Morning Routine for Someone with Bipolar Disorder

     Bipolar Disorder is a serious illness and it is crucial for that person to stick to a schedule to find stability in his or her life.  I am sharing with you, today, my morning routine that I use to keep me grounded.  

    1) The night before, set an alarm for nine to ten hours so you can be fully rested to take on the day.  I set my alarm for 10pm to 8am to allow my medication to finish doing its job and is flushed from my system.  

    2) Don’t look at your phone until you have finished your morning routine.  This task is tricky for I am still working on it.  But this is an important to task.  I don’t know but people become obsessed over the news they find on social media and status they either get or don’t get.  This obsession is proven to hinder the mental health.  So, it is important to practice this task of less screen time to help improve the quality of life.  

    3) Before picking up that phone, do some meditation.  Set an alarm for 5, 10, or even 15 minutes.  Sit in silence practice deep breathing bringing your awareness to your breath.  I have two apps for this task.  One is just called Mediation but has two options.  One is the sound of rain the other one is canting.  You can even set a timer for however long you want to stay present.  Another app is called Soothing Pod Meditation.  This is more of a 10 minute guided meditation.  It even tracks your process.  I try to use this app twice a day. I really feel the effects of this practice and it helps my medication reach its full potential.  

    4) Nope!  Not gonna pick up that phone just yet.  It’s breakfast time the most important part of the morning.  After making your bed and the like, go the kitchen and make yourself a healthy fulfilling breakfast.  I have options to make.  I make smoothies, chocolate chip oatmeal, avocado toast.  (In another separate post I’ll include some recipes for my breakfast).  

After getting washed up and dressed now you can finally look at your phone.  I hope this post helps you find some semblance of stability.  I’ll talk to you next time.