5-4-3-2-1 grounding
A quick grounding exercise using your five senses, for when anxiety, shame or a racing head is driving the urge.
How to do it
- Name 5 things you can see.
- Name 4 things you can feel: your feet, the chair, your clothes.
- Name 3 things you can hear.
- Name 2 things you can smell.
- Name 1 thing you can taste, or one steady thing you could say to yourself.
Get the right tool at the right moment
In THE Habit Breaking App, Urge Rescue asks how you feel and suggests the tool that fits, then checks how it went so it learns what works for you.
Other tools
- Slow your breathing
- Surf the urge
- Delay for 15 minutes
- Change where you are
- Reach out to someone
- Reality Check
- Move for 5 minutes
- Meet a body need first
- Play a song that steadies you
If you're not safe right now, call 999 or Samaritans on 116 123.