Welcome to The Anxiety Detox Digest, a bi-weekly newsletter designed to support your mental well-being and provide actionable insights on overcoming habits which cause anxiety. Learned something new? Subscribe and share with your friends. Let’s get started... 

Have you ever felt like your anxiety has a mind of its own? It’s almost like no matter how much you know you’re safe or capable, your body just doesn’t get the message.

That’s not just in your head.  It’s in your neural wiring.

Our brains are shaped by repetition, repetition creates habits. Habits can be good and habits can be not so good.  When you experience anxiety again and again, your neural circuits begin to favor that pattern which looks like a trigger, then panic, and repeat. These become what neuroscientists call well-worn grooves, and escaping them can feel impossible.

But what if I told you your fingertips hold a key to rewriting those grooves?

What is EFT and Why It Works

The Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT)—also called tapping—is a somatic practice that combines gentle acupressure with cognitive awareness. You lightly tap on specific meridian points while voicing the emotions or beliefs you want to release.  

The result?  A neurobiological interruption of the fight or flight loop.

Research shows that EFT reduces activity in the amygdala (the fear center of the brain) and calms the sympathetic nervous system. Over time, this practice can literally rewire your stress response.

It does more than relax you in the moment, it teaches your brain a new normal.

The Science of Rewiring Anxiety

Each time you tap through a wave of anxiety, while consciously acknowledging and accepting your feelings, you send a new message to the brain:

"This emotion is safe. I can feel it and still be okay."

This shifts you out of survival mode and builds new neural pathways for resilience, calm, and clarity.

You’re not avoiding anxiety, you’re retraining your brain to respond differently. This is what’s known as neuroplasticity, and EFT gives you hands-on access to it.

A Personal Note

I recently talked to one of my former clients about this technique.  I asked her to try it not only while experiencing anxiety but when she is calm as well.  Tapping the feeling of calmness into her neural circuits will help her during a wave of anxiety.  The body and mind will be interrupted by this somatic practice and remember “when she taps, I’m supposed to feel calm”.  I myself have utilized this technique and have benefitted greatly from it as well.

How to Try It Today

Want to see how it works? Try this simple 5-minute EFT script:

1. Start by rating your anxiety on a scale of 0–10.
   
   
2. Begin tapping on the side of your hand and say:
   “Even though I feel anxious right now, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
   
   
3. Tap through the main points (eyebrow, side of eye, under eye, under nose, chin, collarbone, under arm, top of head) while repeating:
   “This anxiety… it’s overwhelming… I feel it in my [body part]… but I’m open to feeling calm instead.”
   
   

Repeat until you notice a shift.

🛠 Action Step:
Practice this once a day for the next week. Even five minutes can start reshaping your brain’s relationship with anxiety.

You can rewire your anxious habits gently, naturally, and one tap at a time.  If you're curious to go deeper or need help getting started, I’d love to connect.

To calm,

- Berta Samuel

P.S. Want to work with me? Email me at mindsetandmentalfitness@gmail.com , if you are truly ready for change, let’s start the conversation. 

Want to be a part of my Beta program for High-Pressure Professionals? Stay tuned for additional information in future newsletters.