Hey there,
Thank you for listening today.
I'm Susan Guttridge,
And for today's grounding practice,
I'm going to lead you through the spiral technique.
It's a guided visualization that can be helpful in easing out of overwhelm.
Sometimes in life we can find ourselves stuck on a memory or an intrusive thought.
And in that stuckness,
We can lose sight of our good problem-solving skills,
Our strengths.
And our inner wisdom.
The spiral technique is a helpful tool you can use to shift out of those difficult memories or thoughts.
And as you probably already know.
.
.
Once you feel grounded in the present moment,
Your outlook changes.
Awareness of your strengths and abilities returns.
You can draw on past experiences to solve problems.
And This grounded place just feels better.
Okay.
Get comfortable.
I hope you have a quiet cozy spot to listen.
Notice the connection of your feet on the floor.
If you're sitting,
Notice your sit bones just resting comfortably in the chair you're in.
And bring your attention to your breath.
Just noticing the sensation of air at your nostrils as you inhale in.
And a slightly longer exhale out.
See if you can relax your shoulders down even just 1% more.
Thinking in terms of emotions.
We all have a window within which we can comfortably feel emotion without being overwhelmed by it.
For today's practice.
Let's set the intention that you will stay within your window.
Connecting with only enough emotion that you can comfortably feel.
You might connect with emotion that feels strong.
Not so strong that you are activated beyond your window.
To help with this intention,
We can use a rating scale that ranges from 1 to 10.
Where one represents calm or neutral.
And 10 represents the most distressed you've ever felt.
The intention for today's practice is that whatever bothersome or challenging thought you want to use,
We aren't going to pass a 3 on that scale.
One way to help with this is to think of your life in terms of a book.
You are likely to know exactly where the parts in the story are,
The chapters that contain memories with emotions that may spike you upwards of a 5 on that rating scale.
Which may feel like you've gone quite beyond that window.
We are going to leave those chapters for another day.
Perhaps a day when you have more supports by your side.
For today's practice.
Choose a memory or a thought that stirs up emotion only to about a 3,
So you can feel the emotion but it is completely manageable.
After all,
The best way to learn a new skill is when you stay within that window.
Feeling emotion at a level that's manageable.
Okay,
Bring to mind that memory,
Thought,
Or image.
When you think of it,
What emotion goes along with it?
What do you notice shift in your body as you think of it?
These body sensations are referred to as the felt sense of emotion.
And sometimes we notice what's there in our body right away,
And other times it can be harder to notice.
So,
If okay,
Just scanning through your body now.
Noticing what sensations are there.
When you think of that memory,
What feels tight or tense or tender or trembling?
Now here's where we're going to tap into your power of visualization.
If you could take that felt sense of emotion in your body and give it a color,
What color would you give it?
Just using your best imagination,
Pretend that feeling is energy.
If it was moving in a circular direction in your body.
Can you notice it going in a clockwise direction?
Or would it be going counterclockwise?
There are no right or wrong responses.
Just noticing what direction that spiral of energy is moving in.
And tapping into your best imagination.
Gently change the direction of that spiral of energy in your body.
Letting it move in the opposite direction now.
And pause here,
Taking a deep breath in… And exhaling,
Releasing out,
Just being curious about what's there in your body and your emotions now.
Maybe you notice some of the sensations have changed.
Maybe they dissipated as you made the direction of the spiral of colored energy change directions.
Just scanning through your body from the top of your head all the way down to your feet.
What emotion is there?
It's okay to notice what sensations are there.
And thinking again of that rating scale from 1 to 10.
What would your number be now?
Alright,
Let's try this again one more time.
Notice that felt sense of emotion in your body.
And the color that you gave it.
Just picturing that color and using your imagination to notice the sensation,
Seeing it as energy moving in a circular direction in your body.
Just noticing that energy smoothly flowing in a spiral.
And with your best imagination,
Visualize that spiral of energy in your body changing direction.
Noticing how the color of the energy might shift as the spiral changes direction.
And pausing that spiral motion now,
Taking a deep breath in.
.
.
And exhaling out.
Just being curious what emotion is there now What sensations are you aware of?
And on that rating scale,
What's your number?
Notice the connection of your feet flat on the floor.
Your sit bones comfortable and solid in the chair you're in.
Your breath flowing in and out.
Just at a pace that feels right for you If your number didn't drop too much during this practice,
That's okay.
Would you consider trying the spiral again?
With the energy flowing in the opposite direction from what you just did.
Our goal with the technique is to keep your number on that rating scale reducing.
Just being curious.
And if during this practice you found that this technique really resonates for you.
Please keep using it,
And with practice,
Try it out with thoughts and memories that spark a bit stronger of emotion on that rating scale.
Always with the goal of reducing strong emotions.
And always returning you to that window within which you can breathe.
Comfortably feel and be present with emotions.
Thank you for taking this time for yourself today,
And thank you for choosing me to guide your practice.
Credit for this spiral technique goes to Francine Shapiro.
The brilliant psychologist who developed many techniques for regulating emotion,
And who also is the pioneering mind behind EMDR therapy.
Take care today.
Be well.
