When Christian Bonner wants to reduce stress, he’s got something to tap into, thanks to a technique he learned at Neuqua Valley High School.
The 17-year-old senior and member of the wind ensemble recently participated in a “tapping” seminar as a way to calm the nervous system.
“I went into it with an open mind and decided just to go with it,” said Bonner, who plays clarinet. “It seemed like a really interesting concept that none of us had experienced before.”
Emotional freedom technique, or tapping, draws on the principles of healing from traditional Chinese medicine. The premise is that by tapping gently with your finger tips on pressure points — similar to the points targeted in acupuncture — you can reduce stress.
“Tapping doesn’t make all of your problems go away or suddenly make everything fall into place, but it calms the nervous system so you are in a much calmer place to deal with any problem you have,” said Lynne Staley, a grief educator at RUAH Center in Naperville and EFT practitioner who led the tapping seminar. “If we can learn how to address stress in our lives as it happens, we won’t store it, and that’s really important.”
In less than an hour, Staley explained tapping and led students through the technique.
“This is a short amount of time to teach this, but they really can learn enough to use for the rest of their lives,” Staley said. “You can use tapping for past, present or future (experiences); if you have some regret or something from the past, you can tap on that to reduce the emotional charge related to it.”
It was Staley’s third time sharing the technique with musicians at the south Naperville school.
“Yes, we are doing music, but first and foremost we care about the kids as human beings and individuals,” said Jonathan Lauff, wind ensemble director and fine arts department chair. “I think it’s important for the students to know that we have an open mind as faculty (members), and the fact that we are willing to take precious class time shows that we are open.”
Lauff said if there is a “better way or a different way to manage stress,” it’s worth taking the time to learn about it. And according to the feedback he’s received, it was.
“The students benefit from it,” Lauff said. “I have had conversations with students who have actually used it and it has helped them.”
Bonner is a believer.
“I actually used it during the wind ensemble auditions last year,” he said. “I didn’t feel that nervous and I was more relaxed. I will use it for my college auditions, too.”
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Bonner, who wrote a research paper on EFT for his English class, said he is grateful to have learned the technique.
“I think it is really cool the way Neuqua (teachers) show we are all important as individuals, and they are trying to help us achieve the best we can in music and in life,” he said.
Jane Donahue is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.