The feeling of anxiety or even feeling a bit “off center” can produce issues ranging from distraction and irritability, to wanting to crawl out of our skin or just run away and hide.

If you’ve experienced these feelings, you know how challenging they can be and the bumpy road they can lead us down. 

Essentially, when anxious thoughts have taken over, we have left our body and the present moment.  We are spinning somewhere in the future or the past.

Here is a simple sensory technique called 5-4-3-2-1.

You can put this in your yoga and meditation tool box and it will help you get you back in your body and release the grip of unhelpful thought patterns. 

Whether it is the middle of the night and your head is racing or a stressful situation that seems all consuming, we can use our senses to find calm and stability.

I’ve been waking up around 3am lately and my mind is like a monkey jumping around in a cage. Not many thoughts are rational at 3am.

I’ve used this technique a few times recently and I find it to be like an anchor that holds a boat within a tumultuous sea. I return to center and fall back to sleep.

SEE FIVE:

Sit down or be still and have a deep breath.

Slowly look around and notice five things that you see.

Soften your eyes and have a deep breath with each thing that you see.

You don’t need to think about the thing, just see it, name it and have a deep breath.

TOUCH FOUR:

Have a deep breath and gently touch four things.

Let your fingers be soft as you notice how each thing feels on your skin.

Have a deep breath and feel each thing with some tenderness.

HEAR THREE:

Close your eyes and listen.  Hear three sounds. 

Have a deep breath with each one.

Notice the silence between and around each sound.

Let your body be soft.

SMELL TWO:

Breathe in through your nose and notice two things you can smell.

It might be the sweetness in the air. Or the smell of your hair or shirt.

Inhale deeply and name the thing that you smell.

Exhale and breathe out some tension.

TASTE ONE:

Observe one thing you can taste.

It may be a sip of water or your lips.

Have a deep breath and just notice how the taste feels on your tongue and in your mouth.

Exhale and soften your body a bit more. 

Notice what parts of you are touching the earth.

You are centered.

You are grounded.

You are calm.

You can do this anywhere. Repeat this as many times as needed.

Breathe into what is and exhale more space to hold it all. 

More space to let things shift and release.

When we are in the present moment, often anxiety will release its grip or we will gain clarity about the next action to take.

You are seen.

You are heard.

You are felt.

You are a gift to this world.

*Always reach out to a professional if things feel unmanageable and your tools aren’t helping as much as you need.