Grounding Practices for your Body, Mind & Soul!

3 Apr

Sometimes we feel scattered or confused and don’t know what steps to take next on our path of life. Especially with the current pandemic people have had to adjust their ways of living but sometimes adjusting can be really difficult. Grounding practices help us get back in touch with reality and our present situations. It helps us realize how to move towards the next step in our lives. Here are a few of my favorite grounding practices. Remember, you can always revisit this list and try a new form of grounding anytime you’re feeling lost on path. The following list is based on what has helped me feel a sense of stability and ease especially over the recent pandemic craziness. Many of these I discovered long before, but in today’s world I find it even more important to carve out time to ground my energy so that I feel balanced and approach my work and life from a place of feeling energetically abundant. As you’re reading this list, if you recently had the thought to do any of this then this is your synchronous message - the universe giving you a cordial invitation to explore whatever stuck out most. Take the message and run with it - add one or more of these practices to your calendar for the week. Trust me, you’ll be glad you did!

Meditation

When you carve out time and prioritize meditation, only then it becomes a sharp tool, for your tool belt of life. If meditation is not ritualistic in your life and you face stress, turning to meditation in chaos can help, but only minimally. The more you develop your practice of it the more you’ll be able call upon it - when your body goes into fight or flight mode you can call upon the calmness because your system gets used to it when you're not in that chaotic state. It's hard to all of a sudden call upon a tool that you don't have much practice using. So give yourself permission to prioritize YOURSELF and your health. Whether meditation or another form of mindfulness is right for you; discover and implement the version that feels like the best fit.

Nature Grounding Practice

Take a moment today to soak in nature’s abundance & express gratitude for the ability to take another breath and live another day. Sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is retreat and re-energize so that when we dive back into our life or work we are flowing with energy. When we reconnect with nature, what we are truly doing is reconnecting with ourselves. The vastness of Mother Earth is astonishing. There is much chaos and fear present on our planet, but don’t get too caught up in the fuss. She still wants us to experience her eternal beauty. She wants us to respect and take care of her. She wants us to fully express our gratitude and be mindful of how we live, so that for generations to come she can still provide such a gorgeous home for our human race. Go for a walk or a hike, surround yourself with plants. Make sure to slow down for a few moments and take deep intentional breaths, enjoying the oxygen that nature has so beautifully provided for you.

Ocean Restoration Practice

One of the best ways to recharge is to be around the ocean. It’s the perfect place to take a moment to stretch or meditate and get reconnected with your personal mission! Water is naturally an incredible element that hydrates us and washes away any unwanted debris. As humans we are made from over 70% water. Salt water has additional healing properties that are further unlocked with the help of the sun. Have you felt the difference in the quality of your breathing when you’re by the ocean? It is also very healing to wounds and muscle aches. Spending time at the beach is a much appreciated gift of restoration. Just listening to the waves crash into each other has an immense impact on our inner peace and soul. Whenever I’m at the beach, I feel the oceanic energy cleanse my body of both physical and spiritual blockages. If you’re ever feeling a bit stuck go spend time with aquatic Mother Earth. Always remember she wants us to go hiking in her woods, swimming in her oceans and fully revel in her natural beauty. Face the ocean and imagine yourself unloading any difficulties, worries, and any unwanted thoughts or feelings. Take a deep breath in and imagine yourself breathing in serenity, and when you exhale let the ocean support your spirit and absorb all that you are ready to unload.

Practice Being Present

We spend so much time rehashing and rehearsing life - often more than we do living it. Practice the art of being present. All that truly exists is this very moment. If our brain gets used to living in the past or rushing into the future too often, it takes our energy away from the current moment. Here is a quick mantra that a very special coach shared with me.

Mantra For Presence
“ I [Insert your full given name] am allowing myself to be fully here, staying here, not knowing.”

Breathe into it, and circulate it through the crevices of your body. This practice evokes the higher self, it calls on the part of you that is conscious and tender. It invites your mind, body and spirit to all join together in the present moment and just be.

Journaling

It’s no surprise that journaling has made it to this list of grounding practices. For a long time I was honestly overwhelmed by the concept of journaling. Oftentimes you’re either an avid journaler or in my case I was overly judgemental of my writing. I was so caught up in my own mind that the thought of writing what was on my mind was anxiety provoking. I was stuck on my lackluster grammar and spelling. Then my coach encouraged me to just put pen to paper and doodle, or write a bullet pointed list and that was the real start to my journaling a few years back. Now I turn up sounds of nature or a tango spotify playlist and set a timer. If you already have a beautiful relationship with journaling, this is your reminder to set aside some time for it. If journaling has been on your to-do list or you’ve flirted with the idea - then this is your sign to try it. Just like any relationship, it takes time to develop a sense of comfort with this practice. The beauty of it is that once you do this is the type of relationship that keeps giving and giving. A newer practice that I picked up from Julia Cameron in her book, “The Artist’s Way” is called Brain Drain. It’s daily practice where you start the day by writing 3 pages on absolutely anything that is on your mind. There is no prompt or purpose for your daily pages except to drain your brain of any distracting thoughts or feelings that could be blocking your creativity. Wherever you’re at, start small, just a smidge beyond where you were yesterday. Baby steps are the way to create habits and establish rituals to enrich your experience of life. Remember that journaling is for you - if you choose to share it with people in your life that’s great, but remember it’s totally up to you!

Fill Your Tank

Remember that your energy is sacred, so I hope you take the time to try out a few of the methods outlined in this blog. Nourish yourself, because when your tank is full you’ll be able to give from a space of abundance and that is an empowering and impactful experience.