A cheat sheet for remembering the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique
For my neurodivergent brain, remembering grounding exercises is hard. I created my own tool: a short video that acts as a visual mnemonic for the 5-4-3-2-1 technique.
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I live with an anxiety disorder and emotional dysregulation. In moments when my internal world becomes a storm, I’m often told to use tools to find my center again.
One of the most common is the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique, a five-step sensory scan that pulls me out of spiraling thoughts and into what I can see, feel, hear, smell, and taste right now.
It’s supposed to be simple. You start by naming five things you can see. The trouble is that after item one, my mind often goes blank. What comes next? In the middle of the storm, forgetting the steps only turns up the volume inside my head. The tool slips out of reach, and I feel like I’ve already lost the round.
I realized I needed a cheat sheet. First, I wrote the five words on a piece of paper and put it on my wall. A physical anchor. But I needed something I could carry with me, something I could access even when I wasn’t in my room.
My memory works visually. In sequences. So, I created this short video for myself.
It’s a simple loop, but it also contains the full set of instructions.
Each word is layered over one of my own photographs, a piece of my world. The sky for sight, the ripples of the sea for sound. It’s a tool built from my own art.
Now, when the anxiety hits, I don’t have to struggle to remember the steps. I just play this video in my mind. The sequence is there, clear and calm. It’s a file I saved directly to my brain, a personal mnemonic that guides me back to the present moment.
- SEE (5 items): Look around and name five things, right down to the pattern on your mug or a speck of dust on the window.
- FEEL (4 items): Notice four points of contact: the fabric of your shirt, the chair under you, the weight of your phone, the cool air on your skin.
- HEAR (3 items): Pick out three sounds: traffic outside, a ticking clock, your own breathing.
- SMELL (2 items): Identify two scents: fresh coffee, soap on your hands.
- TASTE (1 item): Finish with one taste: a sip of water, the lingering mint of toothpaste.
Sometimes the most effective tools aren’t the ones we’re given, but the ones we redesign for ourselves.