Increasing your effectiveness with EFT, part 215.
A question that comes up from time to time is whether EFT can be used to help with manifestation, and if so, how.
Manifestation is generally understood as the idea that we attract certain experiences, opportunities, or outcomes based on our beliefs, thoughts, expectations, energetic vibration, or state of being. Some people are very enthusiastic about manifestation, while others are highly skeptical. Personally, I find myself somewhere in the middle.
On the one hand, I have seen situations in my own life, and in the lives of others, that make me very open to the possibility that there may be more going on than we currently understand. On the other hand, I am also aware that the manifestation space contains its fair share of exaggerated claims and questionable marketing. Social media is full of people presenting themselves as manifestation experts, often using their financial success as evidence that their methods work, while conveniently leaving out the fact that much of that success comes from selling expensive manifestation courses.
There are also some ideas commonly associated with manifestation that I find difficult to agree with. For example, I do not believe that people who have suffered severe trauma somehow “attracted” those experiences into their lives. Besides lacking evidence, this way of thinking can easily become a form of victim blaming. Similarly, I do not think that wealth is necessarily evidence of superior manifestation abilities. Some wealthy people have certainly created value and contributed positively to the world, while others have accumulated wealth through exploitative or unethical practices.
So before going any further, I think it is important to acknowledge that manifestation is a controversial topic, and that reasonable people can disagree about it.
It is also worth mentioning that the scientific research supporting EFT has little to do with manifestation. The existing research has primarily focused on areas such as stress reduction, anxiety, trauma, cravings, and biological markers associated with stress, including cortisol levels. EFT appears to be particularly useful for reducing the unpleasant emotional charge attached to thoughts, memories, beliefs, and situations.
Most schools of psychology would probably describe manifestation as a form of magical thinking. At the same time, there is a more practical observation that many psychologists would agree with: our beliefs about what is possible for us can influence the actions we take, the risks we are willing to take, and the opportunities we notice or fail to notice.
For example, imagine two people who are equally qualified for a job. One believes there is a realistic chance of success and applies. The other believes there is no point trying and never submits an application. Whether or not manifestation exists in a metaphysical sense, their beliefs are likely to influence their behavior and therefore their results.
This is where EFT can potentially help a lot.
Whether manifestation is a genuine phenomenon or simply a useful framework for examining our beliefs, it can provide valuable material to work with.
When people try to use EFT for manifestation, they often take one of two approaches.
The first approach is to use tap-along videos that repeat positive statements such as “The Universe sends me a lot of money” or “I’m worthy of having more than enough”. In my experience, this approach is often not very effective if the phrases feel untrue. If a person is repeating a positive affirmation while another part of them strongly disagrees with it, the disagreement is often what deserves our attention.
The second approach, which I generally find a lot more useful, is to explore what seems to be getting in the way of manifesting what you want.
Suppose you would like to manifest a new job, a healthier relationship, a successful business, or some other meaningful goal. When you think about that possibility, what thoughts and feelings immediately arise?
For some people, thoughts such as these appear almost automatically:
- “That will never happen to me”.
- “The last time I got my hopes up, everything fell apart”.
- “I don’t want to be disappointed again”.
- “Success like that is for other people”.
- “I feel like God or the Universe is punishing me”.
- “People like me don’t get opportunities like that”.
From a manifestation perspective, these thoughts and feelings might be described as lowering your vibration or blocking what you want to attract.
And from an EFT perspective, these thoughts and feelings are what we want to “give the microphone to” while we tap.
Each of those thoughts usually carries some emotional charge. There may be fear, disappointment, sadness, hopelessness, anger, shame, or grief underneath them. There may also be memories connected to those beliefs. Perhaps there was a time when you took a risk and failed. Maybe you were criticized when you were younger. Or perhaps you experienced a painful loss or setback that still feels emotionally unresolved.
Those thoughts, feelings, and memories can all become targets for tapping.
As the emotional charge attached to them begins to soften, people often find that their relationship to the goal changes as well. They may become more willing to take action, more open to opportunities, or less convinced by the limiting beliefs that previously felt 100% true.
Whether you view that process as manifestation, psychological change, or some combination of the two is ultimately up to you.
What I find most useful is that the idea of manifestation can sometimes reveal the specific beliefs, fears, and emotional obstacles that are asking for our attention. And once those obstacles become visible, EFT gives us a way to work with them. And when we do EFT in such a way where we constantly meet ourselves where we are at, this makes the process safe, gentle and effective.
That said, when it comes to doing EFT, it’s not always easy to do it by ourselves. If you’d like some support exploring what’s coming up for you, you can learn more about my approach at brunosade.com.
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I’m Bruno Sade, a clinical psychologist and Accredited Certified Advanced EFT Practitioner. I work online with people around the world, helping them reduce the emotional charge behind difficult thoughts, memories, and triggers.
If you’re curious about experiencing EFT in a guided session, I occasionally offer a free EFT tapping session in exchange for a brief market research interview. You can sign up here.
