I’ve had quite the journey since starting my practice & joining Spells8 to restart my practice I had years before July of 2020. Once I had gotten through some courses and begun to interact in the forum as my practice took its shape, I learned (early on) that mindfulness, grounding, and centering were something I needed in my life. I didn’t need them for my practice; I needed them daily. Once I realized how important they were, not only within my practice, that was a whole new journey. I had no idea what mindfulness meant; grounding and centering were also a mystery. I struggled with them but wanted to learn more about what I had heard so much about and to benefit from them the best way I could to evolve.
I struggled with this for a very long time & I never knew it until I started paying attention & wanting to learn about it. I saw it throughout the site and in the forum conversations. I couldn’t figure it out or understand why I had such a hard time with it. Everyone else seemed able to do it whenever they wanted or needed to, or at least it was much easier for them. I didn’t even think that you could quiet your mind at all. This is just 1 of the many things I would put too much thought into, then wind up in a rabbit hole that led me here, there, & everywhere.
Grounding
Image Created with Microsoft Designer
At first, I was in a web of things all to do with mindfulness, grounding, breathing & breathwork, anxiety… It was a lot to sift through, and many tangents that raised more questions. The grounding comes down to where you are right now, being connected to yourself and your surroundings, and being okay with that at the same time. You’re not overexcited, “off in another world”, anxious, or anything else; you are perfectly content and aware of where and what is happening. You feel connected with yourself and your surroundings and centered with them too.
So, how do you even start to practice any of this? In steps, I’ve found that approaching things one step at a time is a good way to start anything and continue to do it. Even if you start, stop, and then start again, one thing at a time is usually easier than several all at once or jumping right back to where you were before stopping.
I am in a restart phase—on a much larger scale than when I started my journey in 2020. It feels like a major life shift in all aspects of my life. I have finally come to a place where I can move with the change by being more permeable to what is happening with myself and my immediate area.
I already know that mindfulness and grounding work very well for me to stay on an even keel each day. Some routines and hard guidelines work well, (I need wiggle room, though; I hate feeling sealed in a box with anything) as do practicing instead of pushing it off until later. Often, later never seems to come when you think it will in the moment. I have added to my “toolbox 
” of things that work for me to deal with what comes my way.
- Breathwork and using Breathing Practices
- Practice Mindfulness
- Learn to Meditate and Practice Meditating. No matter how often you must repeat, start over, or walk away and return to it. You can even try this beginner mindfulness meditation: How to Meditate in a Moment (the actual video is about 5 minutes long. The actual meditation practice is 1 minute of the video.)
- Reach out to the coven
with your goals, progress, or questions about: Grounding and Centering or Aphantasia - No Mind’s Eye - Use Grounding Oil
or Incense throughout the day - Try things like walking outside barefoot or some gardening
if possible or another way to do Earth Grounding
Right now, I am taking a foundation plan or course 
with an app on my phone. It’s called Balance and it personalizes meditations and skills for you based on questions that you answer.
Side Quest
(They are currently offering a free year of the app, so I decided to go for it. They will send you a reminder should you want to cancel before you are billed. A free year, though, is a free year of a wonderful app so far! 
)
I had already completed the Meditations Course again, but I needed to focus more on the basics to get back in my groove.
I started journaling again to help with any troubling thoughts, situations, synchronicities, or feelings to write, trying my best to do so after my meditations turned out to be harder than I remember 
I’ve recently had this amazing urge to write 
Restarting my journal practice fits right in plus I have more than one Sacred Book 
but starting with my daily writings and journal prompts 
each day or after meditation or another type of something, has been good for me. I feel better every day and more connected to what is important to me and who I am 
I have also learned that when I have an unbearable draw to the ocean 
and go out into the water and float, what I do in that space is also a form of mindfulness, meditation 
, and grounding. It has been a strengthening connection period of restarting my practice from the foundation up.
So many things have changed 
and I’ve learned 
just as much about many different subjects 
which have helped reshape me, allow me to change with what is happening 
and make it easier for me to flow through my days 
It helps me when I can do even one a day for even a few minutes. I just had to remember that and get back to it myself.
You’re welcome, 
or even worries that may bother you. They may even seem to surface in the evening or before you go to bed 