A grounding exercise
Dropping Anchor
When a thought, feeling, or memory pulls you off course, this is how you find the seabed again. Three short moves. No need to fight the storm — just stop drifting with it.
One
Acknowledge
Notice what's here.
Silently name what's showing up, without trying to change it. A thought. A feeling. A memory. An urge. A sensation in your chest or your hands.
Try the phrase "I notice I'm having the thought that…" or "I notice the feeling of…" Just that. No judgement, no fixing.
You're not pushing it away. You're simply seeing it clearly.
Two
Come back into your body
Find something solid.
Press your feet into the floor. Straighten your back. Slowly press your fingertips together, or stretch, or roll your shoulders.
Breathe out a little slower than you breathe in. Feel yourself here, in this body, in this room.
This is the anchor going down — not stopping the storm, just steadying the boat.
Three
Engage with the world
Look outward.
Widen your gaze. Let the world back in.
- Notice five things you can see
- Notice three or four things you can hear
- Notice where you are, and what you're about to do next
You were never trying to feel nothing. Just to be here — on purpose — while it passes through.
Anchored
You can drop anchor anywhere.
Before a session, mid-argument, in a queue, in bed at 3am. The storm doesn't need to pass first. Acknowledge. Come back. Engage.
The Choice Point
Start at the bottom with the situation and the thoughts or feelings that hook you. From there, every action leads away from what matters, or towards it.
Away from the person and life I want
What I did that pulled me away from who I want to be
- Nothing added yet.
Towards the person and life I want
What I did that moved me toward who I want to be
- Nothing added yet.