Earthing

Putting your body into direct contact with the earth, removing all barriers from your skin like shoes or clothes allowing it to touch the soil, sand or water helps to balance out the energies in your body. In modern society, we spend so much time indoors that we rarely touch the earth on our skin. Along with this, we are seeing a chronic rise in health problems today. Some people go years without touching the earth even if they go outside.

Staying indoors builds up a positive charge in our bodies. Scientifically it is said that the earth has a mild negative charge which balances out the overload of positive charges. Earthing or grounding is a method of bringing our bodies back into a balanced state. According to this theory without managing this build-up of positive charges we can end up with health problems. In other words, directly connecting one’s body to the earth can restore the electromagnetic balance needed to maintain optimal health.

Because our bodies are made up of primarily water and minerals they are good electric conductors and body easily receives transfers the earths electric charge. Most of us today wear shoes with insulated soles disconnecting us from the earth's electric field.  We need to go back to wearing moccasins made of animal hides! Even leather soles shoes would be better.

To counterbalance the disconnection between our bodies and the earth we must make a point of spending 15-20 minutes directly putting our skin to touch the earth. This will help bring back your vitality and your health.

Most houses have a ground wire. (I have seen plugs in 3^rd world countries that don’t) The ground wire is the third prong underneath the other two. This third prong is in case there is a short circuit and gives the electrical current a path back into the ground where it can be absorbed. If you touch the device that is short-circuiting without a ground wire it will shock or electrocute you because your body would be completing the ground path.

Today our bodies are in a state of short-circuiting because of so much, emotional, physical and mental stress. Just like the third prong, connecting to the earth grounds us and rebalances the electrical system in our bodies.

The theory is that earthing allows a transfer of negatively charged electrons from the Earth’s surface into the body. These electrons neutralize positively charged free radicals in our bodies that are causing chronic inflammation. Being in touch with the earth as such has a calming effect on your nervous system.

Have you ever noticed that you sleep so much better when you are on a vacation near the beach? This is because you probably go for beach walks barefoot. The saltwater is also very high in magnesium which mineralizes and grounds the body.

When you are grounded, you are fully present in your body and you feel connected to the earth. When you are not grounded you may have inflammation, poor sleep, chronic pain, fatigue and poor circulation. You can know if you are not grounded if you get distracted easily, your mind spaces out, you overthink things, and ruminate when you should let go and move on. You have anxiety and you worry too much and this creates personal drama.

Today being grounded is a worldwide epidemic and few people even realize they have a problem. Not being grounded is a big reason why so many people suffer today.

Walking barefoot in nature or using an earthing mat can reduce inflammation, improve your immune system, reduce your emotional stress, improve blood flow and make you happier.

Learning to ground yourself through Qigong exercises and walking barefoot outside will help you find your center and redistribute the energy in your body from head to toe which will calm your nervous system almost immediately.

In today's society, most of our stress comes from being disconnected from our bodies. It is my hope that if you root yourself in your body you will have less stress and anxiety in your daily life.

This article was inspired by the article in egreenway.com/qigong/rooting