Skip over main navigation
  • Log in
  • Basket: (0 items)
STARS - Sexual Trauma and Recovery Service
  • Search
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
Exit site Exit Site Donate
Menu
  • Who we are
    • What we do
    • Our history
    • Our patron
    • Meet the team
  • Get help
    • Our services
      • Independent Sexual Violence Advisor Service
      • Counselling Service
      • Children and Young Persons Service
      • Support Line
      • Next Steps Project
    • Make a referral
    • Self-help resources
      • Flashbacks
      • Panic attacks
      • Problems Getting to Sleep
      • Nightmares
      • Grounding techniques
    • Other sources of help
  • Support our work
    • Donate
    • Fundraise for us
      • Fundraising ideas
      • Create your own fundraising page
      • Support our fundraisers
      • Challenge events
      • Star jump for STARS
    • Other ways to give
      • Corporate partnerships
      • Trusts and funds
  • Volunteer
    • Why volunteer
    • Volunteering roles
    • Apply to volunteer
  • Latest
    • Christmas and New Year Opening Times
    • News
    • School workshops
    • The Consent Tent
    • Events
    • Blogs
    • Jobs
  • Contact us
  • Feedback
  • Admin
    • Log in
  • Basket: (0 items)
  • Grounding Techniques
  1. Get help
  2. Self-help resources

Grounding Techniques

"Grounding" is a technique that you can use to help you feel calmer and more in control.

When we have experienced trauma, we can, at times, feel overwhelmed by memories, thoughts and feelings. Sometimes we feel ‘triggered’ and experience very strong symptoms of trauma such as flashbacks, nightmares, panic attacks and dissociation. Sometimes for no apparent reason we can start to feel really emotional, perhaps we  feel scared or perhaps we get really sad and tears start welling up and we’re not sure why, this can be when our body remembers something, is triggered into an old memory,  but perhaps our brain consciously doesn’t so we feel disconnected and unsure of what is going on. 

Grounding techniques are designed to help you be ‘grounded’ in the here and now – not thinking about the past or being overwhelmed by your thoughts or feelings.

They include ways that can help you feel more connected with your body and your surroundings. They also include techniques that refocus your attention away from unwanted memories, distressing thoughts or overwhelming feelings.

Grounding techniques can help you when you:

  • Feel overwhelmed
  • Experience a trigger
  • Feel panic or anxiety
  • Have distressing emotions
  • Have flashbacks or intrusive memories
  • Feel dissociated
  • Have the urge to self-harm

Grounding can be done anywhere, any place or any time and no one needs to know you are doing it. You can use grounding techniques when you are experiencing a trigger, when you feel a strong emotion, when you feel like using substances, are having a panic attack, or when you feel yourself dissociating. When this happens try and keep your eyes open to stay in touch with the present, try and focus on the here and now, not the past or future.

Here are several different grounding techniques, we have categorised them into three types: Mental Grounding, Physical Grounding and Soothing Grounding. Just remember some of these techniques might work for you but  some might not, but if you can keep trying to find the ones that help you most.

 

Mental Grounding

  1. Have a good look around and describe what you can see in detail, either in your head or out loud, for example. ‘I am in the park, I can see two big trees, there is a swing, leaves on the ground…….’
  2. Mental games, for example go through the alphabet thinking of different things such as cities, for example A is for Atlanta, B is for Barcelona, C is for Calais etc.
  3. Describe an everyday activity in detail, such as how to make a specific recipe, do it step by step, start by getting each ingredient out of the cupboard one by one, weighing them, putting the cooker on, mixing the ingredients one by one.
  4. Imagery, for example imagining a stop sign in your head, gliding on skates away from the pain, changing the ‘TV channel’ in your head to a better ‘show’ or imagining a wall as a buffer between you and the pain.
  5. Safety statements, thinking ‘I am safe now, I am in the present not the past, I am in this location and the date is……
  6. Use humour, think of something funny.
  7. Use concentration, say the alphabet backwards or count backwards from 100 in 7s.

 

Physical Grounding

  1. Run warm or cool water over your hands.
  2. Focus on your breathing, notice each breath in and each breath out, slow it down.
  3. Grab tightly onto your chair as hard as you can.
  4. Touch different objects, your pen, your keys etc.
  5. Dig your heels into the floor or stamp your feet; remind yourself that you are connected to the ground.
  6. Carry a grounding object in your pocket, a small pebble, a shell etc. in your pocket that you can touch whenever you feel triggered.
  7. Stretching, extend your arms fingers or legs as far as you can.
  8. Clench and release your fists.

