Dopamine, Our Pleasure Neurotransmitter! Friend or Foe?

Did you know that when we experience pleasure of one kind or another, our brain chemicals impact our limbic system including the hypothalamus, hippocampus, amygdala, & nucleus accumbens, in particular, and ventral striatum, which are connected to the neurotransmitter dopamine and the brain’s natural opiate, endorphin. Once the body associates a pleasure with those chemicals, it wants more! And more. And more. Let’s use chocolate as an example. Often the mere thought or seeing chocolate produces a release of dopamine in the brain. Then when we taste it, opiates (endorphins) are released further binding our behavior to chocolate eating! Once we eat the chocolate our dopamine level begins to drop. The ANTICIPATION of the pleasure drives the dopamine more so than the actual consumption! Now we have entered dopamine lack which often leaves us feeling deprived and we reach for more chocolate to drive the dopamine back up. It’s cyclic and chocolate is simply an example, as anything pleasurable can send our dopamine levels into overdrive, including other foods, alcohol, sex, shop lifting, work, exercise, dare devil activities, drugs, etc. A similar experience happens with cortisol and sugar. This can be the beginning of an addiction or a craving around a substance or activity that drives anxiousness. Anxiousness is very uncomfortable, but tapping can help. How? By often finding the source event or memories driving the pleasure and tapping on those. Many ask why would I want to rid myself of pleasure! You wouldn’t but perhaps letting go of the excess behaviors might feel like a good idea. And it is, as it often then leaves us more satisfied with less of something (like calories, alcohol, etc.). Questions? Thoughts? Comments? Sherrie Rice Smith Certified EFT Practitioner EFTforChristians.com Author of EFT for Christians 5 Book Series

Tapping Example from a Client Story! God is so Good!

With permission I recount this client (Jennie) story:

EFT Tapping is such a versatile tool. Here is a practical use of it!

Jennie was having anxiety and some fear around this her upcoming colonoscopy appointment.

And so we tapped on all the different aspects (details) that were bothering her including:

1). Fear of what the doctor might find

2). Anxiety about the procedure itself, including the sedation

3). Anxiety about the awful prep including the diet, as the allowable pre-test foods are things Jennie doesn't usually eat!

4). Fear of catching COVID at the clinic

5). Inconvenience of needing to go to clinic 2 days early to get a COVID test

6). Anxiety about previous prep reactions - feeling horribly cold, shaking, and generally feeling miserable

7). Anxiety about trying to remember to take some car seat protective covering in case of an accident.

8). Fear about getting an IV pre-op, reactions to the anesthetic, and whatever else we tapped about!

PRAISE REPORT

Wonderfully, the following morning I receive a phone call! Jennie is now actually excited to get this colonoscopy done and over. Yes, read that! Excited!

Her reframe (changing of our mind) is she is going to ENJOY the 5 day prep! After looking at the dietary list, she realized she would buy and eat foods she loves but rarely eats because they don't fit into her lifestyle right now. She planned to TREAT herself to something special!

Jennie wrote out her menus and created her grocery list. She also wrote out a time line of what had to be done when in order to eliminate re-reading the pages and pages of instructions. Nothing would be missed or mixed up now!

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This is EXACTLY what EFT tapping often does for us!

As we tap God "reframes" and changes our mind about thing to come and things that have happened in the past, so that we can settle down and enjoy His presence right here right now in a state of grace without worry or preoccupation.

Tapping does so much more than just this, but if we just used it for issues of today, what a wonderful gift from our Lord!

What have you recently tapped about that God gave you an exciting gift as He switched up your emotions?  Leave me a message, so I can rejoice with you!

God bless your tapping journey! Join us on Facebook for more discussion opportunities!

Visit my EFT for Christians website and request the free EFT information I have listed there.

And grab a copy of my 5 EFT for Christians How-to Tap books to obtain a thorough understanding of how to incorporate the Christian components into your EFT tapping!

Remember, EFT is NOT a substitute for sound medical or psychological care, so please contact your own personal physician when you need that type of help.

We tap for Jesus!

Sherrie Rice SmithCertified EFT PractitionerEFTforChristians.comAuthor of EFT for Christians 5 Book Series

Quick Rule Summary When Tapping with Children

Quick rules for child tapping:

Let them lead the process. There is no need for a formal Set-up. Allow children to tell their story in whatever manner they want to tell it - start in the middle, start at the end, mix it up, it doesn't matter, because they are feeling whatever is bothering them, as they talk, so they usually clear the issues anyway. WE don't need to know HOW they feel about the problem, telling what happened to them is often enough to let it all go. Watch them carefully, as one or two rounds at most often solves the problem.

