Grounding, also known as earthing, is a therapeutic technique that involves doing activities that “ground” or electrically reconnect you to the earth. It helps your body to sync with the natural rhythms of the Earth. This is done by either standing or laying on the ground or any “Earth surface.” I know this might sound a little weird or different but there are a lot of benefits to grounding.
- Reduces inflammation- 90% of all our chronic health conditions are linked to excessive or persistent inflammation. Grounding is one of the simplest ways to address that.
- Decreases pain
- Stress reduction
- Improves sleep
- Improves cortisol rhythm- Cortisol is one of our key stress hormones.
- Faster recovery from muscular strain
- Increases levels of energy during the day
- Better blood flow and circulation
- Reduces free radicals in your body
The best part about grounding is you can benefit from doing it in just 10 mins and it’s absolutely free. All you have to do is take your shoes off and walk around a grassy area, dirt, sand, area. Believe it or not actually touching a tree for 10 mins is grounding as well. If you feel kind of silly at first there are activities you can do while grounding, here are two examples to try.
The 5 4 3 2 1 Technique
This exercise grounds you by engaging your 5 senses. You can start by taking a three of deep breaths. Try and breathe slowly and evenly if you can, in through your nose, and out through your mouth.
Look around you and find the following:
- 5 things you can see
- 4 things you can feel
- 3 things you can hear
- 2 things you can smell
- 1 thing you can taste
When you are done, take 3 more deep breaths in through your nose, and out through your mouth.
The second exercise is while you are grounding practice gratitude. Take 3 deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth and say out loud 5 things you are grateful for and spend some time thinking about why you are grateful for them. Then take 3 more deep breaths, in through your nose, out through your mouth.
Try to start grounding today and set a goal to do it 3 times this week. Daily would be amazing but you can start with baby steps.