The Importance of a Morning Routine (and no, you don't have to wake up at 6am)
/I wasn’t always a morning person - let’s start there. In fact, the thought of even attempting to become a morning person used to give me major anxiety. This type of post would be the first one I’d skip right over as I truly felt having a productive, enjoyable morning was just not in the cards for me.
A little context..my anxiety always kicked off first thing upon rising with a vengeance - the earlier I woke up, the more nauseous/anxious I’d feel. I can remember all the way back to being in middle school and having this unexplainable pit in my stomach on the bus. My heart would race, the thought of eating made me sick and I’d essentially just avoid eye contact with anyone until mid day when things would start to settle down internally. I had no idea at that time that what I was experiencing was anxiety - I just knew mornings were tough and something I dreaded.
Fast forward to being a full on adult in charge of my day - surprisingly enough, things actually got worse, yay! Instead of having some sort of forced routine like I did in school, I now had more control and the ability to avoid things that stressed me out. I’d only choose PM classes in college and sleep through most of the day. I’d choose jobs that allowed me to work from home or on different timezones so that I had no morning obligations. Add in the fact that aside from sleeping, drinking became my coping mechanism of choice (aka constant hangovers) and it was essentially game over. Mornings = nausea = panic = distress = extreme fatigue = no thanks
It wasn’t until I hit rock bottom and started doing research that I realized there was actually a scientific explanation behind why my anxiety was so bad when I first woke up. As with anything, validation was the first step in my healing journey. I wasn’t imagining it, I wasn’t being dramatic, I really was experiencing a spike in a hormone that was directly related to high anxiety….and so was everyone else in the world. The only difference between them and me was I had no routine whatsoever and many of the lifestyle choices I was making only made things worse. (ok fine and I was predisposed to mental health issues but like beside the point.)
I’ll spare you the details of what my journey to becoming a morning person looked like (ugly) and how long it took me to get it right (forever). Instead, I’ll list out a few of the best SMALL changes I incorporated that were game changers for me.
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Get a good nights rest. I know, this doesn’t fall into the morning category but a good AM routine starts with a solid PM routine. Invest in high quality bedding, switch to red light bulbs, put down the phone, take some good, you know the drill. When you sleep better, your body has the chance to properly rest + reset and it truly makes all the difference.
Stretch + do some intentional breathing (or meditation/journaling/cuddle with your pet/whatever practice relaxes you) as soon as you wake up. Instead of going straight to my computer like I did for years, I now make my bed and head into the living room to stretch and do some light breath work. Sounds woo and overrated but it’s really not. It feels incredible for my mind and body - there’s a reason why everyone and their mom talks about this.
Eat breakfast + drink water BEFORE coffee. This one was SO HARD FOR ME. Nothing brings me more joy than walking over to my Nespresso and making a little coffee. For years, I would do this on an empty stomach and wonder why at 2pm I’d be having chills and seeing stars. Forcing myself to drink water and eat a small meal (ideally protein) prior to having caffeine had so many positive benefits that Im actually upset I didn’t get this part sorted out sooner.
Time block your day. Let me start by saying I know not everyone has this luxury, especially those who work jobs with strict schedules, have kids or other real world obligations. (I can literally see my sister rolling her eyes at this one 😅) But I truly think if there’s a will, there’s way. A few years ago I reworked my calendar + work schedule - I now do not accept calls/meetings, respond to emails or do anything work related until after 10am. The morning is totally for me and about setting myself up for a great day. Sometimes this involves a workout or a slow walk around the block, other times it involves reading my kindle on the couch (all my fav books linked here!) or taking my time getting ready. Whatever feels good to me. The fact I wasn’t able to connect the dots between why diving head first into a pile of emails from bed was giving me panic attacks back in the day is beyond me. No more of that business 🙅♀️
Baby steps. As with everything, trying to go 0 to 100 is a recipe for failure in my opinion. Setting your clock back in small increments (like 30 mins earlier or less) to allow yourself that cushion to just breathe before the day kicks off is a great place to start. I still don’t wake up super early and have no intention of doing that because I’ve learned how to make the most of my mornings. As each new step becomes a solidified part of your new routine, you can continue stacking a new one until you’ve officially revamped your routine! (For extra help on habit stacking, you must read this book) Anyway, it really is that simple. If I can do it, you can too, trussssst
Good luck you’ve got this! but also if you need to hit snooze on your alarm and try again another day I totally get that too. It’s a process for sure but one I sincerely hope you can improve over time as it really does affect your quality of life and help reduce anxiety. Love ya bye 🫶🏻
