Do you feel anxious and can't quite put your finger on why? Try This.

Marissa Gehlert
Nov 18, 2022
3 min read

Alarm goes off, hit snooze three times, finally roll out of bed, grab a coffee and open up my phone.

THIS IS HOW I USED TO START MY DAYS.

Sound familiar?

I didn't know any different, and so that's what I did day after day. I would find myself throughout the day feeling anxious and unable to focus without knowing why. Just that lingering, uncomfortable feeling that I couldn't quite put my finger on. But enough to be distracting and disrupt my productivity.

as i dove into my wellness journey, i started reading about morning routines.

At first it was a bit of an eye roll and a "hell no I'm not getting up every morning at 5am." Because everywhere I looked seemed to be preaching why you should be getting up before the sunrise. And I don't know about you friend, but getting up before dawn has never been my cup of tea.

but i gave it a try anyway.

Then my stubborn, prove you wrong attitude kicked in and I decided I was going to try it an I think part of me only did it to do just that; prove them wrong.

the first week sucked.

I'm not going to sugar coat it, I started off with the 5AM rule (for those of you who don't know the book it's getting up at 5AM every morning with a set routine) and was literally getting up that early. It sucked. At first. It was hard to get up, and what they don't always tell you is that to get up at 5AM and make it through the day without crashing face first on the couch, you need to also go to bed way earlier than you are used to. So a PM routine was just as important for me to be successful.

what came after, was totally worth it.

Once I got into the routine of getting up, and creating a morning routine that I actually loved (seriously, never thought I would say those things in the same sentence). It was amazing how much it changed my mindset throughout the day. I lit my favourite candle, journaled, read for 20 minutes, and moved my body for 20 minutes. Before I had even really started my day I felt like I could do A-N-Y-T-H-I-N-G!

it's all in your head, literally.

I'm not saying that getting up at 5AM is the key, because I can tell you quite honestly that didn't last. What did last was the routine I did first thing in the morning regardless of if it was 5, 6, 7, 8, or even 10am on those slow soak in every moment in bed kind of mornings.

The difference between what I was doing before and what I started doing really is taking control and choosing how I prime myself for the day ahead. I am choosing where my thoughts go first thing in the morning, and purposefully guiding myself to what I know will prep me for a more positive experience throughout my day. Rather than reacting to what's on the news or at the top of my feed that morning.

If we can take control of the way we start our day, we are not only impacting our morning, but the rest of our day, our weeks, and overall our lives. It sounds dramatic, I know, but give it a try and decide for yourself if it's life changing or not!