Do you ever feel like you are ‘un-grounded’ and ‘un-earthed’ in your daily living or overall life? Like you are floating high above the earth and feeling very insecure, unstable, like you have taken flight? Like you are totally disconnected from the earth beneath you and feel generally overwhelmed?
Grounding and earthing myself has become the forefront of my daily life over the last number of years and I use this in all my teachings. It is amazing though that so many people are not really sure of what ‘grounding’ or ‘earthing’ means or how to do it!
Mindfulness has really helped me to learn to see the beauty and simplicity in my life and of my beautiful surroundings. I am naturally a very earthy person and find so much solace, peace and inner tranquillity from spending time outdoors in nature, experiencing the simple natural presence of nature and how therapeutic connecting to Mother Earth can be.
I am very lucky to live in the beautiful green and open countryside where there is an abundance of natural peace and serenity but anyone can experience grounding and earthing by just stepping outside the front or back door of their home, their work or getting out of their cars!
For me personally, every-time I step outside, I automatically feel alive! I feel so calm, so centred, so relaxed and for those few moments, the normal hectic pace of life and trying to keep up with the never ending rat race we are all living in, somehow all abates to the background and I can just be present in that moment. I can feel the calmness, the solidness, the stability from deep beneath the earths surface, pulling my whole physical and energetic body deeply below its surface. I can feel my body getting heavy and weighted as I just let go and let myself sink deeper down towards the earths floor.
I often describe this feeling as if the earth is gently pulling the roots of your spinal cord down through your legs, your feet and continues to pull you deeply below its surface and then firmly anchors and connects you to the earths bed, just like the roots of tree. A tree’s roots gently spread deeply and widely into and across the earths floor to give it strength, stability, presence and most of all the nourishment and life force it needs to grow strongly and stable.
This is how we can ‘ground’ and ‘earth’ ourselves daily in our own lives. I use this visualisation daily of my roots deeply anchoring and connecting to the earths floor from the base of my spine. You will often see me just leaning or sitting against beautiful tree’s or logs in my garden or wherever I am when I’m out and about. I’ve often being caught hugging these trees too!!
You can also use the therapeutic sound of water to cleanse and restore you and to connect you to another element of the earth’s natural peace and tranquillity. That is why some people love lake or sea swimming, as they feel so earthed and connected to one of life’s sources.
As I don’t get to swim outside daily, one thing I love doing at the end of my shower is turning the water onto a really cold setting and ‘cold water immersing’ my body in it! It is so invigorating, gets the circulation and blood pumping around your body but it has to be really cold! No cheating! You have to be panting as your breathing reacts to the shock of the cold water! It is an incredible, you will feel so alive!
So HOW do I ‘Ground’ and ‘Earth’ myself?
The following is a step by step guide on how to ‘ground’ and ‘earth’ yourself daily:
- In a sitting or standing position, whether inside or outside, barefoot or with shoes, bring your awareness to your connection to the earth beneath you through the soles of your feet.
- Gently close your eyes over if you wish or relax your gaze gently downwards, allowing your arms to hang loosely down by your sides and resting your palms facing upwards on your lap if you are sitting. Arms hanging down by your sides with palms facing outwards if you are standing.
- Now bring your awareness to the strength and solid pull of the earth down through the soles of your feet as you rest in this simple awareness. Imagine that the earth is pulling the roots of your spine down through your lower body, down through the top of your feet and out through the soles of your feet. As you breathe in through your nose and blow the breath gently out through your mouth, gently allowing your roots to continue to be pulled deep below the earths surface.
- Resting in this present awareness now, gently breathe in through your nose the earths ‘strength’ and gently breathe out through your mouth, the earth’s ‘stability’, breathe in the earth’s ‘strength’, breathe out the earth’s ‘stability’, breathe in the earth’s ‘strength’, breathe out the earth’s ‘stability’.
- Continuing to breathe in this rhythm, feel your spine becoming straighter, taller and longer. Feel the strength and stability in your neck, your shoulders, your arms, your torso, your spine, your pelvis, your legs and your feet.
- Breathing in ‘strength’ and breathing out ‘stability’ into all of these areas as you continue to feel your physical and energetic body becoming more weighted and anchored below the earth’s surface.
- Continuing to rest firmly and solidly in this present and earthed awareness for as long as you wish. When you are ready, gently open your eyes if they were closed, gently stretch your neck, shoulders, arms and legs as you end this grounding and earthing practice.
By Leona McDonnell Mindfulness and Wellness
(As published in The Anglo Celt, Connaught Telegraph, Meath Chronicle, Offaly Independent, Westmeath Examiner and Westmeath Independent newspapers w/c 14/09/2020)
