I was meditating today when suddenly I experienced anxious thoughts and feelings. They hit me like a roadblock. One moment I was meditating peacefully, and the next, a surge of anxious thoughts took over.
You’ve probably experience it. That moment when calm turns to chaos, and you’re suddenly face to face with something difficult: a thought you didn’t want, a feeling you didn’t expect.
Most people, when they reach that kind of emotional wall, try to push it away or avoid it. But that never really works. The same block just keeps coming back.
There is another way. A way to gently work with that inner resistance, soften it, and keep moving forward.
That way is Emotional Freedom Technique, or simply “tapping.”
In this article, we’ll explore what tapping is, how it supports meditation, and how combining the two can lead to greater emotional clarity, healing, and inner peace.
What Is Tapping [EFT]
Tapping, or EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), is a simple yet profound healing practice. In it we gently tap our fingertips on specific acupressure points while acknowledging our emotional experience.
For example, you might tap on the side of your hand while saying something like,
“Even though I feel anxious, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
It might sound strange if you’re new to it, but the science behind it is growing. Studies show that tapping can lower cortisol levels, reduce anxiety, help regulate the nervous system, and process trauma in a gentle, body-aware way.
Tapping isn’t about pushing feelings away. It’s about meeting them with compassion and motion. It creates a safe container for uncomfortable thoughts and emotions to shift—both physically and emotionally.
Many of my students who meditate regularly have told me they sometimes hit a wall. They’re sitting, breathing, doing their practice when suddenly something unwanted rises. Maybe an unpleasant thought. Maybe a pain in the chest. Maybe a fear or memory.
These are powerful moments—opportunities for real transformation. And tapping gives us a way to engage with them directly, helping us move through discomfort, release what’s stuck, and return to presence with greater clarity.
Link Between Tapping And Meditation
Tapping and meditation both help us work with the mind—but in very different ways.
- Meditation invites stillness. Tapping brings movement.
- Meditation trains us to observe. Tapping brings transformation.
- Meditation asks you to sit with what’s present. Tapping helps you shift what’s present—gently, safely, and with the body involved.
In my own practice, I’ve found that tapping can work like an emotional release valve. It clears out the clutter so meditation can go deeper. It breaks up stuck energy, quiets mental noise, and settles the body.
It’s the same for my students. Some of them have been practicing meditation for years, but hit points where they feel blocked, emotionally flooded, or disconnected from their body. Tapping offers a way through.
Why Add Tapping to Your Meditation Practice?
One of the known side effects of meditation is dissociation. Not always, and not for everyone, but disociation can arise when we meditate on painful emotions or past experiences. At such times, it’s common to feel foggy, floaty, or distant from the body.
Tapping brings you back.
The physical nature of tapping—the rhythmic sensation of your fingers on your skin—helps ground you in your body and reduce dissociation. It adds just enough sensation to remind your nervous system, “You’re safe. You’re here. You’re okay.”
Of course, not all dissociation is negative. Sometimes, a bit of mental distance helps people observe difficult memories without re-experiencing them. But often, especially for sensitive people or trauma survivors, dissociation in meditation can make them feel unsteady. In these cases, tapping brings much-needed anchoring.
Tapping reminds your nervous system, “You’re safe. You’re here. You’re okay.”
Tapping also helps by:
- Reducing emotional overwhelm: Instead of forcing yourself to sit through intense emotions, you can meet them gently with tapping.
- Helping stuck thoughts move: You don’t have to stay looped in overthinking. Tapping provides a shift.
- Making meditation more accessible: Especially for beginners who struggle to “quiet the mind,” tapping first can reduce noise and settle awareness.
- Supporting transformation: Meditation observes. Tapping transforms. Together, they allow for insight and healing.
How to Use Tapping and Meditation in the Same Session
So, how do you combine these two practices?
You don’t have to choose one or the other. You can actually use them within the same session, moving from tapping into meditation—or even doing them simultaneously.
Here’s one effective approach:
1. Start with tapping
Sit down and begin by noticing how you feel. Is there tension? Anxiety? Restlessness? Sadness?
Use basic tapping rounds to acknowledge what’s present. While doing this, aclnowledge your situation with compassion. For instance, say to yourself;
- “Even though I feel distracted, I accept how I feel.”
- “Even though I feel sad right now, I’m safe in this moment.”
- “Even though I feel overwhelmed, I choose to allow peace.”
As you tap through the points, you’ll probably notice a shift in your body or mind—a softening, a lightness, a little more clarity.
2. Transition into stillness
After a few rounds, let the words fall away. Stop tapping and settle into meditation.
You may find your awareness drops in more quickly. You might feel more grounded or emotionally clear. Tapping prepares the soil. Meditation lets the seeds grow.
3. Use tapping during meditation (mindfully)
One great way to use tapping inside meditation is to tap gently when you feel a block—a fog in your awareness, a pain in the body, or a thought that won’t let go.
Tapping injects a little energy and movement into the place that feels stuck. Just enough to help things shift without pulling you out of your meditative state.
This approach is especially helpful for people who tend to freeze, space out, or lose awareness when sitting.
You can keep the tapping light and minimal. Let it blend into your awareness. Trust your instinct.
If your hand wants to tap a certain point, follow that. If your attention is drawn to a spot in your body, let your fingers go there gently.
There’s no need to overthink it. The body often knows how to heal when we give it permission to feel.
A Guided Meditation With Tapping
Summary
Tapping and meditation are not in competition. They are companions. They serve the same goal: to help you come home to yourself.
Meditation shows you what’s within. Tapping helps you work with it. When combined, they support healing, presence, clarity, and emotional resilience.
So the next time you sit down to meditate and hit a roadblock, don’t just sit in frustration. Try adding a few rounds of tapping. Soften what’s there. Meet it with movement. Invite it to change. Let tapping clear the way so your meditation can take you deeper.
If you’re new to tapping or need support combining it with meditation, consider booking a one-on-one session or exploring more at TheDailyMeditation.com. There’s a whole world of peace waiting on the other side of that roadblock.
Let’s walk through it—together.
Paul Harrison is a meditation teacher with 20+ years of experience and a deep passion for helping others. Known for his empathy and authentic approach, he’s dedicated to guiding individuals and teams toward mindfulness, clarity, and well-being.