Do you ever wake up in the morning experiencing anxiety? Or perhaps you experience anxiety later in the day or the evening? Anxiety is normal and can be triggered by different events, and it can creep up when we are preparing for a public presentation, going to a job interview, or meeting a new special someone. While anxiety is a normal emotion we all experience, sometimes it can be difficult to know how to manage anxiety. That being said, if you find that your anxiety is impacting your ability to manage day-to-day, this could be a good indicator to meet with a mental health professional. Now, let’s take a closer look at three easy ways to help reduce anxiety with a morning routine.

Consider creating a morning routine

Why is it helpful to create a morning routine? Though not everyone will agree, our bodies love to have consistency and routine, and when we get into this type of practice, our body and mind appreciate it. Depending on the activities you come up with, it helps to create a calm and relaxed state for your body.

Often, when we are in our sleep state, we experience the least amount of anxiety, as research has shown that deep sleep plays a critical role in reducing anxiety by reprogramming the brain’s emotional circuits1. Ideally, you want to monopolize on this time that your body and mind are relaxed.

Start your morning with deep breathing

The morning routine can start with a gentle practice of deep breathing. Gently place both of your hands on your stomach and take a deep breath in to inhale and take a deep breath out to exhale. As you take a deep breath in, inhale through your nose, and you will feel your stomach fill with air. Then, slowly exhale the breath through your mouth and count for 4 counts, 1-2-3-4. Keep repeating this for several breaths. You could even pair this activity with your morning alarm and consider picking a relaxing song or nature sound. When you wake up, try practicing your deep breathing to the length of the song or consider practicing this exercise for a few minutes. Now that your body is feeling a bit more relaxed, let’s make some tea to continue to help soothe and calm the body further.

Herbal teas

Consider making yourself a cup of herbal tea. What types of herbal teas should you consider to help decrease anxiety? Chamomile, peppermint, or lemon balm tea are all teas to consider, and here’s why.

  • Chamomile tea helps to relax the body and mind, and bisabolol, an ingredient found in chamomile tea, helps to relax muscles and reduce stress.

  • Peppermint tea helps to relax muscles and is helpful for the digestive system.

  • Lemon balm tea, which has rosmarinic acid in it, helps to calm the body’s nervous system.

Oh, the lovely scents and flavours of these teas. Not only is the aroma beautiful, but these teas also have a calming effect on the body.

Let’s stretch and move

Now, let’s move the body. Movement is powerful and important for our bodies. It helps to reduce tension within our muscles and helps us to feel connected to our body. Often, when an individual is experiencing anxiety, they will tighten their muscles, which creates tension, and when we move, it helps to reduce that tension. We can frequently experience tight muscles in our shoulders, neck, and hip areas. What type of movement should you consider? I always encourage clients to go in the direction that they most align with. If you are interested in practicing yoga, take the time to do a few yoga poses. However, if you aren’t sure where to start, simply start with gentle stretches – there are so many different options.

Consider stretching the neck and shoulder area, as we often carry a lot of tension there. A study by Lin, Lin, and Wu2 in 2015 found that neck and shoulder stretching exercises significantly reduced pain and improved function in office workers who were experiencing moderate-to-severe chronic neck pain. Participants practiced stretching these areas three times a day for 10 minutes during a four-week period.

Here's a simple neck and shoulder stretch to start with: tilt your head gently to the right and then to the left, and hold this stretch in each direction for approximately 20-30 seconds. You are welcome to stand or sit while practicing this stretch.

Next up, shoulder rolls. While seated or standing, roll your shoulders back and forward 5-10 times and repeat this activity 2-3 times.

Now that we have taken care of the upper part of our body, let’s focus on the lower part of the body with a seated forward fold. This can be done in three simple steps:

  1. Sit with your legs extended in front of you.

  2. Gently fold forward with your hands trying to reach your feet – lengthen this stretch to how comfortable it is for your body.

  3. Try to keep your back straight and hold this stretch for approximately 30 seconds to one minute.

Let’s take a quick moment to check in: we created a moment of calmness with deep breathing. Then we embraced the beautiful aromas and flavours of herbal tea, and lastly, we moved our bodies by stretching our tight muscles. And just like that, you have a simple morning routine to help start your day with a calmer mind and body. Enjoy!

Notes

1 Berkeley News. (2019, November 4). Deep sleep can rewire the anxious brain, University of California, Berkeley.
2 Lin, J.-H., Lin, C.-H., & Wu, S.-F. (2015). The effectiveness of a neck and shoulder stretching exercise program among office workers with neck pain: A randomized controlled trial. Clinical Rehabilitation, 30(1), 97–104.