Overcome stress and anxiety with Relaxation and ground techniques

The global cases of stress and anxiety have been on a sharp rise in the risen past. Most studies relate the rise to the impact of the covid-19 pandemic. According to a study by Loxton et al. (2020), the global stress level rose by about 25% due to the impact of the deadly virus. Three years after the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic, cases of mental illnesses continue to be a global health concern.

Numerous interventions have been proposed to curb the cases of depression, stress, and anxiety in the United States. Nonetheless, studies confirm that self-care interventions are easy, fast, and effective measures to reduce cases. This blog post provides ways to overcome stress and anxiety using simple relaxation and ground techniques.

What is relaxation and grounding technique?

The self-care technique is similar in many ways to grounding therapy. It is an advanced form of mindfulness focusing on an individual’s senses (Hill, 2018). Just as the mindfulness approach, it can keep you out of stress, anxiety, and negative feelings by helping you to focus on the present moment and what is happening on the ground.

Studies show that one of the biggest impacts of severe stress and anxiety is disconnecting you from your mind and body. You need relaxation techniques because of their great impact on connecting you back to your mind and body through simple processes like yoga, mantra, and deep breathing.

Physical and mental grounding for mental health

Relaxation and grounding can be done through physical and mental approaches. Physical grounding involves using senses and physical sensations to return your attention to the present moment (Paciello, 2022). Excellent examples of the techniques include sensory awareness, deep breathing, and progressive muscle relaxation.

On the other hand, mental grounding involves using the mind to bring your attention back to the present moment. An example includes visualizing a safe place to deter your mind from stress.

Try the following Physical grounding techniques when stressed 

• The 4-7-8 technique 

As the name goes, the 4-7-8 technique involves inhaling through your nose for 4 seconds, then holding the breath for 7 seconds, and ultimately exhaling the breath through your mouth for 8 seconds. This scientifically proven type of conscious breathing will help you balance your nervous system and wash away unwanted stresses in no time to promote peace and mental relaxation (Lin et al., 2020). The most important part of the 4-7-8 grounding technique is that it completely changes your breathing pattern, thereby creating less tension in your mind and body.

• Stretch your body 

Evidence-based studies show that when you stretch your body, you redirect your attention to the tense muscles. When doing the procedure, be keen to notice that your shoulders or neck is stiff. If that is the case, take a moment to ensure they are fully relaxed. However, while stretching the muscles, try to feel how the muscles contract in the process of activating the different parts. Afterward, be keen to notice how you feel specifically in the regions where you store stress, i.e., the shoulder or neck. After some time, you should experience a great form of relief from any disturbing thoughts.

• The 3-3-3 method is easy.

The 3-3-3 method is the simplest approach to overcoming depression. The technique operates on a simple rule, but the results are spectacular. For instance, when stressed or feeling anxious, try to look around and mention three around you and three things you can hear, and then try to move three parts of your body (Jasubhai, 2023). It is a simple practice, but when you engage in it, the greatest thing is that it will bring your full attention back to the moment and the room/setting, thus relaxing the mind and the body.

The simplest mental grounding techniques for stress 

• Try visualizing a safe space when stressed 

The practice is very easy and simple. All you need is to close your eyes and literary connect to your breathing system. In this process, try to visualize something that will give you the utmost peace in the moment (Altman, 2014). For instance, you can try imagining the roots growing with the soil beneath and the strength of the ground. You can also visualize the beauty of the beach in terms of the strength of the waves or the sound of the tree. This technique distracts your mind from negative thoughts, thereby releasing you from stress and anxiety.

• Isolating the stress from yourself

Most of the time, stress can saturate your mind to make you feel it is entirely part of you rather than a temporal experience. Mental experts state that this is a severe mental condition that can best be addressed by finding a way to isolate yourself from it (Paciello, 2022). In this case, it is healthy to start seeing it as something else, like a cartoonish ghost or little gremlin puppet, that should be avoided at all costs. Doing this will enable you to distance yourself from the stressful situation.

Relaxation and grounding techniques are one of the best approaches for overcoming stress and anxiety. It involves exercises that may help you refocus on the existing moment to disturb your mind from stressful and anxious feelings. Several scientifically established grounding techniques help in promoting mental wellness. Excellent examples of physical grounding techniques include the 4-7-8 technique, the stretching body technique, and the 3-3-3 technique. It can also be done through the mental approach in practices such as visualizing a safe space when stressed and Isolating the stress from yourself. With studies showing the prevalence of mental conditions being on the sharp rise, let us try grounding safe-care practices, and stress, anxiety, and negative thoughts will be a thing of the past in our world.

References

Altman, D. (2014). The mindfulness toolbox: 50 practical tips, tools & handouts for anxiety, depression, stress & pain. PESI Publishing & Media.

Hill, T. C. (2018). The Earthing Executive Reduces Internal Stress; Exploring Grounding Techniques As An Executive Coaching Tool. Widener University.

Jasubhai, S. (2023). Unveiling the Unseen: Exploring the Hidden Struggles Faced by College Students.

Lin, Z., Kunze, K., Ueki, A., & Inakage, M. (2020, February). Aromacue-a scent toolkit to cope with stress using the 4-7-8 breathing method. In Proceedings of the Fourteenth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction (pp. 265-272).

Loxton, M., Truskett, R., Scarf, B., Sindone, L., Baldry, G., & Zhao, Y. (2020). Consumer behavior during crises: Preliminary research on how coronavirus has manifested consumer panic buying, herd mentality, changing discretionary spending, and the role of the media in influencing behavior. Journal of Risk and financial management, 13(8), 166.

Paciello, J. N. (2022). Finding common ground: How teaching movement and grounding techniques to sexual assault survivors affects their learning in higher education.