The Art of Grounding

By Brietta Leader Photos by Woods Wheatcroft Photography

The art of grounding is one of the most valuable tools one can establish for daily balance and happiness. A deep breath can be enough at times or a short walk to calm the nerves, yet the grounding I am talking about asks you to go deeper—to connect viscerally to your energetic roots that extend into Mother Earth and feel the inner chaos or contentment that rocks or revitalizes your inner core. The grounding I emphasize in life is the physical kind, the connection to inner stability that is resourced from the Earth, strengthened in movement and meditation practices with pursuits of steadiness of thought.

Pema Chodron, a famous Buddhist author, talks about the art of being ungrounded. I don’t remember her exact words, but the essence I received was all about embracing uncertainty, being OK with the moments that don’t feel as stable or peaceful, and letting your awareness grow as the sensations of being grounded and ungrounded differ greatly. We each get to choose how we want to live. Pema’s words simply felt like permission to flail at times, which usually leads to breakthroughs and growth.

I can usually last a few days without meditation, yoga or a WildCore Movement practice before I feel off-balance and ungrounded. There are many ways this could be expressed. One might be a craving for certain heavy foods or drinks, easily frustrated with people or with myself, and unable to focus on anything with no real direction. When this happens, I know it is time to take a few breaths and engage in one of my “go-to” grounding practices like hiking, breathwork, yoga or dance. Re-centering does not have to take too long, it can be restored within five to 10 minutes once you have established your relationship to what “feeling grounded” is for you.

Our roots and ability to ground are in our connection to our first chakra—or the spinning wheel of energy located at the base of our spine. This root chakra relates to the animal side of our humanity, given our biological needs to survive and to feel safe and secure. These needs are water, food, shelter, family, community and belonging. Once these are met in a balanced fashion, we can feel relaxed and grounded.

This chakra devotes itself to the survival of the physical body and connects to our sense of smell, which links to our primal or limbic brain. Our sense of smell is a major key to survival. The olfactory receptors are located in the nasal cavity and immediately send messages to our limbic brain before we have even become conscious of what we are smelling. You may have sensed this when you smell a rose, which reminds you of your grandmother’s garden, or a mix of smells that remind you of certain places. This is true for trauma and other emotions triggered by smell. That is why it is so powerful to use essential oils and other olfactory enticers like baking, or cooking with garlic, that give a deep sense of safety and grounding.

In Ayurvedic wisdom, the summer season brings an increase in the fire element. For those of us who already live with a lot of internal heat and energy to play, garden, work and stay up late to enjoy the outdoors, we can become ungrounded and burned out. That is why it’s important to maintain our strategies of cooling down with swims in the lake, adding mint to our water, practicing mindful breathing, and learning new creative pathways to feel grounded and balanced this summer.

Women’s Alchemy for Soulful Wellness is a custom designed 1-on-1 program that offers the alchemy of movement, energy hygiene tools, somatic education, massage, rituals and soul nourishment to get you on the empowering path to self-healing.

THIS IS FOR YOU IF:

• You seek gentle 1:1 guidance to stay energetically empowered.

• You are interested in learning how to connect to your body and gain mental, emotional and spiritual strength for daily balance and happiness.

• You want to learn more about body alignment and technique to refine your skills.

• You are ready for nourishment through massage, emotional support and physical unwinding. Call Brietta Leader (208) 304-3143 To

WildCoreMovement.com

By Patty Hutchens