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Culture of values Program

Active Grounding Exercise

This active grounding exercise is a wonderful way to explore transforming an individual’s experience from disconnection into a connection.  It includes; mindfulness, movement, imagination, sensing and how to harness and expand ones focus of attention.

These patterns of movement direct the participants through  guided actions that integrates their thinking, sensing and movement.  These patterns free one up to be more present while growing their inner awareness and sense of themselves.

This group exercise is a valuable way to settle an individual for the purpose of being more present and able to engage into the topic being discussed or for learning.

If one is experiencing a state of flight, fright or fight it is a somatic movement pattern that can be beneficial to support re-connection or settling without the effort of talking.  Talking can become easier after this somatic experience.

• Step one uses imagination to suggest that the participants can separate from the mental chatter in their head to refocus their attention.
• Step two guides’ participants towards how they can sense themselves somatically harnessing their thought process. 
• Step three starts them on exploring a felt sensory experience that will eventually differentiate being grounded or ungrounded.
• Step four is designed to increase their own sensory awareness through a somatic exercises designed to slowly integrate body, mind and felt experiences. 
• Step five is for noticing the changes and letting the brain and mind connect to these changes. 

Active Grounding Exercise in 5 Easy Steps

To begin, walk around the group of participants with a bag, purse or box that has a lid.  Ask each participant to put their baggage thoughts  into the container.  Let them know that they can pick them up on their way out. 

Ask your participants what their experience is to be ‘grounded.’ Feel free to add questions to encourage answers, such as:  “How does it feel in your body? and where do you feel it in your body?”

If they are seated in a chair or standing ask them how they feel their feet on the floor. 

After giving them a moment to check in and sense their feet, ask them how they feel their legs? 

After another moment to check in then ask them how they feel in their upper body sitting on the chair or if in standing how they sense from the waist up? 

Now ask them to begin lifting their feet one at a time and softly put them back onto floor several times, alternating first one side and then the other.  Suggest they focus on the feeling of it. 

After 4 or so times, ask them to speed up the movement a bit while increasing the pressure slightly. Once again, ask them to focus on the feeling of it.

Then after a few more times, ask them to speed it up even more while increasing the pressure.  Ask them if they are noticing the feeling of it. 

One last time ask them to now put a lot of effort into it.  Encourage them to pound their feet into the floor while going as fast as they can.  After a few seconds have them stop. 

Sitting or standing quietly ask them the following 5 questions:   

• Ask if they sense their feet differently?
• Ask if they sense their knees differently?
• Ask if they sense their hips differently?
• Ask how they sense their upper body in sitting?
• Now ask them where their focus of attention is?

Active Grounding Exercise

Renee Lindstrom, GCFP,