A Somatic Therapist’s Suggestions To Ground Yourself When Your Body Is Overwhelmed.
Somatic Therapy San Francisco
With the unprecedented amount of attacks on our civil liberties and the current presidential administration’s open war on vulnerable people such as trans, immigrants, black and brown people and women—to name a few—many people are feeling fearful and having trouble coping. The stress of having a government that not only does not care about its people but is openly terrorizing them is something that can be felt somatically day-to-day. Although many marginalized groups have been dealing with similar feelings for decades, it is important to note that all this trauma and fear is kept in the body. The accumulated psychological stress may account for a higher mortality rate and more health conditions in many targeted populations. As therapists we talk about post traumatic stress—with the keyword being post—but how do we stay centered and calm in our bodies when trauma is ongoing?
The following are suggestions from a somatic therapist in San Francisco on how to help feel better in the body when trauma is ongoing. They may not completely alleviate fear or anxiety and you may need to do multiple of these suggestions but it is a good place to start.
Suggestions To Ground From Somatic Therapy San Francisco
1) Start your day with something other than social media. When you are just waking up, you are not completely centered or grounded. At that time you are more vulnerable to outside influences and ingesting whatever sensationalized or even accurate but horrific new media item may be too much for your system. Look at your social media and regular media outlets after coffee or breakfast, to give your nervous system a fighting chance.
2) Perform self check-ins more often. Often we push down or ignore our feelings throughout the day in order to cope. While a certain amount of emotional compartmentalization may be necessary because we cannot cope with every emotion the second it happens, ignoring our emotions for extended amounts of time may cause our emotions to become larger in an attempt to be acknowledged. If you have ever gotten to the end of the day and asked yourself "Why am I so tired? Why am I feeling so angry, sad, etc."?” you may have been ignoring your emotional cues. So one to two times a day at minimum, take two minutes to ask, “How am I feeling? What do I need?” and scan your body for sensations and emotions. If you notice any need you have, emotion or otherwise, attend to it as best you can or take note of that need and make sure to attend to it later.
3) Move. It doesn’t matter what kind of movement. . .it could be dancing in your living room for 5 minutes or doing squats in between meetings. Moving reminds yourself that you are alive and that you have agency. So take small moments to move and take care of you. Moving will benefit not just your physical health but also your mental health!
4) Spend time with people who care about you and that you care about. The more nurturing social connections you have, the more you can regulate your nervous system. In fact, getting together with other *calming* people can help you co-regulate, a process where you help each other bring your nervous system into balance.
5) Spend time in nature. Nature has the ability to help us be present and decelerate things. Whether it is being by trees, grass, or at the beach, connecting to nature will remind us that there is something bigger than ourselves. Pick your favorite outdoor spot and spend some quality time there.
6) Mind your breath. Notice when you are not breathing deeply or if you forget to breathe. As we go about our days, the default would be to not notice how we are breathing. Taking deep slow breaths is the quickest way to signal to your body that there is no need to panic.
7) Let yourself slow down. Often when our system is overwhelmed, we make decisions quickly, out of fear. Give yourself permission to slow down. When you move slowly and mindfully you can examine circumstances more critically and consider all angles. Also, a sense of urgency and needing to move quickly can communicate to our bodies that there is danger. If we can move through the world with a mindful ease, we can maintain a calm that helps us in our day-to-day lives.
8) Give yourself grace. Whatever you are doing, whatever you are going through, remind yourself you are doing the best you can in the given circumstance. The world is hard enough without you cutting yourself down as well and being kind to yourself will always make things better—keep that in mind.
I hope some of these suggestions resonate with you and that you find them practical to implement. If you have questions or need more support, please reach out to me at lisa@lisamanca.com. I would be happy to assist you in whatever way I can.