Cassie Winter
Morning Routine Tips For Chronic Fatigue | Stop Wasting Spoons!
Morning Routine Tips For Chronic Fatigue | Stop Wasting Spoons! // If you have chronic fatigue, chronic illness, chronic pain, or invisible disability and hate mornings, this video is for you. I have Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) and Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, and I have a very counterintuitive morning routine that sets me up for success every single day. Through my morning routine examples and time management advice for spoonies, you'll learn how to create a morning routine for yourself that helps you instead of costing you chronic illness spoons.
VIDEOS MENTIONED
Time Management Advice No One Tells Spoonies | How I Really Manage My Time & Chronic Illness Spoons https://youtu.be/WQ4a6rP9tiU
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Hey Muses! Welcome back to my channel. Do you have a chronic illness, an invisible disability, and/or chronic fatigue? And do you hate mornings with every fiber of your being? By the end of this video, you'll know a few easy ways you can adjust your morning routine so you can stop wasting spoons and start having better days. If you struggle with chronic or mental illness and are tired of feeling alone, this is the place for you to be. You're not alone anymore. Subscribe to my channel and hit the bell to be notified when I post a new video every Tuesday. So who am I to help you with your morning routine? I'm a fellow spoonie with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, and several mental health issues. And mornings have been one of the banes of my existence since my health issues started taking over my life 21 years ago. Mornings are still hard, but I finally have a morning routine that helps me instead of hurts me, and I want to share what I've discovered with you. A couple of weeks ago in this video, one of the tips I gave to reduce spoon debt was to wait to get out of bed for as long as possible every morning. Why? Because us spoonies take longer to transition from sleep to wakefulness and, more importantly, it takes longer for our bodies to acclimate to sitting up, let alone standing up, to get out of bed. So staying in bed longer helps our bodies and minds boot up for the day at a safe and comfortable pace. What I didn't have time to talk about in that video, however, was what to actually do while you're lying in bed for that 60 to 90 minutes every morning. And don't worry, I'm not going to tell you to stare at the ceiling and contemplate existence. Nor am I going to tell you to meditate, because asking a spoonie in the process of waking up to meditate is like asking baby Yoda to fix your wiring in your ship. “No, hold them apart.” Counterproductive! So what's a spoonie to do instead while they lie in bed and slowly sit up before getting out of bed an hour or more later? Scroll a social media feed you've curated to support and inspire you. We all know doom scrolling is a bad idea. We all know social media in general can be detrimental to your mental health. But as a spoonie, social media can often feel like one of the only ways we can connect with the outside world, and that's okay. The trick is to ruthlessly curate your social media feed to include only that which supports you, and none of that which hurts you, on your platform of choice. Personally, I use Instagram for this. Unfollow anyone who makes you feel inferior or less than; who makes you feel triggered, jealous or envious or worthless; or if they make you feel like you, your body, your ethnicity, your sexuality, or your beliefs or anything else are wrong. And instead follow people who make you feel supported, understood, healed, inspired, alive. People who make you feel like you, your body, your ethnicity, your sexuality, your beliefs are wonderful. As spoonies, when we wake up, our bodies and minds are like old Windows 95 computers. It takes time for our bodies and minds to be usable for any sort of productive activity. So not only does it make sense, but it's actually necessary to not do anything productive right after we wake up. Scrolling a curated social media feed is the perfect activity for right after you wake up, because it doesn't require much physical activity and it doesn't require much cognitive activity. It's an easy thing to do. And as a bonus, when you scroll a curated social media feed designed to support and inspire you, once you're done scrolling for the morning and are ready to get on with your day, you'll likely be going into it with better mental health than what you woke up with. And if you're a fellow spoonie, you know how priceless good mental health can be. Comment below and tell me your relationship with social media. Do you already have a curated feed, or is the idea that you can curate your social media feeds new to you? After waking up in the morning, I scroll my curated social media feeds until my brain starts feeling alert enough to do something more productive. Depending on how brain foggy I am, this can take longer on some days and less time on other days. Either way I wait until my brain feels alert enough to move on with my day. The really important distinction to take into account here, however, is whether or not your body is also ready to start the day. If my body still feels sluggish and useless, I'll stay in bed and start wrapping my head around my priorities for the day. I'll review my goals, to do list, and schedule, and then I'll review my email and direct