Your powerful morning ritual

Every time we wake up we are blessed with another day. It doesn’t always feel like that though. If we’re under stress, those thoughts can occupy our first waking moments. If we’re worried about something, this can be the first thing we think about. It doesn’t have to be this way.

A powerful start
These waking moments are very important. For many of us, they set the tone for the next few hours. Or, even the rest of the day. The great news is that we can choose how we think.

Old habits
For me, my early mornings used to start with a series of rapid-fire thoughts about what I needed to do that day. When would I have the time to do it all? Will I have the energy? And so on. All of this happened before I’d even lifted my head from my pillow. It was a draining way to start. Then, I learnt I could do it differently.

Morning ritual
I learnt three simple techniques that now help me start my day with gratitude, vitality and purpose. They only take a few minutes and you can do them from the comfort of your bed.

Give thanks
Firstly, take a few deep breaths, gather yourself and give thanks for the many good things in your life.

"Thank you for this day.
Thank you for the lovely food I had last night.
Thank you for this comfortable bed.
Thank you for the money I have."

Give thanks for the small things as well as the big ones. Really think about them. List five to 10 things you are thankful for.

Benefits

• You begin to see that there are always many things to be thankful for
• It frees your mind from worry and stress
• It lightens your mood

Fill yourself with light
Once you have finished giving thanks, it is time to move on to the next technique.

This should only take you three or four minutes. As you lie in bed, visualise your feet filling up with light. The light is like a liquid, you are like a glass vase and the light is being poured into you. Visualise it moving up past your ankles, your calves and your knees. As it goes, the light is imbuing every cell, every tendon, every bone with energy, healing and love.

Again, visualise the light moving up your body, filling as it goes. If a part of your body is sick or injured, pay particular attention to it. Feel the light move through that area, filling it, shining through it.

Visualise the light filling your entire body and take a minute to see yourself glowing bright, radiating. Finish the exercise by declaring:

“Every cell of me, every depth of me, every breath of me is full of light, love and healing.”

Benefits

• It energises you
• Puts you in a good state of mind
• It improves your health! It is simple, but it works

Creating the day
Now, for the final part. It is time to think about how to approach your day. What one thing do you want to focus on today? What one thing is going to inform your decisions and actions? For example:

• Just for today, I’m going to take it easy
• Just for today, I’m going to concentrate on breathing deeply
• Just for today, I’m going to be more patient and loving

At first, I wrote my commitment down so I would remember it. During the day, I would read it, remember it and act on it. Now, it frequently pops into my head at different times and helps me stay focused.

Benefits

• In times of stress this can help us stay focused on what is important
• It gives us a greater sense of purpose
• It provides emotional support

All in all, these techniques should only take a few minutes to complete. But, they are powerful and when you start to use them regularly, you’ll start to feel the benefits. You’ll begin your day from a position of gratitude, vitality and purpose. You’ll begin your day with a powerful morning ritual.

---

Learn more

There are other ways to improve our health and happiness.

Learn More