I want to talk about the concept of being grounded or grounding.
This is not the unconscious act of a naughty teenager, ‘grounded’ in a type of punishment ritual for inappropriate behavior, but a conscious behaviour to stop, reflect and breathe.
To collect your thoughts and energy and come back to your inner self (yin) from the outer world of (yang) noise and chaos. To be wise, solid, connected and anchored into your own physical body.
This can be hard, especially when we are in emotional, mental, spiritual pain or trauma of some sort. We don’t want to ‘sit with our pain’. We don’t want to feel our emotions. We want to disconnect. It’s an avoidance and denial tactic that we think makes us feel safe.
When we’re NOT grounded, we typically disconnect or ‘numb out’ with the help of alcohol, drugs, sex, food, shopping, painkillers, being too involved in everyone’s drama, social media, video games, mindlessly watching TV… and the list goes on!
It’s like being in ‘crazy town’
What does it feel like when you’re not grounded? Well, I have a client who refers to this concept as ‘being in crazy town’. She’s said, ‘I’m not sure of where I am or who I am. I’m lost in others peoples stuff’. I understand what she means, as the concept of losing ourselves can be hard to explain, but very real when it’s happening to you.
It’s also much more damaging: not only are you out of ‘sync’ with your self-awareness, but you’re also vulnerable to being bombarded everyone else’s energy – good or bad. If you’re sensitive or empathic, this is a cocktail for disaster when it comes to your own health and wellbeing.
What can being ungrounded lead to?
In short – anxiety, depression and being reactive. If you’re not in the present, anchored and grounded, you’re in the PAST, which creates depression because you may be looking back, thinking about the past. Or, you’re in the FUTURE, which creates anxiety – over the anticipation of what might happen, trying to work out stuff, trying to control.
Where do you want to be? Ideally, in the NOW – which literally means to be present: with your self, right now. To have your consciousness and your physical body seamlessly engaged. To get your feet back on the ground.
What happens when you learn to be ‘grounded’?
Well, it’s pretty simple. You’ll stop disconnecting so much. You won’t want to numb your pain with drugs or booze or online shopping or scrolling Instagram for hours a day.
You’ll want to plug into the present. You’ll be aware of who you are. Of your potential.
Don’t get me wrong, this takes courage in tough times. Because it involves feeling EVERYTHING: the good and bad. The joy with the grief. Disconnecting from tricky or painful feelings means we’re not connected to the joy either – or able to make good decisions.
Pop Quiz: How grounded are you?
Do you have self-awareness? Do you control and master your own energy? Or do you often find yourself falling down the rabbit hole of numbness and disconnect? Only you can answer this. See how many apply to you on the blue checklist, above.
When you are grounded, you’ll feel a lot of the things on the green checklist, right.
How can you ground yourself?
- Bare feet on the grass, time spent in nature
- Back to basics – stop, breath, sleep, rest, and eat well
- Exercise
- Clean the house
- Cook
- Hug a tree
- Go hiking and walking
- Lie on the beach
- Swim in the lake and ocean
- Have a bath
- Just be – don’t do
- Practice meditation
- Visualize your ideal life
- Hold grounding acupuncture points (found in my Skills 4 daily life course below)
- Smell essential oils
- Have a body therapy session i.e. kinesiology, massage
- Practicing being intuitive
- Daily rituals
- Pick an emotion card and reflect on how you feel
If you are suffering a lot from the ungrounded symptoms on the list, it’s time to book a session – or do some of the ideas above to ground yoruself.
Like to learn more about being grounded and switched on – and aware of your energy and your emotions? I have a fun, easy-to-do online course, which will teach you techniques to stay balanced and stress-free.
Main photo by Imani Clovis on Unsplash
