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Author: Bill Spearson

Tapping, also called EFT or Emotional Freedom Tapping, is a simple but powerful practice that might help family caregivers reduce some of their stress and deal with other emotional issues. As family caregivers take on more and more responsibilities, they often find themselves feeling overwhelmed far more often than they did in the past. Finding ways to deal with that overwhelm, including working with respite care services, is so important in order to avoid burning out.

What Is Tapping?

Tapping involves using the fingertips to gently tap at specific acupressure points on the head and body, while thinking or saying phrases related to the emotional issue at hand. The underlying belief is that stress and other negative emotions are a result of the body’s energy system being out of balance. Tapping while focusing on specific phrases helps to restore that balance and reduce the negative emotions. It’s an easy practice to try, and no special experience is required.

Benefits of Tapping for Family Caregivers

People who use tapping regularly experience reduced tension, including headaches and body aches. They also experience reduced stress and might have better emotional clarity and mental health over time. Tapping can also help family caregivers to stay grounded and present, especially in situations that are extremely stressful.

When Is Tapping Effective?

Being a family caregiver can affect more than just stress levels. Family caregivers may feel lonely, guilty, or even resentful at times. They may experience fear about the future and sadness about situations they’re facing. Tapping can be helpful during any of these negative situations. Family caregivers may also find that if tapping is effective for them, they want to make it part of their regular routines.

Finding Time for Tapping

Finding time to do tapping might feel like a big deal for family caregivers. If they’ve got help from home care providers, it can be a lot easier to work tapping into their routines. Learning more about tapping and fine tuning scripts for tapping might feel more complicated, though. Letting respite care providers take over more often and using that time to learn more about tapping may help family caregivers take time for other self-care tasks, too.

How to Learn More About Tapping

Tapping is more popular than ever, so there’s a lot of information available about it online and in books that might be available at local libraries. Videos online and even apps that can both remind family caregivers to tap and offer scripts to help with specific situations might be other options to consider. There are tons of resources available, so it’s a good idea to explore a bit to find the right overall fit.

For some family caregivers, tapping is something that they want to do every day to help them feel capable and centered. Others may find that it’s helpful once in a while. As a family caregiver, though, it’s important to build a toolbox of a wide range of solutions that might be helpful in reducing stress and solving problems, including respite care services.

If your aging loved one is considering respite care in Valparaiso, IN, please contact the caring staff at Home Helpers Home Care of NW Indiana today at (219) 244-2533.

Home Helpers Home Care of NW Indiana provides exceptional home and facility care for seniors in Highland, Munster, Crown Point, Schererville, Dyer, Saint John, Valparaiso, Cedar Lake, Griffith, Lowell, and the surrounding areas.