8 November 2023

A grounding box (sometimes called a self-soothing box) is a box that anyone can create which holds items that can help instil feelings of safety or calm and reduce distress. 

The North Kensington and Chelsea Community Mental Health Hub Psychology Service made a sample grounding box for the team to show to clients and wanted to put together a short information leaflet for people to give them some ideas on how to create a grounding box of their own.  Through the Patient and Carer Involvement Team Katie spoke to people who have used grounding boxes themselves and together they produced a short guide.   

Katie Williams, Clinical Associate in Psychology, from North Kensington and Chelsea Community Mental Health Hub Team, said  

“While a grounding box alone cannot be used to solve big problems, it is one of the many tools that can be used to help people feel less distressed. Developing a sample grounding box in our department containing an assortment of different items has allowed clinicians and clients to explore ideas together in sessions. I hope the guide will be helpful for teams, people who use services and the people supporting them”.

A patient using CNWL services who helped to write the guide, added "Most of us have our fragile moments or simply need the occasional uplift. People with mental health issues can learn to recognise the patterns of thoughts and behaviour which are unhelpful. A grounding box can serve to connect us with happy memories and help to steer us into a healthier frame of mind."