The meditations I have been sharing with you can expand your consciousness. This is a good thing. But there is the possibility that it can stir up your internal energy and make you feel ungrounded. I’d like to explain a few ways to ground and integrate non physical energy so you can avoid any unpleasant sensations.Ungrounded is a way to describe being spaced out and not fully in touch with your present reality. This can manifest itself in a wide variety of positive ways, or some not so pleasant feelings. I think of the image of someone that hasn’t showered for days and wants to talk about some mystical experience while walking the streets talking to themselves. They could be crazy…or they might have truly had the mystical experience, and they just can’t get their sh*t together.Usually ungrounded feelings will arise in more subtle manners. You could feel disconnected from your normal life routine and friends. Or you feel some anxiety, either mild or intense, that can keep you on edge and scared for awhile. You might be groggy and dazed for a little bit.

I’m no shrink and won’t spend time debating which possibility exists. And regardless of how powerful meditations affect you, becoming grounded after the fact can amplify the positive benefits and minimize any potential negative side effects.

I have spent multiple weeks at The Monroe Institute where I am experiencing powerful binaural beat meditations for 6-8 hours a day. It is easy to get all blissed out, and it feels good. But a couple of very intense experiences left me terrified for short periods!

Once in deep consciousness exploration at The Monroe Institute I came across a giant 20 foot rat. It is easy in hindsight to say that it was all in “my mind” but it was as real as the room I sit in when I was experiencing it. The rat looked at me with menace and came towards me. Oh no! I ripped off my headphones and sat up. I was in haze, my head felt like I needed 20 hours of sleep still, and my face muscles seems asleep.

This is a scary feeling even though I practice binaural beat meditations and explorations 3-5 times a week, every week, for the past 12 years. So what did I do?

I went outside and took a long walk. Then I came back and ate a sandwich with some meat on it. These are two activities that work very successfully for me to ground myself back in our current shared reality. I still had to deal with the giant rat, but that is for another article.

So here are some suggestions for grounding if you feel a little too “woo-woo” after any experience. Some are simple, some are more in-depth. The point is, try them if you need until you find what works for you.

Physical activities:

• Strenuous physical exercise
• Visualizing sending energy into the earth’s core
• Bath, hot tub, or hot shower
• Eating, the heaviest meatiest thing possible
• Making love

Mental/emotional outlets:

• Singing
• Journaling
• Laughing
• Sharing experiences with others

Creative outlets:

• Art
• Music
• Writing
• Any form of building

For me, it is all about the physical outlets. I see no benefit at all in singing after I had my mind temporarily filled with anxiety. But we are all different, and I have been told that any of these outlets can help. I would say that the more intense the short-term need for grounding, the more you need to steer towards the physical. Eat a burger, run or walk outside, take a shower…these have all done the trick for me over and over again.

Now about that giant rat…