The first time I tapped with Helen McConnell, I didn’t need persuasion. I came to her because I had been struggling with panic attacks rooted in childhood trauma. By day I looked composed and effective. By evening the struggle with stress came in waves: sweating, shallow breathing, the sense that I was about to disappear. In the morning, at work, I kept it to myself well, but hiding took energy.
When I tried tapping, the shift was immediate. My nervous system positively responded in a way it hadn’t with other methods. For my constitution, tapping helped me integrate the other approaches I was doing to heal.
Insights are not enough
My work bridges applied psychological anthropology and financial services, fields that generate a constant stream of insight. Research, teaching, listening, writing, each offers new knowledge. But insight alone does not change how we show up. Most of us already know this. We attend leadership trainings, read articles, listen to podcasts, and still find ourselves reacting the same way in high-stakes moments. What matters is whether those insights become embodied, whether they reach the nervous system.
That is where practices like tapping come in.
A speaking engagement, shifted
Not long ago, I was preparing for a talk. On paper I was ready. But when I thought about the upcoming event, my jaw locked and my breath grew shallow. My body was preparing for danger, not dialogue.
Instead of ignoring it, I tapped.
EFT, or Emotional Freedom Technique, is straightforward. You use your fingertips to rhythmically tap on specific points on the face and body: eyebrow, side of the eye, under the nose, chin, collarbone. While tapping you name what feels difficult in the moment. This pairing of attention and gentle stimulation interrupts the body’s stress response.
Within one round my jaw softened. Another round and my breath deepened. I felt the recognizable shift and started enjoying a more relaxed state. I reinforced the practice over the next few days. By the time I stepped onto the stage, the tension no longer owned me. The talking points were the same, but my delivery was different. Instead of pushing through stress, I was available to the audience in a steady, connected way.
One practice, not the only one
Tapping is not the only way to get there, of course. There are many ways to find the same kind of reset including other types of somatic-based therapies, breathwork, meditation, the list goes on. For me, tapping is a tool I return to because it works quickly and I can use it anywhere, even quietly before a meeting, or even subtly during a Zoom call. What matters most is not which practice you choose, but that you have one that helps your insights travel from what I like to call the inflamed mind back into the body.
Why this matters at work
Professionals carry far more in our bodies than most workplaces acknowledge: panic, trauma, performance anxiety, grief. We may hide it well, but it surfaces in subtle ways. Clipped emails, restless nights, shallow breathing before a meeting. These patterns quietly drain our availability, creativity, and clarity.
Tapping and other self-alignment practices help regulate the nervous system so we can meet the moment with more choice. They allow insights about trauma, leadership, or human connection to take root in lived experience rather than remain abstract.
If you are curious to see how this works in real time, I invite you to check out Episode 60 of Step Into the Pivot. It includes a live tapping demonstration where I practiced with Helen before an upcoming speaking engagement. Within one round, the tension eased and my body visibly released what it had been holding. It is a clear example of how quickly this practice can shift us from strain into steadiness.
If you find yourself holding more than anyone can see, remember that endurance is not the only option. There are moments when the strongest step is not forward but inward, allowing space for your body to recalibrate and for your deep wisdom to surface.