Last week was my first full week at work after being off for 6 weeks. It’s amazing how much my routine had drifted in such a relatively short time. I find that summer tends to do that anyway – it’s not always easy to stay disciplined about going to bed at a certain time when it is light until well after my “normal” bedtime. Especially when I don’t *have* to get up early in the morning.
My routine quickly drifted from early morning meditation to sleeping in and staying up late. The days went by all too quickly. And now I’m back to work and having to adjust quickly back into a regular routine. Can I just say it is not motivating to get up, get ready for work, and leave the house when everyone else still gets to sleep in?
During my time off, I kept my morning alarm, because I have medication I need to take at a specific time. I’d get up, take my meds, and promptly roll over and go back to sleep. Now that I am back to work, I get up, take my meds, meditate, stretch and get ready for the day.
I had turned off my bedtime alarm over the summer. (Yes, I have an alarm set to remind me that I need to turn off my electronics and get ready for bed. Which I am ignoring in order to write this blog post…) It is back on. On my own, I tend to get sucked into the rabbit hole of “I’ll just do this one more thing…” and three hours later I still haven’t turned the computer off. So the alarm helps remind me to turn things off at a reasonable time, and stick to really only one more thing.
Last week it got harder and harder to get up as the week wore on. Part of that was because I was adjusting to going back to sleep at a decent time. Part of it, I found out at the end of the week, is that my thyroid medication needed to be adjusted. It’s been a couple of days of the new dose, and in spite of a very busy and draining weekend, I already can tell the difference in my energy levels.
As my energy levels are restored, I’d really like to add more exercise back into my routine. When I’m stressed or busy, that tends to be one of the first things that gets dropped. And yes, I know that exercise helps to relieve stress and increase energy. I just seem to have trouble motivating myself in that area. So it is something I endeavor to add back this week.
I’ve got another really busy week ahead of me. So I’m going to sign off, and fight the urge to watch the latest episode of Outlander, and head to bed (because even though you’re reading this at… whatever time you are reading it… I’m writing it AFTER my bedtime alarm has gone off).
What routines do you have that support you?
Blessings,
Mary