Three summers ago I broke a small bone in the ball of my foot and had to have surgery. Let me just say, foot surgery is to be avoided at all costs!! You forget, or at least I did, how much your feet show up for you 24/7 until one is compromised. The road to recovery was long and tedious. There were days when frustration got the best of me, unable to move my body the way I am accustomed to. I found I had separated myself from my foot and was mad at her constantly, calling her things like stupid foot. One day I went to see my acupuncturist and he said, “Mariska, you have to make friends with your foot to heal her. Love on her like you would your child and take her outside for some good healing grounding.” What is this grounding you speak of wise man?
“To ground is to pour your energies back into the earth and feel the warm calm of nature entering your body in exchange.” Anonymous
The earth is like an enormous battery emitting a continuous subtle electrical charge. All living beings are made up of the same sort of electrical frequencies. The cells in our bodies are constantly emitting electrical charges to run our bodies and optimize things like our immune system, nervous system, and organ functions for example. So on a basic level if you understand that the earth is a giant battery and we are electrical beings isn’t it fascinating to know we can plug into this giant battery for life-giving juice!
Grounding is believed to increase the body's defense response or immune system, reduce inflammation, improve cardiovascular disease, repair muscle damage, reduce chronic pain, and even stabilize your mood. Studies have shown that grounding the body allows negatively charged antioxidant electrons from the earth to enter the body and neutralize positively charged free radicals. Pretty cool science shit if you ask me!
Being barefoot is really non-negotiable here! You see rubber is an insulator, not a conductor, of electricity so if you’re traipsing around in nature and your intention is to get grounded you have clear the way for those healing electrons to actually enter your body. Feeling the earth beneath your bare feet, be it the grass in your yard or the sand at the beach is not only a sensual experience but a scientific detail not to be ignored.
Imagine the surface area of your feet and the capacity that surface area has for pulling in these healing electrons. Now imagine the surface area of your body if you fully committed to lying down on the earth. Stargazing, cloud watching, and meditation are joyful actives you can incorporate while engaging in grounding..win win win!
And then there is swimming. Swimming allows the body to be fully immersed in the healing energies of the earth. Make sure and choose one of Mother Nature’s pools though and not the backyard concrete variety. The ocean, a lake, a spring-fed creek, or a lazy river where you can get your float on are all excellent choices.
“And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.” Kahlil Gibran
So get outside and plant those naked tootsies on the ground! Mother Earth is waiting to receive you and fill you up with her radiant electrical charge through the practice of grounding.