How To Stay Grounded During Re-Entry?
DEAR SHERRY:
I got used to things being quieter this past year and a half. I was never a fan of crowded places, and as more things start to open, I would love some tips for not being overwhelmed and to help me stay grounded.
UNGROUNDED
DEAR UNGROUNDED:
I have heard quite a bit that people have gotten used to things being quieter and that they even quite enjoy a slower pace in life.
Being in a crowd can be overstimulating for the nervous system and can cause someone to feel out of control because there are too many stimuli to process.
Some tips I have for staying grounded are:
BALANCE-
Even though the world has opened back up, it is essential to balance going out and being home and slowing down.
Being quiet and sitting with ourselves is so crucial for optimal physical and mental health. Imagine if you put gas in your car and just kept driving? Eventually, it would run out of gas and break down. You need to stop and refuel for the vehicle to run well. We need to refuel as well, and one of the ways we do that is through resting.
SEEK TO UNDERSTAND-
As I said, being in a crowd can cause someone to feel out of control. You might want to ask yourself, what other times have I felt out of control and couldn’t process everything that was happening? We all have painful or traumatic experiences that cause our limbic system, the emotional center in our brain, to become overwhelmed, and then our pre-frontal cortex, the part of our brain that helps us to think clearly, goes off-line. When we can’t think clearly, we become ungrounded.
If you spend some time thinking about and processing these past experiences, it can help ground and center yourself, making it easier to be in a crowd. Speaking to a counselor could be beneficial if it feels too scary to explore these experiences on your own.
TAKE A MOMENT-
If you find you become ungrounded when you are out, take a sip of water, follow your breath in and out a few times, and tell yourself that you are safe. All of these things can help to ground you and bring you back to the present moment.
Wishing you a peaceful re-entry!
SHERRY
