Hi,
I'm Keziah Gibbons,
My pronouns are she and her,
And I'm a meditation guide and professional.
And today I'd like to talk about the morning routine.
You're probably familiar with the concept of the morning routine and you probably have some kind of routine of yourself in the morning.
But why is it important to have an intentional morning routine in the first place?
The main purpose of the morning routine is to set yourself up for the day you want.
Many of our actions,
Decisions,
And even subjective experiences,
Such as emotional states,
Are decided unconsciously.
And the neural mechanism of this.
Is that if your neurons move down the path of least resistance,
Then they're moving down the paths that you cultivate with practice and you can decide which paths you're going to make most easy for your neurons to walk down.
Or to move down,
Shall we say.
As part of your morning routine.
The start of the day is a really good time to decide how you'd like your experience to be today and to open up the neural pathways that can lead to that experience.
Meaning that it will be easier for you to access those actions,
Decisions and states later in the day by default.
The opposite of this is if you start your day mindlessly.
For example,
By scrolling news or social media,
Which bombards your brain with other people's experience,
Emotions and decisions before you've had a chance to be intentional about your own.
Okay,
So what are some good practices that you can do every morning to set your day up right?
I'm going to talk through several practices,
But if there's one thing I've learned over the years,
It's to pick one.
They're all good,
But if you wake up with half a dozen things for your morning routine,
That's a to-do list,
Which is not the nourishing,
Intentional practice that we're creating here.
So pick one.
And give yourself those moments for it without worrying about what comes next.
So what are some nice ways to set yourself up for the day?
Well,
Meditation is good,
Any kind of meditation,
And even a few minutes in the morning can help you to stay regulated over the course of the day.
Some people pick a favourite meditation to repeat daily.
Or the slight variety either spine.
Remember,
It's only worth doing if it's working for you.
As a tarot teacher,
One of my favourite ways to set up for the day is with the card of the day practice.
You can do this in a couple of minutes,
But it provides a really nice reflective space.
So you centre yourself,
Ask any question you have about the day or just to receive what you need and draw a card from your tarot deck.
Then you sit with it.
Notice your reaction to it and how it might relate to the main theme of your day ahead.
You can come back to it at the end of the day for further insight.
This also works with Oracle Cards.
Another very simple yet very powerful practice for your morning routine is intention setting.
It's very simple.
Decide what is the most important thing for you today and make that your intention for the day.
Something you can keep reminding yourself of during the day.
It could be a way of being.
Today I will show up in kindness.
Or it could be something you intend to achieve.
Today I will complete a specific task.
Or today I will take one step towards my desired achievement.
This is powerful because you bring your intention into consciousness.
And it feels great later in the day if you can look back and say,
I stuck to my intention.
Movement is another lovely way to start your day.
This looks different for everyone.
Some people might dance around to their favourite song while the kettle boils.
While for others two minutes of stretching in bed is enough.
A little bit of movement has double benefits.
It can help you to cultivate somatic presence.
Tuning into how your body is today so that you can recognise and meet your needs.
And it also helps to remove morning stiffness and create a positive state.
As your nervous system responds to your physiology.
If you're looking for a simple way to come into presence and regulate your nervous system for the day ahead,
Breath work can be very helpful.
This can be simple mindful observation or dedicated breathing techniques to relax or awaken,
Depending on your desired outcome.
A few minutes of intentional breathing will stimulate your vagus nerve,
Sending peace and healthy energy throughout your entire body.
I'm a Reiki master and teacher and I couldn't give a talk on morning routines without mentioning Reiki.
Reiki is an energy healing technique which has been proven to have benefits for mood,
Health and sleep.
And it's something you can practice on yourself.
I also have a lot of students who send Reiki to others in the morning.
If you want to invite wonderful things into your day,
There is no better way than gratitude.
There is a large body of research suggesting that gratitude practices can improve not only your day,
But the experience of those around you too.
You can start with a gratitude list or a journal,
Or by sending gratitude to a particular person each morning.
Whoever you want to acknowledge with your energy to start the day.
And finally,
Journaling.
Journaling is great and can help us not only to express our emotions but to gain some form of agency over them.
The brain processes differently when you write things down,
Meaning that things that have been confused or just stuck in your head can become clearer or even unstuck as you write about them.
You can journal by free writing,
Just writing whatever comes,
Or by responding to thoughtful prompts and questions.
This practice also combines nicely with some of the others I've mentioned,
Such as your tarot card for the day,
Intention setting or gratitude lips.
So those are some practices that you can add to your morning routine to set yourself up for the day you want.
And I'll signpost some resources for those in the description.
Thank you for spending this time with me.
I'm grateful you're here and I wish you a wonderful day.
