Grounding Practices for Emotional Regulation: A Guide for When You Feel Overwhelmed.
When emotions hit like a tidal wave, your nervous system doesn’t need a lecture — it needs an anchor. Therefore, that’s where grounding comes in. In fact, grounding isn’t just a list of tricks. Instead, it’s how we help the body remember safety, right in the middle of chaos.
Whether you’re spinning out in anxiety, overwhelmed by grief, or just totally untethered, this guide offers grounding practices you can actually use even when your brain is running for the hills.
EXPLORE MORE – If intense emotions often leave you spiraling, you may also find support in my guide on how to → stop intense emotions from overwhelming you ← right here.
Why Grounding Works
Overall, grounding brings us back into the here and now. It’s how we shift from thinking about our feelings to actually being with them without drowning. You don’t need to “get rid of” hard emotions. You need to stay connected to yourself while they move through.
When we’re grounded:
- The breath deepens.
- The body softens.
- The present moment feels safer than the past or the future.
Ultimately, this isn’t about perfect calm. It’s about being in your body enough to ride the wave.
Finally remember: It’s not failure if you still feel strong emotions after grounding. The “win” is that you stayed with yourself instead of abandoning yourself.
Practice 1: Orient to the Room
Looking around and naming what you see, hear, and feel helps anchor you back into the present.
Best for: Dissociation, overwhelm, spiraling thoughts.
Grounding for emotional regulation – Dissociation
This works because your survival brain is wired to constantly scan the environment for safety. By naming what you see, hear, and feel, you’re giving your nervous system a direct update: the danger isn’t here. That shift pulls you out of looping thoughts and reconnects you with the present moment.
How to do it:
- Slowly turn your head and name five things you see. Say them out loud if possible.
- Now notice three things you hear.
- Finally, name one thing you feel against your skin (your clothes, the chair, your feet on the floor).
This simple practice activates your orienting reflex: a primal brain function that checks for safety. You’re reminding your body: “I’m here, now. I can handle this moment.”
Try this tweak: As you name what you see, let your eyes pause for a beat on something pleasant or neutral. A colour, a texture, a shape. That moment of interest helps your nervous system find safety signals.
Orienting to the senses calms panic: see the → National Institute of Mental Health grounding guide
Want to go even deeper? My free guide 7 Days of Regulation offers daily practices to help calm your nervous system and build emotional steadiness. → Grab your copy here
Practice 2: Hand on Heart, Belly or Face
Warm, steady touch can offer your nervous system the comfort it craves.
Best for: Anxiety, numbness, shame, or feeling unworthy.
Grounding for emotional regulation – Shame
So much of anxiety and shame comes from feeling disconnected or unworthy. When you bring warm, steady touch to your own body, you’re giving yourself the co-regulation your system longs for. It tells your body: you are here, you are safe, and you belong.
How to do it:
- Place one hand gently on your chest or cheek. Let it rest there. No fixing, just presence.
- Feel the warmth, pressure, and weight. Let your body register: “I’m being met.”
Touch is primal. It’s how our nervous systems co-regulate — even when it’s your own hand doing the holding.
Bonus layer: Add a slow breath and whisper something kind: “I’m here. I’m with you.”
Practical tip: Try pairing this with a mirror. Looking into your own eyes while holding your chest can feel confronting at first, but over time it builds deep self-acceptance.
Practice 3: Weighted Pressure or Containment
Weighted pressure creates a safe container when everything feels too much.
Best for: Feeling scattered, raw, overstimulated, or out of control.
Grounding for emotional regulation – Overwhelm
Overwhelm often feels like your edges have dissolved and everything is spilling out. Weighted pressure re-establishes those boundaries, reminding your body where “you” end and the world begins. This containment creates a felt sense of safety that makes emotions easier to process.
Ways to use weight:
- A heavy blanket or weighted lap pad.
- Sitting with your back firmly against a wall.
- Curling up in a tight blanket roll (yes, like a burrito).
This helps your system feel the edges of your body and creates containment when everything feels like it’s leaking out.
