Making Peace with Morning

summer days, breakfast at noon
Originally uploaded by *stereopathic

I am not a morning person. Unlike most people, I have my highest levels of energy and alertness after 4:00 p.m. and my body naturally wants to be awake late into the night. When I force myself to sleep during "normal" hours, I always find myself blinking and wide awake at 3:00 a.m. then nodding off again just before my alarm starts bleating.

Needless to say, this is extremely frustrating.

Unfortunately, as I have a job, I have to conform to the 9-5ish schedule most of society operates on.

Most of my working life I've waited until the very last possible moment to engage morning and then I have to rush to get myself together and to work on time. At various times in the past, I bribed myself out of bed with the promise of a latte or a donut or a muffin, but this is not a healthy nor wallet-conscious coping method.

This morning I was finished with my routine about 15 minutes earlier than normal. I poured a glass of milk, checked the weather on the TV, and paged through the latest issue of Cloth, Paper, Scissors magazine.

That 15 minutes was a revelation to me. Taking a few minutes to just "be", helped me ease into my day and got me to thinking that it's probably time for me to make peace with morning .

The idea of purposefully getting up, say, an hour earlier than usual is an intriguing one and I'm going to experiment with this beginning on Tuesday (my next work day).

Mr. P. is always asking me to get up when he does (about 5:30 a.m.) and join him downstairs for coffee before he leaves for work. I grumble and snarl at him and pull the covers over my head, trying to hold on to those last dregs of sleep. He's only here for a few more weeks, but I will accept his invitation next time it is offered (or surprise him by putting the coffee on for him).

Carving out a purposeful hour of personal time in the morning offers lots of options for filling my creative well: writing in my journal, reflecting on a book passage, and seeing morning with new eyes and renewed perspective (instead of battling against it).

And finally, it would be nice to have a simple but deliberate breakfast instead of grabbing a handful of goldfish crackers or a swig of soy milk and rushing out the door.

On the days I work, I will still be tired in the morning (because of that whole waking up at 3:00 a.m. thing) but getting up with purpose and allowing myself extra time will probably soften some of the edges.

I'm interested in seeing how this plays out.

Day Two: NaBloPoMo.

Comments

[Amber]

I'm not naturally a morning person either but I found that getting up earlier and NOT hitting the snooze button helps me be more awake throughout the day and not have that rushed, harried feeling. It's good to start the day off relaxed.

Now that I'm biking to work I notice I'm so much more alert. I leave the house at 7 instead of 7:30 and I get to work invigorated and fully awake. I usually have 10 minutes or so before everyone gets there to just chill and get myself oriented. It really helps.

[violetkey]

What a good way to put it "making peace with mornings". I have struggled with this very thing for years. It just seems so hard to get out of that bed even though I know it's the best thing to do.

Joining your husband for coffee sounds nice too.

[Sloane]

I used to be that way also...I have slowly worked to get up between 5-5:30. I love the quiet of the morning. I fiddle for a 1/2 or so and tend to my dogs, then I take atleast 1/2 hour to have my coffee, reflect, write, touch up that picture I was thinking about in the middle of the night. The it's wake up the husband, walk dogs for 20-30 minutes then get ready for work. I feel like I accomplish so much in that time. I don't go to work bummed out b/c all I do is work...I go in refreshed and ready....most...everyday. :o)

[Serena]

This is a really intriguing and thoughtful post. I hate the act of getting up and usually find myself rolling out of bed 15 minutes before I have to leave and doing the absolute bare minimum (I shower before bed). I feel like this always leaves me looking harried. Perhaps you'll inspire me.