messages for anything that I may need to add to the list for the day. I only get out of bed when my body feels ready and/ or I can't wait to have breakfast any longer. And then I take as much time as I need to go from sitting in bed to standing, so as not to aggravate my symptoms. As a POTSie this is super important. Then, and this is just a personal thing for me, I do at least one chore around the house before I make my breakfast. This is a habit I instilled a few years ago, and it makes a huge difference for me because I'm so much less likely to do chores later in the day when I'm out of spoons. So before making breakfast, I do one quick win chore, like unloading the dishwasher or starting a load of laundry, then I make myself breakfast. I've been having the same weird smoothie for breakfast for years now, and it really helps with both my Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome and gastroparesis. If you want the recipe… I mean, I don't know if you'll like it. I like it. But let me know down in the comments. And then, you know what I do next? I go back to bed! Because getting out of bed was a feat, and at that point I have earned some rest already. No joke. At that point I need rest already. So I give it to myself. I go back to bed and sip at my smoothie and continue planning out the rest of my day. Long story short, your morning routine as a spoonie needs to be designed around helping you boot up for the day. It should be a routine that sets you up for success without costing you spoons. You owe it to yourself to take the time you need to get going each day, to allow both your body and your mind the time they need to finish waking up. Anything else will only set you back and make the rest of your day worse for it, which will add up to more and more spoon debt over time. Now you know exactly what to focus on when creating your spoony morning routine. And the next time you hear an able-bodied person telling you to meditate, journal, workout, read an advanced book, cook a healthy breakfast, and shower during your morning routine, you can ignore them confidently, knowing that you're different, that those things are more likely to hurt you than help you, and you can get back to living your best life, not theirs. And in case you're someone who also struggles with procrastination and resistance, I highly recommend checking out my free Masterclass, where I teach three powerful mindset shifts and one simple three-step process to get you unstuck fast. All you have to do to get access is to go to the link in the description box below and sign up. If you liked this video, hit that like button and subscribe, and be sure to share it with your friends. I'll be back next week with another video. See you then. Bye. So here's a side note for you spoonies with chronic fatigue. Some mornings you just need to sleep in till 1:00 PM or later, and it throws off the entire rest of your day (and potentially the rest of your week and the rest of your month). ‘Cause you made such a lovely little plan and you had priorities and you were gonna get them done at so-and-so a time. That was me today. It was not pleasant. But sometimes you just need to let yourself have a shitty day, and to recuperate, and to not get as much done as you had planned. Because if you keep trying to push yourself through on a day like that, you're just going to have more days like that in the future, which is really, really bad. Anyways, tata!
#Morning #Routine #Tips #Chronic #Fatigue #Stop #Wasting #Spoons
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Here's my smoothie recipe for POTS and Gastroparesis (goal is calorie density, fiber, protein, and high sodium). And a high powered blender is needed.
1/3 Cup quick oats
1 Tbsp dark cocoa powder
Handful of dark chocolate chips
1/3 Cup cottage cheese
1 1/3 Cup whole milk
BLITZ INTO OBLIVION
Hahaa you just described my morning routine. I call it my spoon regeneration time 🤭
youre the first person in my 29 years of life to say that just staying in bed is the right thing to do. i already do this, but always with a horrible guilt that im not doing enough with my time (especially since im RARELY awake before noon). thank you.
Could someone explain what a spoon refers to. And what a Spoonie is? I was hoping the video would explain spoons but I still have no idea. I'm guessing it has to do with energy levels.
Hi. I too also have fibro and cfs plus other not so great symptoms as well. I watched a video abt cfs, and the best advice I received was to not look at the clock. It has helped me so much. Usually I would tell myself, u need to go to sleep it’s 4:30am. Or you need to get up, it’s 2:30pm already. Well now I don’t care abt time. I listen to my body and rest or sleep when I need to. Just found ur channel. Thnx for ur suggestions. Gentle hugs 🫠
I have been feeling guilty for spending most of my mornings in bed. Thanks for the validation.
I cannot go on my phone at all in the morning. It takes too much mental energy and makes me dizzy and headaches. I have to lie there and breathe and pet my dog and rest.
This makes so much sense! I have trouble getting out of bed. I need at least 30-45 minutes before getting up and even then I usually can't be standing up for more than a few minutes because my legs are spaghetti. This video helped me feel less bad about this and I'll definitely learn to transition from sleep to sitting to standing slower from now on.
This video actually made me cry. I feel so incredibly seen. Thank you so much.
