Morning Ritual

Good Morning, how are you? Deep breath, eyes open, stretch, what day is it? Grab phone, 6am. Phone down. Smile. Gratitude. Lets do this. I'm ready for another fabulous day.

Does this sound familiar?

Scenario #2 Or does this sound more like the beginning of your day? Alarm rings off, great, do we have to? too tired, didn't sleep well, today is gonna be long, not ready, let me sleep another 15 minutes, I need a day off. DEEP SIGH.

Scenario #3 Or perhaps this sounds more like the beginning of your day. Wake up, look at phone, OH NO I OVER SLEPT! IM LATE! Jump out of bed, quick shower, coffee/breakfast on the run and RUSH screaming out the door. Ok maybe not screaming. You get the picture.

Do any of the above scenarios ring a bell? Perhaps a mixture of all three can occur depending on what's going on in your life. I'm familiar with all the scenarios and have personally experienced each one.

My DREAM wake up? Every morning, wake up, to venture out to a beautiful shoreline, warm beverage in hand with the soothing sounds of the ocean waves energizing my soul. A morning walk on the beach to start the day, the fresh morning salty air on my skin, the sun peaking up over the vast ocean. I mean, "Am I asking for much?" Well being that I live 3 hours away from the nearest shoreline, not a daily realistic goal. :(

How do you start your morning? Do you have a morning ritual or perhaps an evening ritual, maybe a combination of both?

Do you have a self care ritual, a sort of time out to tune in? Or are you a "press the snooze" button a few times and finally, unwillingly get out of bed? Are you generally happy in the morning, excited and full of energy? Are you generally tired and wish you had just another 15, 30, 60 minutes in bed? Do you tend to run late, grabbing last minute items, a coffee, a quick snack? Or are you the opposite? Are you a planner, coffee ready to go, schedule of the day in place, perhaps all things maybe even prepared the night before?

Self care rituals. A ritual we may have heard of, something that sounds like a commitment or a practice? Who has time for another added activity on a list of a million things to do.

Well I can most certainly attest to the VITAL importance of maintaining a healthy self standard of care. Not only for ourselves, but for the people around us as well. In order to continue thriving in a world that is continuously screaming for our attention- we must have a quick getaway plan in place for mental rejuvenation. When do we take time for ourselves cultivating our bodies, minds, and souls?

Self Care. What?

The self care ritual was unfamiliar to me until a few years ago. When I began to realize the need to spend time with myself before interacting with the world, I simply got my day started when the alarm went off. Isn't that how most people start their day? I didn't know any different. I was raised with the simplicity of you set your alarm clock and go. That was the que to start your day, with the sound of an annoying buzz.

Alarm clock, snooze, slow walk to shower, get dressed, coffee, and out the door. Pretty basic, nothing to brag about, just a typical morning to start the day of hustle and bustle be it work, school, meetings, driving, sitting in traffic, just a typical average routine drill. The next day, repeat, a ground hog week of events that lasted Monday through Friday. sigh.

Self Care. YES!

Times have most definitely changed. The world is evolving faster than light, and we are constantly reminded that we must be more, do more, and be a part of a culture that is hurry up and go.

We live in a NEW WORLD. Questions to consider? How do we maintain healthy boundaries and navigate safely through these new territories? Are we mentally equipped to manage the daily modern stressors of our current times? Do our spiritual bodies as well as our mental bodies have the resilience to manage the days in and days out of our current culture?

Stress, fatigue, anxiety, and mental exhaustion are prevalent in our community today. What are we doing to check in and combat this? Do we have the tools we need to overcome the modern day stress of the world we currently live in?

Lets consider the benefits of a self care practice as a time to breathe and reflect. A carved out time that is specifically dedicated to you. Establishing a sacred space, an environment that nurtures all layers of your body. The power to know that no matter what happens in the day you can always take a moment to close your eyes and tap into that feeling you were able to create during your self care special time. A special time created by you and for you that is not dictated by the modern world we live in. A regenerating way to promote our own health and wellness. Relaxing the mind, calming the nervous system, engaging that parasympathetic nervous system for ultimate rest and relaxation. Another way to disengage the fighting stress hormones of cortisol and epinephrine we are all faced to combat these days. I do believe this is just one way we can all equip ourselves with resilient tools of self-care.

