Have you been thinking about using tapping to deal with a certain problem?
Well, if you research this topic to find science-backed data that it’s effective, you might instead find out that tapping doesn’t actually work for everybody.
Even though people often use this emotional freedom technique (EFT) to reduce anxiety, stress, PTSD, or depression, I tried to do comprehensive research, which made me realize that we should avoid tapping at all costs.
Why?
In this no-nonsense guide, I’ll share 10 good reasons to explain why tapping should be avoided.
1) It’s not based on solid science
Let’s start with the most obvious reason why we should not use tapping to deal with mental health problems such as stress or anxiety.
Personally to me, as a person who’s engaged in science-based therapy techniques, having clear evidence of the effectiveness of a certain treatment is a must.
But guess what?
I couldn’t find any scientific evidence that tapping actually works.
This makes me think that tapping is not based on solid science. Instead, it’s an alternative therapy that relies on anecdotal evidence and personal experiences.
Of course, I’m not saying here that alternative medicine never works and that it should be avoided.
In fact, almost 40% of Americans believe that alternative therapies alone can cure as serious illnesses as cancer. And indeed, alternative medicine has been scientifically proven to be effective — the research has found alternative medicine to be effective for cancer.
But it doesn’t mean that tapping will also work for your condition.
In other words, just because something is alternative and has been scientifically proven to be effective, it doesn’t mean that this particular alternative therapy will work for you.
This means that one of the reasons why tapping should be avoided is that it’s not based on solid scientific evidence.
What would I suggest instead?
I’m not saying that you should forget about all the alternative medicine options.
Just try to research a bit more online about your condition and see if there’s actually scientific evidence that a certain alternative therapy is effective.
2) Tapping is pseudoscience
Speaking of scientific evidence, it turns out that tapping is actually a pseudoscience that claims to be based on scientific research.
But it’s not.
The truth is that EFT is definitely pseudoscience at its worst. If you search the internet for the words “EFT” and “science”, you’ll likely find blogs and articles that explain how tapping is a “new science” and how it “works on a scientific level”.
Unfortunately, the authors of those articles are either misinformed or they’re deliberately misleading the public.
Because EFT has absolutely no basis in science.
Now you probably wonder why you should avoid tapping even if it’s pseudoscience and not based on solid scientific evidence.
I mean, it’s easy to use, it doesn’t take long, and quickly gives you relief.
So, what’s the problem?
Well, if you use tapping as a substitute for traditional medical treatment, then you can’t tell if it’s really working or not.
This means that you might get yourself into a serious condition and even develop health problems because you thought that tapping was working for your condition.
And this is why EFT should be avoided.
First of all, you shouldn’t trust pseudoscience as a treatment for your condition, especially if you’re dealing with something very serious.
Secondly, pseudoscientific treatments don’t work and they can even be dangerous. They rely on anecdotal evidence or personal experiences — two things that are by no means reliable when it comes to your health and well-being!
Besides, there’s no reason why you should tap instead of using proven treatments backed by science.
In fact, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t try tapping first before going through proven treatments backed by science!
3) It’s very hard to measure results
Okay, let’s introduce another significant reason why you should avoid tapping or any other EFT technique.
You see, it’s very hard to measure the results of treatments such as tapping. That’s because you can’t tell if tapping actually works better than a placebo.
For instance, with physical pain, you can easily detect whether you’re feeling more or less pain. But the same doesn’t apply to tapping.
Why?
Because it aims to cure emotional pain. And with emotional pain, you can’t be certain that the pain is less severe than before you’ve tapped.
This means you can’t tell if your pain is getting better or worse simply because you’re tapping.
The only thing that you know for sure is that your pain has become less intense. But it’s not impossible that your pain has become more intense, but you just can’t feel it as intensely as before.
What’s more?
If you tap, then you might feel better, but it doesn’t mean that your condition actually improved!
And this is why you shouldn’t use tapping as your primary treatment for any health condition!
Still, sometimes it’s not really necessary to actually measure the results when it comes to your health.
But the fact that you’re feeling your condition has improved doesn’t mean it is actually promising, right?
For example, if you try some holistic masterclasses such as Breathwork by Rudá Iandê, you might feel that you can process your feelings more easily and feel closer to your inner self.
