I Tried Morning Yoga for a Week to Help Anxiety and This is What Happened

In the past year, anxiety has reared its ugly head in my life.  I find that it really flares up in the mornings, making falling asleep the night before a work day difficult, and very stressful to get going at the start of every day.  Little things would set me off, and I didn't feel good about things until after 10:00 am every day.  I exercise regularly, I leave work at work (most of the time).  I'm trying new things to try to calm the anxiety monster.

This week, I decided to wake up earlier than usual and do some yoga before making breakfast and getting ready for work.  Here's how it went:

Day 1: My alarm went off at 5:42am-- 25 minutes earlier than my normal routine. However, I was already awake. This never happens. Anxiety already had its grip on me. Instead of getting up, I stayed in bed until my usual wake up time. No yoga. Had a hard morning at work.

Day 2: Didn't fall asleep until after midnight, but got up after hitting snooze once. Took my time and did just 5 minutes of breathing and moves I like without a video. Got to work early. Had a better morning. Was asleep by 10:30 with the help of melatonin.

Day 3: Hit snooze once, but got up and did 10 minutes of yoga with a video. Yoga with Adriene is my go-to for yoga videos. She's amazing; check her channel out! Got to work a little early but later than yesterday (thanks traffic!). Had a better morning even though I had to quick make copies and go to duty. Fell asleep by 10:30 with the help of melatonin.

Day 4: Hit snooze twice. Thursdays are hard, y'all! I didn't have time for yoga by the time I got out of bed, but I could feel soreness from my workouts. I did some foam rolling while my eggs cooked. Got to work later but on time, had an ok morning.

Day 5: Hit snooze once, but stayed awake. Did a short video for runners, took my time getting ready, and had a good morning, and overall good day.

It's only been a week, but I think I like this. I am NOT a morning person, so when I workout it's always after work, so waking up earlier is not on my list of things that I want to do. Maybe I will become one of those people who gets up super early and gets their workout in before work, but I have to be at work by 7:40 so I don't see myself getting in a full workout and cool down in before work. However, I do think that getting up 30 minutes earlier and moving my body with a few yoga stretches and breathing exercises is a good way to wake up. I have essential oils and I need to bring them to the living room with me to help that relaxation and focus.

Overall, it's been a good week. I'm going to continue to keep yoga in my morning routine for as long as I can. It's nice to have that time to wake up the entire body and calm myself down before I begin my day.

Cheers,

Kasey