By now we have all heard or or read at least one book or article or listened to one YouTube video on the value of a morning routine. I realized these individuals found something that work for them. Yay! However, they then went on to tell the rest of the world, “this is how you do a morning routine the right way.”
I have tried many of these morning routines and they did not work for me then, and they will certainly not work for me now, as a caregiver. Before I was a caregiver, and failed at the guru’s morning routines, I most certainly felt like a failure. Why can’t I seem to figure out how to start my day the right way.
My mother was the queen of routine.
We knew what we were doing every minute of the day. It was the same day in and day out. We rarely deviated.
I remember my mom’s morning routine. She was awake well before anyone, and if it was a cold morning she would stoke the fire. She made coffee and I can still hear the singe of her cigarette as she took a drag. My mom work up two hours before she had to leave for work. I felt it was so she could experience the calm and quiet of a house that was often loud and chaotic. My mom and her routines were her way of exerting some sort of control of a life that was often out of control.
I am not here to provide caregivers with the best morning routine
I do want to say the best morning routine for a caregiver? It’s that works best for you. Only you, as a caregiver, knows what that is. Hopefully your mornings are often the same, with no real surprises. If they are not, I hope you can get at least one day a week to implement a morning routine that gets you ready for your day. A consistent morning routine can set a positive tone for your caregiving responsibilities.
Steve wants, as he says, “feet on the ground by 7:30. We often manage that, especially the two days I work. Some morning we are a bit lazy about it. Steve has a supra pubic catheter so I assist him in his twice daily catheter care. In the morning that means switching from an overnight bag to a leg bag.
Steve is not very mobile and mornings are the worst time for his legs and balance. I fix his breakfast for him and if it’s shower day I also assist with that.
My morning routine has been successful for me and rarely do I have an interruption to it, unless I did not sleep well the night before and get up later than normal.
Finding a morning routine that works for you is essential.
I wake up, take a drink of water, start the water for my coffee or tea, make my bed, grab my tablet and do the puzzles in the New York Times in this order: Connections, Wordle, Strands, and Spelling Bee.
Establishing a morning routine can significantly improve your day and enhance your effectiveness as a caregiver.
Listen to an episode from the Cancer Caregiver – she’s going to tell you the same thing!
This is for me a caregiver-friendly routine. Will it work for you? I have no idea. Maybe, but if you feel the need for a routine, try a few things that first of all fit into your life. Don’t try to make your life fit into something, bring in only what will work for you.
Then ask yourself a question or two. Did this routine make me feel energized and ready to start my caregiving day? Is the morning routine easy enough and not to maintain?
If so, you have found the right routine for you.
And if your circumstances change – change your routine.
You, not the guru’s, know what is best for you and the person you care for.
P.S. check out the post – The Unchosen Life as a Caregiver.