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GROUNDING OURSELVES AND ITS BENEFITS Essentially we are spiritual beings having a human experience. So as a human being living on earth, it is important to learn to ground ourselves in relation to Mother Earth..... I learnt long before I became a counsellor the importance of grounding through studying metaphysics and becoming a reiki practitioner. We often hear people telling us to ground ourselves, but we may not know what that means. Grounding ourselves is a way of bringing ourselves back down to earth. Sometimes if we are too much in our heads, feeling flighty, then we are not grounded. It could be that a client is feeling that way and transference has taken place. Transference Transference describes a situation where the feelings, desires, and expectations of one person are redirected and applied to another person. Most commonly, transference belongs to a therapeutic setting, but not always, but in a therapy setting where a person applies certain feelings or emotions towards their counsellor the clients interaction may resemble a situation from the past as if therapist were the other individual. Often, the patterns seen in transference will be representative of a relationship from childhood. In these instances we can teach our clients to ground themselves so they can be more present. DISSOCIATION Its also a productive way to help clients who often dissociates during therapy sessions, by teaching them to ground themselves it encourages and helps a client to be more present. When a client is present they learn to bare their soul and get to know who they truly are without all the conditions of worth and traumas that seem to have defined them. This encourages healing to take place. Lots of clients may wear a mask as a way of communicating, but when they are grounded and fully present the mask can come off and the person they truly are can be seen. FEELING CONNECTED It’s so important for us counsellors to ground before and after working with clients. Some of us are more prone than others to leave our bodies or not be firmly rooted to the ground. When a counsellor is walking in the shoes of clients all day it’s essential to ground ourselves after so that we can be fully connected. HOW TO GROUND OURSELVES These days we don’t often walk bare footed in the woods or outside so wearing shoes can be a block to the connection to Mother Earth. There's nothing terribly wrong with this, but while we are living on the earth plane it is best to stay grounded in the body. Another way of grounding is to close our eyes and concentrate on our breath and watch as it enters and leaves the body. If we take in large breathes hold it then watch it move around our whole being, really concentrate on each part of your body and tell it to relax as we breathe out each breath. The next step is if we imagine roots growing from the top of our legs down to our feet then into the ground, deeper into the earth visualise thick strong long roots. Then watch them wrapping around something, i.e. tree roots or crystals this will help us feel fully grounded. Giving us energy and feeling the union of ourselves and Mother Earth. RECYCLING NEGATIVITY Something we can add is to imagine all the negative thoughts, feelings and emotions we have experienced or listened to during the day and watch them move down our bodies. So start from the top of your head and just pull down all the negativity and allow it to fully move down the body and into your roots then into the ground. This way it can be recycled by Mother Earth. POSITIVE LIGHT Another step is to imagine a light entering your crown chakra which is on top of our heads. The light can be any colour, just visualise it coming from above and filling your whole being with positivity and healing. PROTECTION We can go further and so after doing all the above we can visualise ourselves in a bubble or a coat of armour for protection. So that any harsh energies don’t effect us too much. We can also teach our clients to protect themselves this way. I have taught this to many many clients, such as children and teenagers who are being bullied at school. It may be that clients are working with someone who is very harsh or negative so this type of grounding and protection is very helpful. Or if a client is very sensitive to energies this will be a good way of keeping grounded and safe. People who work as counsellors, psychotherapist, the police, ambulance services, nurses, the army, teachers, healers, hairdressers, beauticians, taxi drivers, shop keepers, doctors, dentist, consultants, massage and sports therapist anyone who is hands on or who works closely with others will especially benefit from regular grounding and protection. This is why grounding ourselves every day, especially at the beginning of the day or the end of the day is such a beneficial practice. This process is as simple as bringing our conscious awareness to our bodies and the earth on which we walk. Samantha Earnshaw 14.10.18