Ground Yourself: 6 Grounding Techniques to Help Anxiety

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Anxiety is a natural response for any person. We all exist in a world where we are surrounded by things that can make us feel uneasy or intimidate us. It makes us human.

Sometimes, when we feel overwhelmed or debilitated, we don’t know how to cope.

No one should have to miss out on life experiences or events because their anxiety tells them to stay indoors and avoid the triggers. That’s why grounding ourselves is essential and finding the right ways to deal with anxiety.

Everyone experiences it differently, so here are some ways you could try grounding yourself:

1. The 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Technique

This technique is used to ease your state of mind in stressful moments. You begin by acknowledging five things you can see, four things that you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell and one thing you can taste. By using this method, you are using your mind to concentrate on activating your five senses one at a time. Once complete, your mind is no longer focusing on the anxiety.

2. A Social Media Cleanse

When we go onto social media, we see something negative most of the time. Whether a hateful comment or an intimidating post, you can set your phone back down, feeling worse than you did before. Try taking a step back from constantly checking your phone. Instead, try using positive things for your body and mind. Some examples could be reading a book, going for a walk, or listening to a podcast that talks about something you like! Doing this can ground you and connect you back to the real world.

3. Play the Memory Game

This one requires visualisation; some people learn better when visualising a problem and working it out, so this technique will help anyone with that mindset. Select a photograph of something; it can be anything you want. Look at this picture for five to 10 seconds, then put it away. Close your eyes and begin to slowly recreate the photograph in your mind, thinking of all the details, small or large. If this doesn’t help, as an alternative, you can use your mind to list all the things you could see!

4. The ABC Technique

This method can be an excellent way to exercise your brain and focus all your attention on this technique. You will start by choosing a category, food, for example, and then you will make your way through the alphabet and name a food that begins with the letter you are on. For example, A for apricot, B for bread, C for carrot and so on.

5. Recite Something That Holds Meaning to You!

This could be anything! A song you love, a poem, a passage from your favourite book or a quote that you read, and it just stuck, any message you know by heart. Recite it to yourself in your mind softly and while doing this, visualise the words as you initially read them for the first time or visualise yourself writing the phrase on a piece of paper. If uttering the phrase aloud, focus on the contour of how your lips move while you’re saying these words.

6. Create A Grounding kit

Choose a small essentials bag that you can carry around with you for any occasion, whether college or a night out and pack it with these items:

1. A rough/solid object, for example, a crystal – hold this in your hands and play around with it, distracting your brain because you’re focusing on all the crevices of the crystal.

2. A soft object, for example, a small plush toy from your childhood – you’re thinking of the comfort this object holds over you, thinking of how you got it and how it never left your side.

3. A handkerchief with your safe scent on it, for example, lavender - spray the handkerchief with a scent you identify with calmness. People will think you are just blowing your nose, so it is a subtle way of feeling comfortable in an uncomfortable situation.

4. Something to chew on, for example, soft mints – this is your safe sweetie; your mind will be trained into thinking when you taste this, you are safe and calm.

There are many ways to tackle your anxiety, it is such a common thing and nothing to be afraid of or ashamed of. Anyone can beat it! It is all about taking the time to discover what is best for you and how you choose to ground yourself.