3 somatic techniques to keep you grounded
Daily stressors, pandemics and now war? It’s no wonder you might be feeling anxious. Using these somatic techniques to regulate your nervous system can support you feeling grounded and safe in your body during stressful or anxious moments.
Notice your current physical state:
While sitting in a chair, take a moment and notice your overall experience.
Move your feet on the floor, moving and shifting until you really feel connected to the floor.
Now feel your back and bottom on the chair, noticing how the chair supports you. (Ask yourself if you are perching on the chair? If so, allow the chair to support you.)
Adjust until you feel your comfort spot. Take a few moments to really enjoy the comfort of being supported by the chair and stabilised by the floor.
Look around and notice something that feels resourceful (e.g. the tree right outside the window, a piece of art, a calming colour, the floor, etc.). Savour the resourceful feelings.
What do you notice now about your overall comfort – physically and emotionally?
Containment with Safe touch:
This technique helps you reclaim safety within your body.
Take a moment and notice your overall experience.
Take your right hand and place it just below your left armpit, holding the side of your chest.
Place your left hand on your right bicep (or shoulder or elbow).
Take several minutes to notice the feeling under your hands (e.g. does your body feel warm, is the fabric of your shirt smooth or scratchy, can you feel your heartbeat). Do you experience a sense of containment from your hands and arms? Is it pleasant?
Notice how the rest of your body experiences this soothing and containing touch (e.g. your limbs).
What do you notice now about your overall experience?
The VOO sound
This technique is powerful in regulating your nervous system, but it can be activating for some, so start small in a moment when you’re feeling calm and if it feels soothing for you, use it when you’re also in a heightened state.
Take a moment and notice your overall experience.
Now think of the sound a foghorn makes. (If you’ve never heard one, here’s an example.)
Take a deep breath then imitate the foghorn, making a sound that rumbles through your torso. See if you can feel the vibrations of the sound all the way down to your pelvic floor. (Note that this doesn’t necessarily mean you have to make the sound loud. The key is to make the pitch of the sound as low as you possibly can.)
As you run out of breath on the Voo, let the next breath come in naturally. Take your time.
If you feel a settling in your system, stay with that and enjoy it. If you feel your system more activated (which the Voo can produce for some people, even if they’ve found the exercise settling before), let go of this exercise for now and use another one I’ve listed to settle your system.
If you find the Voo to be settling, feel free to do make the Voo sound again to see if you find even more settling. I don’t recommend doing Voo more than 3 times in one sitting.
What do you notice now about your overall experience?
You can use one or all of these Somatic Tools to support you feeling grounded, regulate your nervous system or reclaim a sense of safety in your body.