Orienting

This simple scanning/scouting manoeuvre of the head enables the eyes, ears and nose to check for any potential dangers in our environment. Once we get the all-clear, we can relax.

Orienting is a natural reactive response to a perceived threat, but we can use it pro-actively to help us unwind and calm down. All we need do is be attentive while we do it.

Where we do it depends on what spaces are available to us. We could do it at home, sitting in a chair, smelling, listening to and looking at all that’s around us. This alone may be enough, or it may be useful to make a mental note of what our eyes, ears and nose are detecting: the sound of a car outside, a colourful picture on the wall, the smell of cooking from next door.

Perhaps one of the most intense places to consciously orient (which may or may not be a good thing) is a natural habitat: in a field, in the woods or by a lake. Here there is so much stimulation for the senses that we can really engage our nervous system and help it to self-regulate.