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Grounding techniques

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Pinkgiraffe

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Hi,

I have cptsd and I'm currently in therapy, which started last June. At the moment I have lots of things going on which are related to my abuse and are causing the police to be involved. As a result, I am having real issues with anxiety attacks, flashbacks, body memories, dissociation and regressions.

Can anyone help me come up with more grounding techniques, things I can do myself and things other people can do/help me to do.

Currently I do the five senses thing, pushing my feet into the floor, smelling essential oils, finding all the blue or round things in the room, remembering time I've spent with my baby brother. My therapist does colouring with me to try and keep my hands busy and my mind focused on something. During flashbacks, when my dad is there, he will move my hand to stroke his beard or brush it against my forehead, and I always end up fiddling with one of his rings, he says they often help me to know he is there and calm me down a bit, but they themselves don't bring me back.

Thank you.
 
Those are all great grounding techniques. But, doing something physical can be really effective, too. Take a walk, pull weeds, go to coffee or lunch with a friend. With summer close, go to the local pool and swim, exercise, bake, wash the car, walk the dog or a neighbor's dog, go hiking...do something that makes your body move and gets you involved with the outdoors. It takes an effort to put the energy into these activities. It is sorta like kick-starting a motorcycle but once you get it started, it will pick up momentum and get you going. I love to use coloring and other creative, hands-on activities, too. Audio books work for me, as well....anything that will keep my attention and distract.
 
I like to use an App Headspace for short meditations during the course of the day. The place I feel the most grounded is during energy mind-body likereiki and massage. That’s when I can really relax and I feel gravity pulling me down to earth. My chakras are often closed, so energy work on a regular basis has made the difference for me.
 
Anything that appeals to the senses can be grounding. I love sweet things. Some find sour stuff to be grounding. Things that feel soft. Soothing sounds. Or maybe energizing music. Anything that smells pleasant or has positive memories associated with it. The list goes on and on. It’s an exercise in exploration to figure out what works for you. Good luck!
 
You could let run water over your hands, cold and warm in change.
I had problems with grounding for a very long time, and my therapist told me to practice them constantly through my day, even if I didn’t need grounding at that moment.
Did you ever tried imagination? I am not sure if this is the right term, because English is not my first language.
I am using the ‘safe place imagination’ a lot.
Another thing I am doing is that I gently flick a rubber band at my wrist, this is also a thing my therapist told me. While I am doing this I am telling myself which date it is, this is always my first step since then.
Also, I have my little emergency bag, where I have some stuff remembering me about my safe place, a grounding object, an essential oil, a picture, the rubber band etc. I am taking this bag with me all the time!
Hope you find something that will help you!
 
Things that bring you back to the here and now, so mindfulness in all its forms - I’d second using the Headspace app or simply eating a piece of chocolate while fully focussed on the smell, taste, texture etc. Whatever you’re doing try to spend a minute or so really present in it, so if I’m in the shower I’ll feel the warmth of the water, smell the shower gel I’m using, hear the sound of the water falling (and the shower pump) etc.

You could also do a puzzle or jigsaw or quiz to keep your mind focussed on a task.

I also find using nicely scented hand cream works both to self soothe as I rub it into my hands and the scent is calming and focusses my kind. There are no magic tricks here, it’s having a tool kit of lots of different things all of which work for you some of the time.
 
I just want to honor and admire all the women on this site that have appt encouraged me and remind me of all the ways we can stay in the moment. That place of complete calm. Where we are safe and from where we can move forward instead of drowning in the deep end. Grounding is, to me, the place from which healing begins, because it is our own personal mindfulness that is running the show, NOT our abusers.
So thank you and best wishes to everyone.
 
I don't know if this will be helpful, but have you tried absurdity? I became so frustrated with not functioning in certain situations that I started running through the "what's the worst that could happen..." scenarios, and took them to the most absurd outcomes I could think of.
Like ... What's the worst that could happen if my friend gave me a gentle hug? I imagine myself just accepting it (instead of backing away). I flush with embarrassment. I turn bright pink, from the belly button out. Then bright orange. Purple. Then a rainbow. My friend 'catches' the rainbow...
Nothing bad. Sometimes childish. Brief, but because it's absurd, it takes that tight life-sucking feeling and let's me laugh (or at least smile) AT THE FEELING. And gives my friend a few moments where she doesn't feel immediately rejected.
It's a technique I'm working on. Hope it helps.
 
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