If you don't have time to meditate,
This is something you can do to ground yourself in the present moment in your body.
The 5,
4,
3,
2,
1 method is a grounding exercise that can help you stay in the present moment and help you detach from negative thinking and worry.
You can do this exercise anywhere at home,
School,
Work,
On a bus or a car,
Even in a crowd.
You can do this sitting,
Standing or laying down.
Counting down from 5,
Use your senses to list things around you.
Make an effort to notice the specific details about these things.
This is how to do it.
First find a comfortable position that you can sit in.
Start by breathing deeply through your nose and out through your mouth,
Three times.
One,
Two.
Green,
Green,
Constitution.
Now slowly look at your surroundings.
Find five things that you can see around you.
Maybe you see a colorful poster on the wall,
A spider web on the bookshelf,
The lamp on the nightstand,
The cat sleeping peacefully on the chair,
The plants on the dresser.
Name them out loud.
Describe them with details.
Focus on that for a moment.
Now list four things that you can touch,
Feel.
For example,
The warm mug of tea in your hands,
The soft comforter on the bed,
The fabric of your pants or shirt,
The texture of the carpet under your feet,
The cool breeze of the air.
Now describe in detail what you feel to the touch.
Now let's list three things that you can hear.
Maybe the ticking of a clock,
The quiet hum of a computer,
The sound of birds singing outside.
Just notice what you can hear right now,
Even the subtle of sounds.
Just try to perceive the sound in detail.
Now try to find two things you can smell.
It can be the tea in your mug,
The clean sheets of the bed,
The flowers in your room and aromatherapy oil.
Take in the pleasant scents that you smell.
Finally,
List one taste that you can feel,
Maybe the tea,
The aftertaste of something that you ate,
The aftertaste of your minty toothpaste from washing your teeth.
Now let's take another three deep breaths.
Enjoy a few moments in this present moment.
Take in the way that you feel being present and smile.
Take a moment to be proud and acknowledge the fact that you took this time for yourself.
Thank you for being here today.
You did a great job.
I am so proud of you.
By shifting our focus,
We tend to free ourselves from the burden of overthinking.
Try to focus outside of the mind from time to time and appreciate what you have in your surrounding.
