Physical touch can be a powerful source of comfort when you're feeling anxious and overwhelmed.
In this video,
I'm going to teach you a simple self-soothing practice that you can do when your anxiety is caught in a spiral.
Hi,
My name is Bea.
I'm a yoga meditation teacher and somatic practitioner,
And I love talking about anxiety and the nervous system.
And today,
I'm going to show you a simple grounding practice called the butterfly hug.
This is a great self-soothing practice where you cross your arms over your chest and gently tap from side to side in an alternating rhythm.
This type of movement is also known as bilateral stimulation,
Which simply means you're creating alternating sensory input on the left and right sides of your body.
You may have heard of bilateral stimulation in connection to EMDR therapy,
But you don't have to be in a therapy session to use this technique as a grounding practice.
One of the reasons I love the butterfly hug is that it gives your mind something rhythmic and physical to focus on when your thoughts are racing,
While also providing the comforting sensations of connection and touch.
So let's try it together.
Start by getting into a comfortable position.
I do recommend sitting for this practice if you can.
You can keep your eyes open or you can close them if you like.
Now let's take a deep breath in together.
And a slow breath out through the mouth.
Now cross your arms over your chest.
You can place your hands on your upper arm or your shoulders,
Whatever feels most comfortable for you.
Now gently tap one side.
And the other.
Right.
Find a slow,
Comforting rhythm that feels soothing to you.
And now let's add the breath.
Take a deep breath in.
And a slow breath out.
And keep tapping from side to side.
As you breathe in,
And breathe out.
And if you notice your mind wandering,
That's OK.
Just gently bring your awareness Back to the rhythm.
And back to your breathing.
And now you can stop the tapping.
And while you're here,
Maybe give yourself a little squeeze,
A little hug,
A little love.
And then gently release your arms.
Down by your side.
Take a moment to pause and feel.
And notice if anything has shifted.
Maybe your breathing has slowed down.
Maybe the thoughts have slowed down.
Maybe your body feels a little less tense.
And hopefully you're feeling a little more grounded and calm.
And if you don't notice a dramatic difference,
That's okay too.
Again,
We're not trying to force anxiety to disappear.
We're just aiming to feel a little more calm and grounded.
Doing practices like this can help you reconnect to your body and the present moment when you're caught in a spiral.
I hope you found this video helpful.
I'll see you in the next video of my anxiety series.
Thank you so much for watching.
See you next time.
Bye for now.
