I think this heartfelt testimonial I received from a woman named Darla perfectly illustrates the powerful connection between our emotions and digestive health:
“I can’t tell you how much I love The Tapping Solution. I just did the Support Your Healing: Indigestion, Acid Reflux and more. All I can say is WOW! I have dealt with anxiety and digestive issues all my life. No medications work. And the doctors could never tell me what was causing my problems. With this tapping meditation I started out as a 10 by the end I was down to 4. The emotions welled up for sure. I feel calmer and my stomach is more settled. I can now face my day with more joy and energy and calm. Thank you to the Ortners for this app and group. It really is a life changer.”
Darla’s experience touches on something I’ve witnessed countless times: the profound connection between our digestive systems and our emotional lives. When she mentions that “the emotions welled up for sure,” she’s highlighting an insight that modern medicine is only beginning to fully embrace — that our gut health and our emotional health are inextricably linked.
Let’s explore why Tapping can be so transformative for digestive issues when conventional approaches often fall short.
The Gut-Brain Connection: More Than Just a Metaphor
We’ve all experienced “butterflies in the stomach” before a big event or that sinking feeling when we receive bad news. These aren’t just expressions — they reflect the very real physiological connection between our emotions and our digestive system.
What science now confirms is that this connection runs deeper than we ever imagined:
- Our gut contains over 100 million nerve cells — more than in our spinal cord
- 90% of serotonin (our “feel good” neurotransmitter) is produced in the gut
- The vagus nerve creates a direct highway of communication between our brain and digestive system
- Stress directly impacts gut motility, acid production, and inflammation levels
When Darla mentions dealing with “anxiety and digestive issues all my life,” she’s describing what many research studies have confirmed: anxiety and digestive problems frequently occur together, each potentially triggering and amplifying the other.
“Anxiety and digestive problems frequently occur together, each potentially triggering and amplifying each other.”
When Medical Approaches Reach Their Limits
One of the most poignant parts of Darla’s testimonial is her experience with conventional medicine: “No medications work. And the doctors could never tell me what was causing my problems.”
This experience is frustratingly common for people with chronic digestive issues. When standard tests come back “normal” and medications provide little relief, many people are left feeling hopeless, or worse, like their symptoms are “all in their head.”
The truth is more complex. Digestive issues often exist at the intersection of physical, emotional, and neurological factors — a space where conventional medicine sometimes struggles to provide complete solutions:
- Medications may address acid production but not the underlying stress response
- Tests might miss the subtle ways stress hormones are impacting digestion
- The emotional components that trigger flare-ups often go unaddressed
- The complex interplay between past emotional experiences and current physical symptoms is rarely explored
This is precisely where Tapping enters the picture — not as a replacement for medical care, but as a complementary approach that addresses dimensions of healing that medications alone cannot reach.
The Tapping Difference: Addressing All Layers of Digestive Distress
Darla reported that her distress level dropped from a 10 to a 4 in just one session, which tells me she’s experiencing the multi-level healing that Tapping can facilitate:
1. Calming the Stress Response
Tapping sends immediate calming signals to the amygdala (the brain’s alarm center), reducing the production of stress hormones that can wreak havoc on digestion. This can create a physiological shift where:
- Digestion can resume its normal function
- Blood flow returns to the digestive organs
- Inflammation begins to subside
- Muscle tension in the digestive tract relaxes
2. Processing Emotional Contributors
When Darla mentions “emotions welled up for sure,” she speaks to something crucial — digestive issues often have emotional components that need processing. These might include:
- Lingering anxiety or worry that constantly activates the stress response
- Repressed emotions that manifest as physical tension in the gut
- Past experiences where feeling safe was compromised
- Current situations that feel “hard to stomach” or “difficult to digest”
Tapping provides a gentle way to process these emotions without being overwhelmed by them. As we acknowledge these feelings while doing Tapping, we create the conditions for both emotional and physical release.
3. Rewiring Neural Patterns
Many digestive issues become self-perpetuating cycles: anxiety triggers digestive symptoms, which cause more anxiety, which worsens symptoms. Tapping helps interrupt this cycle by:
- Creating new neural pathways associated with calm and ease
- Reducing anticipatory anxiety about digestive issues
- Building confidence in the body’s ability to function normally
- Separating past experiences from present moments
4. Restoring Mind-Body Communication
Perhaps most importantly, Tapping helps restore healthy communication between mind and body. Many of us have learned to ignore our body’s signals until they become loud emergencies. Tapping helps us:
- Tune in to subtle body signals before they become critical
- Respond to early signs of digestive distress with self-care
- Build trust in our body’s wisdom and healing capacity
- Create a sense of partnership with our body rather than frustration
“Digestive issues often exist at the intersection of physical, emotional, and neurological factors — a space where conventional medicine sometimes struggles to provide complete solutions.”
From Suffering to Settled: The Ripple Effects of Digestive Healing
What strikes me about the end of Darla’s testimonial is how her relief extended far beyond just digestive comfort. She writes: “I can now face my day with more joy and energy and calm.”
This ripple effect is what makes digestive healing through Tapping so profound. When our digestive system settles…
- We reclaim the energy that was being drained by constant discomfort
- Our mood improves as gut health influences neurotransmitter production
- We can be fully present rather than distracted by physical distress
- We sleep better, which further supports healing
- We can enjoy food as nourishment rather than a source of anxiety
For many people with chronic digestive issues, the condition becomes a lens through which they experience everything else. Every meal, social event, workday, or travel plan gets filtered through the question: “How will my digestive system respond?” When that filter is removed or significantly lightened, life opens up in remarkable ways.
