What will a morning routine do for me?

I have been completing largely the same morning routine for years and it has helped me in so many ways. Do I do it every single day? No. Do I sometimes do some of it and not all of it? Yes. Do I sometimes do all of it for a reduced amount of time? Yes. Do I sometimes do it and not concentrate at all? Yes.

I am an imperfect human being and I am hoping that you are too! It is really great to put into place a morning routine which sustains and supports me through my day but no, I don’t do it all the time. Do I really feel a difference when I don’t do it – yes, absolutely! I will come across situation in which I will find it harder to remain calm, more difficult to remain objective and this will have a knock-on effect throughout my day and if it doesn’t, then it’s because I have done some element of the routine so that I feel more able to cope. Needless to say, it doesn’t always work!

My conclusion over time has been that I must prioritise myself, and the beginning of my day in order that I can have the best quality day possible and to be in control of my own thoughts and feelings rather than being at the mercy of what is going on around me. Last week I listed the items which comprise my morning routine and these are: meditation, appreciation, exercise and inspirational listening/reading. This week my focus will be on meditation.

I had never ever considered meditation something that would have anything whatsoever to contribute to my life. I had got through my life successfully for decades without having done any meditation and frankly, people who told me to meditation simply irritated me until I really found myself with my back against the wall emotionally and with no way of knowing how to improve things. I wasn’t destitute, I wasn’t broke, I wasn’t unloved but I simply felt as though I had no internal resources. Nothing satisfied me and I felt that my life was without any real substance or purpose. I think that the main thing was that nothing really made me happy and, I found out, after lots of trial and error, that this dissatisfaction was a symptom of my lack of attention to what is my inner life. What is an inner life?

Our inner lives are the deepest inward experience of being a human being in the world. It includes your story and your sense of yourself and it the innermost part of you. This is where you connect to where you came from, the universe, the collective consciousness and, depending upon your beliefs, God. I don’t want to go off at a tangent here about our beliefs because it doesn’t matter where we came from, whether there is a God or not, but what does matter is that you connect with yourself. Connecting with ourselves is the first step on the ladder that is the morning routine and, through meditation, you will gain these benefits:

· Reduced stress

· Less anxiety

· A better sense of well-being

· Increased self-awareness

· Better sleep

There are other benefits that people speak of which include better memory, lower blood pressure and pain control. Who wouldn’t want more of all of the above. Meditation is simple and you can do it just about anywhere, as long as you aren’t driving!

So, what’s the simplest way to mediate? This is simply to sit in a chair, in comfortable clothing and close your eyes. Start with a short time at first – even if it’s just two minutes – so that you can get used to the silence. After all, our lives are so full of stimulation that it is difficult for us to be still enough to sit for any length of time without a sound. If this is the case, you can easily use your breath to hum. Breathe in, and hum while you breathe out. This has two benefits, it fills the void and it keeps your mind focused on a sound so that it doesn’t wander off to what you are doing that evening or whether you cleaned behind the fridge last week. The other thing about humming is that it is incredibly soothing.

There are countless books and youtube videos and apps that provide guided meditations and for some people, these can be very helpful. The silent meditation is right for me but if this doesn’t work, then try something else. You may eventually return to the silent one because your mind will have the chance to simply be quiet rather than continuing to be stimulated and focused from an external source. Just experiment and see what works for you! Let me know how you get on!

Remember, you are not alone!

hillybarker@gmail.com