The “5-4-3-2-1” helps to bring your mind back to the present using the senses - sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste.
The first step is to identify five things you can see. Next, find four things you can hear, three things you can feel, two things you can smell and one you can taste.
Ellen Hendriksen, a clinical psychologist at Boston University's Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders, told Vice: “Bringing our attention to our senses grounds us in the present and counting the items interrupts the spinning of our thoughts.”
Additionally, a specific technique based on Traditional Chinese Medicine principles that is said to be effective in relieving anxiety and stress, as well as physical pain in tapping. Read more about this technique here.
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