Try this daily: Even if you’re not in crisis, spend five minutes each evening under a blanket or leaning against a wall. Think of it as training your body to find safety in pressure so it’s easier to access when overwhelm hits.
EXPLORE MORE – Grounding doesn’t just calm overstimulation, it also builds resilience. For more tools, see my cornerstone on → How to face your fears and build resilience
Practice 4: Anchor Breath
Choose one point to focus your breath on; this helps you land in the here and now.
Best for: Spirals of overthinking, panic, or looping overwhelm.
Grounding for emotional regulation – Overthinking
When emotions spiral, your attention scatters everywhere at once. Choosing a single anchor point focuses your mind and helps your body return to rhythm. It’s a way of telling your nervous system: “I can land here, in this breath, right now.” “I know how to feel grounded.”
How to do it:
- Pick one place in your body to “anchor” your attention: your belly, your hips, or the soles of your feet.
- As you breathe, focus only on that place. Imagine the breath moving in and out from there.
- Or pick a spot in front of you and focus your exhale on that space.
This isn’t about “perfect” deep breathing. It’s about using breath on purpose to bring you back into now.
Word pairings help: Inhale and say “here.” Exhale and say “now.” In addition to presence, the rhythm keeps your mind engaged while your body slows down.
As another practice tip, try three anchor breaths before opening your inbox or answering a difficult text. This way, it gives you choice instead of reactivity.
EXPLORE MORE – Grounding quiets the noise so you can make concrete choices without overthinking every path.
Practice 5: Cold or Heat to Shift State
A change in temperature can reset your system and open the door back to calm.
Best for: Shutdown, panic, or freeze states.
Grounding for emotional regulation – Shutdown
Temperature changes grab your body’s attention faster than thoughts can. The sudden contrast tells your nervous system that something new is happening and as a result, this contrast breaks the freeze or panic cycle & calms anxiety. Because of this reset a doorway opens back into choice and regulation.
Options:
- Hold a cold washcloth to your face or neck.
- Run cold water or warm water over your hands, or alternate between the two temperatures.
- Or switch to heat: place a hot water bottle on your belly or back of your neck.
Temperature shifts act like a reset button for the nervous system and tell your brain: “Something new is happening. You can respond differently now.”
For example, if you know mornings are tough, prep a hot water bottle or keep a gel ice pack ready. As a result, having it on hand means you don’t have to think you just apply and feel the difference.
Bonus: Let the Practice Be Enough
Grounding doesn’t have to “work” in the way your mind wants.
It doesn’t mean erasing emotion. It means staying present through it.
Instead, you’re not trying to “fix” yourself but helping your body feel what safety and regulation can be so it knows how to return.
What surprised you as you read these?
What felt like an invitation instead of an assignment?
EXPLORE MORE – Each grounded choice is a vote for who you are becoming; start here to → build self worth starting today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. What should I do first when I feel flooded by emotion?
Start with a cue based exhale. Let the out breath be longer than the in breath, then feel your feet and the support under you.
Q2. How does the 5‑4‑3‑2‑1 practice help my nervous system?
It orients your attention to the present through sight, touch, sound, smell, and taste so your body can register here and now as safe enough.
Q3. I try breathing, but my mind still races — what then?
Add gentle micro moves. Roll your shoulders, press palms together, or squeeze a cushion. Small movement can discharge excess energy.
Q4. How long should grounding take before I feel a shift?
Often two to three minutes is enough to notice a softening. Stay curious rather than perfect. Repeat in short rounds.
Q5. Is grounding a replacement for therapy?
No. Grounding steadies your system so deeper work can integrate. Many clients use it alongside coaching or therapy.
Ready for steadier days?
Grounding gives your body an anchor so change can stick. If you want guidance tailored to your patterns & go beyond just tips, let’s work together to build regulation you can rely on.
If overwhelm is frequent, you do not have to white‑knuckle this alone. In a private consult we will map your cues, practice two or three grounding steps together in real time that fit your life, and shape a plan you can keep. → Steadier days begin here.
“Working with Tess helped me finally feel safe in my own skin. The grounding practices we did together gave me tools I still use every day.” — Cindy S.
