We've been hearing about building morning routines A LOT over the last few years. There's a reason why: they're actually really important especially if you struggle with anxiety and stress. Does this sound familiar at all...
Your alarm goes off and you quickly hit the snooze before you burrow back into your pillows and blankets for a few more precious minutes of shuteye. You hang out in this half asleep-half awake state vainly trying to fully drop off, but you can't because you know your alarm is going to go off again any second. You tense up a little just waiting for it. You know once full wakefulness hits you're going to feel the weight of your day settle on your shoulders. Next thing you know it's blaring again and you jump to shut it off accidentally dropping it on the floor. In the effort to drag your phone back out from under your bed you finally wake up a bit while turning your alarm off for the day.
You lay back on your pillows brushing your hair out of your face with a giant sigh. You frown out your window seeing that it's still dark out and mutter to yourself, "I hate this time of year. It's so hard to wake up. Stupid time change." Your phone vibrates and you check the notification then jump up as you realize you have to do that thing this morning before you go to work and it's going to crunch you for time.
Next thing you know you're running around trying to get dressed, pack your lunch, eat breakfast, make your coffee, let the dog out- all at the same time. Then you realize you're still just standing there because you haven't been able to actually pick one thing to do and take action on.
You rub your eyes and huff out a deep breath before finally deciding on coffee- the fuel of working brain- and take your dog out while it brews. You can feel the gears in your brain trying to turn a little faster and try to remember what time your phone said it was. You look down at your watch and groan as you realize you only have 30 minutes before you have to leave. You don't remember hitting snooze the first 2 times.
You feel so wound up, chest tight, thoughts racing, breathing shallow, and your day has barely started. You hate when your mornings start like this because most of the time the rest of your day just feels tense, you can't focus, and there's a low level of anxiety all day long that leaves you totally exhausted by the end of your work day.
Ever have mornings like that?
Ever have mornings like that... a lot?
Mornings like that are the WORST! I used to be the type that wouldn't get up until I absolutely had to and I'd start my morning off just being annoyed about my day and going through some really negative self-talk- "Why even bother getting up. I just can't handle today. I'm going to be stuck like this forever." I'd finally drag my butt out of bed, eat some cereal while scrolling on my phone, then head to work.
Not really the best way to set myself up for the day mentally, physically, or emotionally.
If you're nodding along because too many of your days start out like this then it's time to overhaul your morning routine. Take the wellness tips for anxiety below and use them to help create a morning routine that reduces anxiety rather than makes it worse. Your mornings are truly the foundation of your day so make sure they set you up to be grounded and ready to kick ass!
I'm going to share what my current morning routine for anxiety reduction looks like because IT WORKS. It's not just about what you do, but also about what you don't do in the morning that has a huge impact on your day. I'm going to start with what I DO NOT DO in the mornings because I know they can set me up to be a bit too wound up, anxious, or uneasy:
I don't allow negative self-talk or thought processes. That doesn't mean they don't still come up sometimes, but I choose to not continue on that thought train. Sometimes I'll intentionally switch to gratitudes instead.
I don't scroll on my phone a whole lot. Whenever I do I can feel my mood go down because somehow I come across the saddest stuff first thing in the morning. Plus, it takes time away from doing things that actually make me feel good.
I don't watch TV. I don't watch it a whole lot anyway, but especially not in the morning because, just like social media, it just opens up the opportunity for either being exposed to things that will heck up my mood or it'll take time away from doing things that I know will make me feel better.
I don't skip breakfast. If I do I'll feel groggy-brained and I'll get hanxiety (like hangry except I'm anxious-not mad). Having stable blood sugar levels helps with reducing anxiety and you can do that by having a healthy breakfast-even if it's small.
I don't drink regular coffee. This is something I'm still adjusting to because I'm very much so a coffee drinker, but the anxiousness I get from caffeine really isn't worth it.
Of course these are all things that I personally need to not do and I know this through paying attention and becoming more self-aware. You can't improve your circumstances if you continue to choose to sit in a haze of "I don't know! This sucks! I hate anxiety and I hate mornings!"
Self-awareness is essential to reducing anxiety.
Now on to my personal anti-anxiety morning routine to set myself up for a grounded and productive day:
I set my alarm so that I have at least 2 hours before I have to leave home. This is so I have adequate time to wake up and ease into my day without feeling rushed.
I make myself black tea. I drink English Breakfast tea because it's super easy to make and there's a little bit of caffeine, but not so much that I'll get jittery.
I take Gambit outside for a short walk. Getting outside does a heck of a job waking me up because of sunlight exposure (which is key to our circadian rhythms) and even more so if it's cold.
I do some journaling. This can last anywhere from 5-20 minutes and it could be a brain dump, prompt led, or planning out my day.
I meditate. I do 10-20 minutes and I can truly tell the difference in my day when I don't make the time for it. Sometimes it's a guided meditation and sometimes it's just music. Either way it helps to get me grounded.
Sometimes I do yoga. If you wake up with stiff achy joints like I do this is a great thing to add into your morning routine. I usually only do about 10-15 minutes and it makes a big difference.
I pack my lunch and snacks for the day. Having food ready helps keep hanxiety at bay. Plus, food from home will be healthier than fast food AND will save me money.
I eat breakfast- Like I said above, it's going to help me not experience hanxiety, think more clearly, and have more energy.
Now it's your turn...
Your Guide to Building Your Anti-Anxiety Morning Routine
Grab your journal or pen and paper because using the steps below as journal prompts will help build your self-awareness, clarify things, and make your plan of action stick in your brain box.
Step 1: Get really clear on what your routine looks like right now and how it makes you feel- not just how you feel in the morning, but through the rest of your day as well. Do you feel edgy? Rushed? Frustrated? Jittery? Weepy? Anxious? Panicky?
Step 2: Decide on how you would like to feel instead- Take some time to get descriptive about this. Do you want to feel calm, grounded, at ease? Confident? On top of things? Happy?
Step 3: Get clear on what do you need to STOP doing in order to achieve the feelings you just described. Perhaps it's snoozing your alarm, drinking fully caffeinated coffee, skipping breakfast, scrolling social media first thing, etc.
Step 4: Decide what you need to START doing in order to achieve the feelings you just described. Here's a suggested list of things you could choose from- just keep in mind it's doing what helps YOU achieve feeling at ease, grounded, etc.
meditation, prayer, mindfulness practices
journaling- brain dump, gratitude, planning your day
yoga, tai chi, workout at the gym, running, walking
reading, listening to music, listening to an uplifting podcast
having breakfast
practicing positive self-talk and thought processes
Step 4: TAKE ACTION- Choose one thing to stop doing and actually stop doing it. Choose one thing to start doing and actually start doing it.
Step 5: Evaluate- After a few days to a week see what results you are getting from these actions and make adjustments where needed
Step 6: Keep going!- Once you've nailed down those first two things stop and start another thing or two until you've transitioned to a morning routine that makes you feel GOOD!
NOTE: If you're having a really hard time not snoozing or getting up earlier then do this same thing with your night time routine. If you're staying up late and/or not getting good sleep you're going to have a really hard time shifting your morning routine to support reducing your anxiety.
You can start your day feeling calm, at ease, and confident that you'll be able to handle whatever comes your way, but you MUST be intentional about it!
Changing negative thought trains takes time.
Stopping the habit of scrolling first thing takes time.
Getting used to less caffeine takes time.
But with consistency YOU WILL be successful.
Your peaceful morning awaits!
Tell me one thing you're going to STOP doing and one thing you're going to START doing in the comments below!
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