What Grounds You?!

[trying2movefwd]

I have discovered using the five senses often works for me;however occasionally something I do with my senses triggers something else (example: flashbacks in bathroom looking at object, flashbacks trying to go on repeat...I self talk, stomp feet, listen to the pipes in walls, pick up dial soap to smell next to me....all of a sudden I see zest and flashback a completely different trauma....What works for you? I am having a hard time.

 

[Joan]

senses is good....I have a box of things that help...different fabrics/textures, fireballs, a smell I like, etc. I also have some things that I carry with me if out. Just an idea if you have them contained and easy to get to it will help decrease other things triggering. Keep trying!

 

[ladee]

This may sound silly, but it works.. I outline things with my eyes... say for instance, leaves on a plant or tree, or a pattern on fabric, Or tiles or bricks... I draw Zentangles (Google Zentangles , Linda Farmer), play with my goofy dog. Concentrate on my breathing. Read, if I can concentrate. Reading something NOT PTSD related.

 

[ShodokanJenn]

I do square breathing with visualization. I sit cross legged, make my hands into fists, rest them on my thighs. I make sure my back is straight and my head is held up. I close my eyes. I breathe in through my nose for a count of five, I hold my lungs full for a count of five, I breathe out through my mouth for a count of five, and I hold empty for a count of five. While I'm doing this, I envision a big, empty, white space, with me in the middle. I envision myself doing my martial arts techniques perfectly. For those who don't do martial arts, envisioning any physical skill works. It's to help connect to your body. This technique works better for me than the five senses methods. I get triggered by so many random things, that using my surroundings to ground myself often times doesn't work.

 

[Mafia_Science]

Getting into a well-lighted area with some (but not too much) noise makes me instantly feel much better, which is weird because many sufferers do the opposite. Thinking about people I genuinely love helps a lot. A cold/warm compress almost always does it for me.

 

[Missycat]

I sit with my feet flat on the ground and i really stomp them so i can feel them on the ground. I flatten my hands on my lap and sometimes tap so i can feel my hands on my legs. I sit up straight and then do breathing exercises.
I then focus on objects in the room or things that are around me and i say what they are in my head - if im at T i say them out loud.
I have my phone with me all the time when i can so have some specific tunes at the ready that help ground me, i also have a recording that i listen to that grounds me and relaxes me too. I had to take time to select the music as there are alot of songs that are triggers - ive removed these from my playlist just in case!
Hope this is of use.
MC

 

[Kailani]

Stickler told me look for five things that are blue and that helps a lot!
I also stomp my feet
I hold a rock with many edges
I smell perfumed cream
I try to feel the clothes on my body
Deep breathing; 5 min. Inhale for 3-5 and exhale for 7 sec. Thinking relax
Picture a safe place and butterflies
3 things hear, see, feel
Pet my cat and dog
Smell surf wax
To have a tree leaf
Hold an ice cube
Pray

 

[mamachick]

This is something that I stumbled on but can't do regularly. They have these 10 question quizzes on sites like FB, they are trivia and I just came across one on sleep. Answering the questions makes me think about the correct answer, sometimes using deductive reasoning. I have come across one of these when I was struggling and it made me focus on the questions. This really calmed me. Someone should make a book of small (10-20 questions) , just like seek a word but I cant focus on seek a word. Some of these quizes have questions such as which country is a particular city in. I end up remembering some of the stuff too.

I think its also good because even though I have a good education, during a neuro psych exam, the dr said I had brain injury because I suffered remote memory problems and explained that remote = things I would have learned in elementary school, such as the continents. I told him I did not go to elementary school regularly and that would impact it. He thought that was impossible since I had a 3.9 gpa in grad school. What kind of PhD neuro dr could be this stupid.

 

[trying2movefwd]

The smell of smoke, from the microwave fire is more potent now that it's my bed time so I am having trouble sleeping. Will 15 mg of melatonin, 25 mg of vistiril, and 3mg of Prazosin be enough? I wonder

 

[Naoru]

Someone should make a book of small (10-20 questions) , just like seek a word but I cant focus on seek a word. Some of these quizes have questions such as which country is a particular city in.

This is a great idea. There are a few phone apps that do this... but most cost a little bit. I use a free one that has a journal, coping strategies, breathing exercises, etc. but it's the "Get Grounded" or "Here and now" options I use the most that tells you to name various things, kind of like trivia like you mentioned or using the senses. There's room for improvement, but it helps enough most of the time (when I remember to use it lol).

I've found phone apps are helpful when I can't seem to focus on the "outside" world or when other strategies just aren't ideal or available. Otherwise, I pop a lot of mints, try to breathe, pet a dog, feel a rock, music, the usual... but I'm still learning and have a hard time snapping out of it/recognizing when I need to/not allowing flashbacks to take over.

 

[sedna]

This is something that I stumbled on but can't do regularly. They have these 10 question quizzes on sites...

The kind of guy with advanced degrees that sails through school memorizing everything without understanding what he's memorizing. A lot of PhD's and career academics are like file folders for the required info they need. They don't have competing theories in their own minds and don't care why the answer is the right one, as long as they remember the right one and get an A. :grumpy:

 

[mamachick]

Well he is "socially impaired" to charge a fortune to give a canned test where the patient is not allowed to ask questions or explain any difficulties, then make such interpretations. Further to sit there and say "what do you mean you didnt go to elementary school half of the time, I read your transcripts and you carried a 3.9 in grad school, that doesn't even make sense" Maybe not in his little world. LOL And it really is not that important to me to name 3 things about Cleopatra as an adult, or some other thing that I missed in 4th grade because I was absent and attending to my mother. But I can tell you what brands of beer and cigarettes were popular when I was in 4th grade so my remote is probably functioning just fine. LOL That is what I would have liked to tell him but was more polite priot to ptsd.

He sure could not think out of the box.