how do people here deal with waking up early in the morning?

[WaterMyMind]

I’m starting a new job soon, and a couple days out of the week, I will have to wake up early. Whenever I do so, I really struggle with the anxiety and depression symptoms. My stomach churns and I feel like sobbing. Has anyone been able to overcome these things? Any tips?

[litethatnevergoesout]

I feel like that regardless of the time I wake up. Remind myself I feel like that every morning. Start moving around.

[Agora1]

Hi WaterMyMind

It's got to start with going to bed in a more relaxed state of mind. Using your sleep time

to retrain your subconscious mind through Meditation. If you look on YouTube, you will

find many Meditation videos meant for Night time relaxation, affirmations,

imagery, breathing etc... Upon awakening, relisten to that same positive video to

prepare you for the upcoming day. Midway through the day, take 5 and just pull

your shoulders down and breathe. This will help you regenerate your body and your

mind. If you continue this new habit everyday, you will eventually start feeling better

in the morning. This will happen because you are not only retraining your response

to anxiety but you are conditioning yourself to respond automatically w/o fear or

hesitation.

With practice, it works. xx

[cashew78]

I have a hard time with getting to bed, but I also get up 2 hours early to make sure I have the time I need to get out the door. That in and of itself helped me adjust to a new schedule. And because I take that time, I can deal with unexpected issues without being pressed for time (and therefore have less anxiety), can take my time for a hot breakfast, care for the cat, make sure that I have everything that I laid out the night before for my day (double checking is a problem with me), and really just have the time to make sure I'm really okay and not actually going through the motions because I'm sick and am trying to press through on what should probably be a sick day.

I also try to ease myself into wakefulness by setting two alarms; one outside my bedroom that's set to play classical radio about a half hour before I need to get up so my half-asleep brain can ease into it AND will have to get up to turn off. The second (series of) alarms is on my phone. Again, maybe 15 minutes before I need to be up so I can hit the snooze button once if needed. I have issues with organization and time, so I actually have every clock in my place set wrong/in advance so that I'm never sure of the time, but am vaguely aware that I got maybe an extra 5 minutes.

Don't be afraid to try things out because what works is different for everyone. Be patient with yourself and good luck.

[sunshinefan]

Good luck on your new job. Try meditating when you wake up. I have found that to help.

[Astro_potato]

This is something I actually have experience with! My day starts at 0345am, and I too struggle with anxiety when I first wake up. The weight of everything I have to do for the day, work, meetings, responsibilities at home, they all come crashing down like an anvil on my head and send me into a panic. My tummy starts hurting before I know what's happening. I try to get up as quickly as I can and not give myself any time to start thinking. I have a morning playlist I immediately put on (much to my husband's dismay) that is peppy.

I also take my medicine first thing - I try to trick my brain into thinking, 'there, you've taken your anxiety medications, you are now protected from anxiety'. Sounds really dumb, but it helps me.

I also have about an hour commute, and I try to listen to a funny podcast, something that distracts me from just sitting there for an hour, thinking, and working myself up into a panic over the day ahead.

So - peppy music, medication, funny podcasts. Those are the tools in my "morning panic attack" tool kit. Don't be afraid to try different things to see what works for you; I hope you find something that works for you. And remember, you are always stronger than you realize ❤️