The Research-Backed Approach
While Darla’s experience might seem almost miraculous, the science behind Tapping for digestive issues is increasingly robust. Research has shown that EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) Tapping:
- Reduces cortisol levels by an average of 43% in just one hour
- Significantly impacts inflammatory markers in the body
- Improves symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and other functional digestive disorders
- Reduces anxiety associated with chronic health conditions
What makes Tapping particularly effective for digestive issues is its ability to address both the physiological stress response and the emotional components simultaneously — something few other approaches can do.
Your Turn: A Simple Tapping Sequence for Digestive Calm
If you’re experiencing digestive discomfort, here’s a simple Tapping sequence to get you started:
- Rate your discomfort on a scale of 0-10
- Begin with the setup phrase, tapping on the side of the hand point: “Even though I’m experiencing this digestive discomfort, I deeply and completely accept myself and how my body feels right now.”
- First round, tap through the points focusing on the physical sensations:
Eyebrow: “This discomfort in my digestive system”
Side of the eye: “All this tension and distress in my gut”
Under the eye: “My body is struggling to digest peacefully”
Under the nose: “All this discomfort and unease”
Under the mouth: “The pressure and pain I’m feeling”
Collarbone: “My digestive system is in distress”
Under the arm: “All these uncomfortable sensations”
Top of the head: “My body feeling this way right now”
- Second round, explore the emotional connections:
Eyebrow: “I wonder what emotions might be connected to this”
Side of the eye: “What might I be finding hard to ‘stomach’ right now?”
Under the eye: “What situations feel ‘hard to digest’ in my life?”
Under the nose: “Any anxiety or stress affecting my digestive system”
Under the mouth: “The emotions stored in my digestive organs”
Collarbone: “It’s safe to acknowledge these feelings”
Under the arm: “My body is trying to tell me something”
Top of the head: “I’m listening to these messages with compassion”
- Final round, focus on calming and healing:
Eyebrow: “My digestive system can relax now”
Side of the eye: “Sending calming signals to my entire gut”
Under the eye: “My body knows how to digest with ease”
Under the nose: “I allow my digestive organs to function optimally”
Under the mouth: “Releasing any tension from my entire digestive tract”
Collarbone: “My body remembers how to digest peacefully”
Under the arm: “Allowing healing energy to flow through my gut”
Top of the head: “I am safe, and my digestion can be calm”
Remember to take deep, gentle breaths throughout the process and rate your discomfort again afterward. Multiple rounds may be needed for best results.
“Tapping sends immediate calming signals to the amygdala, reducing the production of stress hormones that can wreak havoc on digestion.”
Beyond the Quick Fix: Creating Lasting Digestive Health
What makes Darla’s story so important is that it represents more than just temporary relief — it points to the possibility of transforming our relationship with our digestive systems entirely.
For those who have spent years or even decades struggling with digestive issues that medications haven’t resolved, Tapping offers something precious: a path forward that honors both the physical and emotional aspects of digestive health.
This isn’t about bypassing medical care — proper diagnosis and treatment remain essential. Rather, it’s about complementing conventional approaches with tools that address the mind-body connection that is so central to digestive function.
Your Digestive Healing Journey
If Darla’s experience resonates with you, here are some suggestions for your own digestive healing journey:
- Start with the specific: Like Darla, try the “Support Your Healing: Indigestion, Acid Reflux, and More” meditation in The Tapping Solution App for targeted relief
- Add anxiety support: Since anxiety and digestive issues often go hand-in-hand, include sessions focused specifically on anxiety reduction
- Look for patterns: Notice if certain emotional states or situations tend to trigger your digestive symptoms, and tap specifically on those connections
- Be patient with the process: While many people experience immediate relief like Darla did, healing digestive issues completely often happens in layers
- Work with your healthcare providers: Share your experiences with tapping with your healthcare team as part of your integrated approach to digestive health
Looking for support with digestive healing?
- The Tapping Solution App – Our app features specific meditations for helping with digestive issues and the emotions or stress tied to them. We also have a lot of content to help release stress, anxiety, fear, and other emotions that could be tied to your digestive symptoms. Definitely explore the app by searching for your specific keywords. Meanwhile, here are some specific sessions I’d recommend:
- Support Your Healing: Indigestion, Acid Reflux, and More – This is the meditation mentioned in Darla’s testimonial. We combine Tapping with insights and affirmations provided in the best-selling book, Heal Your Body, written by my dear departed friend Louise Hay.
- Healing Your Gut (Extended Session) – This Tapping meditation is designed to help you support your body in healing from a myriad of conditions related to the digestive system. We’ll explore the emotions and beliefs connected to your symptoms, and gently release the stress and fear so you can experience more ease and peace.
- Vagus Nerve Toning – The Vagus Nerve is a communication pathway between the brain and gut. These sessions are a powerful way to bring calm to this system. Whether you are looking to heal and recover, find emotional balance and ease, or tap into your intuition, these powerful sessions have got you covered!
- 5 Day IBS Support Series – This 5 Day series explores how emotions and stress can impact IBS symptoms, and we’ll begin to understand how to promote more ease in the body and mind.
- IBS Support Collection – This collection is designed to help address any specific issues you may experience in relation to IBS. Alongside the 5 Day IBS Support Series, these Tapping meditations can help you to release stress and support your body in finding balance.
Note: You can access these meditations by clicking the links above using your mobile device, or type the name of the meditation into The Tapping Solution App’s search function.
I’d love to hear your experiences with Tapping for digestive issues. Have you noticed connections between emotional states and your digestive health? Or perhaps, like Darla, you’ve experienced relief that conventional approaches couldn’t provide? Share your story in the comments below!
Here’s to your digestive peace and overall wellbeing!
Until next time… Keep Tapping!
Nick Ortner