Tapping My Way to Tranquility
One self-care trick that actually works for me.
I’ve been in therapy for almost ten years now, and over those years I have tried all sorts of things to help with my anxiety and negative thoughts.
Meditating, guided meditation, grounding work, deep breathing, mindfulness, you name it, I’ve at least heard of it, but none of it has really worked for me in the moment when I’ve needed it to stave off panic.
Meditation can take me to dark places.
I’ve never been good at meditating, especially guided meditation.
Once I was going through a guided meditation in group therapy that was (obviously) supposed to be relaxing, and it went something like this:
“You’re on a beach and you come to a door.”
A door? Why the hell is there a door on a beach?
“You open the door and enter a room. It’s bare but for four walls and a chair.”
Well, does it have a ceiling? Is there a roof? What is the sky like outside? Is it stormy? Are we still even on the beach? Where the hell am I?
My mind just doesn’t…go to the right place if someone else tries to bring me there, and trying to clear my mind and push thoughts away, or meditate in the…
