Morning Routines

Day 2 kicks us off with morning timeeeee! As a mom, one of the hardest things for me was to find time for self care. Just like when I'm building my businesses I had to work in these small pockets of 10-15 minutes when I could. And self care has been no different. However, I did realize that alllll those experts who stress a morning routine were right. Who would'a thought 🙃 But let me back track by saying that a morning routine didn't come easy to me what so ever. I had adrenal fatigue like none other (which is actually what this course is going to be about when we get a few days down the road) + kids who didn't sleep + Hashimotos. I was the world's sleepiest person therefore waking up a second before my kids demanded that I did (by literally throwing packets of oatmeal in my face 🙄) was not an option. I remember so vividly how impossible mornings were for me for so long. Couldn't get out of bed, needed 12 hours of sleep and still was exhausted, cranky af. Yikes. It's such a weird cycle...needing to wake up to prioritize morning self care in order to heal but then also being too tired because you need to heal. What even are your options there?! Here's what I did: started SO small. 1. When I got out of bed the first thing I did was wash my face with my favorite face wash that was refreshing and smelled good. Then I use my favorite moisturizer that made my skin feel soft and more awake. 2. Once I got that into a routine and looked forward to it, I moved on to a bigger step: taking my cell phone out of my bedroom. This one made me SO anxious, I won't even lie, but I knew unplugging from my cell phone was so important to start my day right. Putting your body into a heightened state first thing in the morning is one of the worst things you can do for your adrenals. Whether what's on your cell phone is stressful like it is for me (business messages, emails, phone calls, someone always yelling at me to fix something or vent their frustrations on me...things that all send me into a straight panic the second I see them..) or if it's not stressful just the blue light alone is so bad to stick your face into first thing in the morning. More on blue light another day. So I got a house phone. YES in 2021 I got a house phone. It was actually really easy. Our internet already came with a phone line so we just plugged it into the router and it connected our phone number and BAM! A way for the people I love to get a hold of me if there was an emergency. Like 5 people have that phone number and it will stay that way for life 🙌🏻 It's the freaking BEST to have my phone out of my room, on airplane mode and because of that I immediately stopped checking it first thing in the morning. Wouldn't you know, every single one of those messages and emails could wait another hour 😉 3. Once my phone was out of my room I was able to wake up naturally and slowly. My kids are a little older (11 and 8) so they're fairly self sufficient now but I still like my alone and quiet time so I try to get up before the hustle and bustle of the morning while letting my body slowly wake up. Not having that instant flood of cortisol was so refreshing but also difficult for a while. It's like breaking an addiction! So I let my body take its time. Wake up, look at the clock not my phone, stretch, take deep breaths and then move to the bathroom. 4. I use the bathroom, wash my face and do skin care then I get my phone while keeping it on airplane mode and not checking messages and lay down to do my meditation. My mediations are through To Be Magnetic- The Pathway. This is another topic I'll dive really deep into later but the TMB program and community changed my entire life. This inner work was something I needed so desperately and when I really dug into it, so many doors began opening for me. So I try to do a deep imagining (meditation) every morning. Currently I'm working on my Authentic Code ✨ 5. After I finish my deep imagining I journal for 10-20 minutes depending on the day, information I learned during my session and what comes up! This is a really awesome addition to my routine because I've been able to look back and see growth and patterns in myself over the past several months. I always add an additional element of gratitude to my journal as well. 6. Then it's off to join the family! There I will make myself and everyone else breakfast of some sort and if the weather is nice I will try to eat it on the deck with my plants 🌱🌱 I take several deep breaths, stay disconnected from my phone (ideally it's still in my room on airplane mode after my DI) and enjoy every flavor of my food. I spend this little bit of time outside to really ground myself, set my intentions for the day and connect to the Earth. Then it's time to do the day! Work, kids, housework etc. This is an IDEAL morning for me in the summertime. It does NOT always look like this, I'd say 5/7 days a week I'm able to get it all in. But what I'm showing you guys is a slow progression. One thing at a time. Master that thing then add on. Slow progress because this is a journey. These mornings to set my day up is what really began turning things around for me. I had a thought SO deeply programmed that I had to immediately jump up and get on my phone and put myself into that state of panic and go go go from the second my eyes opened until they closed each day and it was absolutely horrific for my body. This state of stress is a huge part of why I was so sick for so long. A gradual start to your day is what your body was made for!

If morning is absolutely not an option for you 👇🏻

I want you to get intentional about paying attention to what you do with your free time each day. When the kids are napping what are you doing? During your lunch break at work, are you scrolling Instagram? The dishes can wait 10 minutes I PROMISE. And the social media circus will be there when you're done taking care of yourself (although, I do recommend unplugging from that as much as possible too!). The next time you have a free 5-10 minutes, put your phone down and go outside and breathe. Put your headphones in for a quick meditation, pick up a book you love and read 10 pages...whatever you listed yesterday as what brings you joy..maybe you have to start there in small pockets of your day. That's okay too! I do both. My mornings are pivotal to my day but I also take these little pockets all day too! Instead of grabbing my phone to scroll I'll go outside. Instead of taking a work break to just jump to another task I go to the gym or do yoga. I refuse to conform to the idea that I don't have enough time to take care of myself because that exact thinking is what landed me in such horrible conditions before. What good am I to everyone around me if I'm sick, tired and irritable? The point of today is to show you that while morning time is the best of the best time to start calming your body and healing, you may also need to start in the middle of the day to get into new habits. I just want you to focus on small wins to bring your body down out of fight or flight as often as possible. The more you do this, the quicker you will reduce your stress levels. You'll find a rhythm that eventually keeps your body calm more often than not. Today's task: What does your ideal morning look like? What would help you not start your day with that instant "go go go" feeling? How can you take a small step to creating that life for yourself tomorrow? Write it down and share it if you want! Tag me so I can see your morning routines! xoxo

Allissa