Grounding yourself

Grounding techniques are designed to bring you back to the present moment when you’re having a wobble or feeling out of control (be it cognitively, emotionally or somatically). Changing the focus of your mind with activities that can comfort, calm, stabilise and distract can really help. As you read through the below examples, think about which ones are realistic to have in reserve.

• Stamping your feet on the ground one at a time to make you aware of how the ground/floor beneath you is supporting you. Alternatively, stretching your body backwards and forwards by tilting your weight from your soles to the tips of your toes and back again.
• Pushing your body against a wall or something sturdy.
• Shaking both of your hands and imagining tensions slipping out of your fingertips onto the floor or into a bin.
• Tensing parts of your body up and then relaxing them, especially the shoulders. Alternatively, go through each muscle group within your body and tense them for five seconds at a time, before relaxing them and moving on to the next area.
• Focusing your attention on a part of your body that you’re comfortable with (or a part of your external environment).
• Focusing your attention on eating something very slowly, like a raisin. Could the action of chewing be of comfort?