Emotion Regulation with “5 4 3 2 1”

This article discusses managing overwhelm, and may not be right for everyone. Always check with your healthcare team if you’re concerned about your health.

Being able to regulate our emotions in difficult moments can be key to managing overwhelm. One way of doing this is with the 5-4-3-2-1 activity.

The activity can help you stay grounded and focused on the present moment, by using mindful awareness of your surroundings. That’s not to say we ignore how we are feeling — or that it’s easy to “just do this”, but distraction can be useful and, especially with practice, the activity allows us to move from a place of reactivity to a more healthy space of being able to respond meaningfully. When we are calmer, our responses are often more useful.

There are different ways to approach this activity. The image below can be used as a reminder to bring your attention towards: 5 things you can see, 4 things you can hear, 3 things you can touch, 2 things you can smell and 1 thing you can taste.

Example 5 4 3 2 1

Awareness is a key part of this activity so knowing when we’ve been “activated” or are starting to feel that we’re not ok will begin by recognising early warning signs. If I was sat in my front room, I might then choose to notice and even say out loud if helpful:

• 5 things I can see – a coffee table, a chair, curtains, the TV and the remote control
• 4 things you can hear – the sound of the TV, the central heating, the rain on the windowsill, the sound of a clock
• 3 things you can touch – I might be holding a cup of coffee, can feel the fabric of my clothes, notice my feet on the floor
• 2 things you can smell – this might include the fabric conditioner on my clothes and my perfume
• 1 one thing you can taste – I might take a sip of my coffee.

You can vary these in as many ways as is helpful for you.

Colours of the Rainbow

Another way of trying this activity, might be to focus on colours of the rainbow – let’s say I was starting to feel overwhelmed in the supermarket. I might stop where I am and notice, if it’s helpful and possible, 5 red things, 4 orange things, 3 yellow things, 2 green things and 1 blue thing.

What’s In Front

Still in the supermarket, I might notice instead what is in the aisle in front of me, and use the 54321 to list all the products I can see – 5 different boxes of tea bags, 4 types of biscuits, 3 different coffee brands, 2 types of sugar, 1 type of milk. You can mix this up in ways that might work for you depending on what’s in your environment. The idea is that the activity helps you return you ‘here’ rather than being ‘there’.

You may also find the video below helpful with an idea on how to manage a panic attack.

Everyone is different so what works for one person might not work for someone else, but if it’s helpful you might decide to add this tool to your Emotional First Aid Kit, as a way of helping you manage and maintain your mental health.

---

If you have any concerns about your well-being, speak to your healthcare team. Delphi is the author of Answers In The Dark: Grief, Sleep and How Dreams Can Help You Heal, out now on Amazon and Hive.  You might also like Monday Mojo™.

© Delphi Ellis 2023 – this article may also feature elsewhere.