When life feels a little unsteady, anxiety inducing, and overwhelming, we need a way to center ourselves. And there’s an easy mindfulness practice that can help.
It’s called grounding or earthing.
The best part is, you can do this practice anywhere, even in public with other people around you. And it takes just two or three minutes.
If you’re new to grounding, I suggest starting with slightly longer sessions of 5 to 7 minutes, where you focus on experiencing the sensations and visualizations in as much detail as possible. That initial investment of slightly longer sessions is designed to train your mind and body to get better at the technique. Once you’ve gotten comfortable with it, you'll find you can benefit just as much from shorter sessions of two or three minutes.
You can do the grounding practice in any posture, standing or sitting, but I recommend that you plant your feet firmly on the ground, if possible. If you can go barefoot – for an enhanced connection with the earth – even better!
OK, let’s get started!
Step 1: Focus on your feet
Find a comfortable position. Close your eyes if it’s your first time, but once you’ve practiced a few times, you can continue with your eyes open if you like. Direct your attention to the feeling of your feet on the ground. For many people this generates small tingling sensations or heat on the parts of their feet where their attention is focused.
For beginners, vividly imagine each part of your feet in your mind's eye, starting with one foot and then the other. Imagine each toe, the heels, and then the sides of your foot, and last the center of your foot, with as much detail as you can
Step 2: Grow roots
Slowly use your imagination to picture roots growing from the base of your foot, like a plant, into the ground. Spend some time imagining the color of the roots, their thickness, and how they grow and spread.
Step 3: Release tension
Slowly extend the roots into the ground, going deeper and deeper. Imagine your roots growing further and further, all the way to the center of Planet Earth. Envision the Earth’s core however you like – perhaps a muddy red center.
As your roots establish, picture releasing all of your tension down through them, sending it to the center of the Earth.
Benefits
The practice of hyper-focusing our thoughts on our feet is like any other mindfulness meditation, giving us something to pay attention to and helping quiet our monkey minds for a bit. The idea of directing all the tension to the center of the Earth allows a form of completion to take place – we took the tension and placed it out of our body and into a different location
With practice, you'll easily be able to perform this exercise with your eyes open, making it available to you anytime – be it in a conference room, before a significant meeting, or amidst a bustling shopping mall.
Personally, this grounding practice was invaluable to me during my high-intensity corporate job when I was serving a client on Wall Street. Several times a week, I engaged in this ritual before entering the office, providing me a moment to refocus, re-energize, and mindfully pause before a day filled with constant activity.
Wellness Coaching
For those interested in exploring holistic coaching options to reclaim control of their health through ancient wisdom and modern mindfulness practices, I offer complimentary discovery sessions on my website (www.deeplysimple.info). Drawing from my background as a mindfulness teacher, somatic informed coach, and Ayurveda practitioner, I tailor wellness programs to suit your specific needs.
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