Surrender · “Let Go to Receive”
TAT (Tapas Acupressure Technique)
To release an emotional upset, trauma, limiting belief or stress by lightly holding a fixed acupressure pose on the head while moving attention, one at a time, through a short series of ‘steps’ — phrases that name the problem, allow its opposite, and invite forgiveness and letting-go.
TAT in 5 lines: Pick one issue. Take the TAT Pose — thumb and little-finger at the inner corners of the eyes, middle finger just above the brow, other hand cradling the back of the head, light touch. Hold each “Step” for ~a minute: the problem happened → it’s over and safe to heal → everything connected heals → I forgive others → I forgive myself → choose what I want instead. Drink water, rest, repeat if needed. It likely helps via calm attention and forgiveness/reappraisal, not proven energy release — and never replaces care for real trauma.
What it is
TAT is a simple self-applied energy-psychology method created by acupuncturist Tapas Fleming. You adopt a fixed TAT Pose — lightly touching a few points on the face and the back of the head — and, while holding it, you move your attention slowly through a short, set series of “Steps”: brief phrases that first acknowledge the problem, then allow that it can be over/resolved, then extend forgiveness (to yourself, others, and those connected to the issue) and let it go.
The claim is that holding the pose while putting attention on each step lets the upset, trauma, or limiting belief “release”. It’s used for stress, anxiety, traumatic memories, limiting beliefs, troubling habits, and (more contentiously) allergies and physical complaints.
The Method
Fleming’s protocol (You Can Heal Now, 1999) runs roughly:
- Choose the issue. Name one specific thing to work on — an upset, a memory, a belief, a habit.
- Take the TAT Pose. One hand: place the thumb tip lightly at the inner corner of one eye, the ring/little-finger tip at the inner corner of the other eye, and the middle finger about half an inch above, between the eyebrows (the “third eye” area). The other hand cradles the back of the head, palm over the occiput. Light contact only.
- Move through the Steps, one at a time, holding each for about a minute (or until you feel a shift). A widely taught nine-step sequence runs in spirit: - The problem happened (put attention on it as it was). - The problem is over / I’m safe now and it can heal. - All the places in my mind, body and life connected to this heal now. - All the origins of this problem heal (even ones I don’t know). - Forgiveness: I forgive everyone I blamed for this, including God and life. - Self-forgiveness: I forgive myself, and apologise to anyone I hurt around this. - Forgiveness from others / parts of me connected to it. - All remaining parts of the problem heal now. - Choose what I want instead (the desired state), and rest in it.
- Drink water and rest. Fleming recommends hydrating and noticing how the issue feels now; re-rate and repeat for any remaining charge. (This is a faithful summary of the pose and the spirit of the Steps; the exact wording is Fleming’s copyrighted material and is paraphrased, not reproduced.)
Source & Lineage
Tapas Fleming, a licensed acupuncturist in California, developed TAT in 1993 and set it out in You Can Heal Now (1999).
It belongs to the energy-psychology family that grew from Roger Callahan’s TFT and Gary Craig’s EFT, but TAT is distinctive: instead of tapping a sequence of points, you hold one static pose and let the change happen through the attention-plus-forgiveness Steps.
Its forgiveness/letting-go core overlaps with surrender practices in this library — Sedona Method, Ho’oponopono cleaning, and Hawkins’ letting go — and with tapping. It has been studied modestly, including ACEs and weight-loss-maintenance contexts.
Common refinements
Rushing the Steps. The value is in resting attention on each step long enough to feel a shift, not reciting them fast.
- Forcing forgiveness. If a forgiveness step feels false, stay with “I’m willing to be willing” rather than faking it; honesty matters more than the script.
- Crediting the points. Treat the pose as a focusing aid, not a proven energy intervention.
- Using it for serious trauma alone. Get qualified support for real trauma rather than self-processing heavy material solo.