Navigating the Challenges of the Holiday Season

Examples of grounding techniques are meditation, prayer, fidgeting, napping, or breathing exercises. Again, balance is key, aiming to have strategies that support both leaning in and leaning out.

∙ Find gratitude. Gratitude is often an antidote for stress and anxiety. By intentionally shifting towards gratitude, we can begin to change our thought patterns.

∙ Lastly, I like to promote a simple tapping technique. It can be done sitting or standing. All a person needs to do is put each of their hands onto the respective leg and alternate tapping. Simply tap the left leg with the left hand and the right leg with the right hand, starting firm but not too hard and gradually getting slower and gentler across the time span of a couple of minutes. All the while, placing complete attention on the sense of touch. Notice things like movement, pressure, temperature, texture, or any physical sensation within the area of the tapping. Eventually, this tapping technique should help to soothe the nervous system and calm the mind. It can be a helpful technique if a person is feeling overwhelmed or lying in bed overthinking and having trouble sleeping.

you, Jon, for your

Jon Hunt is an-. Registered Psychologist with over 15 years of experience and operates River and Roots Counselling and Psychological Services. Jon specializes in processing trauma and supporting individuals along their healing journeys. His passion lies in helping people untangle the knots that keep them bound and supporting them to weave a new design for their future. He can be reached at Jon.hunt@riverandroods.ca