Anxiety are thoughts. That’s it, just thoughts. Yes, they can cause terrible effects on the body, but they begin as thoughts. They run away with our minds and bodies and steal our energy for the present because anxiety is almost never about the present. It’s about yesterday. It’s about tomorrow. It’s about what might happen or already happened, but we live in the present and what’s happening at this moment.
I’ve had my share of panic attacks, I used to take medicine for it. Every time I had a panic attack I would run for the Xanax. It wasn’t until I found a new therapist who taught me how to manage them without medicine that things changed for me. It was called 54321 grounding.
Grounding is simply pulling your thoughts together when your mind goes rogue and focus on your surroundings through your senses. Whether you experience full-blown panic attacks or can’t sleep because of a mental spiral it’s a great way to restore a little balance.
The technique is simple. When you feel a panic attack coming on begin to take some deep breaths. Make sure your stomach moves when you breathe so that there is no shallow breathing. The goal isn’t to hyperventilate but to oxygenate.
Now look around the room. Pick five things out of your surroundings. Name them out loud (you can whisper them). If can’t to that simply observe them. Focus on each one for a moment. What do you observe? What color are they? What are they used for?
Next, pick four things can you touch. Reach out and touch them. How about something you’re wearing? What your sitting on? How would you describe the texture? The temperature?
Now it’s time to listen. What three things do you hear? Are they loud? Soft? Familiar? When you begin to slow down and start breathing normally, are you aware of a sound that you didn’t even know was there?
Next, notice if there are smells. This is a rough one for me because I lack the sense of smell unless it’s very pungent. Try smelling your skin, or your clothing, or the air, The point is to focus on your surroundings and step out of your mind.
The last sense is taste. Do you have a taste on your tongue or in your mouth from a previous meal or drink? Do you taste toothpaste? If you have a drink or mint around you can use these, and will give you something solid to taste.
Some people see grounding as a metaphysical connection to the earth or its energy. Others see grounding as a spiritual experience. But for anxiety and panic attacks purposes this technique I learned from my therapist years ago got me to a place where I could function normally in society or in extremely stressful situations.
54321 Grounding
From Pity to Praise 