Mindfully Awake

Hey dear friend,

Thank you so much for opening this letter! I hope you’re doing well!

I’m curious, do you have any morning rituals that you absolutely love–daily morning practices that feel so good and nourishing in your body?

The practices we explore in the morning can really set the tone for the entire day.

In fact, our first conscious thought upon waking has the capacity to create real physiological changes in the body, such as changes in heart rate, blood pressure, hormone levels, muscular tension, and breathing patterns. These initial thoughts can influence our mood, energy levels, and emotional well-being.

This truly speaks to the mindbody connection, where our thoughts can stir up feelings and emotions, which can then create physical sensations in the body. Simply put, where attention goes, energy flows.

With this in mind, I invite you to tune into your inner dialogue as soon as you wake up. Listen to it with compassionate curiosity. Explore being an observer of the thoughts. Remember, these thoughts are separate from you. Then, when it feels good, take a moment to ground yourself in the present by focusing on the sensation of your breath.

When I’m consciously exploring my inner dialogue, I like to imagine the thoughts as clouds drifting across a blue sky. I’m simply sitting on a grassy hill, watching the thought clouds move by, without attachment to them. I remind myself that the thoughts are neither ‘good’ nor ‘bad,’ they’re just interesting to look at.

If you choose to explore this practice, take note of what comes up for you. You might wish to journal about your experience. Feel free to try this practice for a week or so, and see if you notice any patterns in your thoughts. The invitation is to approach what you observe with curiosity and interest, as this is a beautiful way to deepen both your understanding and your relationship with yourself.

Another powerful way to connect with your inner dialogue is by journaling as soon as you wake up, before even getting out of bed. The invitation is to write two to three pages worth of thoughts that naturally come to the surface. This act of putting your thoughts on paper and getting them out of your head can feel incredibly freeing. This is a judgement-free practice. If you misspell something or the sentences don’t make sense, that’s okay–it’s for your eyes only. Write whatever comes to your mind, and then notice how you feel afterward.

Dedicating some time each morning to explore your inner dialogue can be a wonderful way to connect with and nurture your inner world, setting a positive tone for the rest of your day.

Morning rituals serve as a wonderful opportunity to check in with how you’re feeling and to notice what’s present in the moment. They help cultivate presence, while bringing a sense of calm, grounding, peace, focus, clarity, empowerment, and balance to both mind and body.

Here are some other morning practices that you can explore that connect with somatic principles:

1) Listen to music

Spend a few minutes listening to music that resonates with you, with your eyes closed or gaze softened. Notice what feelings, images, words, or emotions surface as you listen to your chosen music. Notice if you feel the urge to move with the music, and if it feels good, go ahead and honor that urge to move. The music you choose doesn’t have to be the same each day–your needs may shift from one day to the next.

If you’re seeking inspirational music, I highly recommend Fearless Soul. You can find their music on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music. I recently discovered their music, and it immediately spoke to my heart. The lyrics are deeply uplifting, impactful, encouraging, and full of wisdom and emotion.

2) Take a morning stroll and engage your senses

As you walk, explore the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique to engage your senses.

Along your journey, name 5 things you see, noting their colors, shapes, and textures. Then, tune into 4 sounds around you. Next, identify 3 things you can feel–like the breeze on your face, the warmth of the sun on your skin, or the sturdy ground beneath your feet. After that, take note of 2 scents, like flowers, rain, or freshly mowed grass. Lastly, explore 1 thing you can taste. This one might require some creative thinking. I like to imagine myself savoring my favorite snack and connecting with the flavors.

3) Affirmations

Affirmations are positive and helpful statements that can be thought internally, spoken aloud, or written down. When I explore affirmations, I consider the qualities I would like to feel, nurture, and embody. For example, “I am love,” “I am worthy,” and “I am peace.” As you repeat these affirmations, connect with your body, noticing how these words feel in your body. What feelings, emotions, beliefs, or images surface for you?

I personally prefer to repeat affirmations out loud as it allows me to experiment with tone, volume, and pacing. These variations influence how the affirmations feel in my body.

Feel free to say your affirmations in front of a mirror. It may feel uncomfortable at first, but with time and practice, it’ll start to feel more natural.

As you connect with loving and compassionate affirmations on a daily basis, you might notice that this language naturally flows into your day, even during moments of stress. Your inner dialogue may begin to sound like comforting and supportive words you’d offer to a loved one going through a difficult time.

4) Gratitude body scan

For this practice, you can either lie down or explore a comfortable seat of your choosing.

With your eyes closed or your gaze softened, bring to mind one thing you feel grateful for. For example, “I feel grateful for the light and warmth of the sun.”

Continue to focus on what you feel grateful for as you begin to gently scan your body from your toes to your head.

Notice where you feel gratitude in your body, and as you do, observe whether any physical feelings, emotions, images, or colors arise.

You can gently guide your breath into the sensation of gratitude. As you breathe into this sensation, observe whether this sensation remains in the same place, expands, or shifts to another part of the body. If it moves, feel free to follow it. You can explore this practice for as long as it feels good.

A gratitude body scan is a beautiful way to connect with your inner landscape and align with the energetic vibration of gratitude first thing in the morning.

5) Visualization practice

A visualization practice that can be soothing first thing in the morning is one where you connect with a healing light, or a light that is connected with whatever quality you’d like to invite in and nurture.

With your gaze softened or eyes closed, you can imagine that there’s a soft, warm light just above your head, radiating the energy you would like to call in.

Visualize breathing in this light, inviting this light to slowly reach every part of your body, and as you breathe out, you can visualize the release of anything that isn’t serving you at the present moment.

With every inhalation, visualize this light expanding and glowing, and with every exhale, release what no longer serves.

Once your entire body is filled with this light, notice how it feels, staying with this visualization practice for as long as it feels good.

Observe how you feel following this practice. This light is something that you can call upon at any point throughout your day.

6) Movement practice

Movement is medicine. A daily mindful movement practice first thing in the morning is a lovely way to connect with your body. While there’s no goal to achieve or anything to master in somatic practices, moving the body helps release stagnant energy. This energy is often tied to emotions that show up in the body as physical sensations, such as tension.

I invite you to explore movement practices that feel good and nourishing to you. Examples of somatic movement practices include: yoga, dance, shake and release, authentic/organic movement, Feldenkrais Method, tai chi, walking meditation, and more. You might choose the same movement practice every morning, or switch it up depending on what your body is asking for that day.

If it feels right, you might choose one idea from this list and incorporate it into your daily morning routine. See how it resonates with you. If you find that it’s not serving you, then feel free to explore another option! It can take some trial and error to find what works best for you. 🙂

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If you’re looking to bring some mindful movement into your daily morning routine, consider saving or bookmarking today’s practice. This short and sweet practice is designed to gently warm up the joints while easing stiffness and muscular tension.

Wake up your mind and body with this morning yoga practice. Kindly click on the image or the button below, and I’ll meet you there!!

Update:

I've decided to take the month of April off, so there won't be any new content coming your way next month. That said, I've put together a calendar of past classes centered around the theme of grounding, which you can follow at a pace that feels right for you.

April Calendar: https://www.yogawithrachelmarie.com/calendar​

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter!

Have a beautiful day!

With love and gratitude,

~ Rachel