These grounding techniques can be used to gently bring your attention to the present moment, encouraging feelings of calm and well-being. They are mini moments of mindfulness that can be scattered throughout the day, taking you from doing to being mode.

Grounding techniques are a key part of the management of dissociative/non-epileptic seizures (NEAD) that I experience as part of my FND. They help me access a more normal level of consciousness and can reduce the length, severity, and sometimes even occurrence of a seizure. I find it helpful to try out different techniques, see which are working well for me, and then practise a few regularly so that I can make use of them more easily when I’m feeling unwell.

Sense Awareness Inventory

Creating an inventory of sensory experiences that bring you comfort, pleasure and feelings of well-being can be a helpful way to explore sensory grounding techniques. I was first introduced to this idea on a Breathworks mindfulness retreat, when we were asked to quickly jot down as many enjoyable sensory experiences as we could think of, which we then developed over the course of the retreat. The idea is discussed more fully in ‘Mindfulness for Women’ by Vidyamala Burch and Claire Irvin.

CC Sense Awareness Inventory