By Carol Look, EFT Master
The fear of public speaking has many aspects to it, but there are 3 specific approaches to take with EFT that can significantly reduce this challenge in a short period of time.
Imagine feeling so confident and calm that you actually look forward to speaking in public…
#1) Physiological Symptoms
The simplest way to approach your fear of public speaking is to address the immediate symptoms that the typical adrenaline rush triggers – you know, that frightening cascade of physical symptoms that make us feel out of control. When you perceive something as “dangerous” (real or imagined) the adrenaline rush begins to take over. This includes a pounding heart, sweaty palms, a dry mouth, a feeling of being disoriented — symptoms that cause even more panic because we feel even more out of control. Make the tapping simple – take these symptoms and clear their intensity with EFT.
So here’s my recommendation: Imagine stepping up to the podium, or being asked a question at a business meeting, or starting a speech in front of your colleagues, and notice what symptoms start to emerge. Take a measurement of how afraid you feel, or how hard your heart is pounding on the 0-10 point intensity scale. (Note: It’s a good idea to practice this tapping BEFORE your next speech, as the symptoms themselves tend to block common sense. This causes many people to forget they have this tool at their disposal when they’re right in the middle of a situation that requires it!)
Karate Chop Point: Even though I can feel my pounding heart and I feel out of control, I deeply and completely love and accept myself… Even though my pounding heart and that dizzy feeling makes me feel out of control, I accept who I am and how I feel… Even though this dizzy feeling and pounding heart make me feel panicky, I accept who I am and how I feel.
Eyebrow: This pounding heart
Side of Eye: I hate this feeling
Under Eye: It makes it hard to breathe
Under Nose: I feel so afraid
Chin: I feel out of control
Collarbone: My heart is pounding
Under Arm: I can hear it in my ears!
Top of Head: I feel kind of dizzy as my heart pounds…
Now take a deep breath, tune into the scenario that you measured before the tapping (approaching the podium, giving a speech, being asked a question at a meeting), and measure how high the feeling is on the 0-10 point scale now. Do a few more rounds until you can’t raise the “charge” when you picture this potentially “dangerous” scenario. And of course, if there are other situations that trigger this cascade of symptoms, picture those, measure the feeling on the 0-10 point scale, and start the tapping sequences again.
Other symptoms that you could plug in for your tapping targets are (1) This sweaty palm feeling, (2) My dry mouth, (3) This feeling of disorientation (4) I feel light headed etc. and anything else that you have noticed when the dread surfaces in your mind and body.
#2) Fear of Being Judged/ Criticized
The second major reason that people fear speaking in public is that they “expect” to be judged or criticized, which essentially paralyzes them emotionally and physically. Ask yourself:
“Where did I get this assumption?”
“When did it happen before?”
“Who criticized me when I spoke in public last time?”
“What am I afraid they will say about me?”
I had a client who was subjected to constant ridicule by her father and brothers for ANYTHING she said. They teased her mercilessly, so any time she opened her mouth in public or at a business meeting, she felt terrified that someone would laugh at her or ridicule her opinion. (This was an automatic response that was triggered any time she even considered speaking out loud.)
So when you think of being criticized or judged, where do you feel it in your body? How high is the “charge” on this feeling on the 0-10 point scale? Then start tapping…
Karate Chop Point: Even though I KNOW they’re going to laugh at me and it makes me “freeze” up, I accept who I am and how I feel… Even though I just know they’re going to judge me harshly, I accept who I am and how I feel… Even though I expect to be judged and criticized no matter what I say, and I can feel that in my chest, I deeply and completely love and accept myself anyway.
Eyebrow: I hate being criticized
Side of Eye: I know they are going to judge me
Under Eye: I’m so afraid to open my mouth
Under Nose: I feel terrified to say anything
Chin: I am totally blank and forgot what I was going to say
Collarbone: I can’t take their criticism
Under Arm: I’m so afraid of being exposed
Top of Head: I can’t take being criticized any more
When you think of being criticized again, measure the “charge” on the 0-10 point scale. You may need to repeat this sequence of tapping again to alleviate this fear of being judged.
#3 Specific Events From Your Past
Is there an “event” from your past that you suspect caused this “phobia” or fear of public speaking? Was there a time when you were humiliated or embarrassed in public for any reason? Are there any traumas associated with speaking in public in your family? Do you remember who ridiculed you, where you were? How you felt?
Our energy systems can get stuck or “frozen” from traumas in our life. It may not have been as horrific as a car accident, or an earthquake, but for your energy system, being ridiculed while being on stage can be as threatening to your energetic system as being trapped in a natural disaster.
When you choose a specific event where you might have been traumatized by what happened, you can use tapping to release or thaw out the frozen parts of you that have been holding onto the original trauma. When we are traumatized, there are pieces of memory that never get integrated, which is why they can later present as PTSD symptoms – being easily agitated, having a quick startle response, flashbacks, phobias etc.
I ask my clients, “Who, what when?”
Who said something negative to you?
What did they say to hurt you?
When did this happen?
Take the key components to any “trauma” that may have contributed to your fear of public speaking and use it as your tapping target. Suppose you were giving a speech in high school, and someone ridiculed you. Picture yourself back in the classroom, visualize what you see, and notice how you feel in your body… scale the upset on the 0-10 point scale before tapping.
Karate chop point:
Even though I froze back then, and felt traumatized by that event…I deeply and completely love and accept myself… Even though that event changed my life in a negative way, I accept who I am and how I feel… Even though I never recovered from that incident, I accept who I am and how I feel.
Eyebrow: I totally froze back then
Side of Eye: I never recovered from that trauma
Under Eye: I’m so stuck back in that incident
Under Nose: I feel so afraid as if I’m there now
Chin: My whole body remembers that trauma
Collarbone: No wonder I’m afraid to feel exposed
Under Arm: No wonder I never want to be vulnerable again
Top of Head: I was so traumatized by what happened
Check in again with this incident that happened and measure how high the charge is on that incident now, hopefully it was reduced. You may want to tap for several more rounds to reduce the charge even more. In addition, you may need to isolate several “aspects” to this traumatizing event.
Eyebrow: I totally froze back then and never recovered
Side of Eye: So that’s where my fear comes from
Under Eye: I’m so afraid to ever speak in public again
Under Nose: I feel so afraid to say anything out loud
Chin: I never want to be vulnerable again
Collarbone: I remember it like it was yesterday
Under Arm: It’s still stuck in my body
Top of Head: My body remembers what happened back then
Again, you may want to take this opportunity to tap several more rounds to completely collapse a specific event that has been contributing to your fear of public speaking.
I really liked your page. I was wondering although I am normally a really good presenter I did give a presentation where I sort of choked and although I got through it everyone in the room knew I was struggling and not doing well. Although it was a long time ago and I have given many good ones since I always wonder what happened and if it could happen again and if it has happened to other normally good presenters