I feel SO SEEN. Specifically the “taking an hour to get out of bed in the morning.” I struggle with chronic fatigue and it takes me about an hour to get out of bed, and then another hour to fully wake up after I’m out of bed. I have always felt so extremely guilty about this, as I feel that I’m “wasting so much of my day”. Seeing this video is so extremely helpful and helps me to understand that I am not alone in this. From the bottom of my heart, you so much for sharing this. 💗🙏
I deactivated all social media accounts😢
As someone with hEDS this is amazing advice! One of the worst things is subluxating something, but feeling guilty and lazy for staying in bed with a heating pad. This made me realize I need to stop judging myself by able-bodied, neurotypical standards
So I have ADHD and then I gained Long Covid, which is very difficult because people don’t know what it is, and there’s very much resistance and resentment towards Covid. I appreciate this because I get judged all the time for not being able to wake up at that moment. I have come to a point that anybody who judges me, belittle me, or is not reciprocal, will be eliminated from my life.
Sooo….oiling the hinges of a squicky door…5 mins after waking up (noticed the squick on may eay into the bathroom😮) is why my day was sooo hard yesterday😱❤. Breakfast is another story 😢
I found this after I told my boyfriend to bring my phone so i can find a productivity video to help me get out of bed. My goal way 10am, but my back is hurting so much, so it's been 45 minutes and I'm m finally feeling a little better
I think as always, it really depends on the gravity of the symptoms. Because even while curating content on social media (which is brilliant advice btw) scrolling can be very addictive and I can be ready to get up before the hour but I just don't notice time passing by. But you can choose a video to watch the night before that would be right length as a solution to that I suppose. Other things that have helped me are to keep a glass of water on my bedside table that I finish up in the morning; that really helps my body wake up. Listening to chill music to start can be nice as well, with positive lyrics if possible. I've made a playlist of positive songs and defo recommend. But going back to bed after, the fact that you said that, makes me feel less alone. It depends on the day but sometimes it's a must.
I use Pinterest for visioning trips I want to go on or my dream house. I think this would pair really well with the curated morning scroll. Thanks! 💖
In the past 5 years I’ve had big problem trying to get out bed in a.m. I never used to be that way. I set my alarm way ahead of my work start time to give me more time waking out
It’s so crazy how the same we all are. I have to sit in bed for at least 90 minutes when I wake up, if I rush to get out of bed, then I am anxiety ridden, and disregulated the rest of the day.
Hi Cassie, i appreciate that this an old video. Ive been ill for 5 years plus years and was diagnoaed with CFS last year which i am steuggling to cope with. Which is why im here!
Im interested to understand why meditation would not be a useful tool as part of your morning routine?
Its something I've considered so would really appreciate your thoughts.
Regards
Lee, UK
What are you contributing to society sitting around your house making silly videos? If you’re able to do this, I’m sure you can work from your home doing something with this same skill set. And I never said I didn’t have a chronic illness.
Bruh I’ve been in bed for 5 hours and I was only supposed to do things I’ve been looking forward to ugh. The fatigue and lack of emotional energy is REAL
Wow – I do something very similar to this. I kind of developed this without thinking about it too much, just wanting to be gentle with myself in the morning. It is nice to know it's not just me, and to hear it reinforced for me that it is a productive way for a spoonie to start the day. Thank you!
I know this is an older video but it makes me feel so supported and inspired – I like your focus on slowly easing into your mornings instead of rushing. I'm having a flare up at the moment and I usually struggle to keep up with new information during those, but you speak so clearly, slowly and concisely, I really appreciate it. I "only" have fibromyalgia, but I've really been struggling lately since I work full time.
Thank you such a value content , appriciated! I like to breath and slowly stretch my limbs while in bed , also maje coffee and back to bed with it if time alouds ❤
This is my morning routine, I'm glad I'm not alone in this!
What terrible advice regarding getting out of bed in the morning. How are you supposed to get to the job by 8 AM when you have an hour commute when you’ve convinced yourself you have to lounge around in bed half the morning? You’re a bit of a hypochondriacal princess. Heaven help anyone who takes your free master class because you don’t know anything about helping a person with chronic illness live their best life.
Getting back into bed is such a great tip, WE DESERVE IT !
In my case I feel really triggered by social media, especially Instagram and avoid it all together.
What are the spoons 🥄 about lol so I can better understand. Thanks
Interesting view on social media. I've felt bad for having to scroll on social media or playing a game on my phone to wake up in the morning. So many people are so militant against social media but I think it has its pros and cons 🙂
I pee way too soon after waking.
Doomscrolling has been a struggle for me. It’s hard when there is so much garbage happening. But I’ve definitely noticed that my nervous system is constantly amped up when I do that.
so much love thank you for making us feel seen ❤