Grounding exercises may be beneficial if you have a borderline personality disorder (BPD). These approaches are beneficial when experiencing dissociation, panic, anxiety, strong impulsive drives, flashbacks, or acute emotional pain. Learning and practicing grounding activities might help you manage your BPD symptoms and soothe your emotions.
Visual and auditory drills
Visual and auditory grounding exercises use your senses of sight and hearing to anchor you in the present moment. To perform a visual grounding practice, take a deep breath and begin mentally cataloging everything you see around you.
Even minor features, such as the color of electrical outlets or a crooked frame, should be scrutinized. Listen to the noises around you to perform an aural grounding technique. Not only should you pay attention to the obvious sounds, but also to the layers of sound, such as a dog’s whine before it howls.
Tactile Training
Tactile grounding exercises employ your sense of touch to help you stay grounded. A common tactile grounding technique is to take an ice cube from the freezer and hold it in your hand until it causes mild discomfort. Holding onto it for too long can create pain. Many people discover that the discomfort allows them to reconnect with the present moment.
Other Activities
If none of the aforementioned strategies work for you, get creative and devise your own grounding activities. Creating your own may be especially beneficial because only you know what would work best for your specific situation. What are your strongest senses? Smell? Taste? Touch? Could a combination of workouts, such as listening to music while stretching your muscles, be the most effective?
Experiment with several grounding strategies until you find one or a few that work for you. Repeat them several times, preferably before you need to utilize them. The more you practice, the more easily you’ll recall how to ground yourself when the moment comes.
Also Read: What Is Borderline Personality Disorder? Know Its Causes & Risk Factors
