Life is full of challenge.  No one is immune to the ups and downs that can come our way.  Amongst the light in our lives there will be moments of darkness.  The world can sometimes feel a scary, uncomfortable, and overwhelming place to be.

 

So what to do?

 

First, we should realise that to struggle is to live.  Without the challenges, we would never recognise our successes.

 

Ups and downs are an inevitable part of our journey. Without the darkness, there would be no light.  That’s just the way life is, for all of us.

 

Beyond this, we can learn to develop tools, habits and behaviours that serve us when we need them most.  One such area we can give attention to is learning how to ground ourselves.

 

What follows is a series of time and battle tested techniques that can support us feel more grounded, when life throws us a curveball or three.  We can use them independently or concurrently but there is power to be tapped in all.

 

Breathe

Breathing is a funny beast.  It’s so fundamental to how we live.  It literally is life.  Yet most of us never learn how to breathe properly and fully.  As a result, we miss out on some wonderful benefits.

 

Deep, full breaths can calm the mind, energise the body and clear our headspace.  It can have a nourishing effect, releasing toxins and tension that build up.  We reset.

 

Not tapping into the power of breath can also lead us to problems.  We hold onto tension, we hold onto stress and anxiety.  We hold onto negative energy.

 

Reconnecting with our breath can support us pushing through these challenges.  Literally, breathing through them.

 

There are many time-honoured practices that can help us connect to our breath.  Yoga, Tai Chi, the Martial Arts, Qi Gong – all focus on breath.  We can also develop a regular breath practice sprinkled liberally through our days (box-breathing a personal favourite) to serve us when we need a moment of calm.

 

Find a practice that helps you get in touch with healthy breathing patterns.  Unlearning bad habits.  Learning new ways that will serve you better.  Unlocking the power within.

 

Move

This can be time for a formal movement practice (most often bodyweight strength work, some weights, or yoga for me), an informal mobility flow and stretching what is tight, or just a long walk.  Some days will include a combination of all.

 

I believe deeply in the power of a physical practice.

 

Regular movement is good for the mind and body. It energizes and nourishes us. It can boost our mood, reduce chronic pain, and help us sleep better at night. All good reasons to make movement a priority in our days.

 

Walk

Walking is deserving of its own place as one of the ultimate resets. A long walk can blow away mental cobwebs that accumulate. Re-energising a tired mind. Complex problems can suddenly feel like they fall into place on a good, long walk. A fresh perspective magically drifting into view.

 

I like to walk early, before the rush and before the noise of human traffic drowns out the birds singing. Depending on where I am, I like to walk as close to nature as possible (a nice park, a beach, a hike over rolling hills). This can be its own form of meditative practice.

 

Spend Time in Nature

The natural world is its own wonderland.  Something that breathes life and colour into any day, if we just make time to stop and notice what is going on around us. Grounding and uplifting all at once.

 

Nature presents us with a constant supply of magic.  It’s easy to take this for granted. We can fix this by spending time just being at one with nature and reconnecting with the great outdoors.

 

Be amazed by that spider’s web glistening with the morning’s dew.

 

Take in the sun rising and setting.

 

Make time to watch the clouds moving overhead.

 

Be endlessly in awe at nature’s ability to evolve, reinvent, adapt, and deal with challenges.

 

Stillness

Time to reflect, to ponder. Time to absorb. Time to reset and replenish. Time to be.

 

This space can also mean time for a more indulgent self-care routine (massage, sauna, steam, etc). Time to switch off and be pampered. We all deserve pampering occasionally.

 

Time in stillness can often mean thinking of how we can be of service to others and the world around us in some small but meaningful way. This could be a random act of kindness or something more substantial. While self-care and time inside our own heads is important, so is time spent thinking on how we can make the world a little better.

 

This is also the time for a gratitude practice. Thinking of one to three things we’re grateful for today. Big or small, they all count.

 

Making space for a gratitude practice is one of the most powerful changes anyone can make to their lives. It shifts the lens through which we see the world. When we feel gratitude, true appreciation and joy for something, it’s hard to stay in a negative space.

 

Making time in our day for stillness acts as an anchor to bring us back to ourselves. It’s grounding.

 

Meditation (and Mindfulness)

Some will use this time for a seated meditation. I prefer long walks (which, along with writing and yoga, are often as close as I get to a formal meditation practice).

 

The “meditation” label puts as many off as it attracts. In busy and distracted times, this is a missed opportunity for us all to feel the benefits.

 

When we forget the labels and mysticism, all we’re doing with meditative practices is resetting a little. Taking some time for ourselves.  Taking some time for self-care and reflection.

 

Leverage the Power of Grounding

Too often in life, our mind wants to zig and zag. Striving for the next thing and the next. Planning and plotting ahead. Dwelling on the negative, what we are missing, what we did wrong, how far we are from our goals, how we dealt with a situation in a less than optimal way.

 

This negative bias and future-creep does not serve us well. We suffer.

 

Instead, we can leverage the timeless benefits of grounding techniques to bring us back to ourselves.

 

 

 

 

Note:

This post is in part adapted from  two guest articles that appeared on Tiny Buddha.

 

 

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