Stressed Out or Overwhelmed? Give Grounding a Try

Feeling stressed can eventually lead to feeling overwhelmed, and sometimes we are at a loss for how to escape those emotions. Grounding is a way to give yourself a mental reset. Practicing grounding can help you temporarily “short-circuit” your brain’s natural fight-or-flight stress response and bring yourself back into the present moment.

What Is Grounding?

Grounding is a science-based technique to help you manage excessive stress or stress in the moment, such as feeling overwhelmed. Grounding is a terrific tool because it can be done relatively quickly, and there is no cost involved. All you need to do is bring your attention to your physical surroundings and focus on something that you are touching. The classic example is to touch the surface of your desk, noting the texture and what it feels like under your fingertips. When you are feeling overwhelmed or stressed, reconnecting to something in your immediate surroundings can help you detach from your stressor and face it later with a less stressed mind.

Grounding can also be used to destress prior to stress-inducing situations, such as before a presentation, meeting, challenging conversation, performance discussion, etc.

Keep in mind that grounding is not a “one and done” activity. Change and stress are inevitable! As new stressors show up, you can continue to practice grounding techniques — and if one technique doesn’t work, try others until you find the one that is right for you.

Alternatives

Grounding can be practiced in many ways, for example:

• Rub your fingertips together and focus on the sensation — even try to feel the ridges of your fingerprints.
• Focus on the feel of your feet on the solid ground or surface beneath you.
• Sit in a comfortable chair, close your eyes, and focus on the feel of the chair against your body, as well as what the material of the chair feels like.
• Put an object in one of your hands and notice how it feels, how heavy or light it is, what the texture feels like, and what it looks like.
• Hold something tightly, then release it (e.g., your desk, your chair, your pen, or simply making a fist).
• Run water over your hands, noting how warm or cold the water feels.
• Do a few simple body stretches, focusing your attention on each stretch and how it feels.
• Use the “3-3-3” approach — focus on the details of three things around you that you can see, three that you can hear, and three that you can touch.
• Use the “5-4-3-2-1” technique — notice five things around you that you can see, four that you can touch, three that you can hear, two that you can smell, and one that you can taste.

For a quick overview of grounding (or if you are really short on time), the American Psychological Association (APA) created a 30-second grounding tool: Quick Ways to Manage Your Stress: Ground Yourself. APA also provides quick tips for managing stress and stress caused by uncertainty.

Dr. Lauren Forgacs is an organizational development psychologist and applied positive psychologist, with more than six years of service in the federal government and 20 years of private sector experience, including award-winning accomplishments with a top five management consulting firm. She provides expert guidance and customized solutions to federal leaders on organizational development and culture, change management, leadership, teambuilding, employee engagement, and psychological safety. She is an expert on human-centered leadership and recently developed a year-long, cohort-based training program to enhance enterprise-wide leadership skills, organizational effectiveness, and the employee experience. Dr. Forgacs has held several leadership positions, effectively leading and motivating remote, hybrid, and on-site teams. She is also a certified federal leadership coach and a Gallup-certified strengths coach.

Photo by Cup of Couple at pexels.com.