.
Top of the Head (Crown of the head)
This is the final point in the tapping sequence. Tapping on the top of the head connects to the body’s overall energy system and brings a sense of balance and calm.
Implementing The Process
Focus on the Emotion or Issue: Start by identifying the emotion or trigger you want to address. Whether it’s stress, a craving, a negative thought, or even a specific fear related to food, acknowledge how you’re feeling without judgment is important.
Begin Tapping: With two fingers, gently tap each point 5-7 times. As you tap, focus on the emotion or thought you're dealing with, and speak it out loud or to yourself. For example, you might say, "Even though I’m feeling anxious about this meal, I choose to feel calm and in control".
Move Through the Sequence: Continue tapping in order, starting with the eyebrow, moving to the side of the eye, and so on. As you move through each point, repeat a phrase or affirmation related to the emotion you're working on that resonates with you.
Check in with Yourself: After a full round of tapping (through all points), pause and check in with how you're feeling. Notice if the intensity of the emotion or craving has lessened. If it’s still there, you can repeat the sequence until you feel calmer or more balanced.
By tapping on these points while acknowledging your emotions, you activate specific areas of the brain that calm the body’s stress response. Over time, this process helps rewire how you react to triggers like stress, cravings, or emotional eating, giving you more control over your relationship with food.
The Connection To Eating Habits
So how does this connect to your eating habits? Often, when we eat out of stress, boredom, or other emotions, we’re reacting automatically, without really thinking about what our body needs. Tapping can break this cycle by giving you a moment to pause and check in with yourself.
Next time you feel triggered to eat, try this:
Place your feet flat on the ground and take a deep breath.
Acknowledge what you’re feeling and attempt to define it. Is it stress, anxiety, frustration, anger; whatever it is name it without judgement.
Begin tapping through the points while focusing on those emotions.
As you tap, notice if your craving shifts, your emotions lessen, or if you feel more centered.
This process helps you re-engage with your body’s signals and allows you to make a conscious choice, whether that’s to move forward and eat or recognizing that what you truly need is something else, like a break, rest, or emotional comfort.
Consider This
Facial tapping is a versatile tool that helps manage stress and brings mindfulness into your relationship with food. It’s simple, accessible, and can be done anywhere, making it an easy addition to your wellness toolkit. The next time you feel emotionally triggered around food, give it a try and see how it can help you find calm, clarity, and control.
And if you need support, send Kiley an email at info.khhllc@gmail.com
