Developing Healthy Coping skills and balancing academics with stressors of daily life.

1. Just Breathe: Two Part
Workshop Series
Developing healthy coping skills and balancing
academics with stressors of daily life.
Presented by Kristin Williams and Victoria Jakaub

2. Check-In
• “Mindfulness is simply observing, watching, examining. You are not
a judge, but a scientist.” – Walpola Rahula
• For those who attended last workshop, did you practice any of the
techniques or coping skills to increase mindfulness?
• Did you feel like the technique learned/practiced worked?

3. Grounding
• Grounding is a powerful
strategy to detach from
emotional pain that feels
unsafe- for example drug
cravings, self harm impulses,
anger, sadness- by focusing on
the external world. We can
also think of grounding as:
Distraction * Centering* A safe place *
Looking outward

4. Why Grounding?
• Many People struggle with either feeling too much too little. In grounding you
get a balance between the two.
• Remember, pain is a feeling, but it is NOT who you are. Pain is just part of your
experience, and you can find the other parts through grounding.

5. 3 Types of Grounding
Mental
Focusing your mind
Physical
Focusing your senses
(Touching, hearing, etc.)
Soothing
Saying kind things to yourself

6. When to use Grounding and the Guidelines…
• Grounding can happen anytime, anywhere. No one has to know.
• Use grounding when faced with a trigger, enraged, have a
substance craving, or whenever your emotional pain goes above a
6.
• Keep your eyes open, scan the room, and turn the light on.
• Rate your mood from 0-10 before and after grounding to test if
grounding worked. Did your pain go down afterwards?
• Stay neutral. Avoid judging as “good” or “bad.”
• Focus on the present, not the past or future.

7. Mental Grounding
• Describe your environment in detail, using all your
senses.
• Play “categories” game with yourself.
• Describe an everyday activity in great detail.
• Imagine.
• Say a safety statement
• My name is______. I am safe right now. I am in
the present, not the past. I am located in______
and the date is_______.
• Use humor.
• Count to 10 or say the alphabet.

8. • Grab tightly onto your chair as hard as
you can.
• Touch various objects around you.
• Dig your heels into the floor.
• Carry a grounding object in your pocket.
Jump up and down.
• Notice your body
• Clench and release your fists.
• Eat something and describe flavors in
detail to yourself.
• Focus on your breathing.
Physical Grounding

9. Soothing
Grounding
Say kind statements.
Think of favorites.
Picture people you care about.
Remember works to an inspiring song, quote, or poem
that makes you feel better.
Say a coping statement.
Plan a safe treat for yourself.
Think of things you are looking forward to in the next
week.

10. Tips if
Grounding
Does Not
Work!
1. Practice as often as possible.
2. Practice faster.
3. Try grounding for a long time (20-
30mins).
4. Try to notice which methods you like
best.
5. Create your own methods of grounding.
6. Start grounding early in a negative mood
cycle.
7. Make up index cards
8. Have others assist you in grounding
9. Prepare in advance.