Mindful mornings aren't just for yogis or early risers

Slowing down and pausing in the morning will give you more time throughout your day

Do you ever notice how the mornings you are rushing or behind are the days you often will spill something or make a big mistake? There is a beautiful chaos in our house most days, but every other Wednesday our cleaners come right as we’re getting out the door for school, and what is normally hilarious or manageable, suddenly feels high stakes and dire.

There are four of us and four of them, and if the house didn't already feel like a playground before they arrived, it morphs into a jungle of feral children screaming with glee as they chase the vacuum.

Our house is not very big. We have one narrow hallway that runs the from the living room to our bedrooms. My husband and I have to go sideways to pass each other as though we’re strangers on an airplane. The boys like playing ‘Raiders!’ in this hallway because of its slender framing. They roll my exercise ball down the hall while the other one runs ahead to see who gets there first—the kid or the ball. I used to spend hours bouncing on that ball with each of them, snuggled into my chest. Now they're bowling each other down with it.

On the mornings the cleaners come, everything feels like an emergency. I mean, clearly, nothing is an emergency. We are privileged to live in a home we own. We can afford the help of cleaners (I consider them a key part of our village, by the way), but though my cognitive mind is well aware of that privilege, and my higher mind is grateful, my reptilian mind is sounding alarm bells left and right that everything happening is not happening fast enough and, “We are going to be LATE!”

Late for what? For school? Sure, I guess. For a meeting or a class? Okay. But at what point does the emergency-feeling of being late actually merit the way our nervous systems and bodies respond? I’m not late for a life-saving surgery that I’m either receiving or performing. I’m late for my workout class’ warm-up.

But even when I’m late for something I’m teaching or meeting with other people, does the level of my rushing and stressing and panicking really match the potentially missed responsibility???

For some of us, the answer is absolutely, ‘Yes’. Our boss is unforgiving and/or your family’s livelihood is at stake. But for many of us, if you really paused and took a breath, is being five minutes late to your meeting or your kids missing half an hour of school REALLY going to make or break your entire life? Are you really in danger?

Again, this is an admittedly privileged view, but slowing down to consider what the real ramifications of being “late” are has been a crucial first step in helping me have more sane, grounded, and dare I say, peaceful mornings (yes, even with kids!).

Photo by Ivan Samkov

Slowing down helps us get out the door faster.

As I talk about in my book and efficiency research proves repeatedly, slow and steady wins the race.

Here’s some of the other tools I use to ensure our chaotic mornings are sitcom worthy instead of an episode of American Horror Story:

1. Wake up before the rest of the family: You don’t need to get up at 430a like me (although if you are a morning person, I HIGHLY recommend it). Even just fifteen minutes to lie quietly in bed can set you up to feel present and grounded versus playing a constant game of catch-up all day.

   Note for newborn parents and parents of small kids: This may not be possible if you have a kid waking up when it’s still dark out. Skip this step and go to recommendation #2.

2. Take a moment to pause before you get going: You don’t need to roll out of bed and onto the yoga mat to do a formal sit. You don’t even need to get out of bed (P.S. did you know I recorded bed meditation practices just for parents on Yoga Wake Up?). Simply take a few conscious, deep breaths before you check your phone or run to the nursery.

3. Sense check: Mornings can be blurry even after we’ve had our caffeine. While your coffee is brewing or your tea is steaming, look around and name three things you sense. It can be three things you notice with the same sense (like three things that you see) or three different senses (hearing, sight, smell). This is a common practice used in trauma-therapy. It helps us start the day embodied and present.

And remember, when you’re feeling panicked, ask yourself why. What is truly so high stakes about this moment? What will a few minutes to slow down cost you?

I bet that by adding more time in the morning to get still, you will be able to be that much more productive later in the day.

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There are many mindfulness-informed techniques that don’t take a lot of time or effort, but can have a huge impact on our day. I’m excited to chat about this and more THIS Wed 2/7, 1130a-1230p PT for my LIVE class:

Mindful Mornings (Yes, Even With Kids)

LIVE classes are a quarterly perk for paid subscribers. You can always sign up for just the month to attend (5$/month)!

Hope to see you there!

Here's the link and log-in info: