My morning routine has become so important to my mental health. I know when I start to feel anxious, tired or a little depressed it’s because I have been ignoring myself. I like to take preventative measures so it doesn’t act up. This routine allows me to focus on myself right when I wake up. I listen to what my body needs. Is it screaming for me to rest? Is it telling me to slow down? Is it telling me I need to stop thinking so much? Do I need to stretch? Am I comparing myself to others without even noticing it?
I’m acknowledging these thoughts first thing in the morning so my body knows it’s being heard.
As females, we have the tendency to take care of others and ignore ourself. We are fixers, care takers, and our thoughts are always racing, sub-consciously and consciously. (Did I make the kids lunches, dinner, laundry, errands, grocery shopping, boyfriends, husbands, friends, co-workers etc.) However, when we don’t just stop, stop to love ourselves, we suffer mentally and physically. Our performance levels grow weak, we start to feel burnt out, we lack creativity, and this my babes can spiral into fatigue & depression.
I used to ignore my self-care. I thought it was a waste of time…and I also wondered why I had anxiety. LOL
I would workout because I wanted a shredded body, not because it was for my health. I would scroll through Instagram for hours, and didn’t realize the impact it had on me mentally: Comparison, anxiety, & sadness. I didn’t like to be by myself because it felt lonely. I wanted to be distracted at all times. I couldn’t relax.
Self care changed my mental health around. It wasn’t easy, in fact it took me a lot practice to find a routine that worked for me. I’m now calm and in tune with my body, I’m no longer searching for approval from others, and I absolutely love my alone time… I’ve learned that I need it. It allows me to reflect, pamper myself, and restore my energy.
- First things first, I always make sure I get 7 to 8 hours of sleep. Nothing less. Sleep is so incredibly important for your overall health. Listen to this podcast here. I’m obsessed with tracking my sleep on the health app on my iphone. I also make sure my space is clean the night before so I can throughly relax in the morning. If my space isn’t clean in the morning, I feel like I need to hurry up my morning routine so I have time to clean up the mess before I go to work. (Hello cortisol levels!!) I wake up an hour and a half before I have to go to work to make time for me.
- I keep my blinds open so as the sun rises, lights fills my room. There’s nothing worse than your alarm waking you up from a heavy sleep and it’s still dark. You just want to snooze your alarm & stay in bed.
- Once my alarm goes off, I immediately play music on my phone. I play something relaxing that helps me slowly wake up in a good/calming mood. Once I play the music, I immediately set my phone down. I don’t want my cortisol levels to go up so I try to stay off my phone as much as possible in the mornings. AKA no scrolling through the IG.
- I go into my study & put on my essential oil diffuser. I usually use a lavender essential oil in the mornings. It eliminates nervous tension.
- Once my essential oils are on, I’ll usually get comfortable on the couch with blankets and a glass of water.
- I use the next 10 minutes to close my eyes, listen to my music and set my intentions for the day. Throughout the ten minutes, I will journal my intentions in my planner as they pop up in my mind.
- This is also the time when I choose what kind of workout I’ll be doing after work. I make this decision in the morning because it helps me mentally get ready for the workout.
- I’m now around 20-25 minutes into my morning routine so at this time, I’ll make some decaf coffee and open up my computer. I’ll read personal emails (not work), blog, read a book, online shop or edit photos. Whatever it is, it’s something that truly relaxes me and doesn’t spike my anxiety.
- TMI: this routine also helps me go to the bathroom 🙂 IBS-C probs.
- Now it’s time to give my skin some love. I think this is my favorite part of the routine. I rinse my face with cold water (not hot) and then clean it with Eminence Organic Skin Care Calm Skin Chamomile Cleanser. Then I apply a couple of drops of Licorice Root Booster Serum. Lately, I’ve been loving facial oils instead of moisturizer. Right now, I’m using Jobaba oil and Rose Hip Oil. I’ll finish off with a couple of spritz of rosewater facial spray.
- Next, I dab some lavender essential oils under my nose and on each side of my neck to keep my cortisol levels low as I start to get ready for work. It’s all about maintaining a stress-free environment.
- I make sure to floss + use a tongue scraper and then thoroughly brush my teeth with my sonicare electric toothbrush. Every little detail counts as I want all of the bacteria and toxins out of my mouth that have snuck in there over night! (Gross, but true…ew)
- As I’m driving to work, I always call my boyfriend Trevor just to chat :))) and annoy him hehe… But on the real, I just love talking to him in the mornings. It makes me happy to start of the day talking to someone I love. Our call typically only lasts 5-10 minutes because he’s
usuallyalways running late to work since he is a snoozer! - Once I get to work, I drink a lot of water and eat my breakfast as I go through my work emails.
- After I’ve gone through my emails… (this is usually an hour into work), I finish my morning routine with a 15 minute walk outside with one of my co-workers… we usually talk about life + soak in the vitamin D. This is an amazing stress reliever! Side note: I also love to track my steps on my health app on my phone.
This routine has been a work in progress. It takes practice to make time for yourself, to be totally satisfied with being by yourself and to finally slow the efff down. Now, I’m definitely not saying I hit all of these steps every morning, but I make a cautious effort to try to. I know when I do, my day is set up for success. However, everyday is a little different and that is 100% okay!
- Chat with me xx