This is a great moment to remind you that you are human, emotion is normal and completely okay to experience. However there are ways to help you cope with stress when things start to get on top of you. Grounding strategies are very beneficial to have the knowledge of, and can be even better if you can incorporate them into your everyday actions. They can be as simple as using your breath, senses and rehearsed scripts to bring yourself to the present moment and calm the mind.

By engaging in grounding practice, you are helping your brain to develop natural pathways that can recognise when you engage in these strategies and work to calm you as an automatic response. This takes time to make lasting changes, however you do not need to practise for hours everyday, rather find incidental moments to engage in the strategies to build your familiarity to them.

When you are feeling overwhelmed, remember that it’s okay to walk away and take a moment to ground yourself and calm down. A clear mind will help you approach the situation in a calm manner. If you do choose to walk away, make sure your child is in a safe place, in their cot or held by another person who is calm.

When you walk away, talk to your child and tell them what you are doing. Try something like: “It’s ok, I am going to walk outside to calm down, I will be right back, I love you”. When you return, you could say: “Here I am, I am back and I love you”. It may seem unnecessary to talk to a young baby with such language, however it can be comforting and soothing for them to hear a reassuring tone of voice. It also starts showing them at a young age that expressing emotions and taking space for yourself is okay.

Within the resources we provide here on our website, as well as within our products, Dear Dahlia will assist you in growing your toolkit of grounding activities that you can implement in times of overwhelm. Follow along on instagram and within our blog to see more.