Stand your Ground: What is Grounding and How Do We Do it?
Grounding is another buzzword that gets thrown around the wellness community with adaptogens, ashwagandha, and detox but what does it really mean to be grounded? (And I’m not talking about what happened when you “borrowed” your mom’s car in high school to go to that really cool party at the lake house…)
Being grounded, by a dictionary definition means to be “mentally and emotionally stable, admirably sensible, realistic, and unpretentious” 1. Still, as I searched for a more specific definition it became clear that it is a very recognizable feeling but a little hard to describe. Some say being grounded is being conscious and/or aware in the present moment, others say a sense of being really present in your body, or a feeling of wholeness, or an activation of the parasympathetic nervous system (the one that helps us to calm down, also called the “rest and digest” system), while others mean it literally as having your feet touching the earth. However you conceptualize the feeling of groundedness, we know it is one of our whole systems (body, mind, and spirit) simply LOVE! The more grounded we are, the more easily we are able to maintain our sense of self and balance, no matter what storms rage around us.
I want to share with you one of my favorite grounding exercises, which uses our five senses to help us get back to that sense of calm, grounded present-moment awareness.
5 Finger Exercise for Grounding
Come to a comfortable seat, eyes gently gazing down, and take a couple of deep breaths. Allow the breath to fill you from the bottom up, as low as you can, like you are filling a large vase with water.
When you are ready, touch the index finger of one hand to the spot where your wrist meets your thumb joint and trace your index finger up to the tip of your thumb while taking in a nice, slow breath.
When you reach the tip of your thumb, look around you and notice 5 things that you can see. Ideally, find 5 things that make you smile but any 5 things will do! Once you have named the things aloud or internally, trace your index finger to the tip of the other index finger while taking another slow breath in and out.
Pause at the tip of your index finger and notice 4 things you can hear. Once you have named them, trace your index finger to the tip of your middle finger, while taking a nice, slow breath.
Pause at the tip of your middle finger and notice 3 things you can feel. This could be the surface beneath you or the texture of your socks in your shoes. Once you have named 3 things you are touching, trace your finger to your ring finger while taking a breath.
As you pause at the tip of your ring finger, notice 2 things you can hear. Name them and trace your finger to your pinkie while filling the beautiful vase of your body with air.
When you reach your pinkie, notice 1 thing you can taste. This can be difficult to pick up but perhaps the taste of your coffee lingering or even the air itself. Once you have noticed this, trace your finger down the side of your hand to the spot where your wrist meets your hand while breathing in and out. Pay mindful attention to how you feel now after grounding in the present moment.
Give this simple, efficient grounding tool a try (even on the subway!), and let me know how it works for you!
“Grounded.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grounded. Accessed 18 Apr. 2023.