If you have ever felt like your thoughts are spinning out of control, your emotions are too
big to hold, or you just cannot seem to land in the present moment, you know what it
feels like to be ungrounded. It is one of the most common experiences I hear about from
clients — this sense of being untethered, swept away, or disconnected from yourself
and your surroundings. Grounding practices are some of the simplest and most
effective tools for coming back.
Grounding is something I come back to in my own life as well as in my work with clients.
Spending time outdoors — kayaking, hiking, skiing — is genuinely how I stay connected
to myself, and it is not coincidental that these are also the kinds of experiences I often
encourage clients to explore in their own way. There is something real and measurable
that happens in the body and mind when we slow down, get outside, and reconnect with
the physical world around us.
What Grounding Actually Is
Grounding is the practice of anchoring yourself to the present moment through your
senses, your body, and your physical environment. It is a way of interrupting the mental
loops that keep us stuck in worry, regret, or overwhelm, and returning our attention to
what is actually here, right now. Grounding does not make problems disappear, but it
creates the internal steadiness needed to face them more clearly.
When we are ungrounded, the nervous system often reads this as a kind of threat.
Without an anchor in the present, the mind tends to generate more anxiety, not less.
Grounding practices work by giving the nervous system something real and immediate
to attend to — the sensation of your feet on the earth, the smell of fresh air, the sound
of water, the warmth of sunlight on your skin. These sensory experiences signal to your
brain that you are safe, present, and okay.
Walking Barefoot and Spending Time Outdoors
One of the most powerful grounding practices is also one of the most ancient: stepping
outside and letting your body connect with the natural world. Walking barefoot on grass,
soil, or sand gives your nervous system direct sensory input that is both calming and
regulating. Some research on what is called earthing or grounding suggests that direct
contact with the earth may have measurable effects on the body’s stress response,
though beyond the science, most people simply notice that they feel better after time
spent outside.
Even fifteen minutes of walking in a natural setting can meaningfully shift your mental
and emotional state. The combination of movement, fresh air, natural light, and
changing sensory input gives your nervous system something nourishing to engage
with. If you can remove your shoes and feel the ground beneath your feet, pay attention
to that sensation — the temperature, the texture, the feeling of being physically
supported. This kind of simple, direct sensory attention is grounding in the most literal
sense.
Books like Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer offer a beautiful and profound
perspective on the relationship between human beings and the natural world — one that
many of my clients find deeply moving and relevant to their own sense of connection
and rootedness.
Deep Breathing as a Grounding Tool
Your breath is one of the most immediate and accessible grounding tools you have.
When you breathe slowly and deliberately — particularly when the exhale is longer than
the inhale — you activate the parasympathetic nervous system and send a message of
safety to your brain. The body begins to relax. Thoughts slow. The present moment
comes back into focus.
A simple practice: place one hand on your belly, inhale slowly through your nose for a
count of four, feeling your belly rise, hold gently for a count of two, then exhale slowly
through your mouth for a count of six. Repeat this three to five times. You do not need
to force anything — just allow the breath to do what it naturally does when you give it
space and attention. Notice what shifts, even slightly, in how you feel.
Looking for Things That Bring Joy
Another practice I often suggest is deceptively simple: intentionally look for what brings
you joy or a sense of ease in your immediate environment. This is not about forcing
positivity or pretending everything is fine. It is about widening your attention so that it
includes not just what is difficult but also what is good, beautiful, or pleasant right now.
You might pause and look for three things that are visually pleasing to you. Or notice a
smell that is comforting. Or feel the warmth of a cup of tea in your hands. Or step
outside and simply take in the sky. These small moments of positive sensory attention
help shift the nervous system out of its narrow, threat-focused mode and into one that is
more open, spacious, and capable. They are not distractions from reality — they are a
fuller version of it.
In positive psychology, this practice connects to what researchers call savoring — the
intentional appreciation of positive experience. It is one of the simplest and most well-
supported ways to build emotional resilience over time. Martin Seligman’s work,
particularly his book Flourish, explores this beautifully if you want to go deeper.
Grounding as a Daily Practice
The most effective grounding practices are not reserved for crisis moments. Building
them into your ordinary day — a short walk outside, a few conscious breaths before a
meeting, a moment of noticing something beautiful — is what makes them genuinely available when you need them most. Small, consistent practices build the kind of
nervous system resilience that holds up under pressure.
You do not have to do anything dramatic. You just have to show up, again and again, to
the present moment. The ground is always there. So is your breath. And so, more often
than not, is something worth noticing.