Times are tough. From the moment you wake up to the moment you fall asleep, you’re bombarded by harrowing news of global turmoil and personal strife. It can be overwhelming to take in this much information all the time, which is why it’s more important than ever to take care of yourself. After all, we can only fight back against systems of oppression if we are mentally sound. Here are four grounding techniques that are not as effective as taking your computer and absolutely chucking that thing out of an open window.
The “5-4-3-2-1” exercise
This grounding technique tells you to list five things you can hear, four things you can see, three things you can feel, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste as a means of centering yourself in your body. It is not as effective, however, as saying “5, 4, 3, 2, 1,” aloud and hurling your computer out of the window of your third-floor apartment and watching it crash to pieces on the sidewalk below. The articles about Trump’s air traffic control cuts can’t hurt you when the computer is broken.
Square breathing
When you feel overwhelmed, it can be helpful to focus on your breathing: inhale for four seconds, hold for four, exhale for four, and hold for four again. This can help you clear your mind before you do a much more effective thing: yell “ENOUGH,” unplug your desktop computer from the wall, and push it out of an open window. Deep breath. That felt good, huh?
Hold an object
When you feel yourself getting worked up and out of control, try holding an object in your hand and focusing on its weight, texture, and temperature. Is it heavy? Does it have a metallic sheen? Is it overheating? Yup, that’s your computer! Throw that baby out the window.
Move your body
Sometimes when it all feels like too much, it can be helpful to remind yourself that you’re in your body by moving around a bit. Try some jumping jacks! Or a pushup! Or open the nearest window! And lift a heavy weight! Bring the weight to the window! Push the weight out of the window! The weight in question was your computer.
There. Didn’t that feel good? Up next, we’ll show you three conflict mitigation techniques that are not as effective as punching them in the face.
