5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 - Exercise
Duration of the exercise: approx. 3 minutes
This 3-minute exercise can help you feel grounded and oriented in the here and now.
You can use it whenever you feel 'beside yourself', cloudy, desoriented or highly emotional.
It is an easy-to-use, low-threshold exercise that can unfold significant positive effects once you try it out.
Before you start the exercise, do a quick check-in by asking yourself:
- How do I feel right now?
- How much do I feel that I am calmly resting within my body?
The exercise consists of five rounds. In each round you focus on your own perceptions:
| In the first round you find: |
|---|
| 5 things that you see around you |
| 5 things that you hear nearby |
| 5 things that you feel in/on your body (like the arms resting on the table, your feet touching the ground, your belly expanding and contracting with every breath and so on) |
| In the second round you find: |
|---|
| 4 things that you see around you |
| 4 things that you hear |
| 4 things that you feel in/on your body |
...and so on
Afterwards you do another check-in with yourself by answering the following questions:
- How do I feel right now?
- How much do I feel that I am calmly resting within my body?
- How has the exercise changed the way I perceive myself and my surroundings?
- How has it changed my feeling of being centered and oriented in the here and now?
If the exercise has helped you, know that you can use this tool anytime and anywhere from now on to help you feel more grounded.