Mornings are my favorite time of the day. Waking up hopeful and excited for what lies ahead, what I will accomplish to build my business, and taking time out for my connection, journaling, peace, stillness, nature, and a great cup of coffee, quite literally fill my cup. Lately my emphasis for my morning time is my meditation practice. It was not always this way, however. I used to be the girl always on the go, always running five minutes behind, always having a packed schedule, squeezing in a run even if I had ten minutes to spare. I was the girl that would sacrifice her sleep to get that morning workout in, usually arising at 5am, slamming coffee, and racing to the 6:00 am Pilates class followed by a run after work. I was the girl that would eat whatever I wanted because I would surely “work it off later.” Until that world came crashing down with an illness.
I no longer burn the candle at all ends. Now the only thing I am burning is palo santo and sage. I learned that you cannot keep taking from the bank of health, wellness, and balance, without a tipping point occurring. Mine was an imbalance in my body so great and debilitating that I later realized was my body begging, pleading, and screaming at me to change everything in my life. And so I did.
The new me prioritizes her sleep and realizes that I need at least eight hours, preferably nine. I prioritize eating whole foods, intermittent fasting (which works for my body, not necessarily for everyone), maintaining a calm nervous system, maintaining my connection to my body, and listening to the messages in real time, my spirituality, connection to nature, and my overall health, wellness, and balance. Gone are the days of forcing a run when I am still returning my nervous system to a feeling of safety, and gone are the days of only pushing, doing, and forcing, and instead I maintain a balance of masculine and feminine, doing and receiving.
I had a coach recommend that I use my morning time to meditate and write, rather than using my coffee time to clean and workout. It was a game changer for me. I had been finding myself doing everything other than meditating, even still after my life-changing events and newfound appreciation for meditating. I was still finding an excuse to do everything but meditate and would find myself forcing it at the end of a long day. Knowing that I love my coffee first thing, she suggested that I still make my coffee followed by meditating. It was a game-changer.
Yes it is better to meditate when you are in the theta brainwave state, meaning, you want to ideally meditate upon arising or going to bed when you are still sleepy, to have a better connection to spirit (or insert what you believe in or the right term for you). I just was not doing that, so I built a routine around what works best for me and was not only realistic but makes me happy. But it is all about finding what works best for you, how much time you have, and what you are choosing to prioritize. Following my ten-year health journey, I prioritize healing and balance.
Ideally I set my alarm to ensure I have eight hours of sleep. Luckily, my dog Maverick has been a great sleeper since night one and is usually in a similar routine. It may be my favorite quality of him, how much he enjoys his sleep and time in bed just like his mom. After turning my body around from 40 years of living in survival mode, I now see the bed as a healing space. Each morning is the same; while I let Mav out I make the coffee: spring water, organic coffee, usually adding organic milk, coconut oil, honey, pollen and maybe some other healthy ingredients if I need them such as shilajit, charcoal, and or cinnamon, and usually give Mav a little honey, milk, or coconut as a treat for being a good boy. I also make my juice, either organic orange juice with spring water, adding fresh lemon, lime, orange, or grapefruit, vitamin c powder, and LMNT electrolytes. I prep my morning supplement routine from my fantastic nutritionist Vanessa of Vees Honey whom I have worked with for over three years now, then head outside.
I try to get sun first thing, opening the east facing curtains to receive the sun on my eyes prior to making coffee and turning on artificial lights, but then spend more time outside with my coffee and Maverick. My connection to nature is of the utmost importance, and it is extremely important for a healthy and balanced mind and body. I place my bare feet on the earth, or sometimes just sit on the grass, to receive the healing benefits from the ground. I have a clean, sunscreen and makeup free morning face in the sun, and know that the morning sunlight is so important for my health and energy. I started feeding the birds in the front and back of my house, so I can hear the birds chirping. I am lucky to live in Texas with ample wildlife, so we look for deer and squirrels and listen to the birds while sipping my coffee. It is pure heaven. It turns out that birds chirping signifies that there is no danger, which also sends those signals to our own body. There is also a high frequency with this sound which is also helpful for us. I spend that time witnessing the trees, the changes in nature with the seasons, and in gratitude for my surroundings. We are deeply interconnected with nature.
Directly following my time in nature, I go back to bed. Well, sort of. The bed is my meditation place now, with each bedside table filled with wonderful natural floral sprays, palo santo, sage, crystals, snake plants for keeping the air clean, and usually roses nearby to increase the vibration. My bedroom is absolutely my healing place. Even my bedding now is layer upon layer of various shades of light peach and pinks blending in like sleeping on layers of rose petals. I am very much into my feminine time after years of living in the masculine, and this is what I am gravitating to now. Because of this we are often quite literally sleeping with crystals as I bring a few with me each time I meditate. Mav must have his pineal gland and connection to his spirit wide open at this point.
I spray my floral sprays from Aurora of Lawless botanicals, light my sage and palo santo, pick up a few crystals that resonate with me that morning, and spend the first seven minutes listening to the wealth creation sounds from Dr. Joe Vitale to work on my mindset and manifesting abundance, often journaling while listening. After a lifetime of living in survival, I am working to retrain my brain to that of abundance, ease, imagination, safety, balance, gratitude, and love. I then set my alarm for however long I’ll be meditating for, typically between 20 – 35 minutes, place my phone on airplane mode, turn on very soft high HZ playlist such as 432 (nature), 528 (love), 888 (wealth), and 963 (third eye), get comfortable sitting upright with my legs crossed, relax my body, call back all parts of me from the preceding day, then go into my meditative state.
I no longer race to workout as my priority right now is maintaining peace and a calm nervous system. I am still rebalancing after years of forcing and depleting my testosterone in the process. I will go on a walk, run, or do yoga later in the day, but working on my connection internally is what I need most right now. This may shift again, but right now I am following my guidance, listening to my body, and returning it to balance.