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Grounding is a set of simple strategies to detach from emotional pain (e.g., drug cravings, self-harm impulses, anger, sadness). Distraction works by focusing outward on the external world, rather than inward toward the self. You can also think of it as “centering,” “a safe place,” “looking outward,” or healthy detachment.”
Why do grounding?
When you are overwhelmed with emotional pain, you need a way to detach so that you can gain control over your feelings and stay safe. As long as you are grounding, you cannot possibly use substances or hurt yourself! Grounding “anchors” you to the present and to reality.
Many people with PTSD and substance abuse struggle with feeling either too much (overwhelming emotions and memories) or too little (numbing and dissociation). In grounding, you attain a balance between the two: conscious of reality and able to tolerate it. Remember that pain is a feeling; it is not who you are. When you get caught up in it, it feels like you are your pain, and that is all that exists. However, it is only one part of your experience—the others are just hidden and can be found again through grounding.
Guidelines
• Grounding can be done anytime, anyplace, anywhere, and no one has to know.
• Use grounding when you are faced with a trigger, enraged, dissociating, having a craving, or whenever your emotional pain goes above a 6 (ona0-10scale). Grounding puts a healthy distance between you and these negative feelings.
• Rate your mood before and after grounding, to test whether it worked. Before grounding, rate your level of emotional pain (0-10, where 10 means “extreme pain”). Then rerate it afterward. Has it gone down?
• No talking about negative feelings or journal writing – you want to distract away from negative feelings, not get in touch with them.
• Stay neutral — avoid judgments of “good” and “bad.” For example, instead of “The walls are blue; I dislike blue because it reminds me of depression,” simply say, “The walls are blue,” and move
on. Focus on the present, not the past or future.
• Focus on the present, not the past or the future.
• Note that grounding is not the same as relaxation training. Grounding is much more active, focuses on distraction strategies, and is intended to help extremely negative feelings. It is believed to be more effective than relaxation training for PTSD.
From Seeking Safety by Lisa M. Najavits (2002) NLCMHA 2020
