Morning Move-it!
Anyone who has met me before my first cuppa will be well aware that I'm not exactly the most sparkly of morning people! As one friend recently remarked upon hearing me plan an early morning trip, ‘Thats super early, and you’re like Flash-The-Sloth before you’ve had tea!’
But, as a practitioner with a particular interest in working with sleep, it makes sense that I also work with the waking part too! So, a recent conversation with another Medical Herbalist about ways to support mornings for the sleepy starters led to me collating these suggestions for slow morning support:
Firstly, every morning routine needs to be highly personal, so not everything will work well for everyone, but here’s a few things I've tried to help mornings feel less sluggish:
Eliminate a possible Seasonally Affected Disorder (SAD) diagnosis. For some folks, an increase in their vitamin D supplementation or use of a SAD light upon waking can really help.
Before climbing out of bed, use the warmth to stretch as much as is right for your body, allowing the relaxed muscles to reach into new shapes before you standup to face the day… or lurch unsteadily into it if you’re like me!
Create a slow morning routine without the need to rush and 'force' the body into thinking, planning and performing. Plan slow repetitive tasks for early in the day that don’t involve complex decision making, follow a routine to eliminate the need to shock the body into high pressure thinking resolutions early on. Give yourself enough time to become acclimatised to the day and what needs to be done.
Consider 'pre-morteming' the morning routine with the maximum advanced preparation to avoid decision making, such as: preparing clothes the night before, laying them out ready in an accessible place, collating as many things as possible to reduce your ‘brain juice’ being spent on tasks that can be organised or planned when more energetic. Maybe laying out an empty mug for a first cuppa will help.
Try waking in as clear and clean a space as possible - For some clients, the low level morning snuffles from dust allergens can really contribute to the sluggish feeling in the morning after a night lying on old pillows. Depending on the type, pillows can be relatively cheap to replace at the end of their ‘lifespan’, and many clients find using dust allergen covers on pillows and mattresses to be a huge help. Equally being mindful of the visual upon waking can have a profound affect on how you start the day - try to move the ‘Floor-drobe’ or ‘Laundry chair of doom’ before bed if possible.
Explore if hydration immediately upon waking works to help your sluggishness - ideally by having pre-prepped by the bedside a bottle of water ready to grab and drink - this will have warmed to a room temperature overnight and be a good way to start with your hydration goals for the day ahead. For others, hot water and lemon gives a zesty start to their digestion.
Developing an anthem of morning pump-up music that helps gets your energy active, and helps you move a little. Bouncy, up-beat tunes might be a bit much for some, but a familiar track played regularly can become part of your morning intention setting.
Consider changing your bathroom products to include those with energising or enlivening scents such as essential oils, particularly in your shower gel to active the senses and help waking with stimulating plant medicine.
Have something, no matter how small, to look forward to in the day ahead, even if just its the awareness that you can be back in bed for an earlier night later that day with clean sheets on the bed!
Hope that might help you fellow not-quite-morning-larks! And, if you’d like some help with your sleep or more personalised suggestions, why not book in for a session to support?
