5-4-3-2-1 Mindfulness

Anxiety is a perfectly normal human response that the body has developed as a part of our adaptive system to tell us when we are in danger. This means that when we are looking to deal with our anxiety we are never trying to eliminate it, but instead manage it.

Sometimes our thoughts can go wild with ‘what if’ situations, causing anxiety that can quickly evolve into a panic attack. When our thoughts get ramped up like this, our mind can run in the wrong direction, triggering the ‘smoke detector’ part of our brain – the area responsible for assessing levels of safety/threat – to initiate a fight, flight, or freeze response.

Although panic attacks are usually brought on by thoughts that are irrational and out of proportion with reality, they should not be ignored. The severity and intensity of panic attacks can increase over time and can prevent us from optimally functioning in our everyday occupations.

Grounding exercises can help us to combat anxiety and prevent it from interfering with our daily lives. While it may be unlikely to completely stop our flow of thoughts during these moments, we can try to find a way to use our senses to help organize them into something productive.

This technique will take you through your five senses to help remind you of the present.

Instructions:

5 – LOOK: Look around for 5 things that you can see, and say them out loud or quietly to yourself – i.e. I see the computer, I see the cup, I see the carpet

4 – FEEL: Pay attention to your body and think of the 4 things that you can feel and say them out loud or quietly to yourself – i.e. I feel my feet in my socks, I feel the hair on the back of my neck, I feel the chair I am sitting on

3 – LISTEN: Listen for 3 sounds. Say them out loud or quietly to yourself – i.e. I can hear the clock ticking, I can hear typing on the keyboard, or I can hear my tummy rumbling

2 – SMELL: Say 2 things that you can smell. If you can’t smell anything, name 2 of your favorite smells.

1 – TASTE: Say one thing you can taste. If you can’t taste anything, name your favorite thing to taste.

** Feel free to take liberties with this game!

Modify it to fit your child or to make it easier!

Sometimes I will change the 5-4-3-2-1 into a color matching game – i.e. 5 blue things I can see, 4 green things I can see, etc.**

Submitted by Jay Manix, Occupational Therapy Intern