Grounding Techniques to Help Deal with Anxiety

When anxiety starts to intensify due to any form of trigger both internal and external, we find ourselves losing control of everything in and around us. This feeling as it intensifies continuously, it descends into a downward spiral of losing control of ourselves, our bodies, our behaviour and reactions and our thoughts. This downward spiral of losing control could lead to an anxiety attack or at times something even more severe, a panic attack. Whether a person experiences a Panic attack, an Anxiety attack or even an episode of anxiety, as it can be different for everybody, what is common is the fear and the sense of loss of control over ourselves.

During such times we often feel helpless however, here are some ways to cope with it.

5-4-3-2-1 Sensory grounding technique

Find a space for yourself to settle down, engaging your 5 senses take a look around your environment and notice the following

• 5 things that you can SEE- Observe the nature of the objects that you see.

• 4 things that you can TOUCH- Take your time to feel the sensation of that object on your skin.

• 3 things that you can HEAR- Pay close attention to the nature of the sound.

• 2 things that you can SMELL- Take a deep breath and notice the scents present in your environment.

• 1 thing that you can TASTE- Notice the taste of a drink, candy, food or even the taste in your mouth and feel it on your tongue.

The focus of this technique is to take you away from your anxious thoughts and bring you back to the present by engaging in your 5 senses.

Taking a short walk

• As you put your feet on the ground take a few deep breaths and notice your feet on the ground.

• Take some time to notice what the ground feels like when you are walking on it.

• Notice the rhythm of your footsteps

• Pay attention to your walking pace

• And take a few deep breaths at intervals

This technique also helps to redirect yourself from the intense anxious thoughts and brings you to the present

Moving your Body

Body moment can be practised in many ways. They include both big and small movements of the body

• Doing stretches

• Doing jumping jacks

• Spot jogging

• Closing an opening of the fist

• Hugging your self

• Moving your stomach and chest as you breathe in and out

Using Numbers and Letters

When your environment is not engaging enough to ground you, we can use our mental ability to help us with the same.

• Try counting backwards from 20 or any number above

• Minusing 2 from the number 20 or any number above till 0

• Try reciting the alphabet backwards

• Spell the objects in and around your environment both forwards and backward.

Reciting something

Another mental grounding strategy is to recite something from your memory.

• Pick a song, saying, quote, mantra, poem or passage from a book.

• Recite what you have in mind slowly to yourself quietly word by word.

• As you do so understand the meaning of each word.

• If you feel the need you can say it aloud and pay attention to your voice, your tone and your pace.

• As you recite it out aloud or in your mind, visualize each word that you say.

Find what grounding strategy works best for you and practising them and keeping the resources at hand would help you take control of the feeling of anxiety and not anxiety over you.

Disclaimer: This blog post is meant for awareness/entertainment purposes only. It is not medical advice and one must refrain from self-diagnosing. It is in no way a substitute for therapy with a mental health professional and it is not meant to be clinical. To consult with a psychotherapist on our team, you can contact us on fettle.counselling@gmail.com.