Give yourself a good start to the day
How your morning turns out can make a difference to the rest of your day. With some simple preparations and a few extra minutes to find time to do something that makes you feel good, you can hopefully get out the door without feeling rushed.
We often tend to consider the moment from the time we wake up to the time we leave the house, or start our daily activity, as a while that is only there to take us to the rest of the day.
Many of us also don't get up before we have to, which easily results in starting the day with a feeling of stress. And if the body feels sore and stiff and doesn't want to cooperate, it will of course be even more difficult to get started. What can be done to get a better start to the day?
Prepare
A good morning starts already the night before. Prepare what you can before you go to bed, so you don't have to make energy-consuming decisions about what to wear before you've rubbed the sleep out of your eyes.
Get your clothes ready, pack your bag and prepare for breakfast. A few simple preparations can save a lot of time, especially if you tend to feel stiff in the morning.
Treat yourself to extra time
Set the alarm a little earlier than usual and see what happens. Are your moods and thoughts affected when you feel less stressed? If you instinctively think “I don't have time for that”, try just five minutes for a week, and then evaluate.
Wake the body gently
Do some gentle movements while you remain in bed: Stretch your arms overhead, flex and “point” with your feet and toes, roll your ankles, and gently move your head from side to side. Move your hips and bend and straighten one knee at a time. Repeat until you feel less stiff. (1)
A hot shower can also help with stiff joints, perhaps with some standing stretching afterwards.
Get fresh air and light
Don't wait to pull up the blinds. If it's bright outside—let the light in. The sunlight sends signals to your brain that it's time to wake up, and can also increase levels of serotonin in the brain, which positively affects mood (1). During the darker time of the year, you can use a lamp that generates daylight.
If you have the opportunity, take a walk. Or open the window and take a few deep breaths.
Enjoy
Make sure to do something that you enjoy. Find pleasure in a good breakfast, or do something as simple as lighting a candle for your morning coffee.
Use travel time wisely
Getting through rush hour traffic is usually not putting us in a better mood. But maybe you can use the time it takes to transport yourself for something else than feeling frustrated? Listen to uplifting or relaxing music (depending on your mood, of course), a captivating audiobook or that podcast that makes you laugh?
Elsa wishes you a good morning!