10 Grounding Tips to Relieve Anxiety

Tina Yeager Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer
Updated Oct 11, 2023

Struggling with anxiety? Some of us inherit genetics, which set us at greater risk for panic and anxiety disorders. Traumatic experiences, sleep deprivation, and health conditions can increase physiological and emotional stress, which may trigger anxiety. Symptoms can interfere with daily functioning and, in some cases, even become debilitating. No matter the cause, you can take encouragement from the grace, support, and self-help solutions available.

Though an anxious mindset may tempt us to feel insecure or ashamed, fear’s prevalence in scripture shows God’s heartfelt understanding of this struggle. The Bible includes 366 verses to reassure us when we fret, one for every day of the longest possible year. The stories of anxious faith leaders like Elijah, Timothy, and Gideon also prove God esteems and uses those who battle fear to serve mighty purposes.

In addition to the Biblical evidence, statistics prove those of us caught in fear’s grip don’t suffer alone. One in five adults report clinical symptoms. Younger adults and teens experience anxiety at an even higher rate, nearing thirty percent.

While the doom of anxiety might seem overwhelming, hope remains. Mental health experts show confidence in a variety of treatments. Research-based solutions abound, including a host of non-pharmaceutical options. Sufferers can even apply many of these effective techniques on their own. Grounding serves as one of the top recommendations to which clients may turn for daily relief.

When anxiety threatens to take over the mind and body, grounding techniques may reset your perspective. Panic sufferers can apply these versatile methods in everyday settings with little or no cost. Instead of spiraling further into negative thoughts, applying a simple tool can anchor your mind in a safe point of view. Consider these ten grounding tips to help you or someone you love re-center their hearts in peace.

1. Count down in sensory details (known as the 5-4-3-2-1 method).

Fear inspires speculation. When we fret, we assume the worst possibilities. Anxiety breeds obsession over all the negatives that might exist in others’ motives or the most horrible outcomes that could happen in the future. Like many of the grounding techniques, the 5-4-3-2-1 tool redirects our focus to concrete facts. Fixating on sensory details shifts the neural activity away from the brain’s emotion centers by engaging another cortex. This redirection interrupts panic responses and allows us to manage our thoughts effectively again.

To apply the sensory countdown, think of the following details:

Five things you see
Four things you can feel
Three things you hear
Two things you smell
One thing you taste

2. Conduct a body scan.

Much like the countdown above, a body scan also grounds you in tactile sensations to redirect functioning from the emotional part of your brain. This convenient method costs nothing, takes little time, and can be applied in any setting. A body scan consists of centering your attention on tangibles instead of fearful obsessions. Target awareness on the different parts of the body, one aspect at a time. Start at your feet and move upward. Begin by squeezing and relaxing your toes. As you scan upward, include awareness of limbs, organs, and muscles. Throughout the process, monitor your breath.

3. Practice complete breaths.

Health experts recommend inhaling through your nose to slow your breathing while also humidifying and filtering the air. Inhale until your diaphragm and lungs fill to capacity. Exhale slowly through your mouth. Complete breaths nourish all organs, including your brain. The heightened oxygen level in your bloodstream serves as a natural muscle relaxant, which diffuses physical tension. Complete breathing can also improve the sleep issues people often experience when battling anxiety.

Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Radu Florin

4. Focus on the present.

Anxiety casts the shadow of past trauma on an imaginary future. Fear-based thoughts cling to the mistakes and wounds of yesterday while darkening our expectations of tomorrow. Our minds attempt to “prepare” us for the worst, but fear paralyzes us instead of equipping us. Focusing attention on the present releases us from chaining our mindsets to crises we might never face. We then have the freedom to live within the one time we truly have—now.

5. Recite a brief message of assurance.

Select a comforting phrase to ground you in a sense of safety in the moment. Choose a brief statement so you can easily recall the words when stress hits. You can opt for a favorite verse or a simple assurance that anchors you in the truth of God’s protection. When circumstances trigger panic or other anxiety symptoms, you can recite this phrase to reset your mind. Examples include:

You’re in a safe place now.
This will pass.
“But the Lord is my refuge” (Psalm 94:22a, HCSB).
“The Lord is my shepherd” (Psalm 23:1a, HCSB).

6. Clench and release.

Anxiety has its greatest power when festering inside your mind. We free ourselves by expressing the internal pressures in external ways. To manifest your emotional state physically, squeeze your fists or toes. Hold for a few breaths, then release the tension by relaxing your muscles. For maximum benefit, use this tool together with complete breaths and reciting a message of assurance.

7. Use a grounding object you can squeeze.

Carry an object with you to center your awareness of your security in the present. You can choose a symbolic item like a cross or rock. If you prefer to express tension into the grounding object, you may opt for a malleable item like a stress ball.

8. Learn tapping techniques.

Gentle tapping on pressure points sends deactivating signals to the stress center of the brain. This method offers a quick and easy source of relief for many anxiety sufferers. With a little practice, you can apply this tool at the first sign of rising stress and head off a panic response. Using all four fingertips together, tap each of the following areas five times:

The outer edge of each hand
The inner point of each eyebrow
The outer edge of the bone surrounding each eye
Under each eye
Above the lips
Under the lips
Under each arm at the top of the ribcage
The very top of the head

9. Run cool water onto your hands or wrists.

Perhaps due to its assurance of satisfying our most urgent physical need, the presence of water often has a calming effect on our minds. The cool water can draw your attention to the present sensory experience. The contrasting texture and temperature on the sensitive skin of your hands can distract your mind from anxiety triggers. Cool water applied to the wrists can also lower rising body temperatures that can accompany stress.

10. Seek humor.

Giggles work double time to benefit our brain chemistry. Laughter suppresses the hormones secreted by stress and anxiety while also enhancing the production of neurochemicals that improve our mood (Akimbekov, Razzaque). When experiencing early onset anxiety or during the cool-down phase of other techniques, humor can fortify our emotional resilience and cultivate better moods. Adding regular doses of humor can improve our stress responses before we face triggers.

Sources:
Akimbekov NS, Razzaque MS. Laughter therapy: A humor-induced hormonal intervention to reduce stress and anxiety. Curr Res Physiol. 2021;4:135-138. doi: 10.1016/j.crphys.2021.04.002. Epub 2021 Apr 30. PMID: 34642668; PMCID: PMC8496883.

Tina Yeager, award-winning author, speaker, and life coach, hosts the Flourish-Meant podcast and Flourish Today on Christian Mix 106 and publishes Inkspirations Online, a weekly writers’ devotional. She has been licensed as a counselor since 2005.