 

Soothing Grounding

  1. Think of a safe place, it could be real or imagined, for example the beach, mountains etc.
  2. Say coping statements such as I can handle this, I have done it before, I'm safe now etc.
  3. Plan a safe treat such as a nice dinner, a nice long bath etc.
  4. Think of things you are looking forward to, like seeing a close friend.

 

What if grounding doesn’t work?

People who have used grounding say it does work but requires practise to make is as effective as possible. The more you practise it the better it will work, so try to do some every day, it will become automatic after a while. You don’t have to use the methods listed above, you can think up your own, you may find that it works far better for you. Try to start grounding as early as possible in a negative mood cycle, for example when you start to feel a little anxious, perhaps your hands start to feel a bit clammy, your heart starts to beat a little faster, your chest feels a little tight, or just after a flash back, try not to leave it until later. You can also teach family and friends about grounding so they can help if you become overwhelmed. Notice which method works best for you and lastly, don’t give up!

Published: 20th November, 2020

Author: Vikki Taylor

Share this page
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Latest

  • Christmas and New Year Opening Times 2022 / 2023

    Christmas and New Year Opening Times 2022 / 2023

    The STARS Dorset centres will be closed on Friday 23rd and Tuesday 27th December. We will then re-open for Wednesday 28th and Thursday 29th December and then close again on Friday 30th December and Monday 2nd January.

  • Feedback from our Clients

    Feedback from our Clients

  • Sex trafficking – The most lucrative business globally?

    Sex trafficking – The most lucrative business globally?

  • An Introduction to Working with Trauma

    An Introduction to Working with Trauma

    This one day workshop is aimed at practitioners working with people in the community, education and health services led by Alison Woodward accredited Psychotherapist and Senior Lecturer at Bournemouth University.

Most read

  • Green Flags vs Red Flags

    Green Flags vs Red Flags

    We all know about red flags in relationships. Those little (or big) things that trigger our warning system and get the alarm lights flashing. But how much do you know about green flags?

  • How the Brain Works in Response to a Traumatic Event

    How the Brain Works in Response to a Traumatic Event

    In this blog by Alison Woodward, Clinical Supervisor at STARS Dorset, we look at How the Brain Works in Response to a Traumatic Event. The 5 Fs, Fight, Flight, Freeze, Flop and Friend.

  • Locked Up for Killing Your Abuser. Why the Law Does Nothing to Protect Domestic Abuse Victims who Protect Themselves ‘Too Far’.

    Locked Up for Killing Your Abuser. Why the Law Does Nothing to Protect Domestic Abuse Victims who Protect Themselves ‘Too Far’.

    We currently live in a country with laws which perceive domestic abuse victims as mentally ill or cold-blooded killers for killing their abuser after years of prolonged abuse.

  • Why do we victim blame?

    Why do we victim blame?

    In this blog by Ellie Rowe, MSc Investigative Forensic Psychology student at Bournemouth University, we look at Victim Blaming. Victim blaming often involves false beliefs or thoughts that attempt to shift the blame from the perpetrator of the crime to the victim

  • Contact Us

    Contact Us

    Our contact details, how to get in touch.

  • The lies rape myths tell us and why we have to dispel them

    The lies rape myths tell us and why we have to dispel them

    In this blog by Jessica Smythe, MSc Investigative Forensic Psychology, we look at rape myths, the stereotyped and false beliefs about sexual assaults, rapists and rape victims which often serve to excuse sexual violence, create hostility toward victims and can lead to bias in criminal prosecution.

  • Jobs

    Jobs

    STARS Dorset are looking for an Independent Sexual Violence Advisors and a Volunteer and Community Engagement Officer.

  • Get help

  • Who we are

  • The problematic use of past sexual history as evidence in rape trials

    The problematic use of past sexual history as evidence in rape trials

    The problematic use of past sexual history as evidence in rape trials by Kez Bhola-Dare, 2ND Year Law Student, Bournemouth University, and Jamie Fletcher, Lecturer in Law, Bournemouth University. Whilst there are a range of sexual assault myths that can influence rape trials, this blog focuses on the myth that a women’s sexual history is an indicator of consent to the act in question.

Subscribe

* indicates required

Sexual Trauma and Recovery Service - Dorset Rape Crisis
Charity Registration No: 1178308 
Organisational member of BACP
Organisational member of IOF
Member of TST

Links

  • Sitemap
  • Accessibility
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cancellation Policy
  • Safeguarding Policy
  • Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy

Follow us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

We greatly appreciate the support of