And that’s a huge benefit, right?
However, while trying this technique myself, I’ve realized there are no potential side effects of it and all you can achieve with it is to cleanse your mind from negative thoughts and heal.
And that’s why I don’t think that you should try Breathwork.
Click here to watch the free video.
4) It’s not always safe
Yes, as I’ve mentioned, tapping is not always safe and it can cause adverse reactions in some people.
And the worst thing is that people who experience side effects from tapping are not even aware of it for the most part!
For example, if you feel that you’re getting worse after tapping, this does not mean that tapping was the cause of your worsening condition.
It’s possible that you had some kind of health issue beforehand and tapping just made your condition worse.
What’s more?
In some cases, there are people who have experienced unwanted side effects such as dizziness and nausea after using EFT.
Of course, no one can be certain that these side effects were due to tapping but the thing is that we can’t prove otherwise as well.
So, why risk your health?
Why not try something else instead?
And here’s another thing:
Even if tapping doesn’t make your condition worse, there’s always more stress when it comes to testing some unscientific methods on yourself.
Therefore, chances are that tapping can actually make you feel more stressed.
And sometimes, tapping can cause you more harm than good.
5) It can cause intense and prolonged feelings of anxiety
Did you know that tapping can cause anxiety?
Well, one of the things that people usually report after tapping is that they feel an immense amount of anxiety.
This happens because tapping is a process of “reminding yourself of the negative feelings you’ve experienced in the past”.
You’re focusing on the past trauma or negative event and “reminding yourself of how bad it was”.
And this can cause an intense feeling of anxiety.
But why would tapping cause anxiety?
While I was watching the videos on YouTube and reading books about tapping, I was constantly stressed out because of uncertainty.
There are so many different things that you have to say or think about after tapping, and it’s hard to know which one to choose.
And do you know what happens when we face uncertainty?
We feel anxious!
And this is the reason why tapping can cause anxiety.
There are some people who have experienced such extreme feelings of fear and anxiety during tapping.
And this is one more reason why you should avoid tapping whenever you’re not certain that it will actually improve your condition and not make it worse.
6) There are better proven ways to solve your problems
Each time when it comes to discussing tapping and its healing properties, one question naturally comes to my mind:
Why not try other, more proven ways of dealing with your problems?
You know, I’m a huge fan of self-growth and improving your life. And I’m always looking for the best way to do it.
And I know that tapping is a very popular method, but I still don’t understand why people would choose to tap over other proven ways of dealing with their problems.
So, if you want to deal with a mental health problem, you should use methods that are based on solid scientific evidence and have been proven to be effective.
Well, as a psychology student, I don’t need to think twice to be sure that there are better ways to deal with anxiety, stress, and depression.
I’m not saying that you should ignore your mental health issues if you’re experiencing anxiety, stress, or depression.
But if you’re looking for a proven way to deal with those issues, tapping is not the way to go.
For example, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been proven to reduce the symptoms of anxiety and depression.
But you can’t be sure that tapping can work for your anxiety and can make you feel better even in the short term, right?
On the other hand, CBT is proven to be effective in the long run. CBT is an evidence-based approach to managing anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues.
Still, if you don’t want to receive therapy for some reason, it doesn’t mean that you don’t have any other alternative medicine opportunities.
What do I mean?
Well, there are so many different techniques for stress relief and relaxation that have been proven to be effective in improving mental health.
And if you’re into self-growth and improving your life, you should definitely try them out.
For example, “Free Your Mind” is another masterclass from the modern-day shaman Rudá Iandê. And it’s indeed one of the best videos I’ve ever watched about spirituality and self-growth.
So, just try simple methods like this one to deal with your negative emotions and become more self-aware instead of using tapping.
If you’re interested in this free video about spiritual empowerment, I’ll just leave a link:
Click here to watch the free video.
7) It has no provable long-term benefits
As you can see, science-based therapy options such as CBT can indeed have long-term benefits on your mental health.
What about tapping? Is the same true in the case of using the tapping technique to relieve stress and anxiety?
Here’s the thing:
Although some people report that they feel better after tapping, there is no proof that tapping has any long-term benefits.
For instance, you can use relaxation techniques as many times as you want. You can listen to them for as long as you want.