Self care rituals can change according to how you feel. I'm always changing up my routine depending on my physical needs and mental state, and yes even the weather alters my needs. Some days I'm full of energy where a fast, brisk walk or a bike ride is just what I need. There are also days when I may be experiencing more mental exhaustion, so I may scale back and maybe engage in some relaxing yoga with a cup of hot tea. Other days, I feel like journaling or tapping into my creative writing side where I can express myself through a world of descriptive words.

In regards to nature, summer seasons may offer different self care rituals than the winter time. For instance, a cozy book, next to a fireplace, wrapped in your favorite blanket sounds just delicious in the winter season, however, maybe not so much in the middle of summer when temperatures can soar over 100 degrees here in Texas! Again, so important to listen to your body!

Roles

We all have roles as mothers, wives, daughters, caregivers, healthcare professionals, fathers, and head of households. Or perhaps we are caring for an ill relative, a mother, a grandmother, or perhaps we have someone at home that requires our upmost, precise physical and emotional attention. In these roles that require us to show up and be our best, its imperative to nurture ourselves. In giving to others from a full glass or full bucket of wellness and love, we must also love ourselves. It is crucial to take care of ourselves, even if that carved out time is getting up a little earlier to just sit outside to breathe in the first morning fresh air, while sitting in stillness.

Nothing will be perfect in life and at one time or another we will all face adversity whether a global pandemic or something life altering in our own home. We need to be armed and ready with a variety of tools for our own self care nurturance, our own self care of loving kindness, our own fortitude and perseverance.

Nothing is more important than reconnecting with your bliss. Nothing is as rich. Nothing is more real. Deepak Chopra

Not everyday is going to be perfect, not every morning can be filled with Green Tea Matcha and meditation- Its ok to have a bad morning, we all do- Just remember to offer yourself grace and compassion to have a not so perfect day. Awareness with the ability to always return to what makes you feel whole, stable, calm, and balanced. Your self care home, away from the pressures of the world. A time to stop, reflect, and really nurture what exactly your body needs before total exhaustion and stress occur.

As precious as time is, how we spend it, what we do with it, and how we value it are essential to our health and wellbeing. Boundaries, time management, and the ability to say no for self perseverance are vital. The time you spend with yourself MAY just be the most beneficial part of the day.

Well times have most definitely changed and these days I believe we need to arm ourselves with a variety of healthy self care tools to keep us adaptable, strong, and resilient. Self care rituals can offer us a healthy boundary and a safe space to mindfully tune in to exactly what we need before we crash and burn from mental and physical exhaustion. The practice of self-care may be just what we all need on a regular basis.

These mornings my get up and go is a little slower, I'm enjoying a sanctuary of peace and gratitude, greeting myself with kindness and compassion in the early mornings.

As we slowly start to walk into the fall season, I'm embracing different morning rituals that nurture my wellbeing, that nurture my soul. My walks are leisurely and my reflections are highlighted with grace, prayers, and compassion.

This morning we are blessed with rain, gray clouds, and a quiet stillness of peace as the earth becomes saturated with the waters from heaven above. A nice refreshing cleanse of rain. I'm sipping on a matcha green latte, writing, and holding a heart full of love and hope. My simple self care, today.

Do you have a favorite Self Care Ritual?

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• Yes
• No

Ideas for Self care rituals

1. Start the day with an internal check in- How do you feel? What does your body need?

2. Initiate a mindfulness check in- What thoughts are swirling in your head? Perhaps offer yourself compassion, gentleness, kindness. A time to shift and create the energy you need to create.

3. What do you need today?

• Prayer

• Gratitude, Compassion, Kindness

• Green Tea Matcha Latte

• Coffee/ Tea

• Warm water with lemon

• Physical activity/yoga/stretching

• Meditation

• A warm beverage

• Positive affirmations- The Iam app

• Writing Journaling

• Reading

• listening to music

• Sitting outside/ Grounding

• Breath work- Pranayama and 4 square breathing

• Hello body, I want to give you a hug- A hug yourself ritual, a time to settle in and give your body exactly what it needs.

• Making it special and most definitely making it your own

During this time, we should honor all the bodies that make up our well-being, including body, mind, and spirit. Today I welcome you to start a daily ritual of self care.

Rituals that are filled with mindfulness and self love while creating positive habits to empower you and make you a better human for yourself and for the world.

I hope you enjoyed this, I would love to know if you have a self care ritual in practice and if you are teaching it to the ones you love!

As always, From my heart to yours,

Erica Jane