Ways to Ground When you Feel Overwhelmed

When you are feeling overwhelmed, when you are worried about the future, when you need to remember that all you can focus on is this exact moment; the thing you need to do is ground. Grounding allows you to come back to the present, feel rooted in your body, and can help with anxiety and the feeling of helplessness. So let’s talk about some ways to ground, starting with the simplest and going up from there.

Going outside. This is one of the origins of the word “grounding”, and going outside and soaking up the natural energy of the earth can be incredibly centering. This could be walking out into your yard or on the beach with bare feet, going on a hike, meditating in the woods, or even walking around your neighborhood. Put your electronics away, for at least some of this time, and let your body feel the wind blowing your hair, the sun warming your face, and the way the ground feels beneath your feet. Recognizing and working with the sensations helps to bring you back to the present moment.

Use a crystal. Crystals have a very stable and constant energy, which is one reason that we feel so drawn to them. When you are feeling overwhelmed mentally, wearing or holding a crystal is an incredible way to bring that solid, protective, and centering energy back to your body. There are so many different grounding stones that can help you to do this like: Smoky Quartz, Hematite, Black Tourmaline, Obsidian, Garnet, Jaspers, and even stones that you find in nature on the beach or during a hike!

Listen to grounding or chakra sound healing frequencies. Coming to live sound healings are a great way to do this, but if you search on Youtube, Spotify, or Apple Music there are so many songs and playlists that help use frequencies to activate and balance not just your root chakra, but your solar plexus and sacral chakras as well. Because when we need to feel safe and secure, our emotions and relationships are key players within that. These are easy to pop on before you go to sleep, listen to when you are trying to destress, or when you need to stop spiraling.

Meditate. Meditation can seem like a daunting task, but there is no one right way to do it. You can use meditation apps like the Insight Timer, the Calm App, or even the CHANI app (for astrology and affirmation based content), which will lead you through guided meditations on wide varieties of topics. You can also practice calling your mind back to the present in meditation. This may be sitting and focusing on the sensations you feel, smell, hear etc, and when your mind starts to wander to anxiety producing topics. It may not solve whatever problems feels like it is overwhelming your senses, but it can help to pull you back to what you can handle in the right here and now.

There are big and challenging things that come up constantly in life (think of that old saying “If it’s not one thing, it’s another thing”). There is not always a way to fix or manage those things, so providing yourself with practices and tools is a way to support your mind and your wellbeing.