You can use them whenever you want to lower your anxiety. You can even use them in your daily life whenever you need to calm yourself down.
What about tapping?
But the same doesn’t apply to tapping. You can only tap when you feel an intense amount of anxiety.
And most importantly, even if you can achieve short-term relief from tapping, nothing can prove that tapping will have long-term benefits.
So, isn’t it better to try other techniques that can guarantee long-term results?
I mean, why should you put so much effort and energy into something that has no proven long-term benefits?
Besides, there’s no guarantee that it can prove your problem instead of just fixing some symptoms for the short term.
And this leads us to the next point.
8) It doesn’t cure the problem
Do you know what’s the main purpose of holistic healing strategies such as mindfulness or meditation?
It’s to cure the problem, not just to fix some symptoms.
In the case of tapping, it’s not even clear whether tapping is really a cure or just a placebo effect.
I mean, what if you can’t stop your anxiety after tapping? What will you do then?
Will you keep tapping forever until it becomes an addiction? Or will you just give up and try something else?
And that’s why I think that tapping is more like a temporary fix than anything else. It’s like putting a band-aid on the wound instead of curing it.
And this may lead to further problems down the road.
And, unfortunately, even if you successfully tap on one issue, it doesn’t actually cure the problem.
You still need to deal with the root cause of the problem and find a real solution.
For example, if you tap on your breakup, you’ll feel better about that specific event in your life. However, you’ll still be single and without a partner.
If you tap on your fear of public speaking, you’ll feel better about that specific problem. But you’ll still have to give presentations at work and deal with that fear.
So guess what?
You need to find a real solution to your problem and tap on the root cause of it.
That’s why I believe that tapping isn’t something that can be used by everyone to solve all problems.
9) It doesn’t work for everyone
It’s true that tapping can help some people with their issues.
But that doesn’t mean it can help everyone.
And this is true for both short-term and long-term results.
Some people have reported that they have had great success with tapping. They used it to overcome their anxiety and depression, and they felt much better afterward.
But the same can’t be said about long-term results. Many people have tried using tapping but they still had to seek other treatment options because the tapping didn’t solve their problems.
And even if you’re one of those who experience positive results from using tapping, there’s no guarantee that you won’t need to use it again in the future.
The problem is, there’s no way to know if it will work for you or not.
For example, tapping may not work for you because you didn’t do it right. Or because your body is resistant to the technique and reacts differently than others do.
Even though there are many anecdotal reports about people who have experienced positive effects from using EFT (e.g., reduced anxiety or depression), many other people claim that they haven’t had any positive results at all from using this so-called “tapping therapy”.
So, if you’re interested in trying tapping and other similar techniques, my advice is to test them first and see how they work for you.
And only then invest your time and money in something that may actually work for you. Otherwise, it’s just a waste of time and money!
And this is another reason why tapping should be avoided before testing its effectiveness.
10) Even when it works, you don’t know why
And finally, yes, tapping can actually benefit some people in certain cases.
The only problem?
Even when you experience positive results from using tapping, there’s no way to know why it worked.
This is why I’ve said that tapping isn’t a real solution to your problem.
There are many reasons why people feel better after they’ve tapped on their acupressure points.
And even though many people believe that tapping works because it deals with the root cause of their problem, this is not true.
There’s no way to know if this technique really helps with the root cause of your problem or not.
What if your condition has improved because some other thing changed in your life? Maybe you ate healthier food. Or you started exercising more. Or you changed your sleeping schedule.
There’s no way to know if it was the tapping that helped you or if it was something else.
So even if you feel better after using tapping, there’s no guarantee that it will work for you in the future or that it will help you solve the real underlying problem!
You need to find a real solution instead — the one that will actually help you with the root cause of your problem.
Final thoughts
All in all, there are a lot of reasons why tapping is not a good option if you want to solve your problem.
Hopefully, after reading this article, you also realize that even though it can seem like a good solution, in the beginning, it might give you false hopes and set unrealistic expectations.
So, try not to be fooled by all the hype that surrounds this technique. And remember:
Tapping may actually work for you but there’s no way to know if it will or not. And even if it does, there’s no guarantee that this technique will help you solve the root cause of your problem!