Don't make them do more rounds and burn them out like I did to kids who I tapped with back at the beginning of my EFT career (true confession!)!!!!

I advocate that parents teach their children to tap anytime they talk about an upsetting incident in their lives. This works wonderfully before bed because it then allows the child's subconscious mind to process the incident while they sleep. Incorporating this story telling with their bedtime prayer time is an amazingly effective way to teach children emotional regulation and self-control with God's help.

Parents can begin tapping on themselves when a child starts whining, crying, or yelling about something wrong in his/her life. The child's mirror neurons will begin to settle the child down fairly quickly. Not only does the child settle but so does the parent before s(he) says or does something regretful!

Anyone looking for tapping with children tips,can watch my first 4 EFT for Christians You Tubes (children tapping videos are Videos 1 through 4) as they were on this exact subject! In them I teach everything I know about tapping with children

It is truly amazing how quickly kids clear, often with LESS than one round! Why? Because they aren't carrying the emotional baggage we adults have hauled around for decades.

As stated in Proverbs 22:6 give a child 2 things in life and watch them grow into wonderful Christian adults. What 2 things, in addition to your love and attention? Teach them about Jesus and teach them to use EFT tapping.

God bless your tapping journey! Join us on Facebook for more discussion opportunities!

Visit my EFT for Christians website and request the free EFT information I have listed there.

And grab a copy of my 5 EFT for Christians How-to Tap books to obtain a thorough understanding of how to incorporate the Christian components into your EFT tapping!

Remember, EFT is NOT a substitute for sound medical or psychological care, so please contact your own personal physician when you need that type of help.

Sherrie Rice Smith

Certified EFT Practitioner

EFTforChristians.com

Author of EFT for Christians 5 Book Series

Annoyances, annoyances, oh, how I hate being "annoyed" which probably translates more into feeling "inconvenienced". Robo calls! How many of those do each of us receive every day?

A week ago, I was feeling "beside" myself with the constant home phone interruptions, none of which were anyone we knew.

I tapped on how I felt about all the excess noise and phone racket which lead me to a brilliant conclusion to have Brad dig out the phone operator's manual & figure out HOW to turn OFF the RINGER!

The answering machine still works, so we would get any important messages.

Conclusion? Calming myself, instead of whining and complaining about the rude phone calls, helped me ID a solution. And that is what tapping does! Calms us enough to help think through a problem, reaching a solution!

What has EFT helped you with recently to quiet down enough to fix a problem in your life?

EFT is not a substitute for sound medical care, so please phone your own personal physician when medical or psychological care is needed.

Sherrie Rice Smith

Certified EFT Practitioner

EFTforChristians.com

Author of EFT for Christians 5 Book Series

Trauma Healing

“No one can ‘treat’ a war, or abuse, rape, molestation, or any other horrendous event, for that matter; what has happened cannot be undone. But what can be dealt with are the imprints of the trauma on body, mind, and soul: the crushing sensations in your chest that you label as anxiety or depression; the fear of losing control; always being on alert for danger or rejection; the self-loathing; the nightmares and flashbacks; the fog that keeps you from staying on task and from engaging fully in what you are doing; being unable to fully open your heart to another human being.

Neuroscience research shows that the only way we can change the way we feel is by becoming aware of our inner experience and learning to befriend what is going on inside ourselves.” Bessel Van Der Kolk,The Body Keeps the Score

And this is where Christian EFT comes in!

Mix the tapping together with our faith base, allowing Jesus to take the pain and all our feelings and thoughts back to the cross with Him!

EFT is not a substitute for sound medical care, so please consult your own personal physician when care is needed.

Sherrie Rice Smith

Certified EFT Practitioner

EFTforChristians.com

Author of EFT for Christians 4 Book Series

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Eft for Christians Video # 31 Generalization Effect

Here is another EFT for Christians instructional YouTube video:  EFT for Christians Video # 31 Generalization Effect

Remember, EFT is not a substitute for sound medical or psychological care. Please call your own personal physician and take responsibility for your own emotional and physical health.

Please subscribe to my EFT for Christians YouTube Channel to get notified about all new YouTube EFT videos as they are produced.

Blessings in our Risen Savior!

Sherrie Rice Smith
Author of the EFT for Christians series found on Amazon.com