I have been so mentally drained these past few weeks and have been trying my best to have a morning routine that keeps me sane and grounded. Here is what I have been doing that has been working best for me.
I get up and still make a coffee every morning. I do make sure I drink water first thing in the morning as I keep a water bottle by my bed but I still force myself out of bed at around the same time every day to make myself coffee.
Then, I fight the urge to back into the bed and go right outside. I try to get outside and soak up some sunlight first thing in the morning for a walk and listen to music or a podcast. This always calms my nerves and anxiety just getting the fresh air and some very light exercise as I don’t have the motivation to go on a hard run just yet.
I typically try to walk for about 30 minutes which is usually how long my podcasts last for and then I head back inside to try and make some breakfast.
I eat whatever I am feeling like as I don’t have to rush to get into the office, and as I am eating I usually check my work emails and such.
After I eat is when I usually stretch, do yoga, and meditate. Usually I do yoga for over an hour but lately I have been doing about 20 minutes of a yoga sequence and meditating for about 5 minutes at the end of the session.
Then to wrap up my morning I usually do a fun activity which can be anything from painting, dancing around to my favorite music, or having a bath… yes I said what I said. I got a Japanese soaking tub and it has been working wonders for my mood to soak in some salts. It has been a pretty fun activity for me to do in the middle of the day and boosts my mood to begin the second leg of the day.
And that’s it! What have your mornings been looking like lately?
These past two weeks have been extremely challenging for me. As I continue going to therapy and seeing my psychiatrist, I start seeing more of my inner demons rise to the surface of my consciousness. That combined with extreme stress at work pushed me into being an emotional wreck. So I truly dedicated these past two weeks to really getting to know myself and how to face these demons every day without giving into them.
Here are a few things I did to get myself out of a moderate depression spell…
Go Outside– Just getting outside even for a short period of time, even when I looked a hot mess and had my headscarf on, this really helped me in the long run. It sounds so simple but as my anxiety sets in I feel like I just sit inside and watch the world go by. I watch other people enjoy it from the inside out my apartment and feel I am not worthy of being apart of that bigger world. Once you step outside you are a part of it and I actually pushed myself to also walk to different places in my city. From that I was able to find some very serene parks and hidden city gems I wouldn’t have found otherwise. Another great thing going outside does is give you inspiration. I see someone reading by a fountain then I feel more motivated to read by the fountain. Or I see people running so I feel more of an urge to go running. Whatever sparks your interest can probably be found outside your apartment… trust me.
Exercise- Exercise was a top priority during this time period. Getting out of your headspace even for 30 mins and doing some type of repetitive movement significantly lowers my anxiety levels. I usually do not exercise daily but when I feel this down I make sure I set aside time for some type of movement, whether it be yoga or running, on a daily basis. For yoga I usually do it on my own in the morning combined with mediation. Or I go to a group yoga class for 1 hour. If I am running I will try to run outside around some nice scenery for around 100 minutes. This is not something I can do all the time but with proper pre- and post- workout care I like to keep up with this routine for a short period.
Creative Outlets- I have been playing my ukulele more and writing on this blog. This can be anything under the sun you want to do and you don’t even have to be good at it or work towards any reward. Do what makes you feel good.
Journaling– Journaling is probably the hardest thing to get back into when I am feeling this way. When I really started to get back into it two weeks ago, my brain was all over the place and it showed in my writing. I first just started to word vomit all of my feelings over some pages. I am showing one before and after example below just as a reference (and this was not even the worse of it… the ones from before are too angry to be put out into the world)
End of week 1 journal entry
Middle of week 2 journal entry
Then as time went on I started to develop a routine that helped me get my thoughts straight, and so did my journaling habits. I started out with expressing gratitude. Every morning I would write out at least 3 things I am grateful for. And then if I wanted to write more about my goals and intentions for the day I would, but starting with writing the cheesy things I was grateful for really helped with my overall mood and perspective for the day… which leads me to the last thing that helped me get out of my funk
Morning/Evening Routines- Everyone (at least in my world) has explained to me the importance of some sort of routine. For the longest time I thought I could never get behind it because I felt as if life is so unpredictable, it’s boring to have routines, it means I’m getting old… all of the phrases of denial. But the truth is that as a human being, your brain thrives on having these routines. I am saying this as a researcher who had studied science for 6+ years but suffered because I still did not let it seep in that we are not invincible. Having a routine to follow so my brain knows where to start and end every day really is helping me live a better life as well as stay more organized. I still have a long way to go but I was able to start by just googling morning and evening routines. I went through a bunch on YouTube (don’t get trapped for hours like I did) and looked for different aspects in other people’s routines that spoke to me. It is going to take a lot of trial and error and adjusting for certain out of the norm events such as travel but I challenge you to also set out to find something that works for you.
The Chatty Cat 