Self-Care: The 4 Pillars of a Successful Morning
Liz Carlile is a mom, health coach + host of the Motherhood Unstressed podcast. Liz is passionate about health, wellness, entrepreneurship + helping women remove roadblocks preventing them from living their best lives.
At the core of Liz’s message is the need for individuals to engage in non-negotiable self-care so they are able to give fully to their families, their work + their purpose.
What is self-care, exactly?
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– In Psychology Today, Dr. Maria Baratta defines self-care this way:
As a clinician, I often refer to self care as a huge part of what’s missing in the life of someone who’s busy and stressed. So what is self care? Self care in essence is the mindful taking time to pay attention to you, not in a narcissistic way, but in a way that ensures that you are being cared for by you.
– Self-care is bio-individual:
Activities that are nourishing + healing for you may not work for someone else.
– If you’re unsure where to start, ask yourself 2 key questions:
What lights you up? What gets you excited?
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Once you adopt a morning routine, the whole day changes, then the whole week changes and then all of a sudden your life has changed.
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A successful morning routine starts the night before:
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– Turn your phone off an hour before bedtime. (More on the science behind this here.)
– Do something that calms you down (stretch, drink tea, take a shower).
– Get to bed early.
The 4 pillars of a successful morning:
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1. Hydrate (with water, not coffee!)
Drinking water when you wake up rehydrates the body after many hours without. When rehydrated, you will find yourself waking up naturally.
2. Move
Find an activity that works for you. Yoga? Taking the dog for a walk? Get your exercise done early and cross it off your To-Do list.
3. Journal
Journaling in the morning enables you to process your emotions and prioritize must-do activities for the day. The practice encourages you to tap into your creativity, too, which can last for hours after journaling.
4. Meditate
A morning meditation practices enables you to focus your thoughts and silence the nonessential chatter in your mind. Mediation harnesses patience, too, which will set you up for a better day ahead.
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Notable Quotes from the episode:
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“A morning routine is you loving yourself enough to take care of yourself.”
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“After having kids I felt robbed of my freedom. I felt like I was never going to get a break.”
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“Baby blues are so common. Moms often feel pretty down + don’t want to talk about it because that’s how our culture tells us it’s supposed to be.”
