Earthing and grounding

Domain XII · Complementary, energy & biofield · Clint Ober · 1998

What it is

Promoters say modern life cuts people off from the ground through insulating shoes, raised beds and insulated buildings. Earthing proposes reconnecting through barefoot contact with soil, grass or sand, or indoors through conductive sheets, mats and patches. These products are connected by cord…

Format

• Earthing has no phases, stages or session structure in the clinical sense. It is self-administered by consumers. The published routes are:
• There is no separate course of treatment. The work in Section 4 is woven into ordinary sessions: a routine question at intake and review, and a short exploration when the topic comes up. Coordination with the doctor or pharmacist happens with consent, especially where the client takes medicines the…

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• The method is sold mainly as consumer products: the original Earthing brand and many unbranded marketplace products. It is promoted through books, podcasts, wellness influencers and some integrative practitioners. No professional qualification or licensing exists for "earthing practitioners".
• UK advertising: the ASA upheld complaints against an earthing-products advertiser (BEP Technology Ltd t/a Original Earthing, ruling of 6 February 2013). It found claims about sleep, pain, inflammation, blood pressure and other conditions unsubstantiated, and some liable to discourage people from seeking essential treatment. The advertiser was told not to make efficacy claims.
• UK product safety: the Office for Product Safety and Standards (27 March 2025) classed one marketplace earthing bed sheet as high risk of electric shock because of its supplied plug adaptor's design. The product failed UK electrical-equipment and plug regulations and was rejected at the border.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• pressure from clients or colleagues to share products or join selling schemes. It is working when notes are clear and boundaries hold.
• reluctance to report from embarrassment or loyalty to a seller. It is working when the client knows the routes and decides with full information.
• the client crediting the product for in-session skills, or feeling unsafe without it. It is working when the client can use the skills anywhere, without equipment.
• guardedness, which may come from past dismissal by clinicians. The client may hear the question as a test. It is working when the client discloses freely and returns to the topic unprompted.
• a client adjusting medicines themselves because of perceived effects. This is a risk: encourage same-day contact with the prescriber. It is working when the prescriber is informed and the client…

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.