Noticing Everything: Body Scanning Grounding Technique

Body scanning involves noticing any feelings or sensations you feel in your body, from head to toe. The goal is to focus on a specific aspect of the present moment. Noticing how your body feels physically helps you recognize, and really feel, that you are safe where you are and in this moment. This can be helpful in moments where your thoughts are too focused on the past or future.

The exercise:

You can do this one from any position. Keep your eyes open and stay aware of your surroundings. 

Starting with your feet, notice how the bottoms of your feet feel, without moving them or exerting any pressure. Notice surfaces your feet are touching and if you feel any sensations, temperatures, or textures. Notice any discomfort you might be feeling without trying to change it. Your only job right now is to notice.

Move up very slowly. Notice how the tops of your feet feel, continuing to be still and accept feelings that are there. Notice your ankles and any sensations there. If your feet are off the ground there might be pressure or weight where your ankles connect to your foot. Keep moving up and notice your calves. Notice if you can feel fabric from your clothing or air touching your legs if your clothes don’t reach that far. Notice if you feel warmth or cold or pressure. 

Move up a little more to your knees. Notice if they are bent or straight. Feel if your knees are comfortable or uncomfortable. Notice if your knees are in contact with anything, whether it is air, fabric, a surface, a chair, or another part of you.

Continue up slowly, along your thigh and the rest of your leg, noticing any pressure, surfaces, sensation, temperatures, and textures, still without moving or making any changes. 

Continue on to your lower back, noticing if there is pain there, noticing if there is pressure there.

Move slowly up your torso, just noticing feelings. Move up to your chest and upper back, noticing pressure, tension, sensations. 

Move up to your shoulders, noticing without moving or changing anything, any pain that might be there, any textures, noticing how your shoulders are positioned relative to your arms. 

Follow down your arms. Notice any feelings in your upper arms. Notice where they connect to your shoulder and slowly scan down bit by bit to your elbow. Notice if your elbow is bent, or straight. Notice any sensations and if your elbow is in contact with any surfaces. Notice where your elbow connects to your forearm, and continue scanning down, noticing any sensations.

Notice your wrists. Notice if they are bent or straight. Notice any surfaces they are in contact with, any discomfort, or any pressure.

Continue to your hands. Do not move them but notice if there is anything in them, or on them. If you are holding something or resting your hand on a surface, notice what it feels like. Notice how they are positioned. Notice if they are open, flat, relaxed, or in fists. 

Scan back up your arm, noticing if anything has changed, to your shoulders, and to your neck. Notice how your neck feels, if there’s any tension. Notice how the weight of your head feels on your neck. 

Notice your mouth and jaw. Feel if there is any tension there. Notice if your teeth are touching each other or if there is space between them. Notice whether you are breathing through your mouth or your nose, or both. If your head is touching anything, like the back of a chair, glasses, your hair, earrings, or the air, notice how that feels.

Lastly, notice how the very top of your head feels. 

The Takeaway:

You can stop there, or repeat this process in reverse, traveling back down from head, to neck, to shoulders, to arms, to hands, to arms, to shoulders, to chest, to torso, to legs, to feet, and back up again as many times as you like. You can also start from your head instead of your toes if that feels better for you.